by Dave
Part I of this series: Why Joker Succeeds and Voldemort Fails
“Behind the scenes” is a trope of long standing tradition in many forms of literature. In a recent essay on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Terry W. Thompson argues that the violent deaths occur off the page as a direct result of Shelley’s love of classical [...]

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by Dave
Since Deathly Hallows release last year, I’ve been perpetually puzzled by Voldemort’s characterization in the last two novels. Half Blood Prince humanizes Voldemort in a way that lends HBP a sophistication most of the earlier novels lack — Voldemort’s backstory both enlightens and befuddles the reader, at once shedding light on his origins [...]

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by Travis
If you want to read a take on social justice issues in the series that is polar opposite of my own - but is a good read from the other point of view - Mary has a new essay up at her livejournal.  Mary finds Rowling terribly lacking in her portrayal of social justice [...]

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by Dave
Last Wednesday, I found out my paternal grandfather passed away at the age of 88 at 7:30 that morning. My memories of him are sparse and fuzzy — tied to some history before my parents split. I have an odd affliction with memory; nothing serious mind you, just a strange dividing line [...]

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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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by Dave
I’ve said before that Victorian Era novels (whether British or American) have always left me cold. It may be a failing on my part, but if you put passages from Thomas Hardy, George Eliot, Henry James, or the Brontes in front of me, I’d have a difficult time distinguishing between them. Dickens [...]

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by Dave
Travis’s earlier post concerning what we’ve been reading made me think about some purely hypothetical questions. My philosophy major side is creeping out a bit here. I’m not sure of the greater merit of such a question, but I started wondering how an archvillain like Voldemort might find his end in some [...]

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by Dave
If a reader drops Deathly Hallows on the ground in expectation of the book opening to the literal center of its story, she will more than likely find Chapter 21, “The Tale of the Three Brothers”. Presented as a children’s story of three brothers attempting to cheat Death, Beadle the Bard’s tale narrates [...]

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by Travis
I promised folks at Prophecy 2007 that I’d get this post up before the end of August. I apologize for the terrible delay. This is the content of my discussion at Prophecy 2007.
At Lumos 2006, and in his book Unlocking Harry Potter, John Granger enumerated the evidence that J.K. Rowling has written [...]

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by Dave]
The heart of the classical Hero type drives towards some sacrifice — either in a quest for glory sometimes doomed from the start, or on the behalf of something judged “the greater good”. Classical epic heroes struggle against their humanity, often goaded by the self realization of their partial divinity. They hope [...]

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by Dave
Harry’s credibility as a Christian symbol/figure fixed well and good within the Christian tradition marks most of the public discussion of HP in the wake of Deathly Hallows. I’m not nearly as well versed in theology and Christian thinking as Travis or Johnny, but I do teach a lot of Rhetoric/Composition for a [...]

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by Johnny
J.K. Rowling’s reference to “the Pardoner’s Tale” as the realworld myth or faerie tale basis for the articles known as the Deathly Hallows is interesting because of the obvious Christian references in Chaucer’s work, The Canterbury Tales. If the Pardoner’s Tale is a morality tale then the idea of JKR tapping into Chaucer implies [...]

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The Meaning of the Phoenix: Love’s Victory Over Death in Harry Potter
The transcript of this pubcast is also available.
Remember that you can subscribe through iTunes, and also that you can say nice things about me there. Search for “Hog’s Head PubCast.”
Update: I knew a few months ago when I read about Garuda and the [...]

 

 Hog's Head PubCast #33: The Meaning of the Phoenix [24:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1569)

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This essay is also available in audio form in PubCast #33.
From The Epic of Gilgamesh to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the question of death has been explored in the pages of literature, not least in mythological works. There is hardly a more universal human experience than death, and its chilling finality has caused [...]

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At Prophecy 2007, I argued that Rowling’s presentation of the growing arm of influence of the Ministry of Magic can be paralleled to Foucault’s concept of modern society as a Pantopticon. The Panopticon was Jeremy Bentham’s idea for a circular prison in which only one security guard could maintain surveillance over every prisoner at [...]

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