Power as central theme, HP for children?

[MissMalfoy at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 22364


> 
> Sorry to disagree, but the central theme of the books is POWER and 
> how to deal with it. If anyone took it upon hm/herself to count the 
> adjectives and the frequency of their use, I think what would 
clearly 
> result as the most frequent would be "powerful". It's all about how 
> power is used by different prsons in different ways (and that's 
what 
> I like about the books). Being good or evil mostly depends on how 
you 
> use the amount of power you've got: For hurting and humiliating 
> others or to help them.
> 
> 
> 
> I feel a bit out of discussion as I personally don't have children, 
> but any way, here's my thoughts about it:
> Having grown up in  Central europe, I was fed Grimm's, Hauff's, 
> Bechsteins's, Andersen's etc. fairy tales and I loved them. I was 
> never scared, not even by the bad queen hanving to dance in red-hot 
> shoes until she dies or by any other scene of "horror", because I 
> didn't have any picture to associate them with. The children of 
> parents of my generation (I'm 37) are provided with plenty of 
> possibilities of association, which requires a lot of preparation 
by 
> their parents, e.g. for the scene where Peter begs for his life or 
> for the trials Harrry sees in the pensieve. Furthermore, I parted 
> from the (maybe wrong) apriori that what makes me shake would truly 
> shock a child.
> For me, PS adn Cos have always been books you might read to or make 
> read your children without any problem, PoA and (even more) Gof for 
> me are clearly bookslabelled "over 15".
> 
> Susanna

I agree with your sentiments on power. I think that power is a main 
theme of the book, but I think good vs. evil plays a big roll.

I also think in the states the Harry Potter market targets children. 
I myself adore the books, and this list wouldn't be possible if grown 
ups all over the world didn't love Harry Potter. I'm saying that the 
books are almost advertized as childrens books, and a lot of children 
DO read them.

Belle