[HPforGrownups] Oz, Narnia and JKR (was Guide to children's literature and HP)

[Dave Hardenbrook]

No: HPFGUIDX 22840

At 04:46 AM 7/21/01 -0700, Magda Grantwich wrote:
> > Here Miller reveals that L. Frank Baum's motivation in writing the
> > Oz series was to create a modern fairy tale where anything remotely
> > moral or scary for children has been removed.
>
>And for what it's worth, I always thought the Oz books were very
>boring when I was a child.

Speaking as the Moderator of Yahoo!Groups largest Oz forum,
I'll state my opinion that what shackles the Oz universe is the
insistence that it remain childishly innocent, plus the insistence
that nothing ever actually happen except to bring things full circle.
If Hogwarts was in the "Oz canon", Harry, Ron and Hermione
would be doomed to remain as the 11-year-olds they are in PS/SS
forever, Voldemort would go around ranting and twirling his
moustache but never provide any real threat or dramatic tension, and
Dumbledore would *never* be allowed to embark on the "The Next
Great Adventure".  Also, Fleur, Krum, and Cho would be banned from
Oz altogether, as they represent love/sexual interests for the main
characters, and Oz is understood to maintain a prohibition on hormones.

The result is that the "Canonical" Oz books, while wonderfully imaginative,
are not exactly what one would consider "Potter material" as far
as plot and characterization.

Now, this is only Oz as it stands.  There *is* a new generation of
authors (not to mention myself) who seek to revitalize Oz and
write more progressive, exciting, and "Potteresque" Oz adventures.
We've long been working against the Mountain Troll that is the
"beloved status quo"-defending Oz establishment, but the new Oz
books that are now starting to appear I hope will serve as a
"Winglardium Levosia" to clear the path for us to create a new Oz,
with the potential to become at least one-quarter as well-loved as Harry.



                         -- Dave