Harry, Ginny, and age appropriateness...

[Adam C. Pozek]

No: HPFGUIDX 136148

Del wrote:

"4. JKR knows she's writing, among other people, for young people who have an immature view of love and romance. That's why I expected her to *explain* what a happy and healthy relationship is, instead of assuming that all her readers would know.

JKR *knows* that way too many girls have an unhealthy interest in Draco for example. So she knows that many young girls  and boys)*cannot* be trusted to know what a healthy relationship is like. So her not explaining (in the book) *why* Ginny and Harry's romance is a good and healthy one is silly, a lost opportunity, and IMO even dangerous."

Sienna wrote:
"you raise some good points regarding the different ways in which adults and children respond to the text. However, much of the problem I have with H/G is for precisely this reason.

Children's literature, while useful in feeding young imaginations, also has a socialising role to play. It's an aspect of the genre that is difficult to come to terms with (as it suggests subtly manipulative subtext), but it is an utterly important one to acknowledge.

Within this context, the potrayal of relationships between boys and girls, and men and women, in the text comes with awesome responsibility."

And now for my (Adam's) comments:

I find the issue of JKR's responsibility as an author to be interesting.  I don't recall the source (I think it was the A&E Biography from 2003), but JKR acknowledged the criticism for the darkening, violent depictions in her stories.  She went on to say that she is writing these stories for herself and that she is not going to compromise her vision because someone might be offended.  IMO, the only possible responsibility an author has is to not
mislead readers about the content of his/her work.  Even then, I think this is more the responsibility of the publisher than the author.  I grow weary of blaming the creator of an artistic work, whether literature, music, painting, etc. for the negative impact that work might have on children.  It is squarely the responsibility of parents to monitor the sources of their children's entertainment.  Parents should not be leaving kids to read and
interpret anything on their own without the appropriate guidance.  If a child's morality or determination of the appropriateness of a relationship is based on the Harry Potter books, that child and his or her parents have a much larger problem.  Besides, if we're going to discuss the effects of pop culture on child development, I can think of cartoons that depict a much more warped view of interpersonal relationships.  Why should JKR be slammed for showing a romantic relationship between 2 teenagers?  Harry was always
respectful of Ginny.  There is no mention of him forcing himself on her or doing anything inappropriate.  Despite what any of us thinks about whether the ship should/should not have been more fully developed in text, I simply do not see anything unhealthy about the depiction.  Maybe what some imagine is going behind the scenes is unhealthy, but I do not see how someone's imagination is the fault of the author.
  

Adam C. Pozek

Alpharetta, GA, USA

adam at adampozek.com

www.adampozek.com