Lessons from Harry Potter

Now wait a minute. No serious thinker would read Harry Potter, much less waste time finding the meaning of it all. I myself disparaged those who spend hours analyzing these books as wasting time on something that doesn't matter. I was different (I thought) because I was just reading for pleasure. Taking a Sunday stroll, so to speak. I'm not going to go back and edit the post where I made that comment because I want you to know that I'm an idiot. But hey, you're reading this! Ha ha. Here’s the thing- I was first introduced to “thinking about things” as a kid in church. Then I was introduced to some very different ways of thinking through books I read, movies I watched or music I listened to. I’ve come to believe that each person learns lessons from this big lab experiment called life. These lessons are collectively called “wisdom.” Wisdom is very personally applicable, but maybe someone else in a similar situation could apply it too. And in the great grand scheme of things, the lessons learned may not always be the “right” ones. So finding the right bits of wisdom is the real trick.

It’s not everyone’s forte to be a teacher or just pass wisdom on to the grandkids. Some people choose to do it through “art.” So if you look carefully, you can discern what wisdom the author has collected. That wisdom is no less valuable because it’s imparted through a work of fiction rather than from a university podium or through a philosophical treatise. Thus the "culture contradiction." Often counterculture messages are hiding in plain sight within the cultural media. You have a heavily marketed commodity bearing a counterculture message. In the immortal words of Hank Stone, "Neat!"

So I have concluded that JK Rowling is a pretty smart lady. First you have the complexity of it all. Her ability to carry threads through seven books that all lead to the conclusion is very admirable. But I was also able to pick out some wisdom that I’ve either personally experienced, or am reading in the works of others like Daniel Quinn. Given the size of the audience, I’m pretty glad that there are some good messages here. Oddly enough, some of these lessons are the source of many reader complaints. These people must like their fantasy just that, and not at all like real life. Here are some “lessons” from Harry Potter, in no particular order:

* Some things you just have to learn the hard way. Sure, somebody could just tell you everything but you either won’t take it to heart, won’t believe them or it won’t resound as deeply within you unless you go through the agony yourself.

* Sometimes your bad experiences are good things (although they don’t seem like it at the time) because you acquire strength or skills that you may need later on. So avoiding difficult or painful experiences is not the ideal thing to do.

* Harry is not the sole “hero.” Just like in Tolkein, the hero had shortfalls that were made up for in the rest of the group. The unique talents or gifts of many others (bravery, knowledge etc.) were required to achieve the “good” outcome. Others sacrificed and suffered equivalent or worse losses; or gave their lives as willingly for friends or a good cause. And some negative events were required to achieve the “good” outcome.

* Many incidental “good deeds,” kindness toward “weaker” characters or mercy toward bad characters came back at the end. This all lent assistance to the achievement of the “good” outcome.

* No one is totally good or bad. There are varying mixtures of both in everyone. Some “bad” characters did good things in the end for a righteous reason like love of another. And the more we learn about some “good” characters, the more faults are uncovered. But recognition of these faults, and living in a way that accommodates them can still lead one to be a very “good” person.

* One critique I have heard is that God is totally absent from the world of Harry Potter. Obviously there is some sort of mysticism here that these wizards and witches harness, but it does not COME from them. Also, there is obviously a soul and an afterlife. The characters just do not interact with these things in a way one identifies as a religion- that any sort of worship is necessary; or that the rules about good and bad are sacred (as opposed to just being helpful guidelines). Too often, religion does the opposite of its supposed intent. It divides people. Even atheists make the mistake of blaming bad behavior on the religion rather than the person. People of a certain stripe will attempt to dominate and force their own way onto others. These people are so insecure that they cannot accept that there is more than one right way to live (Ishmael readers will recognize where I’m borrowing from). They must be certain that they are living the one right way. It doesn’t matter if the religion is cat worship. There is no one right way that works for everyone. It doesn’t matter what your religion is. Your ability to “live and let live” comes from you, not your religion.

* Building on that last point, Rowling obviously does not believe that there is one right way for people to live. One system of government or set of laws cannot be applied to all groups. And the more powerful (Wizards) are better off if they don’t dominate the less powerful (Muggles) because power corrupts. So Muggles follow Muggle laws, Wizards follow Wizard laws, Centaurs follow Centaur laws, etc. To another culture, the laws may seem nonsensical or even brutal. But if they work for that society, who are we to make them change? (Again, major overlap with Daniel Quinn’s work, maybe me reading too much into the intent but hey, it fits.) The thing is, you don’t pass judgment on those with a completely different background and life situation. And if all are allowed to live in their own fashion, there will be minor tribal conflicts. But that is to be expected, just like you can’t have a marriage completely free of arguments. You’re going to have much larger scale hostility on your hands if you try to make everyone subject to your law because it just won’t work for them.

* Finally, maybe it’s not the end of the world to die. This is one area where religion (or at least the hope of an afterlife) seems indispensable to me. Otherwise, it really would be the end of the world for you. Living in fear of death is pointless and even harmful. It’s where we’re all headed sooner or later. So enjoy it while you can without undue fear or anxiety over something you can’t change. Questing for immortality is the opposite of the way to happiness, because you are not rising above that fear or anxiety. And you’re only putting value on that which can easily be taken from you, so you’ll forever be insecure and terrified to lose it.