Obscurus Ideas, Questions, and Concerns, Ask staff what you are wondering about |
  Jul 4 2005, 09:36 AM
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#1
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Inquiring about Double-ended Newts  Posts: 960 Joined: 5:24pm January 28, 2005  |
Welcome to the Obscurus Thread for Idea generation, Questions, and Concerns. This is an 'upgrade,' or a more official version of the previous Nick's Idea Generating Thread.
To start off, here is a short description of Obscurus: Obscurus is the place for academic analysis of the HP books, discussions of meaning, symbolism, and deeper themes in the HP series. As opposed to the other forums in Flourish and Blotts, Obscurus discussions tend to look at HP from the outside, as the literary works they are. If you are wondering about something, this is a place you can post and ask the moderators of this forum what they think. Some of the ideas and questions you can bring up here are: [*]Do you think this topic is a good one? [*]Is this topic permissible under the rules? [*]Where would I put a thread about this? [*]Does this topic already exist? [*]I saw this thread and now I cannot find it, do you know where it is? [*]I would really like to see a poll in Obscurus about... and so forth. You can of course also send a Private Message (PM) to one of the moderators of Obscurus if you have any questions or concerns: [*]Asphodel Wormwood [*]The Qurious Mr. Quint [*]Torill [*]Paperflowergirl [*] or you can PM any of the other Leaky Lounge staff as well. For forum-wide suggestions, the Room of Requirement is your place, and for technical questions and problems please contact Lexicon_Bel~ , our Help Desk Witch or visit Knockturn Alley. The Rules and the FAQ are also good places to look. However, do not hesitate to post in this thread, as we will be very happy to hear from you. -------------------- Proud to be a Hufflepuff!
Proud to be a Hufflepuff! |
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Aug 8 2005, 01:08 PM
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#2
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Just Through the Brick Wall Posts: 4 Joined: 11:13am August 8, 2005 |
I own a hardback edition of the fourth Harry Potter. My sister owns a paper back version. During the scene in the graveyard when Voldemorts victims come out of his wand, my edition has James coming out of the wand before Lily and in my sisters book Lily comes out before James. Why is this?
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Aug 8 2005, 04:16 PM
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#3
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Inquiring about Double-ended Newts Posts: 960 Joined: 5:24pm January 28, 2005 |
Hehe, this is because Rowling actually made a mistake. Since Lily was killed after James, she comes out of the wand before him (as the order is in reverse). Yours is probably a first (or a very early) edition, while the error was corrected in your sister's paperback version.
Am I seriously to believe that no-one has any ideas for a new poll for Obscurus? After everything new we learned in HBP? -------------------- Proud to be a Hufflepuff!
Proud to be a Hufflepuff! |
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Aug 10 2005, 06:24 AM
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#4
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Professional Diagon Alley Window Shopper Posts: 76 Joined: 2:54pm July 20, 2005 |
Hi, I am fairly new to the Leaky website (indeed to forums in general) - yes one of those who joined up in the confused bereft aftermath of having read HBP - and so I'm not sure whether the following is something you have discussed before. I did a title search, but nothing came up, so let me know what you think.
I have heard that Harry Potter is present on several college syllabuses (syllabi?) both in Britain and in the States and I would be interested to hear more about these. What approaches do these classes take? Are they always included as either children's lit or as an element in a 'fantasy genre' course, or do they turn up on culture and literature courses in other capacities? Does anybody explore the post-modern implications of having one'e (i.e. JKR's) work in progress scrutinised by the readership DURING the process of its creation? What about the phenomenon of Fanfic? Is this explored in any University or college courses studying the Potter books? Also, I would be interested to know if there are any bibliographies available of any published academic articles on Harry Potter that might be used for Reading Lists by college professors.( I know it probably sounds like I'm trying to compile a quick course module on HP - I'm not, honest. I'm a full-time mum with a PhD in Folklore Studies and Cultural History and I am very interested to see how far HP has infiltrated academic bastions as a subject worthy of study - whether as culture or as Literature.) The thing is, I'm not sure how to go about posting these questions. Can you help me? Thanks. |
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Aug 10 2005, 12:50 PM
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Director of Nicholas Flamel Laboratories Posts: 11,084 Joined: 11:06am January 28, 2005 Location: Lighting the mountain path for Llewellyn ap Gryffudd   |
This one was mentioned briefly in Vault 715--the concept of revenge and how Harry's thirst for it has developed over the course of the books. By the end of HBP, he's no longer afraid--he's furious. How is revenge depicted in literature? What are the problems with the idea of revenge, from the mythological to the religious?
Just an idea. Edit: Oh, well, there's already a thread on revenge in the Princely Nook. So much for that idea! -------------------- The two most common elements in the universe are Hydrogen and stupidity.--Harlan Ellison
My father considered a walk among the mountains as the equivalent of churchgoing.--Aldous Huxley |
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Aug 11 2005, 11:36 AM
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#6
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Inquiring about Double-ended Newts Posts: 960 Joined: 5:24pm January 28, 2005 |
Hi Fairytalegirl
QUOTE I have heard that Harry Potter is present on several college syllabuses (syllabi?) both in Britain and in the States and I would be interested to hear more about these. What approaches do these classes take? Are they always included as either children's lit or as an element in a 'fantasy genre' course, or do they turn up on culture and literature courses in other capacities? Does anybody explore the post-modern implications of having one'e (i.e. JKR's) work in progress scrutinised by the readership DURING the process of its creation? What about the phenomenon of Fanfic? Is this explored in any University or college courses studying the Potter books? I don't know about HP on syllabi. At my college they occasionally show up in classes about children's literature. I'd recommend checking out the Teacher's Tea-Room, which is the special section for teachers and teaching of HP. However, I don't think there is anything in there about college level syllabi. Feel free to start a thread, if you want to. Also, you can start a thread here dedicated to the analysis of a specific book on HP, if you have one you're interested in (we already have a couple, one on John Granger and Christian Symbolism, and another one whose name momentarily escapes my memory). If there is a particular topic you'd like to discuss, (such as postmodernism and HP), you can start a thread if the discussion does not already exist. In this thread you can also ask if people know about published work on this topic. I have read a bit about HP, and there was a news-article about Harry as a postmodernist hero last fall. It is no longer online, but I can send it to you if you want (as I copied it into word). QUOTE Also, I would be interested to know if there are any bibliographies available of any published academic articles on Harry Potter that might be used for Reading Lists by college professors.( I know it probably sounds like I'm trying to compile a quick course module on HP - I'm not, honest. I'm a full-time mum with a PhD in Folklore Studies and Cultural History and I am very interested to see how far HP has infiltrated academic bastions as a subject worthy of study - whether as culture or as Literature.) I'd try Amazon or your local library to see what has been published on HP. Reading around Obscurus will also give you some sources on various things pertinent to analysis of HP, such as Christianity, Arthurian Legend, Alchemy, the Hero Epic, Jungian Archetypes, and other things. To be very honest, I think the discussions in here bring up more interesting stuff than most books published about Harry Potter. I hope this helps! 
-------------------- Proud to be a Hufflepuff!
Proud to be a Hufflepuff! |
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Aug 11 2005, 12:39 PM
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#7
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Director of Nicholas Flamel Laboratories Posts: 11,084 Joined: 11:06am January 28, 2005 Location: Lighting the mountain path for Llewellyn ap Gryffudd |
QUOTE I'd try Amazon or your local library to see what has been published on HP. Reading around Obscurus will also give you some sources on various things pertinent to analysis of HP, such as Christianity, Arthurian Legend, Alchemy, the Hero Epic, Jungian Archetypes, and other things. To be very honest, I think the discussions in here bring up more interesting stuff than most books published about Harry Potter. I hope this helps! Maybe we should write a book! ringbearer.org did that after ROTK came out. :D -------------------- The two most common elements in the universe are Hydrogen and stupidity.--Harlan Ellison
My father considered a walk among the mountains as the equivalent of churchgoing.--Aldous Huxley |
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Aug 18 2005, 06:01 PM
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#8
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Knockturn Alley Fingernail Vendor Posts: 767 Joined: 5:49pm January 28, 2005 Location: A photograph at 221B Baker Street |
I have an idea for a thread, but it may be controversial, so I'd like to take it for a test drive here.
I'm having a bit of a problem with JKR's treatment of the educational system in her books. Obviously she has modelled Hogwarts to be typical of a British secondary school, and that's not where I have the problems. Even though the school systems in other countries may be slightly different, I think we would all agree that there are good and bad teachers, great and horrible classes, etc. etc. But here is my issue. I was quite disconcerted when Fred and George just dropped out of school without even finishing year 6. Now at the end of HBP, she has Harry considering dropping out as well, to go fight Voldemort. JKR is well aware that many thousands (millions?) of young people will be reading these books, starting at very early ages. Is this the kind of message she should be sending to these young and impressionable people all over the world? Quitting school is OK if it's done for "noble" reasons? It would help if mods and regulars could comment on whether this is an appropriate thread topic. If the mods don't object and there is some general interest, then we could discuss it further in a thread. -------------------- "She has the face of the most beautiful of women, and the mind of the most resolute of men."
(Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: Sherlock Holmes - A Scandal in Bohemia) |
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Aug 20 2005, 03:13 PM
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#9
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Inquiring about Double-ended Newts Posts: 960 Joined: 5:24pm January 28, 2005 |
This is a very interesting topic - how Rowling treats education in the books.
I don't think this is a topic we should avoid. It is ok to be critical of Rowling and the books on this forum, and the topic itself is thought-provoking, but it is not one that would violate the rules in any way. Hehe, we have had several much more provoking topics (they are in the backlogs of Obscurus most of them, if anyone is interested :wink:), and they have generally gone very well. The Leaky Lounge does not believe in banning controversial topics unnecessarily, and is proud and happy to have such mature members who have shown themselves capable of handling them!  So I think you should go ahead and post your topic, absolutely! And I look forward to reading your thoughts on the issue. :) -------------------- Proud to be a Hufflepuff!
Proud to be a Hufflepuff! |
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Aug 29 2005, 02:39 PM
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#10
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Flesh-Eating-Slug Catcher Posts: 185 Joined: 12:07am July 14, 2005 Location: left coast |
I have a dumb question, but I can't seem to find a thread anywhere that covers it. In the prophecy, the "Dark Lord" is mentioned. We know that Death Eaters call Voldie the "Dark Lord" while everyone else has some other moniker for him. I found it strange that Trewlaney, through the trance, uses that specific term. JKR has stated that she worded the prophecy carefully.
I'm certain that others have noticed this, but I can't seem to find it mentioned. Is it in the archives somewhere? Inquiring minds. you know. Thanks in Advance. -------------------- "There is infinite hope, but not for us."
Franz Kafka |
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