“It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved before. “
…..is in my view the reverse is true for death.
“It is better to have lost than to have loved and lost .“

I think that Harry, even holding the Resurrection Stone, realised that he couldn't bring his parents back, because that would also require him to bring back other people.

Is the theme of death as a plot device warranted in a children's book? Will children understand it? Are there similarities between how death is portrayed in the HP series and between other books which have been published; comparisons with authors.

I don't know. It's a touchy subject. There's a part of me which says that children should be preserved from this. However, they are constantly exposed to this theme, more and more often in forms which aren't suited for their age. I think the HP series could be - maybe with the help of a parent - an useful educational instrument, because it's always positive in the end, and its message is a message of hope. Rowling wants to tell us that nothing is lost. However, I think very young children may not understand, and they would only be scared. I'd like to hear some parents about this .

You're right; it is a touchy subject. As has been pointed out, children these days are exposed to so much. We needn't look further than what is shown on the television, and the internet. Children seem to be much more mature than what I remember myself to be. I like your idea that the HP books could be educational for children; the books send very positive messages. I would like to hear parents' opinions too

I was introduced to death when my mother passed away before my sixth birthdays. And I must say that it affected me more like it affected Neville than Harry. It didn't make me strong in the next years but even more vulnerable, shy, having low self-esteem. It also didn't make any other death that later occurred in my family any less painful.

I wonder how JKR felt when she was introducing a character, writing about his/her life, and knowing from the beginning that he or she would die... To us their death was a shock but it would have been even harder to know that the character is doomed... Did she say something about it in an interview?

I also agree that we can't possibly measure who suffered more – Harry or Neville. So to me it's not about comparing Neville's and Harry's excess of loss but the ways they dealt with it and how it affected their later lives. These characters are made to compare. JKR made one of the boys 'weaker' and lacking self-esteem, and the other strong, to show us how suffering can affect us. We love them both. I think that JKR has made a great job with these two characters beause everyone can identify with either Harry or Neville.

I'm sorry if I am misunderstanding you, I read it, as though you see that the "weaker"/stronger personalities is due to their sufferings?

By the way, I hate calling Neville weak, it's not the right word because both proved strong, so I think insecure is better.

Anyway, there's a saying that what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. I don't think it applies to everybody. In fact, it pisses me off, when someone says it.

Anyway, there's a saying that what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. I don't think it applies to everybody. In fact, it P----- me off, when someone says it.

(Of course, that is where HP departs from Reality - I don't imagine any kid who'd suffered the treatment given to Harry would have emerged as psychologically undamaged as Harry is - but then, "Hero leaves home where he's unloved" is quite a typical theme for Hero's journey tales)

Alkari