On growing and preparedness

[A.E.B.Bevan at open.ac.uk]

No: HPFGUIDX 22413

Well as I experience the books so far


Looking at the Canon, Jo Rowlings cryptic remarks, and the underlying 
themes of other fiction, Id like to suggest that the story of these 
books is `Growing Up'.

Growing up means learning that the world can be a pretty hard place 
as well as a good one.  

It means coming to terms with death sure but also life, and power. 
Not only fighting the power of others but also accepting 
responsibility for ones own actions, accepting  that each of us has 
some power in our own lives and can hurt as well as be beneficial to 
others. To live today so today has value.  

And that we may need to build up relationships with a wide variety of 
people some of whom have powers and skills we lack.

Learning the two essential fact about relationships and the morality 
of relationships. That it's great to get together and that
breaking up hurts.  The one thing we need to learn and do start 
learning in the sandpit at playschool through adolescent turmoils to 
full blown `Ships' with all rigging. There are no sudden
rules about `sex' when the question arises. Intimacy means
building up trust - and breaking  up and betrayal hurt not least 
because of the breaking of trust.

It means realising that at the end we are alone responsible for our 
own decisions and can't run to some other person or power to make it 
all right. 

So I think the books will be a story of growing up, and readers  (if 
they enter the series as children with PS)will have the chance to 
experience this growing up by reading through the books in
series– hopefully at their own pace.  Those others of us who had
to try to grow up without this story may find it helpful to look at 
the way it  happened and learn more for our future growth.

I am reminded of the Quaker expression for testimony or experience 
that is especially helpful. `That Spoke To My Condition'.
Each reader of this series will be able to take what `speaks to
their condition'.  I think its wonderful that we have a
storyteller like Jo who can bring in the light and fun and confusions 
of  childhood so we can recognise our world and enjoy part of the 
books at any age according to our condition. 

We will grow up with Harry I am sure. The Wizard world will also have 
to grow and not rely on a super hero to save it.  Hagrid has 
confidence in victory because Dumbledore is there.  Harry though will 
have to learn not to look to Dumbledore to sort things out.  He will 
have to learn to trust other imperfect people to stand with him on 
the things that really matter.

We in our half-magic world, with children and these books together, 
recreate the stories with these children to give them a safe place to 
tackle these themes.  So they can go out and face the world without 
us and our safe place. 

That is the ultimate gift we can give our children. That we all can 
go on with well prepared minds to the next stages of our different 
adventures. 

Dumbledore is doing the same as far as he can for Harry. At some 
point, if this is really a story of growing up and we are to see the 
significance of growing up in these books, Harry will have to face 
the great perils of his world with no possibility whatsoever of any 
outside rescue. Dumbledores death or at least the loss of his powers 
(or at least Harry believing absolutely in that death or loss of 
powers) seems an essential plot theme at some point


So yes they are childrens' books, real childrens' books with
respect and dignity for all conditions of readers, and wonder at the 
adventures  around us and in us.  Which of us is so confident to say 
we have finished growing, whatever our condition? And as for guidance 
in reading, we may get as much and more from the insights of our 
child age companions in this adventure as we think we are giving from 
our adult vantages.

I hope Jo keeps talking to children and not too much to the likes of 
us so that the freshness of the stories shines through the power of 
the themes to come. However powerful the themes we still have the fun 
of Neville misplacing his ears on a cactus. That fun is not to be 
lost. Its part of the intensity of life lived NOW that gives us the 
'preparedness of mind' we need.

Edis

(Fluvius in Hogwarts)