Is HP Magic Different across Cultures? (was Re: Diversity in Media)

[naamagatus]

No: HPFGUIDX 40736

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., Edblanning at a... wrote:

<snip>

>You see, I think 
that on the one level it is perfectly right and proper that Hogwarts 
should reflect the racial composition of Britain. As you say, it 
portrays a positive image for children of colour reading the books. 
And that is very important - all children should have positive images 
to which they can relate. On another level, I feel that it is 
implying an assumption that all races living in Britain should 
conform to the European magical tradition. (I know that JKR's 
> particular brand of magic is an invention of her own, but she 
> *portrays* it as a European tradition, doesn't she?) We don't 
assume that all races should follow European traditions of religion, 
dress, cultural customs, etc. So why magic? That, for me, is where 
there is just a hint of an uncomfortably false note of political 
correctness creeping in. I can imagine (and please correct and 
forgive me if I am wrong) that if I were a witch of African descent 
living in Britain, I should want to send my child to a school where 
>African witchcraft was taught, rather than to Hogwarts. 
> 

This is an interesting subject. As I see it, magic (within the logic 
of the Potterverse, of course) is quite different from religion, 
dress, cultural customs, etc. Magic is a practical thing. It is a 
that a person can either have or not have, but no matter in what 
community, it is the same kind of power. For instance, people run in 
the same way no matter where they were born. So, if you want to coach 
somebody in athletics, you apply the same methods, no matter what 
that person's cultural heritage is. 
A more fitting analogy may be engineering. It isn't really meaningful 
to talk of European engineering, Chinese engineering or Aztec 
engineering, is it? Engineering is the same all over the world, since 
it rests on objective forces and laws of nature. 
Magic as a cultural construct we have in the real world. In the 
Potterverse, magic is a real, objective force. Learning the rules and 
the various ways of using this force shouldn't differ between 
different cultures, then. 
At least, there may be local developments. Wizards from one community 
may find (or make?) spells that are not known in another community. 
Unlike cultural customs, however, those spells would work just as 
well in the other community (if practiced there). To return to the 
engineering analogy, it would be like an American engineer learning 
the specific methods involved in building a pagoda. 
Following on this, then, I'd say that parents wouldn't mind where 
their children learnt magic - so long as it's at a good school (in 
the same way that you wouldn't mind where your kid learns 
engineering, or biology, or physics, etc.).



Naama