Nearly all myths can be broken done into the same elements. The idea of a supernatural figure like Jesus, a god that has died and come back to save the world, can be found in dozens of myths across the globe. These types of figures are called archetypes. The wise old man, the mother figure, the hero… In the 1940’s Joseph Campbell wrote a book, called The Hero with a Thousand Faces, in which he discusses the hero archetype found through many different myths throughout the world.
The hero starts his journey with a call into a “world of strange powers”. While at first he fights it, soon he accepts and is encouraged and supported by the “wise man” figure. He then passes his first challenge and begins a journey of quests and is guided on this path by helpers. At one point he reaches his very end, and in most cases our hero dies, and comes back again. Now he conquers his finial task and is able to return as a hero. While this is just a brief overview, hopefully this starting to sound familiar. This is the story of our hero, Harry Potter. Although J.K. Rowling has never confirmed this, it is obvious that the “Harry Potter” novels go beyond just a simple children’s story.
The hero starts his journey with a call into a “world of strange powers”. While at first he fights it, soon he accepts and is encouraged and supported by the “wise man” figure. He then passes his first challenge and begins a journey of quests and is guided on this path by helpers. At one point he reaches his very end, and in most cases our hero dies, and comes back again. Now he conquers his finial task and is able to return as a hero. While this is just a brief overview, hopefully this starting to sound familiar. This is the story of our hero, Harry Potter. Although J.K. Rowling has never confirmed this, it is obvious that the “Harry Potter” novels go beyond just a simple children’s story.
She hasn’t come up with this story without backup. She’s done her research. If you analyze some of the creatures she’s created, you’ll come to notice, they aren’t all made up. She adapted them from myths from all over the world. Dragons are common in Norwegian and Asian myths. Hippogriffs? You’ll find them in stories throughout history. There are a million more examples but I’m not going to bore you.
You may be saying at this point, she’s hasn’t done any thing original, she’s just borrowed it all. Well, that is completely wrong. This shows you how bloody brilliant this woman is. Great literature throughout history always manages to reference to past, an homage to that before us.
Sure as a young child, none of this mattered to me at all, but now that I’m adult, I can recognize the deeper themes just beyond the words on the pages. This is why I have so much respect for J.K. Rowling. Call me a nerd, dork, geeky, whatever you want, but you’re the one missing out in the end.
