Harry's reading and fiction within fiction

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 162135


In message 162124, Lynda wrote:
> I still tend to think that the reason Harry isn't a reader of fiction (and
> this is ok) is because he didn't grow up in a family of readers. And that's
> fine. Not everyone is.

Geoff:
There is possibly another point to be considered. After `Philosopher's 
Stone' was published in the UK getting towards ten years ago, the book 
was held in a great deal of favour by teachers and workers with young 
people because it got the BOYS reading. there has been a lot of concern 
in recent years over the lack of conection between many boys and reading 
and, inevitably, there have been various governmental initiatives towards 
addressing this. It is not a new problem. 

Back when I was in my teens, I was considered a swot because I read a lot 
– including fiction. I discovered LOTR when I was about 16, not long after 
its publication and, aside from this,  I would often have my nose in a book, 
either fiction of non-fiction for that matter.

Even today, many lads I know, even intelligent ones, do not like sitting 
down to read. Looking information they need, yes, but a story? Maybe, 
maybe not. Alhough Harry's books have changed that perception a little, 
they would far sooner be doing something active - Computer games, 
sports, hanging out with friends – or perhaps watching TV which requires 
less effort than concentrating on the printed page.

In that sense, Harry is not unique. Living in the Muggle world as he was 
at that time, he was a child of his time.

=====

In message 162100, Neri wrote:
> Since you mention Star Wars, has anybody noticed that Harry lives in
> the Nineties and he appears to never have heard of Star Wars? He
> hears about evil wizards "going to the Dark Side" and he never
> thinks "hey, this is like Star Wars". Harry not only doesn't read
> fiction, he also never goes to the movies, he never watches
> television (except for the news), he never watches video and he never
> plays computer games. All the things that Dudley does without being
> the great intellectual and imaginative type.

Geoff:
An interesting question here would be, where has the opportunity been 
created for Harry to mention `Star Wars'. Let's look at some information 
in Book 1:

`He (Dudley) was just ripping the paper off a gold wristwatch when Aunt 
Petunia came back from the telephone, looking both angry and worried.
"Bad news, Vernon," she said. "Mrs. Figg's broken her leg. She can't take 
him." She jerked her head in Harry's direction.

Dudley's mouth fell open in horror but Harry's heart gave a leap.. Every 
year on Dudley's birthday his parents took him and a friend out for the 
day, to adventure parks, hamburger bars or the cinema. every year, Harry 
was left behind with Mrs. Figg


~~~

"Now what?" said Aunt Petunia, looking furiously at Harry as though he 
had planned this
..

~~~

"We could phone Marge," Uncle Vernon suggested.

"Don't be silly, Vernon, she hates the boy."

The Dursleys often spoke about Harry like this, as though he wasn't 
there -  or rather, as though he was something very nasty that couldn't 
understand them, like a slug.

"What about what's-her-name, you friend – Yvonne?"

"On holiday in Majorca," snapped Aunt Petunia.

"You could just leave me here," Harry out in hopefully (he'd be able to 
watch what he wanted on television for a change and maybe even have 
a go on Dudley's computer.'

(Philosopher's Stone, "The Vanishing Glass" from pp.21-22 UK edition)

Now, from this it is blindingly obvious that Harry doesn't get taken out –
 especially to the cinema; he doesn't get to see any TV programmes he 
would like to and he doesn't get near a computer, except perhaps at 
school, although, speaking as a retired computer teacher, at that time 
computers were not so widely available in Junior schools (7-11 years old, 
years 3-6 in the structure in Harry's area).

It is also unlikely that he picked up anything from his peer group 
because he was isolated. A rather sad little paragraph in PS comments:

`At school, Harry had no one. Everybody knew that Dudley's gang hated 
that odd Harry Potter in his baggy old clothes and broken glasses and 
nobody liked to disagree with Dudley's gang.'
(Philosopher's Stone, "The Vanishing Glass" p.27 UK edition)

That, to me, says it all.

=====

Betsy Hp wrote in post 162099:
> I'm not a Tolkien expert, but didn't the characters all go for those
> long epic poem type things that were big in the Western world before
> novels were born? Poems and songs of love and war, etc? I would
> equate such an interest with being a "reader".

Geoff:
I think it is difficult to draw parallels here. LOTR is set in a long-ago 
world where I suspect most books were books of lore or history. There 
was no printing so the idea of a book for everyone to read would be alien, 
as in real world mediaeval times. There is obviously an oral tradition 
because the hobbits sing songs and probably make them up. But the epic 
poem type of literature which you mention is usually based on the history 
of Middle-Earth. 

Just to give a couple of examples. Sam, surprisingly, begins to quote: 
`Gil-galad was an Elven-king
', which he had learned from Bilbo, as 
they are resting on the approach to Weathertop and soon afterwards, 
Aragorn (still Strider to the hobbits) chants part of the story of Beren 
and Tinúviel: `The leaves were long, the grass was green, the 
hemlock-umbels tall and fair...' just before the Nazgûl attack. (both in 
FOTR Chapter 11 `A Knife in the Dark'). And even attempts by the 
characters to produce new poetry finds it based on the history of their 
world. Bilbo's poem at Rivendell: `Eärendil was a mariner
' is not fiction. 
Hence, fiction within the world of Tolkien and also the reading of fiction 
within that world would appear to be almost non-existent.