Handbooks, guides, and articles on the Harry Potter books have been produced, but there is as yet no sustained discussion of the series as a literary work. Shira Wolosky shows here that the Harry Potter books take part in a rich literary tradition, including allegorical double meanings, mirror images among characters, psychological explorations of family dynamics, political and social critique, and complex moral questions. This book draws readers into deeper meanings of Harry Potter, arguing that the books launch and pursue interpretive quests in an ongoing effort to understand patterns and their attendant meanings, implications, and consequences.
The magic of Harry Potter: ordinary worlds and magic ones; dursleys and weasleys; word riddles; magic figures -- Double meanings: inside and outside; the world at war; the other ministry; horcruxes -- Well-spotted: plots and reversals; backwards; forwards; interpretive quests -- The turns of time: memory, prediction, prophecy; memory; prediction; the prophecy -- Seen and unforeseen -- Mirror images: reflecting characters; fathers and families; the secret riddle; double agent -- Moral fables: the elder wand; love or power; the prophecy again; possession; moral choices; the invisibility cloak -- Rebirth: the resurrection stone; horcruxes or hallows; mothers; rebirth; ordinary magic -- Appendix: discussion topics. Topic 1. Harry Potter and fairy tales; Topic 2: Harry Potter and psychological interpretation; Topic 3: Allegory and literary tradition; Topic 4: history, ideology, culture studies; Topic 5: ethical engagements; Topic 6: hermeneutics.