Divination: Muggle Magic, By TulaighMohr01 |
 Aug 31 2006, 08:52 PM
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Queen of Scribbuliciousness  Posts: 2,525 Joined: 1:00am October 2, 2005 Location: Deathly Hallows is my Rochester, my Romeo, my Heathcliffe...    |
Divination: Muggle Magic
By TulaighMohr01 Junior Essay Biography: TulaighMohr01 is a high-school student from upstate New York, where it's winter nine months of the year and he's thus had plenty of time to read and reread the Harry Potter series. When not beleaguered by school, he can be found skiing or practicing lacrosse and watersports with friends, and though he hates to admit it, loves to write and read literature. He considers Scribbulus a lifesaver for helping offset the malaise of summer and school boredom. Abstract: In the world of Harry Potter, the subject of divination is a very familiar concept. Why is it so prevalent in both the wizarding and Muggle worlds, unlike creatures such as dragons and practices such as transfiguration? This essay discusses two theories: first, that divination was relegated to the Muggle world for being a "pseudo-magic", and second, that divination is a Muggle phenomenon picked up and taken over by the wizarding world. You can read this junior essay here. This post has been edited by SeverineSnape: Nov 23 2007, 04:39 PM --------------------  Jeeves, I am not awake. I have not had my tea and yet you bring me Fink-Nottles. |
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Sep 2 2006, 02:11 PM
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Gringott's Cart Axle Greaser  Posts: 2,773 Joined: 4:37pm September 28, 2005 Location: In my tower, dwelling on ... |
I am impressed by TulaighMohr01's essay. It is very well written and shows great imagination and research. I enjoyed such passages as:
QUOTE Before the Statute of Secrecy came into effect, it is possible that certain wizards, whether out of compassion for their non-magical brethren or just wanting a bit of humorous entertainment, bestowed tools and instructions for divination among the Muggles. Muggle Magic is a shadow of the “real magic” that is taught at Hogwarts. The Weasley twins even play up card tricks and “useful skills,” like lock picking to augment their inherited abilities and acquired proficiency with a wand. It appears that Trelawney has adapted Gypsy qualities and showmanship to her classroom too (or did the Gypsies pick it up from the Trelawneys?)Before TM01’s essay, I’ve viewed Divination in the HP books as a true magical ability in the Wizarding world that has filtered over into the Muggle world and become the realm of trickery and charlatanism because there is no real magic available to Muggles. Likewise, Harry and Hermione have grown up in Muggle families and likely hold a certain prejudice against Divination. Harry thinks that Trelawney is “a bit of a fraud” (HBP, pg. 164), even when he finds out she has given real prophecies. While Divination and its trappings make for interesting reading as part of the HP novels, I was really hoping this essay would address why so many forms of Divination would be found in both worlds. What is there about predicting the future that appeals to Muggles and Wizards alike? What is it about the human condition that we want to know the what is going to happen before it does? How does seeing the future compare with forecasting the weather? Thanks, TulaighMohr01, for a thought-provoking essay. -------------------- “Wisdom is a flower from which the bee its honey makes and the spider poison, each according to its own nature.” (By an unknown adept) Proud Supporter of the "Rotfang Conspiracy." |
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Sep 2 2006, 02:57 PM
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Professional Diagon Alley Window Shopper Posts: 69 Joined: 7:17am August 21, 2006 |
Absloutely spiffing. Your writing is admirabley eloquent and richly worded, and your ideas are thought provoking and and intelligent. Grand essay! I solute you.
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Sep 7 2006, 12:01 PM
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Assistant Stargazer to Firenze  Posts: 1,092 Joined: 12:37pm July 16, 2005 Location: I want to be a part of it ... New York, New York |
QUOTE(towerdweller @ Sep 2 2006, 07:11 PM) [snapback]937063[/snapback] I am impressed by TulaighMohr01's essay. It is very well written and shows great imagination and research. I enjoyed such passages as: QUOTE Before the Statute of Secrecy came into effect, it is possible that certain wizards, whether out of compassion for their non-magical brethren or just wanting a bit of humorous entertainment, bestowed tools and instructions for divination among the Muggles. Muggle Magic is a shadow of the “real magic” that is taught at Hogwarts. The Weasley twins even play up card tricks and “useful skills,” like lock picking to augment their inherited abilities and acquired proficiency with a wand. It appears that Trelawney has adapted Gypsy qualities and showmanship to her classroom too (or did the Gypsies pick it up from the Trelawneys?)This essay does provoke thought. To be honest, when I first read it I got a little bit indignant at the suggestion that Divination may have originated with Muggles and the implications that it is not a useful magical lesson. I searched for arguments to counter this theory, but I couldn't find any. I have to admit it is a possibility. The problem with early divination methods is that their origins tend to be secretive, often handed down in private through members of special schools, cults or families (like the gypsies). So how they came about is really anyone's guess. With tarot cards it's a chicken/egg phenomenon. It is widely believed that they began as a card game then later evolved into a fortune-telling device, but then there are those who believe that they began in Europe as a means to pass sacred knowledge (in symbol form) from person to person without risking the anti-pagan wrath of the Christian church at the time. There is no one in the world who knows for sure how the tarot truly originated. It's a mystery! Great writing and research, TulaighMohr01! 
--------------------  I called it - June 2007 |
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