My brainy Ravenclaw friends, you'll be pleased to know that muggles in academia are giving Rowling's fictional world very serious study.
Literature
The first professorial types to bring Rowling into academia were the literature buffs. Some, of course, approached the popular series with suspicion and snobbery. Others saw the richness of Rowling's world and her engagement with existing tropes: the orphan story, the hero's quest, the boarding school adventure, kid sleuth mystery and dark humor ala Roald Dahl. Others delved deeper and saw exciting things in Rowling's narrative technique--especially narrative misdirection and the limited third person perspective as tools for educating the reader while Harry also learns.
Some, like John Granger, found Rowing engaging with mythology, alchemy and (gasp!) even allegory. I HIGHLY recommend his books for exploring the deeper layers of the series (written for a general audience--very readable). And check out his fabulous blog, too. A new generation of scholars is subjecting the series to existing schools of literary criticism: archetypal criticism, feminist readings, psychoanalytical readings, reader-response, Marxist crit, etc. To give you an idea of the sorts of scholarly interest the books have generated, see a call for papers for an academic symposium HERE.
If you're toying with getting a PhD in English, know that yes, you can write your dissertation on Harry Potter!
Philosophy and Social Sciences
Literature profs. aren't the only ones taking Harry seriously. Philosophers have also been intrigued by the deeper questions Rowling's work explores. The difference between rule-following and virtue is one of many aspects of moral philosophy explored. The ethics of enslaving house elves, of oppressing centaurs, and other such questions are also of interest to philosophers. So is the epistemology (how we know what we know) at play when our hero's perspective is often limited and wrongheaded.
These are questions that intrigue my husband and led him to create a course called Harry Potter and Philosophy at his university. He also contributed a chapter to this fun collection of "philosophy for beginners" essays that engage Rowling's world--The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for Muggles. It was published by Wiley-Blackwell, an academic press!
One of the guest speakers he's brought in for the course is Potter specialist Travis Prinzi whose work Harry Potter and Imagination: A Way Between Two Worlds also engages philosophical ideas in Rowling's work. Travis also runs a fabulous blog, The Hog's Head and does a series of podcasts.
Social scientists have also been exploring the cultural and psychological implications of the books. Media studies experts study the films, fan fiction, fan art, Wizard Rock and other phenomena surrounding the series.
Don't forget to visit the others celebrating Harry Potter Week!
Jen Daiker
Lisa Galek
Renae Mercado
Colene Murphy
Melissa Wideen
Literature
The first professorial types to bring Rowling into academia were the literature buffs. Some, of course, approached the popular series with suspicion and snobbery. Others saw the richness of Rowling's world and her engagement with existing tropes: the orphan story, the hero's quest, the boarding school adventure, kid sleuth mystery and dark humor ala Roald Dahl. Others delved deeper and saw exciting things in Rowling's narrative technique--especially narrative misdirection and the limited third person perspective as tools for educating the reader while Harry also learns.
Some, like John Granger, found Rowing engaging with mythology, alchemy and (gasp!) even allegory. I HIGHLY recommend his books for exploring the deeper layers of the series (written for a general audience--very readable). And check out his fabulous blog, too. A new generation of scholars is subjecting the series to existing schools of literary criticism: archetypal criticism, feminist readings, psychoanalytical readings, reader-response, Marxist crit, etc. To give you an idea of the sorts of scholarly interest the books have generated, see a call for papers for an academic symposium HERE.
If you're toying with getting a PhD in English, know that yes, you can write your dissertation on Harry Potter!
Philosophy and Social Sciences
Literature profs. aren't the only ones taking Harry seriously. Philosophers have also been intrigued by the deeper questions Rowling's work explores. The difference between rule-following and virtue is one of many aspects of moral philosophy explored. The ethics of enslaving house elves, of oppressing centaurs, and other such questions are also of interest to philosophers. So is the epistemology (how we know what we know) at play when our hero's perspective is often limited and wrongheaded.
These are questions that intrigue my husband and led him to create a course called Harry Potter and Philosophy at his university. He also contributed a chapter to this fun collection of "philosophy for beginners" essays that engage Rowling's world--The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for Muggles. It was published by Wiley-Blackwell, an academic press!
One of the guest speakers he's brought in for the course is Potter specialist Travis Prinzi whose work Harry Potter and Imagination: A Way Between Two Worlds also engages philosophical ideas in Rowling's work. Travis also runs a fabulous blog, The Hog's Head and does a series of podcasts.
Social scientists have also been exploring the cultural and psychological implications of the books. Media studies experts study the films, fan fiction, fan art, Wizard Rock and other phenomena surrounding the series.
Don't forget to visit the others celebrating Harry Potter Week!
Jen Daiker
Lisa Galek
Renae Mercado
Colene Murphy
Melissa Wideen
What do you think of academia's embrace of the Harry Potter series? If you could take a college course on HP, which discipline would you choose: literature, philosophy, sociology, media studies?
