Just a question....

[pennstgrle]

No: HPFGUIDX 93771

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "djrfdh" <djrfdh at y...> wrote:

> I'm sure most of you have either read, or seen, Lord Of The 
> Rings...is it just me, or has anyone else noticed certain 
> similarities between that and Harry Potter? There are many things 
> that are related....take the scene where the goblins surround the 
> Fellowship in the Halls of Moriah...reminds me of Harry and Ron 
> surrounded by the spiders! Then, of course, there's also the giant 
> spider that Frodo and Sam face....(Harry and Ron again!)
> 
> I am,at present, going through both sets of books to see how many 
> things I can find that are related....
> 
> Gandalf protects Frodo....Dumbledore protects Harry....they are 
both 
> orphans and must find their own way in the world...."though they 
do 
> not know the way"....very interesting!


Jaimee:

And I don't know if Harry and Frodo are exactly the right parallel 
to make, especially with the coming of the prophecy.

Yes, they are both little, and with both looks are deceiving because 
they are very strong and can handle a lot. And both of them have 
parents that die and end up living with uncles. (Whoa...starting to 
see Star Wars parallels again, too!)

But I almost think the Harry Potter character reminds me more of 
Aragorn, especially because of the prophecy. Think about 
it...Aragorn is hidden away in Rivendale all of his life. His father 
is dead, and he knows nothing about his heritage or anything like 
that (like Harry). Then once he reaches manhood (nearing age 20 
according to the appedix, right?) he is told who he is and that it 
is probably up to him to lead the fight to save Middle Earth (Like 
what just happened to Harry in Book 6)! 

Also, Elrond is really Aragorns great-great-great-great-great-great-
great-great-great-(you get the picture) uncle and Gandalf,similar to 
Dumbledore, is organizing the whole fight against Evil and becomes 
very much a mentor to Aragorn.

I would ask if you think Harry is going to roam around in disguise 
for the next 40 years to learn about the earth and the nature of it 
inhabitants and battle strategies and what makes good leaders and 
such, but Harry could never do that. Why training for his duty was 
easier for Aragorn is the Dark Lord didn't know his 
identity....Sauron feared he was out there, but didn't know who he 
was. Voldemort definitely knows who Harry is--especially since Harry 
looks like his father and has the distinguishing characteristic of a 
big scar on his forehead.

Harry, to me, embodies many of the qualities I admire in many of the 
heroes in LOTR, and in many other hero epics. 

(And I would have to say that, now don't get mad at me, Harry 
reminds me more of Luke Skywalker than Frodo. (1) the support system 
of the trio with a few other here and there. (2)the way Harry is 
sort of thrown into battle before he is ready--even by fighting the 
troll in Book 1, reminds me of how Luke, with the help of Han, save 
Leia from the Death Star prison cell before Luke really knows what 
he's getting himself into. (3) And although Frodo is very brave, he 
really doesn't have...what do I want to call it...talent(?) in 
anything. Luke and Harry are both good flyers, and they hold their 
own in battle.)

But, although I see qualities in Harry typical of many epic-modeled 
heroes, the way JK presents Harry's qualities in combination with 
the world JK has created around Harry has placed him in good company 
at the top of my Favorite Heroes List. Every book has made me even 
more proud of him--PROUD! Like Harry's really my friend or brother 
or son or something!

Harry Rocks!

Jaimee ;)

PS. I wouldn't go so far to lump Sam and Ron together either. Yes, 
both are very loyal to and supportive of their respective friends, 
but Sam really does have servant tendencies Ron does not. And Sam, 
more like Harry, finds him self involved in a world that was more of 
a childhood story or fairytale to him. Ron grew up a wizard. And 
although I foresee Ron playing a huge part in helping and supporting 
Harry in what must be done for the greater good, I don't see Ron 
carrying--figuratively and/or physically--Harry like Sam has to 
carry Frodo. 

(For some reason, Sam and Aragorn are my favorite heroes in LOTR. 
Where Harry and Hermione hold that title for me in HP so far.

OK! I'm really done this time!) TTFN!