Book 1 question - Wizard World at Large

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 84462

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, kewiromeo at a... wrote:
> I am taking a Litterature for children class and the teacher has us 
> read SS. Now, as we have all read the book a million times I feel we
> are the experts. My teacher tells us, "I only read the book for this
> class, and I only read the first book." Would you want your children
> having a teacher like this? ...edited...
> 

bboy_mn:

I'm not sure what the conflict is here. A book was selected for this
teacher's Children's Liturature class. She read the book before the
class began, so she knows what the book is about. Does that make her
an expert in that one book? No. But her class isn't 'Harry Potter and
the Sorcer's Stone', it's Childrens Liturature. She doesn't have to be
an expert in that one book, but as a teacher, she has to be
functionally knowledgable with regard to how HP*theSS fits into the
genre of children's literature.


> Tzvi:
>
> At what point does Harry enter the magical wold? My teacher seems to
> think that it was when he steps onto the platform 9 3/4. I wrote ...
> that Harry's crossing of the threshold ... of ... Diagon Alley. ...
> stupid sorority girl yelled at me when I suggested this and said, "I
> read all the books, and I know what I'm talking about." Maybe 
> there are some people that shouldn't read the book.
> 
> Tzvi of Brooklyn

bboy_mn:

It's impossible to get the right answer unless you ask the right
question. When did Harry ENTER the wizard world? Answer; on the day he
was born. A better question; when did Harry RE-enter the wizard world?
 In this case, I would say he re-entered the wizard world when he set
foot into the Leaky Cauldron. By entering that establishment that is
simultaneouly right in front of muggle eyes, and yet hidden from them,
when he step into a room full of wizards, witches, warlock, hags, and
giants, he for the first time in nearly 10 year RE-entered the wizard
world, and his presents in that world was acknowledge by members of
that secret society.

Regarding the 'stupid sorority girl' remark; I assume she was stupid
because she was so absolutely certain of her own infallibility of
opinion, that she was incapable of enter into even the most basic
dialog about the other possiblities, rather than the fact that she was
indeed a 'sorority girl'.

If that is the case, then I would tend to agree with you.

Regarding your opinon that Harry RE-entering the wizard world was when
he entered Diagon Alley, I will agree that that opinion does have
merit. I personally, as stated above, believe it was when he entered
the Leaky Cauldron, but one could say that the Leaky Cauldron is but a
small isolated segment of the wizard's community, but when he entered
Diagon Alley, he truly entered the wizard world's full social order
and structure; not a microcosm, but the wizard world at large. 

There is room for other opinions on this matter. I'm sure some will
say it is when he entered Hogwarts. In my opinion, Platform 9-3/4 is
probably the least significant of all his first few steps into the
wizard world. However, if you combine Platform 9-3/4, the train ride,
and his arrive and stay at Hogwarts as a single event, that lends
greater credibility to this opinion, because with his arrive at
Hogwarts he is permanently (or at least for 10 months of school) an
active participating member of wizard society; he lives, eats, sleeps,
resides, and studies in the wizard world. One could say that that is
when he became a part of it again, rather than earlier entrances into
the secret society which were very short and temporary.

Opinions are like noses, everybody gets one.

Just a thought.

bboy_mn