Ok, I finally have had time to come back and talk about Harry Potter.
Death!!!! This is one of the huge themes in Harry Potter. From the first page to the last of the series there is a common theme of death running through the entire book. From the moment we meet Harry death has marked him, literally. His scar is a constant reminder of the the effect death has on life. It is so remarkable to me that Harry's whole life, at least what we are privy too in the 7 years he is at Hogwart's (OK technically year 7 he isn't really
at Hogwart's but you get the drift) Harry is haunted by death. There are ghosts at the school. He finds the Mirror of Erised and see's his dead parents. He finds out how his parents truly died. He fights Voldemort to make sure he stays dead and almost dies in the process.
Each year at Hogwart's the spectre of death follows Harry. Year two follows the returning from the dead of Tom Riddle. Year three we address the betrayal and death of his parents again. Year four someone is trying to kill him. Year 5 showcases the death of Harry's Godfather and finally Year six the death of Harry's mentor and in some ways idol. Year Seven is when J.K. Rowling finally explicitly addreses the issue that has been haunting Harry all along and he has to come to grips with the Deathly Hallows. Will he seek out this tools that will allow him to cheat death or will he seek to rid the world of Voldemort's splintered soul. Thus death and the acceptance of it as a normal, necessary and fundamental end to life are the 'crux of the matter. J.K. Rowling played the whole plot like a fine violin by having every adult (except Hagrid) who truly cared about Harry either die or face a catastrophic near death experienc as was the case with Mr. Weasley (by the way in one interview J.K. Rowling stated she planned on having him die in book 5 but just couldn't do it in the end because she cared to much about him. Note though that this charity didn't extend to poor Fred (or was it George) in book Seven. This also explains why Mr. Weasley played a rather smaller role in books 6 and 7
Well, I am getting rather verbose, and I have made my point. Dumbledore says that it is Harry's understanding of love and his capacity to love that sets him apart from Voldemort, I say it is Harry's ability to accept the inevitability of death and to accept loss as a part of life. Voldemort spent his whole life refusing to get close to anyone, thus avoiding the possibility of loss, and trying to avoid the inevitability of death.
The road goes ever on.....
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