Do you think Harry Potter is bad?

[Fixxxer]

I wont read anything thats has a witch a wizard, anything magic in it or anything not real in it. I'm a super catholic

[uruviel]

that's a great plan, but fiction isn't all that bad either. When one commits to reading a fiction story, he's not nessacrily believing it or living a dream world, fiction isn't alwas just an escape from the real world, it's a beautfiful thing to write fiction, to explore the mind's imagination. Some of the most greatest works were fiction. (most greatest... hehe )

Edited December 20, 2005 by uruviel

[sarcasmguy126]

never read the books or seen the movies

[Guest Rick777]

I think if you like LOTR then youll like HP, they both involve magic of some sort

[sraf]

No, it's not the same. If you like LotR you will probably understand or tolerate HP better or you may be just more used to what magic in fiction entails, but I've met some people who love LotR but can't stand HP, or vice-versa. I myself love the HP books but cannot stay awake through LotR. Or Gregory Maguire's Wicked, for that matter, nor do I like some other books that use magic. But I do acknowledge the use of magic in these stories and may applaud some original ideas by the author. But magic isn't the real reason why I read the stories. It's the characters and story and writing - and frankly, the books on my mind that had magical elements but did not have good characters, story, or writing, were not good and I couldn't stand them.
Conversely, the musical version of Wicked, which I adore, has magic in it, but magic isn't what the story's about, despite the fact that four major players in the story are witches. The musical is about the relationship between the two main witches and how they change each other. I'm smiling just typing about this - the two wonderful characters of the musical and their interactions. Sure, magic is the device used to propel the drama along, but seriously, there's only two songs in the whole eighteen-song repetoire that have to do with magic, and those are really more about the character's internal revelations than fancy spell casting and "eleka nahem nahem ah tum ah tum eleka nahem." I love it.
Seriously... magic isn't what makes a story good or bad. Or likeable or unlikeable to certain people. Getting back to the point, which I meandered away from...

Oh yeah, and [b]Fixxxer[/b] - may I reccommend Jean Renoir's biography of his father, Pierre-Auguste Renoir - "Renoir, My Father" ? It's totally non-fiction and a fascinating read.

[uruviel]

You cannot say what people will like, it's not logical to debate about what people will like, it's a matter of taste, opinoin and perception. I appreciate LOTR more than HP, I dont like HP all that much but that's my opnion. See we can only say what our opnions are, and you can't say, I think ppl will like this if they like this, or whatever. You can't say.

[Fixxxer]

[quote name='sraf' date='Jan 1 2006, 03:08 AM']
Oh yeah, and [b]Fixxxer[/b] - may I reccommend Jean Renoir's biography of his father, Pierre-Auguste Renoir - "Renoir, My Father" ? It's totally non-fiction and a fascinating read.
[right][snapback]842387[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]

: i have read the books and seen the movies. i wouldnt have time to read that with all the books from my school to read

[Smile_Jesus_loves_you]

my opion is like thet of our pope,

not bad only misleading...

i like everything but harry, and of course not the bad guys, but harry is immature and i highly doubt he will change.... like thourghout the books he has gained no maturity at all!!!!

ok there you go.

Edited January 2, 2006 by Smile_Jesus_loves_you

[Smile_Jesus_loves_you]

[quote name='sraf' date='Jan 1 2006, 03:08 AM']No, it's not the same.  If you like LotR you will probably understand or tolerate HP better or you may be just more used to what magic in fiction entails, but I've met some people who love LotR but can't stand HP, or vice-versa.
[right][snapback]842387[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]

i can agree with you there because tolkien is know to be a better writer, though dry to some and he wrote books with true deep moral in them from a true deep moral point og veiw that i do not believe rowling has.

i'm sorry but he was a strong, solid catholic and there for i think him is a better writer, and has i better plot line hers is to typical...

[Smile_Jesus_loves_you]

[quote name='Fixxxer' date='Dec 18 2005, 10:15 PM']I wont read anything thats has a witch a wizard, anything magic in it or anything not real in it. I'm a super catholic
[right][snapback]830349[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]

i don't like how you stated that, i am one of the most catholic people i know and i love fantasy. it can be good, think of c.s. lewis and j.r.r. tolkien. i don't think it's fair to rule such things out.

[Diamond]

I'm a huge Harry Potter fan. Honestly, I don't know that many people against it. I'm not a Catholic myself, but my parent's best friend is a Catholic priest. I've talked with him about it and he doesn't think it's destructive, at least not in my case. I think Harry Potter appeals to the same wired-in complex that makes the story of Jesus so emotionally attractive to us. God gave us that so we could appreciate works that accentuate the rift between good and evil. Harry Potter may not be directly Christian (although if Dumbledore returns in any form, it very well could be) but it's excellent literature and still gives me that good vs. evil feeling.

I don't feel they're wrong in any way. Most detractors I've encountered are elderly and uninformed about the books. I've yet to encounter anyone who has read the books and thinks they're wrong.

[uruviel]

I can definitely agree with you, smile_Jesus_loves_you, I appreciate Tolkien much more, I think he had that insight, that moral virtue, and omg he was such a talented writter, he was an amazing artist, and I look up to him. I don not believe his writting is dry, he goes into SUCH detail, and beinga wirtter myself, know how hard it may be to have a full picture in your mind, and describe it the way Toikien does. He was so blessed, and Rowling has talent that's true, I don't think she meant any harm by writting them, but I don't like her insight on it all.
That is 100% true, Harry is VERY immature as I read them I was waiting for him to mature and it's just not happeneing. I always said I never liked harry, I always like Ron and Hermione. But thats how Rowling wants to display the characters. You would think that a boy with such expericnces as his own would have learned from his mistakes and matured, but Rowling didn't make it that way.
CS Lewis, the Chronicles of Narnia, those had the MOST meaning of Christ, such as the lion offering himself for not-innocnet beings, his rising back, was the resuraction, his fighting for us, was God's fight with us against the devil, or the white witch, Peter, was St. Peter. When the Lion left in the end, it is just linked to the Ascension. You see? This stories have insight and morals and links to Christ. I don't see that in Rowlings writtings, of course it has a sense of good and evil, and good conquers, but it's not like Lewis or Tolkien, do you get it?

[Diamond]

Of course it's not like Lewis or Tolkein. I LOVE the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Hobbit, The Chronicles of Narnia and C.S. Lewis' other writings. However, I think J.K. is just as great an author in her own right. The most amazing thing about her is the way she weaves these clues together. We've seen hints come to fruition so many times in her books. Wait for Book 7-I garuntee it will knock you over with several surprises that are all hinted at in the first 6 books. Everything you read from her is good on 2 different levels: as a story, and as something to really read intensely, attempting to draw hints from it.

As a huge fan of Tolkien and Lewis, those are my thoughts.

[uruviel]

Yes, she is very tallented, she has a great sense of knowing how to create personalities and idea's, and clues and hints, (personally, I think Harry will die in the end, Ron and Hermione might fall in love, idk, thats kinda perdictable) Anyways, we have already established that they are all tallented, but I still have to say that I appreciate Toklien and though I've never read Narnia, I respect Lewis more than Rowling because of they're insight and moral value's, Tolkien was christian, Rowling was at least Athiest, or agnostic. This is also just how I perceve the books, and interpret them, and this is all my opnion.

[goldenchild17]

Horribly written books, never saw the movies(don't plan to). Simply a portrayal of the dark side of magical stories. No reason to involve myself with them when I have books like C.S. Lewis' series, and for that matter Tolkien(although I really didn't like LOTR in the least bit).