unicorns and religious references in HP (was checking out the library book

[pippin_999]

--- In the_old_crowd at yahoogroups.com, "Neil Ward" <neilward at d...>
wrote:

> The second point tracks back to the discussion on the force in the 
room. In that debate, I've been pulled in different directions. I'm 
not sure I would recognise themes that seem immediately Christian
in  tone to others (unicorns?), but the exchanges between Pippin, 
Olivier and Neri have convinced me that JKR intends some direct 
relevance to Christian beliefs in the story and that this is key to 
its direction.  That said, like Neri, I imagine my own perception
of  the themes would be as moral/humanistic, particularly if they
deal 
 with things that are not exclusively Christian.  
> 
> I just wanted to add that I loved Mike's analysis of the
motivations  of fantasy writers.  I was wondering if Diana Wynne 
Jones would fit Goat's Law, but that needs some more thought... 

Pippin:
Ah,yes. What I was thinking, before I followed Kneasy's smoldering
torch into the history of the Middle Ages, was that maybe the locked
room is empty until someone enters it. What you find  inside the
locked room is what you bring with you. And that faith is 
the key. It's been said (can't remember by who) that the theme of
modern fantasy is, "Believe in yourself, then believe in something
larger than yourself."

Pertaining to Goat's Law, when  monsters and devils are 
depicted as part of what Tolkien called primary 
reality, it would make sense that a fictional hero would need to
perform rituals which are also part of primary reality to deal 
with them. How those rituals are identified and whether they
work or not will tell us something about the author's attitude
toward religion.

IIRC, Screwtape's mentor is quite dismayed to find
that the human has become a Christian and is attending church,
while in Pullman the church must be rejected. (Reading Pullman,
it's clear to me that the God he doesn't believe in is the 
Christian one. I feel like I'm watching a little boy teepee the
cranky neighbors' house. On the one hand, you suspect they
have it coming, OTOH, you might be next.)

 But when the monsters and devils are clearly part of a secondary
reality, as in Tolkien or Narnia, the recounting of the
monster-slaying is itself  a symbolic act, and doesn't need to be 
embroidered with further ritual. 

So while Tolkien's heroes do have a religion of sorts,
(the hymns to Elbereth, the Standing Silence, the Hobbits' invocations
to her in times of need) their acceptance of this religion is not a
step they need to take in order to defeat the monster.  Similarly
in Narnia, while people are always declaring their faith in Aslan, the
believer who always honored Tash as the source of love and mercy
is equally saved.

Voldemort is depicted as part of primary reality, and we're told
his actions are going to have effect in the Muggle world, so I suspect
the key to defeating him will be depicted as part of primary 
reality also. Does that make sense?

Pippin