Nel Question #9: Gender - Perfect Sense

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 127497


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "phoenixgod2000" <jmrazo at h...> 
wrote:
 
> > bboyminn:

> > These books are absolutely biased, there are distorted to a male
> > perspective, and are male-centeric [period, full stop, absolute 
end 
> of
> > sentence]. Yet, how could they be other than /male-centered/ when 
the
> > central point-of-view character is a male; further, a very young 
> male?
> 
> This I agree with.
>  
> > Instead of complaining that the books are male-centered, which of
> > course they well should be, people should be marveling, as I do, 
that
> > a female author could so thoroughly and accurately capture the
> > male-mind. Speaking as a former boy (current man), JKR got it
> > amazingly and wonderfully right.

phoenixgod2000:
> I would make the opposite arguement. To me it seems obvious that a 
> woman is writing this story. the whole thing smacks of stereotypes 
of 
> boyhood and boyish tendencies without any real understanding. I 
think 
> in a lot of ways the books are demeaning in their portrayal of teen 
> boys. Ron in particular seems a victim of this to me. I refuse to 
> believe that a boy with *five* older brothers could be so clueless 
> about the fairer sex while a bookish only child with few friends 
> possesses keen insight into the same pairings. It totally buys into 
> the sterotype that teen boys are immature and silly while girls are 
> somehow born with maturity and social wisdom. I work with kids 
their 
> age every day and I can tell you it just ain't true.  

Geoff:
Having taught teenagers for over 30 years, being still involved with 
boys' club work at my church and being male, I would disagree.

I have been married for nearly 34 years and am /still/ left clueless 
by my wife's take on events from time to time; the female mind just 
doesn't touch base with mine. :-)
 
I think that you are stereotyping if you think that every guy in his 
mid-teens is thinking of nothing but girls and sex. Some of those I 
see on a regular basis do spend a lot of time texting various ladies 
or receiving texts but others are into computer games and games 
consoles, or arguing over their favourite football teams or just 
fooling around. Others are more serious minded and thinking about 
schoolwork or more intellectual interests. Nope, the guys I see 
regularly are certainly present a very wide cross-section of patterns 
of behaviour. I commented long ago that I am often amazed at the 
ability Jo Rowling has to present a fairly accurate picture of 
teenage boys.

Another point to take on board is that Harry and his group are, in 
book terms, currently in the summer of 1996. Even in the real time 
which has elapsed since then, teenage behaviour has changed and moved 
on at a mind-boggling rate.