An Orthodox lecturer is arguing that Rowling’s Voldemort is the full realization of Dostoevsky’s Raskolnikov from Crime and Punishment. That seems a big stretch to me; there’s a ton of human left in Raskolnikov all through the book, in my opinion.
I made a very generalized thematic link between Crime and Punishment and Harry Potter [...]

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Back to the beginning; the beginning of the artistic process; new beginning for the website
This is a short episode crammed into a really heavy schedule for me. More, better episodes coming soon.
You can subscribe to the Hog’s Head PubCast through iTunes, and VOTE for The Hog’s Head for the month of February at Podcast [...]

 

 Hog's Head PubCast #45: Beginnings [17:27m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2089)

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by Johnny
This is several days old, but not covered here. MTV News broke the story about a new study that concludes that Harry Potter, big surprise, can be addictive:
They surveyed fans before the book’s release, upon completion of the book and six months afterwards as a follow-up. The 10 percent of respondents that Rudski considers [...]

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By Matthew
The Classic Tales Podcast! B.J. Harrison has recently uploaded his reading of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Joy of joys.
I was first exposed to this excellent work when a friend gave me a copy with illustrations by Gustave Doré. These pieces of art [...]

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Top 50 Children’s Books of All Time, according to a poll.  Here are the top 20:
1 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, C S Lewis
2 The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle
3 Famous Five series, Enid Blyton
4 Winnie the Pooh, AA Milne
5 The BFG, Roald Dahl
6 Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, J K [...]

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by Travis
Update:  This is why I have tech-elves.  I managed to crash all four of my websites trying to move material from here to a new domain.  Jon is helping me resolve the problem, but the move might be slightly delayed.  Regular posting and general SoG activity will continue here until we get all the [...]

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I avoid ’shipping here, but after the debates and disappoinments for Harry/Hermione ’shippers (of which I was not one), there is a touch of vindicating irony in this story.

a2a_linkname=”For Harry/Hermione ‘Shippers…”;
a2a_linkurl=”http://thehogshead.org/2008/02/20/for-harryhermione-shippers/”;

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by Dave
A standard literary trope is to set characters against each other, playing one’s personna in relationship to another. Typically, we find the “arch”-nemesis, especially in adventure or heroic stories. The main character is opposed by a primary antagonist, and the juxtaposition of these characters reveals something about one or both to the [...]

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UPDATE #2:  The problem was very, very simple.  I had forgotten to put Podcast #44 in the “podcasts” category.  It should be sent to iTunes forthwith. 
UPDATE:  The Hog’s Head PubCast will be moving to a new feed this week.  There will be no new episode until next week.  This might mean you need to resubscribe to the [...]

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by Travis
Facebook Users: We now have a Facebook group, “The Hog’s Head.” Feel free to join and invite others!***
I ran a quick Google search today to find Dr. Benjamin Barton’s quote on Harry Potter and libertarianism (something I’m writing about in Part Three of the book), and I was pleasantly surprised to find that [...]

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Tolkien and Rowling on death; Gandalf, Aragorn, Frodo death/resurrection; news and commentary
Update for iTunes subscribers:  I upgraded my podpress software, and in the process there was a bug that kept iTunes from learning there was a new podcast.  The bug should be fixed, and the podcast should be available through iTunes very soon.
You can subscribe [...]

 

 Hog's Head PubCast #44: Tolkien and Rowling on Death [20:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2151)

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Both of my proposals - “Hogwarts, A (Haunted) History” and “Christ in the Forest: Aslan and Harry Walk to Their Deaths” - have been accepted by the vetting committee as part of Portus’s daytime Formal Programming. The former presentation will examine the theme of fear - including Lovecraftian analysis - and how it is [...]

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by Travis
Rowling rarely mentions Tolkien, but I’ve found in the process of writing my book that she has far more in common with him than I had previously realized. Chalk it up to the Cauldron of Story (which is precisely what I do, actually….) In the recent interview for El Pais, translated (with [...]

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by Travis
Two quick items to bring to your attention:

John blogs about a new JKR interview.  Looks like a lot of great stuff here, and more on her religious views.  Blogengamot analysis to come soon.
HP Progs episode 68 is up.  I sent in a short audio clip about rule-breaking in the HP series.  You should listen [...]

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By Matthew
No.
Nothing has been confirmed about cast for the movie(s) but I thought we may have some fun before things are nailed down.
Time to cut loose and never mind the expense. Cast whomever you wish for the following roles.

a2a_linkname=”Casting The Hobbit”;
a2a_linkurl=”http://thehogshead.org/2008/02/10/casting-the-hobbit/”;

[...]

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