Harry Potter: More Than Just The Magic

            There are some movies that just stick with us, for reasons that are obvious and reasons that are unknown. Have you ever sat down to a movie you’ve seen a million times and realized you knew every single line before it’s even spoken? It’s that ingrained into your memory; you know it like the back of your hand, and if you’re like me, that’s exactly why you watch and re-watch and re-watch all of your favorite movies: so that you don’t forget a second.

            The current movie in question for me is Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s (Philosopher’s) Stone. I can remember watching it as a small child and immediately thinking, I want to be a wizard more than anything else. I wanted so desperately to be a part of that world; on my eleventh birthday I waited with an impossible hope that my Hogwarts letter would arrive via owl at my window, and I’d be whisked away to London. Unfortunately, that was obviously not the case, and much to my disappointment I continued to be educated on mathematics and English rather than charms and potions.

            As I grew older, however, the allure never dissipated. I still find myself as enraptured with the story as I had been as a child, and now I’m questioning why. Why is it so intriguing? Why do I squeal when I see a picture of my childhood hero (Daniel Radcliffe—or Dan Rad, as I love to call him) speaking out for homosexual or feminist rights? So I popped in the DVD…and practically revisited my entire childhood within one hundred and fifty two minutes. Throughout the entire film I found myself knowing each and every spell, as well as mouthing along with the lines: “You have dirt on your nose, by the way, did you know? Just there.” “She needs to sort out her priorities.” “You LIAR.” Etc.

            It is because I grew up around the movies as well as the books, so it’s familiar like an old friend? Maybe because I simply like the characters, or the fantasy universe? But the more I inspect the movie, it’s got quite a bit of underlying elements included in the plot as well. For one, it deals with child abuse, and how very rarely is it ever recognized or dealt with. Harry is repeatedly abused and neglected by his aunt and uncle after becoming an orphan, and nothing is ever said by any other characters, and he ends up dealing with it until he is seventeen years old. Hogwarts is like a safe haven to Harry, and you can’t help but empathize with the struggles that he deals with.

            The movie also addresses how it feels to stand out from your peers. Harry is an outsider, famous because of something he doesn’t remember, and he also grew up outside of the wizard community. This makes him ignorant of many wizard customs, causing him to stand out even more. The movies deal with bullying— Neville is constantly bullied by Professor Snape, Harry because of his fame, Ron because of his lack of wealth, and Hermione because of her Muggle upbringing. Great prejudice is evident towards Muggle-borns (hating known to racists as “Mudbloods”), which motivates Lord Voldemort’s systematic and ruthless attempts at their extinction, as well as dominating non-magic folk. The series deals with a number of dark themes, that are explored and elaborated on throughout their adventures, and they contribute greatly towards the characters’ developments.

            There are many good themes throughout the stories as well, however. The eternal struggle between good and evil, and how good always prevails. Friendship, bravery, and love are dominant themes in the movies as well as the books, and is often inspires people to rebel against Voldemort’s rise to power. Ultimately, love and loyalty are the reason Harry Potter survives, and the reason his story is so compelling.

Harry is a great role model for kids to look up to—including my younger self. And now seeing articles and quotes about the actors standing up for basic human rights adds to that. Not only do they play inspiring characters, but they are inspiring people in real life as well. Statements like, “Realizing that other people have a problem with [homosexuality] was the weirdest thing for me. As a kid it wasn't even something that was mentioned. It was never something that was even explained to me. It was just, ‘That's Mark and he's gay.’ Mark was just another friend of my dad's who would talk about his boyfriend instead of his girlfriend. I was 5. I didn't care. It seemed perfectly normal, and still does..."(x) from Daniel are amazing. Emma Watson’s UN speech was equally marvelous, as well as the #heforshe tag on twitter that arose because of it.

I just adore the work that the actors have put into the movies; the fact that they have changed lives, and continue to change lives, astounds me, and I no longer wonder why I am so obsessed with the stories. The adventures are bigger than the antagonist and the protagonist; they point out the horrible and the wonderful events of life in a way that is also entertaining. I am proud to be a fan of something that is so phenomenal, and everlasting.