[HPforGrownups] Re: The Role of Religion in the Potterverse

[No Limberger]

No: HPFGUIDX 186236

>Carol wrote:
>At any rate, any reader who associates Harry with a messianic
>figure will, I think, specifically associate him with Christ,
>which takes us back to "Christ figure."

No.Limberger responds:
A Jewish reader won't associate Harry Potter with the
Christian Christ.

IMO, the most accurate description of what Harry as
a literary figure is that of the "hero" archetype.  This is a
common literary archetype.  All stories consist of a few
common structural elements.  They exist universally in
novels, myths, fairy tales, movies, etc.  Collectively,
they are simply "The Hero's Journey" or "monomyth".
This was first described by Joseph Campbell and
later by Christopher Vogler and others.  It is simply this:
1. A hero(es) is introduced in the ordinary world.
2. He/she (they) receives a call to adventure.
3. He/she (they) may be reluctant at first or refuse the
call, but is encouraged by a mentor to cross the first
threshold into the "special world" where he/she (they)
encounters tests,allies and enemies.
4. They cross a second threshold where he/she (they)
endures an ordeal and takes possession of his/her (their)
reward and is pursued on the path back to the ordinary
world
5. He/she (they) cross the third threshold and experience
a resurrection and are transformed by the experience.
6. He/she (they) returns to the ordinary world with
something that benefits the ordinary world.

References:
1. "The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structures for Writers,
Third Edition" by Christopher Vogler, page 19.
2. http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monomyth
4. http://orias.berkeley.edu/hero/
5. http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~sparks/sffilm/mmswtab.html

Not only does this describe the Christian stories of
Jesus, it matches the stories of Harry Potter and
countless other mythic heroes & heroines.  It's the story
of "The Hobbit", "Lord of the Rings", "Star Wars",
"The Odyssey", "The Iliad", Buddha, Indiana Jones,
"The Wizard of Oz", Abraham, Moses, etc.  Sometimes
elements are repeated, such as Harry Potter who
has multiple ordeals, but so did Hercules, Luke
Sykwalker, Frodo Baggins, etc.

Thus, Harry Potter can be compared to Christ, but
he can be compared to many other literary,
mythic & religious heroes, many of which predate
Christ.  The identifying lightning bolt scar on Harry's
forehead can be explained by Joseph Campbell who
wrote this in 1949: "The thunderbolt (vajra) is one
of the major symbols of Buddhist iconography,
signifying the spiritual power of Buddhahood...
In the figures of the gods that have come down
from ancient Mesopotamia...the thunderbolt, in
the same form as the vajra, is a conspicuous
element; from these it was inherited by Zeus."
(Joseph Campbell, "The Hero With a Thousand
Faces", pages 87-88.)  Additional reference:
definition of vajra: http://www.reference.com/browse/vajra.

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