Harry Potter: Can you still love something that doesn’t represent you?
We all grew up loving the Harry Potter series, but as adults, can we love it the same way when we know it doesn’t represent all of us?
That’s a hard question, and one I would say doesn’t have an easy yes/no answer. Harry Potter is, after all, many things, but diverse isn’t one of them.
All the main characters are, after all, white and straight, and though the series does a good of sending a message of tolerance and the issues with a portion of the population believing they are better than the rest, the POV is still one that reeks of privilege.
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Think about it this way: if the Muggle-born children had it bad in Voldemort days, can you imagine how a black lesbian kid might have fared?
One thing’s for sure, JK Rowling didn’t.
And yet, though adulthood has given me a perspective I didn’t have when I first read these books, and though I lately find myself hoping JKR would stop over-explaining so I can enjoy the books in peace, I’m still torn on this question.
Is it okay for me to enjoy them anyway? Can you enjoy something you know isn’t perfect?
Perhaps, more importantly, is anything actually perfect?
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Sure, the Harry Potter books have many, many flaws. But so does most of the media we consume. We, as human beings, create art, and there for art is as flawed as we are.
And no, that isn’t the same as writing a blank check and saying; “you don’t have to try, because we know that, no matter what you do, perfection is unattainable.” It’s instead the recognition that we all have to be better, day by day, and art needs to evolve, just as we do.
So maybe, it’s okay to still love the things that gave you comfort once upon a time, as long as you recognize that those things aren’t necessarily perfect, and are willing to point out their flaws.
Next. We are all Harry Potter, and yet we aren’t. dark
That’s growth, after all. The kind that makes a difference.