On racism in the Potterverse-
Nov. 29th, 2011 12:02 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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deathtocapslockThis quote was in our advent bulletin, and it struck me very strongly.
There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.
That, of course, is C.S. Lewis. I believe the quote is taken from Mere Christianity. Once upon a time, when the Potter books were becoming enormously popular, Rowling gave an interview - I think in Time magazine. In this interview, she took some pains to distinguish herself from C.S. Lewis. One thing I remember her saying is that her books were different from his because, in hers, the children would be allowed to grow up. One can ask whether, in the end, the trio did grow up. I rather think not. But that's not the major difference I see in the two authors' works.
If you read the Narnia books attentively, you can see that Lewis really believed the extraordinary statement he made above. Yes, from a modern pov, one can read him as racist and sexist. But NO ONE in the Narnia books is condemned because of their birth, social status, or genetic heritage. Everyone has free will and everyone, in the end, can choose to come to Aslan's country. It's up to them whether they will so choose or not.
In the Potter books, there is a sort of Venn diagram of specialness. The vast majority of people are Muggles. They cannot even see Hogwarts, and the special people treat them, at best, with condescension. Inside this large circle is a tiny one, of all the Witches and Wizards. They are the real human beings, the people who matter. Inside this tiny circle, again, is another circle, consisting of perhaps 1/4 of the magical people. These are the Gryffindors, and they are the elect.*
Nobody can choose to be magical, as Calormenes like Emeth and Aravis, Dwarves like Poggin and Trumpkin, beasts like Reepicheep and Puzzle, and ordinary humans like the Pevensie parents can choose to love Aslan. If Muggles could choose magic, Petunia would surely have accompanied Lily to Hogwarts. She didn't. You are either born a Wizard, or you're nothing.
Nor, some fans to the contrary, do you get to choose whether you're a Gryffindor. We've all beaten this dead horse repeatedly, I know, but it's worth repeating. Dumbledore does not tell Harry that our choices make us what we are. He says our choices show what we are. If we choose to be in Gryffindor, that is because we are predestined to be among the elect. If we choose to be in Slytherin, then there is probably no help for us - at least, not as far as I can see.
Against this background of extreme privilege, Rowling attempts to tell a story in which racism is the primary evil. The fact that every Witch and Wizard we see is racist against Muggles simply doesn't matter - because Muggles don't matter. And there is no analysis, in the books, of how anti-Muggle racism leads naturally to anti-Muggleborn racism. It's perfectly okay to mock and torment the Dursleys. But it's not okay to mock and torment Hermione, who is a Witch. It's especially not okay to mock Harry, the hero.
Contrast this, again, with Lewis. He says, ...it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit–immortal horrors or everlasting splendours...Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.
Quite a contrast, isn't it? Whatever you think of Lewis, ask yourself this: what sort of boy would Harry have become if he had realized, even for one moment, that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were immortals?
Just a thought.
There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.
That, of course, is C.S. Lewis. I believe the quote is taken from Mere Christianity. Once upon a time, when the Potter books were becoming enormously popular, Rowling gave an interview - I think in Time magazine. In this interview, she took some pains to distinguish herself from C.S. Lewis. One thing I remember her saying is that her books were different from his because, in hers, the children would be allowed to grow up. One can ask whether, in the end, the trio did grow up. I rather think not. But that's not the major difference I see in the two authors' works.
If you read the Narnia books attentively, you can see that Lewis really believed the extraordinary statement he made above. Yes, from a modern pov, one can read him as racist and sexist. But NO ONE in the Narnia books is condemned because of their birth, social status, or genetic heritage. Everyone has free will and everyone, in the end, can choose to come to Aslan's country. It's up to them whether they will so choose or not.
In the Potter books, there is a sort of Venn diagram of specialness. The vast majority of people are Muggles. They cannot even see Hogwarts, and the special people treat them, at best, with condescension. Inside this large circle is a tiny one, of all the Witches and Wizards. They are the real human beings, the people who matter. Inside this tiny circle, again, is another circle, consisting of perhaps 1/4 of the magical people. These are the Gryffindors, and they are the elect.*
Nobody can choose to be magical, as Calormenes like Emeth and Aravis, Dwarves like Poggin and Trumpkin, beasts like Reepicheep and Puzzle, and ordinary humans like the Pevensie parents can choose to love Aslan. If Muggles could choose magic, Petunia would surely have accompanied Lily to Hogwarts. She didn't. You are either born a Wizard, or you're nothing.
Nor, some fans to the contrary, do you get to choose whether you're a Gryffindor. We've all beaten this dead horse repeatedly, I know, but it's worth repeating. Dumbledore does not tell Harry that our choices make us what we are. He says our choices show what we are. If we choose to be in Gryffindor, that is because we are predestined to be among the elect. If we choose to be in Slytherin, then there is probably no help for us - at least, not as far as I can see.
Against this background of extreme privilege, Rowling attempts to tell a story in which racism is the primary evil. The fact that every Witch and Wizard we see is racist against Muggles simply doesn't matter - because Muggles don't matter. And there is no analysis, in the books, of how anti-Muggle racism leads naturally to anti-Muggleborn racism. It's perfectly okay to mock and torment the Dursleys. But it's not okay to mock and torment Hermione, who is a Witch. It's especially not okay to mock Harry, the hero.
Contrast this, again, with Lewis. He says, ...it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit–immortal horrors or everlasting splendours...Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.
Quite a contrast, isn't it? Whatever you think of Lewis, ask yourself this: what sort of boy would Harry have become if he had realized, even for one moment, that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were immortals?
Just a thought.
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Part 2/2
Date: 2011-12-07 11:50 pm (UTC)Well, I didn't have the magic, that's true. But... the instances where Harry does accidental magic don't actually protect him from any of the abuse I'm talking about. He manages to use it to get away from physical assaults, yes, but I don't remember him being described as summoning food to himself with magic when the Dursleys have decided not to feed him enough (though I've seen that in fanfic). It also doesn't stop them from verbally abusing him (other than in the Aunt Marge episode, kind of).
As for being able to escape my family -- er, actually my parents had split custody, so for a while I was able to escape him for two days of every week, then five, before I eventually managed to fight my way out of having contact with him at all. Depending on the divorce agreement, some children are literally forced to spend the summer with an abusive parent, while getting to return to a loving parent for the rest of the year. So, Harry's time spent kind of irritably waiting for the prison sentence to end always rang true to me in that regard.
Other than Frank Bryce and Dudley's friends, the Dursleys are the only normal people we see in the books*. And I find the universal prejudice against "Muggles" just appalling. I think it would have helped Harry, as a character, had he ever realized that Muggles were his equals. I find Harry, in HBP and DH, a thoroughly unpleasant kid, just as I find the Wizarding World altogether rife with prejudice. That's what I was getting at. It just bugs me that books that purport to be opposed to prejudice can actually enshrine a couple of varieties of that evil.
I hate the way Muggles are presented (and treated) in the books, too, but actually, the problem isn't usually Harry. I don't remember any instances of Harry purposefully using magic against his relatives. I might be forgetting something, but the only things I remember are:
* Harry using accidental magic against them
* Harry actively using magic to save Dudley from a Dementor
* Other people Harry knows (Hagrid, the twins, etc) actively using magic against them
If Harry had started treating all Muggles poorly based on his experience with the Dursleys, it would be bad, but kind of logical, character-wise. But weirdly, that doesn't seem to be the case. We do see him react with a kind of indifference to the mistreatment of random Muggles (like the poor memory-charmed guy at the Quidditch World Cup), but I'm not sure we ever see him do it himself. Most of his really disturbing acts (like casting Crucio) are against fellow wizards.
Most of the Muggle treatment issues come from Hermione (her parents) and the Weasleys (too many examples to name). When you think about it, Hermione's parents would have been the perfect opportunity to show truly normal Muggles interacting with the Wizarding World, but it just... never happened.
Re: Part 2/2
Date: 2011-12-08 01:18 am (UTC)Re: Part 2/2
Date: 2011-12-08 04:40 am (UTC)I can see taking issue with him enjoying the things other people do to the Dursleys, but since he's pretty young in each of those instances, and the actions are being performed by people older than him, who he kind of sees as protection against the Dursleys when they're around... it just doesn't bug me that he sees it that way in those instances, even if I'm personally not a fan of the things done on his behalf myself. If he were relishing in that sort of thing in last book or two it would probably bug me more, but as it was, I was pretty okay with his reactions Re: the Dursleys as the series progressed.
Re: Part 2/2
Date: 2011-12-08 04:55 am (UTC)Re: Part 2/2
Date: 2011-12-08 03:46 am (UTC)Re: Part 2/2
Date: 2011-12-08 11:42 am (UTC)