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911roofer he/him Always a wallflower, never a wall  1yr ago (reddit.com) 575 thread views #224273

911roofer talks about the book that must not be named

https://old.reddit.com/r/SubredditDrama/comments/p0mhuo/has_jk_rowling_used_her_power_for_good_or_is_she/h8849ua?context=8 

								

								

									
									

									
								

							

							

								
									
								
							

							

								
	

							

						

						
						

							

								
							

						

					

					
						

							
							
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Wizard society is supposed to be fricked up in a comical sort of way. The books' tone is kind of hard to describe, it's often whimsical but there's a certain undercurrent of nastiness that adds a bit of kick to things. It's sort of like Roald Dahl aimed at slightly older kids. It gets a little awkward in the later books where she's trying to tell a serious story but it's still set in this world built on absurdities.
The gags about SPEW and the house elves liking slavery aren't really different from stuff like bludgers, the Whomping Willow, Ron getting sent to school with a broken wand that could kill him, sending 11-year-olds into the Forbidden Forest at night as a punishment, Hermione trapping a journ*list in an insect form and keeping her in a jar (based), etc. In the case of SPEW, the joke is that Hermione is the only person aware that this part of the worldbuilding is fricked up, but she fails to make anyone care about it and keeps embarrassing herself. Trying to take it as serious commentary on anything would be r-slurred.

						


						
							

							

								
									
								
							


							

								
	

							


							

								

									

										
										

									


								
						

					
				


				

				
					
	

	
		

			
		


		

			

				
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The darker elements seem pretty consistent with a lot of british boarding school books which were probably obvious influences (see ruskin bond and similar authors who wrote kids' books which featured teachers and older students doing hazing-type stuff and having it laughed off)
As for the society/government, I guess having a ridiculously powerful minority that still seems clueless about basic shit is just a re-skin of the nobility system lol
The broomstick game is clearly a ripoff of soccer but with the addition of an instant-win condition that only exists to make the protagonist the most important person on the team so you don't forget that he's supposed to be the most important person in the universe. It's kind of childish as a plot device and realistically, instead of wasting any time on the other ones, any sane sports team manager would just send everybody after the instant-win ball or make them all run interference if the rules specifically prohibited any other position from touching it.

						


						
							

							

								
									
								
							


							

								
	

							


							

								

									

										
										

									


								
						

					
				


				

				
					
	

	
		

			
		


		

			

				
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I know nothing about HP, but this is the best thing I've ever seen written about it.

						


						
							

							

								
									
								
							


							

								
	

							


							

								

									

										
										

									


								
						

					
				


				

				
					
	

	
		

			
		


		

			

				
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Thanks. It's funny how many ex-Harry Potter adults who've turned on Rowling over the train stuff legitimately do not understand this. I've seen them go on for hours about how the series is full of child endangerment and abuse and so on as though it's this big revelation. Like, it's right there in the plain text and children know it's fricked up. The difference is children know not to take everything so fricking seriously, whereas adults teach themselves this shrill moralistic tone.
Good kids' books always feel just a little bit like something you're not supposed to be reading. In the case of Potter, that includes the basic concept that the characters are all witches and wizards. It drove a lot of Christoids up the wall, and even my mainline liberal mom was a bit put off by it. In addition to that there are classic staples like people being hurt or killed in grotesque but fantastical ways, buffoonish depictions of adult authority figures, and a generally flip attitude towards misery. (You can also find this in stuff like "A Series of Unfortunate Events.")
Sanctimonious online ex-Potterheads will never admit it, but they have turned into their parents, demanding that kidlit conform to a strict, instructional, humorless morality.

						


						
							

							

								
									
								
							


							

								
	

							


							

								

									

										
										

									


								
						

					
				


				

				
					
	

	
		

			
		


		

			

				
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Sorry ma'am, looks like his delusions have gotten worse. We'll have to admit him.

						


						
							

							

								
									
								
							


							

								
	

							


							

								

									

										
										

									


								
						

					
				


				

				
					
	

	
		

			
		


		

			

				
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it's often whimsical but there's a certain undercurrent of nastiness that adds a bit of kick to things. It's sort of like Roald Dahl aimed at slightly older kids
I think this when I see people say that Hufflepuff is for noble, brave and caring kids. Nah, in the first few books, Hufflepuff is for the kids who you don't want to be because they're intrinsically stupid, and Slytherin is for the kids you don't want to be because they're intinsically evil. It's not very complicated.
Edit: Old thread posting moment. Why am I here lol?

						


						
							

							

								
									
								
							


							

								
	

							


							

								

									

										
										

									


								
						

					
				


				

				
					
	

	
		

			
		


		

			

				
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