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{{Short description|Series of fantasy novels by J. K. Rowling}} | |||
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{{About|the novel series|the character|Harry Potter (character)|the film series|Harry Potter (film series){{!}}''Harry Potter'' (film series)|the franchise|Wizarding World|the universe|Fictional universe of Harry Potter|other uses|Harry Potter (disambiguation)}} | ||
{{Pp|reason=Persistent ]|small=yes}} | |||
{{Infobox Book | |||
{{Good article}} | |||
| name = Harry Potter | |||
{{Use British English|date=April 2012}} | |||
| image = ] | |||
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}} | |||
| image_caption = <span style="font-size: 8pt">The success of the Harry Potter franchise has led to a set of stamps being commissioned by ], which feature the British children's covers of the seven books.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200705/s1929389.htm|title=Special stamps to mark Potter book release|publisher=]|date=2007-22-05|accessdate = 2007-06-06}}</ref></span> | |||
{{Infobox book series | |||
| author = ] | |||
| name = ''Harry Potter'' | |||
| country = ] | |||
| books = {{Plainlist| | |||
| language = ] | |||
* <!--Please do not change the title of the first book. It was published as "Philosopher's" first --> '']'' (1997) | |||
| genre = ], ], ] | |||
* '']'' (1998) | |||
| publisher = {{flagicon|UK}} ]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} ]<br />{{flagicon|Canada}} ] <br />{{flagicon|Australia}}{{flagicon|New Zealand}} ] | |||
* '']'' (1999) | |||
| release_date = ] ] – ] ] | |||
* '']'' (2000) | |||
| media_type = Print (] & ]) and <br>] | |||
* '']'' (2003) | |||
| pages = {{flagicon|UK}} 3407 (in total) <br /> {{flagicon|USA}} 4100 (in total) | |||
* '']'' (2005) | |||
* '']'' (2007)}}<!-- Please do not add "Cursed Child" to this list of the novels. It is primarily a theatrical play. Discuss on talk page if you disagree. --> | |||
| image = ] | |||
| alt = The ''Harry Potter'' logo first used for the American edition of the novel series (and some other editions worldwide), and then the film series. | |||
| author = ] | |||
| translator = | |||
| cover_artist = <!--1st edition artist--> ]<!--book 1 -->, ]<!--books 2 and 3-->, Giles Greenfield<!--book 4-->, Jason Cockcroft<!--books 5, 6, 7--> | |||
| country = United Kingdom | |||
| language = English | |||
| genre = ] | |||
| publisher = <!--1st edition publisher-->] | |||
| pub_date = 26 June 1997 – 21 July 2007 | |||
| media_type = {{Plainlist| | |||
* Print (] and ]) | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
}} | |||
| number_of_books = 7 | |||
| website = {{URL|https://www.harrypotter.com/}} | |||
}} | }} | ||
'''''Harry Potter''''' is a ] ]s written by ] author ]. The books chronicle the adventures of the ] adolescent wizard ], together with ] and ], his best friends. The story is mostly set at ], an academy for young ]. The central ] concerns Harry's struggle against the evil wizard ], who killed Harry's parents in his quest to conquer the ]. | |||
'''''Harry Potter''''' is a series of seven ] written by British author ]. The novels chronicle the lives of a young ], ], and his friends, ] and ], all of whom are students at ]. The main ] concerns Harry's conflict with ], a ] who intends to become immortal, overthrow the wizard governing body known as the ], and subjugate all wizards and ]s (non-magical people). | |||
Since the release of the first novel '']'' in 1997, which was retitled ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' in the ], the books have gained immense popularity, critical acclaim and commercial success worldwide.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2996578.stm|title=Potter's place in the literary canon|publisher=]|last=Allsobrook |first=Dr. Marian|date=2003-06-18|accessdate=2007-10-15}}</ref> The series has spawned films, video games and Potter-themed merchandise. As of April 2007, the first six books in the seven book series have sold more than 400 million copies<ref>{{cite web|title=J.K. Rowling publishes Harry Potter spin-off|author= Jenny Booth|work=Times UK|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article2784397.ece|year=2007|accessdate = 2007-12-31}}</ref> and have been translated into more than 64 languages.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jkrowling.com/en/|first=JK|last=Rowling|title=J.K.Rowling Official Site - Harry Potter and more: Acknowledgements|accessdate=2007-07-30}}</ref> The seventh and last book in the series, '']'', was released on ] ].<ref name="releasedate">{{cite news|url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/news_view.cfm?id=97|title= Publication Date for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows|accessdate = 2007-06-26|publisher=]}}</ref> Publishers announced a record-breaking 12 million copies for the first print run in the U.S. alone.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1521607.ece|title=Harry Potter's final adventure to get record print run|publisher=]|last=McLaren|first=Elsa|date=2007-03-15|accessdate = 2007-03-27}}</ref> | |||
The series was originally published in English by ] in the United Kingdom and ] in the United States. A series of many genres, including ], ], ], and the British ] (which includes elements of ], ], ], ], and ]), the world of ''Harry Potter'' explores numerous themes and includes many cultural meanings and references.<ref name="meanings" /> Major themes in the series include prejudice, corruption, madness, love, and death.<ref name="Geordie Greig">{{cite news |first=Geordie |last=Greig |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1507438/There-would-be-so-much-to-tell-her....html |title=There would be so much to tell her... |newspaper=The Telegraph |access-date=4 April 2007 |date=11 January 2006 |location=London |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311032026/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2006%2F01%2F10%2Fnrowl110.xml |archive-date=11 March 2007 }}</ref> | |||
The success of the novels has made Rowling the highest-earning novelist in history.<ref><span class="plainlinks"> Watson, Julie and Kellner, Tomas. . , ] ]. Accessed ] ].</span></ref> English language versions of the books are published by ] in the ], ] in the ], ] in ] and ] in ]. | |||
Since the release of the first novel, '']'', on 26 June 1997, the books have found immense popularity and commercial success worldwide. They have attracted a wide adult audience as well as younger readers and are widely considered cornerstones of modern literature,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2996578.stm|title=Potter's place in the literary canon|work=BBC News|last=Allsobrook|first='Marian|date=18 June 2003|access-date=15 October 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080109162755/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2996578.stm|archive-date=9 January 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.chronicle.com/article/harry-potters-place-in-literature/|title=Harry Potter's place in literature|work=The Chronicle of Higher Education|last=Bartlett|first=Kellie|date=6 January 2005|df=dmy-all|access-date=18 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313053821/https://www.chronicle.com/article/harry-potters-place-in-literature/|archive-date=13 March 2023|url-status=live}}</ref> though the books have received mixed reviews from critics and literary scholars. {{as of|2023|February}}, the books have sold more than 600 million copies worldwide, making them the ], ]. The last four books all set records as the fastest-selling books in history, with the final instalment selling roughly 2.7 million copies in the United Kingdom and 8.3 million copies in the United States within twenty-four hours of its release. | |||
Thus far, the first five books have been made into ] by ] The sixth, '']'', began filming in September 2007, with a scheduled release of ] ].<ref name="release-date-hbp-film">{{cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0417741/|title=Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (IMdB)}}</ref> | |||
] adapted the original seven books into an eight-part ]. In 2016, the total value of the ''Harry Potter'' franchise was estimated at $25 billion,<ref name="Time25">{{cite magazine |last1=Meyer |first1=Katie |date=6 April 2016 |title=Harry Potter's $25 Billion Magic Spell |url=https://money.com/billion-dollar-spell-harry-potter/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514014809/https://money.com/billion-dollar-spell-harry-potter/ |archive-date=14 May 2021 |access-date=4 November 2016 |magazine=]}}</ref> making it one of the ]. '']'' is a play based on a story co-written by Rowling. A television series based on books is in production at ]. | |||
==Overview== | |||
===Plot summary=== | |||
The story opens with the conspicuous celebration of a normally secretive ]. For many years, it had been terrorised by the evil wizard known as ]. The previous night, on ], Voldemort had discovered the Potter family's hidden refuge, killing ]. However, when he attempted to murder their toddler son, ], the '']'' killing curse he casted rebounded upon him. Voldemort's body was destroyed, but his spirit survived: he is neither dead nor alive. Meanwhile, the orphaned Harry is left with a distinctive lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead, the only physical sign of Voldemort's curse. Harry is the only known survivor of the killing curse, and Voldemort's mysterious defeat causes the wizarding community to dub Harry "The Boy Who Lived". | |||
The success of the books and films has allowed the ''Harry Potter'' franchise to expand with numerous derivative works, a travelling exhibition that premiered in Chicago in 2009, a studio tour in London that opened in 2012, ] on which J. K. Rowling updates the series with new information and insight, and a trilogy of ] films premiering in November 2016 with '']'', among many other developments. Themed attractions, collectively known as ], have been built at several ] amusement parks around the world. | |||
On ], ], a 'half-giant', delivers Harry to his only living relatives, the cruel and magic-phobic ], comprising Uncle Vernon, a bad-tempered uncle with hardly any neck; Aunt Petunia, a long-necked woman who appears to absolutely loathe Harry; and Dudley, their spoiled, overweight son. They attempt in vain to rid him of his magical powers, hide his magical heritage, and severely punish him after any strange occurrences. | |||
{{TOC limit|limit=3}} | |||
However, as his eleventh birthday approaches, Harry has his first contact with the magical world when he begins receiving letters from ], which are delivered by ]. Unfortunately, his uncle confiscates the letters before he can read them. Much to the Dursley's chagrin, Hogwarts is aware that Harry is not receiving his letter and send a representative of the school to meet with him and explain his heritage. At the stroke of midnight on Harry's eleventh birthday, Rubeus Hagrid, Hogwarts' gamekeeper, appears and informs Harry that he is a wizard and has been invited to attend the school. Each book chronicles one year in Harry's life, which is mostly spent at Hogwarts. There he learns to use ] and brew ]. Harry also learns to overcome many magical, social, and emotional hurdles as he struggles through his adolescence, Voldemort's second rise to power, and the ]'s corruption and incompetence. After facing many obstacles, forging lasting friendships, and losing countless loved ones, Harry Potter confronts the Dark Lord for the last time. | |||
== Plot == | |||
For a detailed synopsis of the novels, see the relevant article for ]. | |||
{{Further|Fictional universe of Harry Potter}} | |||
<!-- Per ], "a novel is a primary source for its own plot summary", and citations are not needed for purely descriptive plot details. --> | |||
=== |
=== Early years === | ||
] was one of the cafés in ] where Rowling wrote the first part of ''Harry Potter''.|alt="The Elephant House", a small, painted red café where Rowling wrote a few chapters of ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'']] | |||
{{main|Harry Potter universe}} | |||
] The ] in which Harry finds himself is both completely separate from and yet intimately connected to our own world. While the fantasy world of ] is an alternative universe and the '']''’ ] a mythic past, the wizarding world of ''Harry Potter'' exists alongside that of the real world and contains magical elements similar to things in the non-magical world. Many of its institutions and locations are in towns and cities, including London for example, which are recognisable in the real world. It possesses a fragmented collection of hidden streets, overlooked and ancient pubs, lonely country manors and secluded castles that remain invisible to the non-magical population (known as "]s"; e.g. The Dursleys). Wizard ability is inborn, rather than learned, although one must attend schools such as Hogwarts in order to master and control it. However, it is possible for wizard parents to have children who are born with little or no magical ability at all (known as "]"; e.g., ], ]). Since one is either born a wizard or not, most wizards are unfamiliar with the Muggle world. The ] and its many fantastic elements are depicted in a matter-of-fact way. This juxtaposition of the magical and the mundane is one of the principal motifs in the novels; the characters in the stories live normal lives with normal problems, for all their magical surroundings. | |||
The series follows the life of a boy named ]. In the first book, ''] (]'' in the US), Harry lives in a cupboard under the stairs in the house of the ], his aunt, uncle and cousin, who all treat him poorly. At the age of 11, Harry discovers that he is a ]. He meets a half-giant named ] who gives him a letter of acceptance to attend the ]. Harry learns that his parents, ] and ], also had magical powers and were murdered by the dark wizard ] when Harry was a baby. When Voldemort attempted to kill Harry, his curse rebounded, seemingly killing Voldemort, and Harry survived with a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. The event made Harry famous among the community of wizards and ]. | |||
===Chronology=== | |||
{{main|Chronology of the Harry Potter stories}} | |||
The books mainly avoid setting the story in a particular real year; however, there are a few references, which allow the books, and various past events mentioned in them to be assigned corresponding real years. The time line is sufficiently set in ''Chamber of Secrets'', in which Nearly-Headless Nick remarks that it is the five-hundredth anniversary of his death on ], ]; thus, ''Chamber of Secrets'' takes place from 1992 to 1993. This chronology was again reiterated in ''Deathly Hallows'', in which the date of death on James and Lily Potter's gravestone is ], ]. Thus, as Harry was a year old at the time of his parents' murders, his year of birth is 1980 and the main action of the story takes place from 1991 (the second chapter of ''Philosopher's Stone'') to 1998 (the end of ''Deathly Hallows''). Interviewed for an ITV documentary broadcast in December 2007, Rowling stated that the final battle with Voldemort's forces takes place on ] ], however, this would seem to be a mistake, and that the actual date should be ] ], in fitting with the dates given in ''Chamber of Secrets'' and ''Deathly Hallows''. | |||
Harry becomes a student at Hogwarts and is sorted into ]. He gains the friendship of ], a member of a large but poor wizarding family, and ], a witch of non-magical, or ], parentage. The trio develop an enmity with the rich ] student ]. Harry encounters the school's headmaster, ]; the ]s professor, ], who displays a dislike for him; and the ] teacher, ]. Quirrell turns out to be allied with Voldemort, who is still alive as a weak spirit. The first book concludes with Harry's confrontation with Voldemort, who, in his quest to regain a body, yearns to possess the ], a substance that bestows everlasting life. | |||
==Series== | |||
#'']'' (] ]) (titled ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' in the ]) | |||
#'']'' (] ]) | |||
#'']'' (] ]) | |||
#'']'' (] ]) | |||
#'']'' (] ]) | |||
#'']'' (] ]) | |||
#'']'' (] ]) | |||
'']'' describes Harry's second year at Hogwarts. Students are attacked and petrified by an unknown creature; wizards of Muggle parentage are the primary targets. The attacks appear related to the mythical ] and resemble attacks fifty years earlier. Harry discovers an ability to speak the snake language ], which he learns is rare and associated with the ]. When Hermione is attacked and Ron's younger sister, ], abducted, Harry and Ron uncover the chamber's secrets and enter it. Harry discovers that Ginny was possessed by an old diary, inside which the memory of ], Voldemort's younger self, resides. On Voldemort's behalf, Ginny opened the chamber and unleashed the ], an ancient monster that kills or petrifies those who make direct or indirect eye contact, respectively. With the help of Dumbledore's ], Fawkes, and the ], Harry slays the basilisk and destroys the diary. | |||
*All seven books in the series have been released in the ] as ]s. The UK editions are performed by ], the American versions by ]. | |||
In the third novel, '']'', Harry learns that he is targeted by ], an escaped convict who allegedly assisted in his parents' murder. ], creatures that feed on happiness, search for Sirius and guard the school. As Harry struggles with his reaction to the dementors, he reaches out to ], a new professor who teaches him the ]. On a windy night, Ron is dragged by a black dog into the ], a haunted house, and Harry and Hermione follow. The dog is revealed to be Sirius Black. Lupin enters the shack and explains that Sirius was James Potter's best friend; he was framed by another friend of James, ], who hides as Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. As the full moon rises, Lupin transforms into a werewolf and bounds away, and the group chase after him. They are surrounded by dementors, but are saved by a figure resembling James who casts a stag Patronus. This is later revealed to be a future version of Harry, who traveled back in time with Hermione using a device called a ]. The duo help Sirius escape on a ], while Pettigrew escapes. | |||
'''Supplementary books''' | |||
*'']'' (2001) | |||
*'']'' (2001) | |||
*'']'' (2007) | |||
=== |
=== Voldemort returns === | ||
] | ] | ||
In 1990, J. K. Rowling was on a crowded train from ] to ] when the idea for Harry suddenly formed in her mind. Rowling gives an account of the experience on her website saying:<ref name="Harry falls into author's head">{{cite web|publisher=JKRowling.com| url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/biography.cfm| title=Biography| first= J.K.| last=Rowling| accessdate = 2006-05-21}}</ref> | |||
In Harry's fourth year of school (detailed in '']''), Hogwarts hosts the ], a contest between Hogwarts and the schools Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. Harry is unwillingly entered into the contest, becoming Hogwarts' second participant after ], an unusual occurrence that causes his friends to distance themselves from him. Harry claims the Triwizard Cup with Cedric, but he is teleported to a graveyard where Pettigrew kills Cedric, then resurrects Voldemort using Harry's blood. Voldemort convenes his supporters, the ]s, and Harry manages to escape after a duel with Voldemort. Upon returning to Hogwarts, it is revealed that a Death Eater, ], in disguise as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, ], engineered Harry's entry into the tournament, secretly helped him, and had him teleported to Voldemort. | |||
{{Cquote|I had been writing almost continuously since the age of six but I had never been so excited about an idea before. I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, black-haired, bespectacled boy who didn't know he was a wizard became more and more real to me.|}} | |||
In the fifth book, '']'', the ] refuses to believe that Voldemort has returned. Dumbledore re-activates the ], a secret society to counter Voldemort; meanwhile, the Ministry tightens control of Hogwarts by appointing ] as High Inquisitor of Hogwarts, and she gradually increases her powers. When Umbridge bans practical teaching of Defence Against the Dark Arts, Harry, Ron and Hermione form "]", a secret group to continue the teachings. Harry has recurring dreams of a dark corridor in the Ministry of Magic, eventually dreaming that Sirius is being tortured there. He races to the Ministry with his friends, but it is a trap, planted in his head by Voldemort. The group are attacked by Death Eaters and saved by the Order of the Phoenix, but Sirius is killed in the battle. A duel between Dumbledore and Voldemort convinces the ministry of Voldemort's return. A prophecy concerning Harry and Voldemort is revealed: one must die at the hands of the other. | |||
In 1995, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' was completed and the ] was sent off to prospective ]. The second agent she tried, Christopher Little, offered to represent her and sent the manuscript to Bloomsbury. After eight other publishers had rejected ''Philosopher's Stone'', Bloomsbury offered Rowling a £2,500 advance for its publication.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=BusinessWeek Online| url=http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_22/b3935414.htm| title=Nigel Newton | first=John| last=Lawless| accessdate = 2006-09-09}}</ref> | |||
In the sixth book, '']'', Snape teaches Defence Against the Dark Arts while ] becomes the Potions master. Harry finds an old textbook with annotations by the Half-Blood Prince, due to which he achieves success in Potions class. Harry also takes lessons with Dumbledore, viewing memories about the early life of Voldemort in a device called a ]. Harry learns from a drunken Slughorn that he used to teach Tom Riddle, and that Voldemort divided his soul into pieces, creating a series of ]es. Harry and Dumbledore travel to a distant lake to destroy a Horcrux; they succeed, but Dumbledore weakens. On their return, they find Draco Malfoy and Death Eaters attacking the school. The book ends with the killing of Dumbledore by Professor Snape, the titular Half-Blood Prince. | |||
Despite Rowling's statement that she did not have any particular age group in mind when she began to write the ''Harry Potter'' books, the publishers initially targeted them at children age nine to eleven.<ref>http://www.kidsreads.com/harrypotter/jkrowling.html</ref> On the eve of publishing, Joanne Rowling was asked by her publishers to adopt a more gender-neutral ], in order to appeal to the male members of this age group, fearing that they would not be interested in reading a novel they knew to be written by a woman. She elected to use J. K. Rowling (Joanne Kathleen Rowling), using her grandmother's name as her second name, because she has no middle name.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=The Daily Telegraph| url=http://www.quick-quote-quill.org/articles/2000/0700-savill-telegraph.html| title=Harry Potter and the mystery of J K's lost initial| first=Richard| last=Savill| accessdate = 2006-09-09}}</ref> | |||
In '']'', the seventh and final novel in the series, Lord Voldemort gains control of the Ministry of Magic. Harry, Ron and Hermione learn about the ], legendary items that lead to mastery over death. The group infiltrates the ministry, where they steal a locket Horcrux, and visit ], where they are attacked by Nagini, Voldemort's snake. A silver doe Patronus leads them to the Sword of Gryffindor, with which they destroy the locket. They steal a Horcrux from Gringotts and travel to Hogwarts, culminating in a battle with the Death Eaters. Snape is killed by Voldemort out of paranoia, but he lends Harry his memories before he dies. Harry learns that Snape was always loyal to Dumbledore, and that Harry is himself a Horcrux. Harry surrenders to Voldemort and is killed. The defenders of Hogwarts continue to fight on; Harry is resurrected, faces Voldemort and kills him. | |||
The first ''Harry Potter'' book was published in the ] by Bloomsbury in July 1997 and in the ] by ] in September of 1998, but not before Rowling had received $105,000 for the American rights – an unprecedented amount for a children's book by a then unknown author.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/21/business/web21interview.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1|title=A Brief Walk Through Time at Scholastic|last=Rozhon|first=Tracie|work=]|date=]|accessdate = 2007-04-21|page=C3}}</ref> Fearing that American readers would not associate the word "philosopher" with a magical theme (as a ] is alchemy-related), Scholastic insisted that the book be given the title ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' for the American market. | |||
An epilogue titled "Nineteen Years Later" describes the lives of the surviving characters and the impact of Voldemort's death. Harry and Ginny are married with three ], and Ron and Hermione are married with ]. | |||
Rowling's publishers were able to capitalise on this buzz by the rapid, successive releases of the first four books that allowed neither Rowling's audience's excitement nor interest to wane while she took a break from writing between the release of '']'' and '']'', and also quickly solidified a loyal readership.<ref name="Books' Hero Wins Young Minds">{{cite news | |||
|publisher=New York Times | |||
|title=Books' Hero Wins Young Minds | |||
|date=] ] | |||
}}</ref> The series has also gathered adult fans, leading to two editions of each ''Harry Potter'' book being released (in markets other than the United States), identical in text but with one edition's cover artwork aimed at children and the other aimed at adults. | |||
== Style and allusions == | |||
===Completion of the series=== | |||
===Genre and style=== | |||
In December 2005, Rowling stated on her web site, "2006 will be the year when I write the final book in the ''Harry Potter'' series." Updates have since followed in her online diary chronicling the progress of '']'', with the release date of ] ]. | |||
The novels fall into the genre of ], and qualify as a type of fantasy called "]", "contemporary fantasy", or "]". They are mainly dramas, and maintain a fairly serious and dark tone throughout, though they do contain some notable instances of ] and black humour. In many respects, they are also examples of the '']'', or ] novel,<ref>{{cite news |last=Anne Le Lievre |first=Kerrie |year=2003 |title=Wizards and wainscots: generic structures and genre themes in the Harry Potter series |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0OON/is_1_24/ai_107896944/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206041643/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0OON/is_1_24/ai_107896944/ |archive-date=6 December 2008 |access-date=1 September 2008 |publisher=CNET Networks}}</ref> and contain elements of ], adventure, ], ], and ]. The books are also, in the words of ], "shrewd mystery tales",<ref name="Wild About Harry">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/00/07/23/reviews/000723.23kinglt.html|title=Wild About Harry|last=King|first=Stephen|date=23 July 2000|newspaper=The New York Times|quote=...the Harry Potter books are, at heart, satisfyingly shrewd mystery tales.|author-link=Stephen King|access-date=9 August 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417021723/http://www.nytimes.com/books/00/07/23/reviews/000723.23kinglt.html|archive-date=17 April 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and each book is constructed in the manner of a ]-style ] adventure. The stories are told from a ] point of view with very few exceptions (such as the opening chapters of '']'', '']'' and '']'' and the first two chapters of '']''). | |||
The series can be considered part of the British children's ], which includes ]'s '']'', ]'s '']'', '']'' and the '']'' series, and Frank Richards's '']'' novels: the ''Harry Potter'' books are predominantly set in ], a fictional British boarding school for wizards, where the curriculum includes the use of ].<ref name="Harry Potter Boarding">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/563232.stm|title=Harry Potter makes boarding fashionable|work=BBC News|access-date=1 September 2008|date=13 December 1999|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081228112231/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/563232.stm|archive-date=28 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In this sense they are "in a direct line of descent from ]'s '']'' and other Victorian and Edwardian novels of ] life", though they are, as many note, more contemporary, grittier, darker, and more mature than the typical boarding school novel, addressing serious ] of death, love, loss, prejudice, coming-of-age, and the loss of innocence in a 1990s British setting.<ref>{{cite book |last= Ellen Jones |first= Leslie |title= JRR Tolkien: A Biography |publisher= Greenwood Press |year= 2003 |isbn= 978-0-313-32340-9 |page= |url= https://archive.org/details/jrrtolkienbiogra0000jone/page/16 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last= A Whited | first = Lana | title=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon | publisher=University of Missouri Press|year=2004|isbn=978-0-8262-1549-9|page=28}}</ref>{{Failed verification|date=October 2023}} | |||
The book itself was finished on ] ] in the ], ], where she scrawled a message on the back of a bust of Hermes. It read: “JK Rowling finished writing ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' in this room (652) on ] ].”<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/6324289.stm|title=Potter author signs off in style|publisher=]|date=2007-02-02}}</ref> | |||
In ''Harry Potter'', Rowling juxtaposes the extraordinary against the ordinary.{{Sfn|Natov|2002|p=129}} Her narrative features two worlds: a contemporary world inhabited by non-magical people called ], and another featuring wizards. It differs from typical ] in that its magical elements stay grounded in the mundane.{{sfn|Butler|2012|pp=233–34}} Paintings move and talk; books bite readers; letters shout messages; and maps show live journeys, making the wizarding world both exotic and familiar.{{Sfn|Natov|2002|p=129}}{{sfn|Butler|2012|p=234}} This blend of realistic and romantic elements extends to Rowling's characters. Their names are often ]{{clarify|date=January 2024}}: Malfoy is difficult, Filch is unpleasant, and Lupin is a werewolf.{{sfn|Park|2003|p=183}}{{Sfn|Natov|2002|p=130}} Harry is ordinary and relatable, with down-to-earth features such as wearing broken glasses;{{sfn|Nikolajeva|2008|p=233}} the scholar Roni Natov terms him an "everychild".{{sfn|Ostry|2003|p=97}} These elements serve to highlight Harry when he is heroic, making him both an ] and a fairytale hero.{{sfn|Nikolajeva|2008|p=233}}{{sfn|Ostry|2003|pp=90, 97–98}} | |||
Rowling herself has stated that the last chapter of the seventh book (in fact, the epilogue) was completed "in something like 1990".<ref name="last chapter">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5119836.stm|title="Rowling to kill two in final book"|publisher=]|date=]|accessdate=2007-07-25}}</ref><ref name="last chapter means epilogue">{{cite news|url=http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2001/1201-bbc-hpandme.htm|title="Harry Potter and Me"|date=]|accessdate=2007-09-12}}</ref> | |||
Each of the seven books is set over the course of one school year. Harry struggles with the problems he encounters, and dealing with them often involves the need to violate some school rules. If students are caught breaking rules, they are often disciplined by Hogwarts professors. The stories reach their climax in the ], near or just after ], when events escalate far beyond in-school squabbles and struggles, and Harry must confront either ] or one of his followers, the ], with the stakes a matter of life and death—a point underlined, as the series progresses, by characters being killed in each of the final four books.<ref name="Harry Potter Last Adventure" /><ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/two-characters-to-die-in-last-harry-potter-book-j-k-rowling-1.598355 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20060630023326/http://www.cbc.ca/arts/story/2006/06/26/rowling-potter-deaths.html | archive-date=30 June 2006|title=Two characters to die in last 'Harry Potter' book: J.K. Rowling|publisher=CBC|access-date=1 September 2008 |url-status= live | date=26 June 2006}}</ref> In the aftermath, he learns important lessons through exposition and discussions with head teacher and mentor ]. The only exception to this school-centred setting is the final novel, '']'', in which Harry and his friends spend most of their time away from Hogwarts, and only return there to face Voldemort at the '']''.<ref name="Harry Potter Last Adventure">{{cite news|url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1637886_1637891,00.html|title=Harry Potter's Last Adventure|last=Grossman|first=Lev|magazine=]|access-date=1 September 2008|date=28 June 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080827145911/http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1637886_1637891,00.html|archive-date=27 August 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
In June 2006, Rowling, on an appearance on the British talk show '']'', announced that the chapter had been modified as one character "got a reprieve" and two others who previously survived the story had in fact been killed. She also said she could see the logic in killing off Harry to stop other writers from writing books about Harry's life after Hogwarts.<ref></ref> | |||
===Allusions=== | |||
On ], ], the cover art for the Bloomsbury Adult and Child versions and the Scholastic version were released.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/gallery/dh|title=Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Cover Art|accessdate = 2007-04-02}}</ref> | |||
The ''Harry Potter'' stories feature imagery and motifs drawn from ] and ]. Harry's ability to draw the ] from the ] resembles the Arthurian ] legend.{{sfn|Alton|2008|p=216}} His life with the Dursleys has been compared to ].{{sfn|Gallardo|Smith|2003|p=195}} Hogwarts resembles a medieval university-cum-castle with several professors who belong to an Order of Merlin; Old Professor Binns still lectures about the International Warlock Convention of 1289; and a real historical person, a 14th-century scribe, Sir ], is described as a holder of the Philosopher's Stone.<ref name="Scriptorium Press">{{cite journal|last1=Arden |first1=Heather |last2=Lorenz |first2=Kathryn |title=The Harry Potter Stories and French Arthurian Romance|journal=Arthuriana|volume=13 |issue=12|pages=54–68|date=June 2003|jstor=27870516|doi=10.1353/art.2003.0005 |s2cid=161603742 | issn=1078-6279}}</ref> Other medieval elements in Hogwarts include coats-of-arms and medieval weapons on the walls, letters written on parchment and sealed with wax, the Great Hall of Hogwarts, which is similar to the Great Hall of Camelot, the use of Latin phrases, the tents put up for Quidditch tournaments, which are similar to the "marvellous tents" put up for knightly tournaments, imaginary animals like dragons and unicorns that exist around Hogwarts, and the banners with heraldic animals for the four Houses of Hogwarts.<ref name="Scriptorium Press"/> | |||
Many of the motifs of the Potter stories, such as the hero's quest invoking objects that confer invisibility, magical animals and trees, a forest full of danger and the recognition of a character based upon scars, are drawn from medieval French Arthurian romances.<ref name="Scriptorium Press"/> Other aspects borrowed from French Arthurian romances include the use of owls as messengers, werewolves as characters, and white deer.<ref name="Scriptorium Press"/> The American scholars Heather Arden and Kathrn Lorenz in particular argue that many aspects of the Potter stories are inspired by a 14th-century French Arthurian romance, ''Claris et Laris'', writing of the "startling" similarities between the adventures of Potter and the knight Claris.<ref name="Scriptorium Press"/> Arden and Lorenz noted that Rowling graduated from the University of Exeter in 1986 with a degree in French literature and spent a year living in France afterwards.<ref name="Scriptorium Press"/> | |||
===After ''Deathly Hallows''=== | |||
Rowling spent seventeen years writing the seven Harry Potter books. In a 2000 interview through ], her American publisher, Rowling stated that there is not a university after Hogwarts. Concerning the series continuing past book seven, she stated, "I won't say ''never'', but I have no plans to write an eighth book."<ref>{{cite web | |||
|url=http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author/transcript1.htm | |||
|title=Transcript of JKR's live interview on Scholastic.com | |||
|date=2000-02-03}}</ref> She has since said that if she does write an eighth book Harry Potter will not be the central character, as his story has been told, and that she would not begin such a project for at least ten years.<ref>{{Citation |last= |first= |title=JK Rowling hints at eighth Potter |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7164884.stm |publisher=''BBC'' |date=2007-12-30 |accessdate=2008-01-11}}</ref> | |||
Like C. S. Lewis's ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', ''Harry Potter'' also contains Christian symbolism and ]. The series has been viewed as a Christian moral fable in the ] tradition, in which stand-ins for good and evil fight for supremacy over a person's soul.{{Sfn|Singer|2016|pp= 26–27}} Children's literature critic Joy Farmer sees parallels between Harry and ].{{Sfn|Farmer|2001|p=58}} Comparing Rowling with Lewis, she argues that "magic is both authors' way of talking about spiritual reality".{{Sfn|Farmer|2001|p=55}} According to ], Christian imagery is particularly strong in the final scenes of the series: Harry dies in self-sacrifice and Voldemort delivers an "]" speech, after which Harry is ] and defeats his enemy.{{sfn|Nikolajeva|2008|pp=238–39}} | |||
When asked about writing other Harry Potter-related books similar to '']'' and '']'', she has said that she might consider doing this with proceeds donated to charity, as was the case with those two books. Another suggestion is an encyclopaedia-style tome containing information that never made it into the series, also for charity.<ref name="new_chapter">{{cite web |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;?xml=/news/2007/05/13/npotter13.xml|title=A new chapter for Harry Potter and JK|publisher=]|accessdate=2007-06-15|date=]}}</ref> She has revealed she is currently penning two books, one for children and one not for children.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6918723.stm|publisher=BBC News|title=Potter author 'penning two books'|date=]|accessdate=2007-07-30}}</ref> | |||
Rowling stated that she did not reveal ''Harry Potter''{{'}}s religious parallels in the beginning because doing so would have "give too much away to fans who might then see the parallels".<ref name="Adler2007">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/1572107/harry-potter-author-jk-rowling-opens-up-about-books-christian-imagery/|title='Harry Potter' Author J.K. Rowling Opens Up About Books' Christian Imagery|last=Adler|first=Shawn|date=17 October 2007|publisher=]|language=en|access-date=3 April 2018|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014091806/http://www.mtv.com/news/1572107/harry-potter-author-jk-rowling-opens-up-about-books-christian-imagery/|archive-date=14 October 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In the final book of the series, '']'', Rowling makes the book's Christian imagery more explicit, quoting both ] and ] (]) when Harry visits his parents' ].<ref name="Adler2007"/> ] teaches Harry Potter that the meaning of these verses from the ] are "living beyond death. Living after death", which Rowling states "epitomize the whole series".<ref name="Adler2007"/><ref name="SedlmayrWaller2014">{{cite book|last1=Sedlmayr|first1=Gerold|last2=Waller|first2=Nicole|title=Politics in Fantasy Media: Essays on Ideology and Gender in Fiction, Film, Television and Games|date=28 October 2014|publisher=]|language=en|isbn=9781476617558|page=132|quote=During this press conference, Rowling stated that the Bible quotations in that novel "almost epitomize the whole series. I think they sum up all the themes in the whole series" (reported in Adler).}}</ref><ref name="Falconer2008">{{cite book|last=Falconer|first=Rachel|title=The Crossover Novel: Contemporary Children's Fiction and Its Adult Readership|date=21 October 2008|publisher=]|language=en|isbn=9781135865016|page=69|quote=These New Testament verses (Matthew 6:19 and 1 Corinthians 15:26) together denote the promise of resurrection through the Son of God's consent to die.52 In interview, Rowling has stressed that these two quotations 'sum up{{snd}}they almost epitomize the whole series'.}}</ref> Rowling also exhibits Christian values in developing Albus Dumbledore as a God-like character, the divine, trusted leader of the series, guiding the long-suffering hero along his quest. In the seventh novel, Harry speaks with and questions the deceased Dumbledore much like a person of faith would talk to and question God.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Cooke |first=Rachel |title=ProQuest Ebook Central |journal=] |doi=10.5260/cca.199425|doi-broken-date=1 November 2024 }} {{subscription required}}</ref>{{Full citation needed|date=August 2024}} | |||
In February 2007 Rowling issued a statement on her website about finishing the final book, in which she compared her mixed feelings of "mourning" and "incredible sense of achievement" to those expressed by ] in the preface of the 1850 edition of '']'', "a two-years' imaginative task." "To which," she added, "I can only sigh, try seventeen years, Charles…" | |||
== Themes == | |||
On ], ], Rowling announced in an interview that she "probably will" write an encyclopaedia of the ''Harry Potter'' world, which would include background information cut from the narrative as well as post-''Deathly Hallows'' information, including details of what happens to the other characters, who the new Hogwarts headmaster is, and more.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/19935372/|title=Stop your sobbing! More Potter to come|publisher=]|date=2007-07-24|accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> Rowling refers to the encyclopedia as the "Scottish Book", a take on the ].<ref>{{Citation |last=Rowling |first=Joanne |title=Why 'The Scottish Book'? |url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/faq_view.cfm?id=123 |publisher=''http://www.jkrowling.com'' |date= |accessdate=2008-01-11}}</ref> | |||
] |alt=J.K. Rowling, a blond, blue-eyed woman, who is the author of the series]] | |||
''Harry Potter''{{'s}} overarching theme is death.{{Sfn|Ciaccio|2008|pp=39–40}}{{Sfn|Groves|2017|pp=xxi–xxii, 135–136}} In the first book, when Harry looks into the Mirror of Erised, he feels both joy and "a terrible sadness" at seeing his desire: his parents, alive and with him.{{sfn|Natov|2002|pp= 134–36}} Confronting their loss is central to Harry's character arc and manifests in different ways through the series, such as in his struggles with ].{{sfn|Natov|2002|pp=134–36}}{{sfn|Taub|Servaty-Seib|2008|pp=23–27}} Other characters in Harry's life die; he even faces his own death in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows''.{{Sfn|Pharr|2016|pp=20–21}} The series has an ] perspective—Harry must grow mature enough to accept death.{{Sfn|Los|2008|pp=32–33}} In Harry's world, death is not binary but mutable, a state that exists in degrees.{{Sfn|Stojilkov|2015|p=135}} Unlike Voldemort, who evades death by separating and hiding his soul in seven parts, Harry's soul is whole, nourished by friendship and love.{{Sfn|Los|2008|pp=32–33}} | |||
In a 90-minute live Web chat, Rowling revealed<ref>{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.msn.com/news/article.aspx?news=270634>1=10150&mpc=1|title=Rowling Answers Fans' Final Questions|publisher=]|date=2007-07-30|accessdate=2007-07-31}}</ref> what several of the characters did in the years between the conclusion of the book and the epilogue. | |||
Love distinguishes Harry and Voldemort. Harry is a hero because he loves others, even willing to accept death to save them; Voldemort is a villain because he does not.{{Sfn|Pharr|2016|pp= 14–15, 20–21}} Harry carries the protection of his mother's sacrifice in his blood; Voldemort, who wants Harry's blood and the protection it carries, does not understand that love vanquishes death.{{Sfn|Farmer|2001|p=58}} | |||
===Translations=== | |||
] translation of the first book, jointly published by De Harmonie and Standaard.]] | |||
{{main|Harry Potter in translation}} | |||
The series has been translated into 65 languages,<ref>{{cite web|title=What now for Harry Potter fans?|url=http://www.news.com.au/sundaytelegraph/story/0,,22103790-5001026,00.html|work=Daily Telegraph|author=Alyssa Braithwaite|year=2007|accessdate=2007-07-21}}</ref> placing Rowling among the most translated authors in history.<ref>{{cite web|title=Guinness World Records: L. Ron Hubbard Is the Most Translated Author|author=KMaul|work=thebookstandard.com|url=http://www.thebookstandard.com/bookstandard/news/author/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001476331|year=2005|accessdate=2007-07-19}}</ref> The first translation was into ], as many words and concepts used by the characters in the novels would have been misleading to a young American audience. Subsequently the books have seen translations in languages as diverse as ], ], ], ], ] and ]. The first volume has been translated into ] and even ],<ref><span class="plainlinks"> . Accessed ] ]. </span></ref> making it the longest published work in that language since the novels of ] in the 3rd century AD.<ref><span class="plainlinks"> Accessed ] ]. </span></ref> | |||
Rowling has spoken about thematising death and loss in the series. Soon after she started writing ''Philosopher's Stone'', her mother died; she said that "I really think from that moment on, death became a central, if not the central theme of the seven books".{{sfn|Groves|2017|p=138}} Rowling has described Harry as "the prism through which I view death", and further stated that "all of my characters are defined by their attitude to death and the possibility of death".{{sfn|Groves|2017|p=135}} | |||
The high profile and huge public demand for a decent local translation means that a great deal of care is often taken in the task. In some countries such as Italy, the first book was revised by the publishers and issued in an updated edition, in response to feedback from readers. In countries such as China and Portugal, the translation is conducted by a group of translators working together to save time. Some of the translators hired to work on the books were quite well known prior to their work on Harry Potter, such as Viktor Golyshev, who oversaw the ] translation of the series' fifth book. Golyshev was previously best known for translating ] and ];<ref>{{cite web|title=Translating Harry—Part I: The Language of Magic|author=Steven Goldstein|url=http://www.globalbydesign.com/resources/articles/translating_harry_potter_part1.html|work=GlobalByDesign|year=2004|accessdate = 2007-05-09}}</ref> his tendency to snub the Harry Potter books in interviews and refer to them as inferior literature may be the reason he did not return to work on later books in the series. The ] translation of books two to seven was undertaken by ], a popular literary critic and cultural commentator.<ref>{{cite web|title=Not lost in translation: Harry Potter in Turkish|author=EMRAH GÜLER|url=http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=29054|year=2005|accessdate = 2007-05-09}}</ref> For reasons of secrecy, translation can only start when the books are released in English; thus there is a lag of several months before the translations are available. This has led to more and more copies of the English editions being sold to impatient fans in non-English speaking countries. Such was the clamour to read the fifth book that its ] edition became the first English-language book ever to top the bestseller list in ].<ref>{{cite news | |||
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/world/newsid_3036000/3036350.stm | |||
|publisher=BBC | |||
|title=OOTP is best seller in France—in English! | |||
|date=] ]}}</ref> | |||
While ''Harry Potter'' can be viewed as a story about good vs. evil, its moral divisions are not absolute.{{sfn|Shanoes|2003|pp=131–32}}{{sfn|McEvoy|2016|p=207}} First impressions of characters are often misleading. Harry assumes in the first book that Quirrell is on the side of good because he opposes Snape, who appears to be malicious; in reality, Quirrell is an agent of Voldemort, while Snape is loyal to Dumbledore. This pattern later recurs with Moody and Snape.{{sfn|Shanoes|2003|pp= 131–32}} In Rowling's world, good and evil are choices rather than inherent attributes: second chances and the possibility of redemption are key themes of the series.{{sfn|Doughty|2002|pp= 247–49}}{{Sfn|Berberich|2016|p=153}} This is reflected in Harry's self-doubts after learning his connections to Voldemort, such as Parseltongue;{{sfn|Doughty|2002|pp=247–49}} and prominently in Snape's characterisation, which has been described as complex and multifaceted.{{sfn|Birch|2008|pp=110–13}} In some scholars' view, while Rowling's narrative appears on the surface to be about Harry, her focus may actually be on Snape's morality and character arc.{{sfn|Nikolajeva|2016|p=204}}{{sfn|Applebaum|2008|pp=84–85}} | |||
==Literary analysis== | |||
===Structure and genre=== | |||
{{seealso|Harry Potter influences and analogues}} | |||
The novels are very much in the ] genre; in many respects they are also ]s, coming of age novels. The stories are predominantly set in Hogwarts, a British boarding school for wizards, where the curriculum includes the use of ]. In this sense they are "in a direct line of descent from ]'s '']'' and other Victorian and Edwardian novels of British public school life".<ref>"J. K. Rowling" by Leslie Ellen Jones, ''NoveList/EBSCO Publishing'', 2003, retrieved ] ]</ref> They are also, in the words of ], "shrewd mystery tale",<ref name="Wild About Harry">{{cite news|publisher=New York Times|title="Wild About Harry"|date=] ]}}</ref> and each book is constructed in the manner of a ]-style ] adventure; the books leave a number of clues hidden in the narrative, while the characters pursue a number of suspects through various exotic locations, leading to a twist ending that often reverses what the characters had been led to believe. The stories are told from a ] point of view; with very few exceptions (such as the opening chapters of '']'' and '']'' and the first two chapters of '']''), the reader learns the secrets of the story when Harry does. The thoughts and plans of other characters, even central ones such as Hermione and Ron, are kept hidden until revealed to Harry. | |||
Rowling said that, to her, the moral significance of the tales seems "blindingly obvious". In the fourth book, Dumbledore speaks of a "choice between what is right and what is easy"; Rowling views this as a key theme, "because that ... is how tyranny is started, with people being apathetic and taking the easy route and suddenly finding themselves in deep trouble".<ref>{{cite news |first=Wyman |last=Max |title="You can lead a fool to a book but you cannot make them think": Author has frank words for the religious right |newspaper=] |date=26 October 2000 |page=A3 |id={{ProQuest|242655908}}}}</ref> | |||
The books tend to follow a very strict formula. Set over the course of consecutive years, they each begin with Harry at home with the Dursleys in the ] world, enduring their ill treatment. Subsequently, Harry goes to a specific magical location (], the ] or ]) for a period before beginning school, which he commences by boarding the ] at Platform 9¾. Once at school, new or redefined characters take shape, and Harry overcomes new everyday school issues, such as difficult essays, awkward crushes, and unsympathetic teachers. The stories reach their climax near or just after final exams, when Harry confronts either Voldemort or one of his ]. In the aftermath, he learns important lessons through exposition and discussions with ]. This formula was completely broken in the final novel, '']'', in which Harry and his friends spend most of their time away from Hogwarts, and only return there to face Voldemort at the climax.{{HP7}} | |||
Academics and journalists have developed many other interpretations of themes in the books, some more complex than others, and some including ]. Themes such as ], oppression, survival, and overcoming imposing odds have all been considered as prevalent throughout the series.<ref name="Greenwald2005">{{cite journal|last1=Greenwald|first1=Janey|title=Understanding Harry Potter: Parallels to the Deaf World|journal=The Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education|volume=10|issue=4|pages=442–450|date=Fall 2005|doi=10.1093/deafed/eni041|pmid=16000691|last2=Greenwald|first2=J |format=Free full text|doi-access=free}}</ref> Similarly, the theme of making one's way through adolescence and "going over one's most harrowing ordeals—and thus coming to terms with them" has also been considered.<ref name="Duffy2002">{{cite journal|last=Duffy|first=Edward|title=Sentences in Harry Potter, Students in Future Writing Classes|journal=Rhetoric Review|volume=21|issue=2|year=2002|page=177|doi=10.1207/S15327981RR2102_03|s2cid=144654506}}</ref> Rowling has stated that the books comprise "a prolonged argument for tolerance, a prolonged plea for an end to ]" and that they also pass on a message to "question authority and... not assume that the establishment or the press tells you all of the truth".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7053982.stm|title=JK Rowling outs Dumbledore as gay|access-date=21 October 2007|date=21 October 2007|work=BBC News|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071022052510/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7053982.stm|archive-date=22 October 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
In addition, Harry is present during in some manner (physically, via a dream or via a vision) for every scene during the first four novels, other than the opening pages of ''Philosopher's Stone''. In the later books, he is present for the majority of scenes. This structure allows the reader to unravel each mystery as he does, receiving clues only when he does. | |||
== Development history == | |||
===Themes=== | |||
{{Main|Harry Potter influences and analogues}} | |||
According to Rowling, a major theme in the series is the theme of ]. She says:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/01/10/nrowl110.xml|title='There would be so much to tell her…'|accessdate = 2007-04-04}}</ref> | |||
In 1990, Rowling was on a crowded train from ] to ] when the idea for Harry suddenly "fell into" her head. Rowling gives an account of the experience on her website saying:<ref name="Harry falls into author's head">{{cite web|publisher=JKRowling.com|url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/biography.cfm|title=Biography|first= JK |last = Rowling |access-date=21 May 2006|year=2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060421032312/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/biography.cfm <!--Added by H3llBot-->|archive-date=21 April 2006}}</ref> | |||
{{cquote|My books are largely about death. They open with the death of Harry's parents. There is Voldemort's obsession with conquering death and his quest for ] at any price, the goal of anyone with magic. I so understand why Voldemort wants to conquer death. We're all frightened of it.}} | |||
{{blockquote|I had been writing almost continuously since the age of six but I had never been so excited about an idea before. I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, black-haired, bespectacled boy who did not know he was a wizard became more and more real to me.}} | |||
Rowling has stated that the books comprise "a prolonged argument for tolerance, a prolonged plea for an end to ]" and that also pass on a message to "question authority and… not assume that the establishment or the press tells you all of the truth".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/2007/10/20/j-k-rowling-at-carnegie-hall-reveals-dumbledore-is-gay-neville-marries-hannah-abbott-and-scores-more|title=J. K. Rowling at Carnegie Hall|work=The Leaky Cauldron|accessdate=2007-10-21}}</ref> <ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7053982.stm|title=JK Rowling outs Dumbledore as gay|accessdate=2007-10-21|date=2007-10-21|work=BBC News|publisher=]}}</ref> | |||
Rowling completed ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' in 1995 and the ] was sent off to several prospective ].{{sfn|Kirk|2003|p=73}} The second agent she tried, ], offered to represent her and sent the manuscript to several publishers.{{sfn|Smith|2002|pp=156, 159–161}} | |||
While the books could be said to comprise many other themes, such as power/abuse of power, love, prejudice, and choice, they are, as J.K. Rowling states, "deeply entrenched in the whole plot"; the writer prefers to let themes "grow organically", rather than sitting down and consciously attempting to impart such ideas to her readers.<ref name="Mzimba, Lizo, moderator. Interview with Steve Kloves and J.K. Rowling">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://www.quick-quote-quill.org/articles/2003/0302-newsround-mzimba.htm | |||
|publisher= Quick Quotes Quill | |||
|title=Mzimba, Lizo, moderator. Interview with Steve Kloves and J.K. Rowling | |||
|date= February 2003}}</ref> Along the same lines is the ever-present theme of adolescence, in whose depiction Rowling has been purposeful in acknowledging her characters' sexualities and not leaving Harry, as she put it, "stuck in a state of permanent pre-pubescence".<ref name="Favorite chapter">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://www.quick-quote-quill.org/articles/1999/0299-guardian-carey.htm | |||
|publisher=Scholastic.com | |||
|title=About the Books: transcript of J.K. Rowling's live interview on Scholastic.com | |||
|date=] ]}}</ref> | |||
=== Publishing history === | |||
Rowling said that, to her, the moral significance of the tales seems "blindingly obvious." The key for her was the choice between what is right and what is easy, "because that, that is how ] is started, with people being ] and taking the easy route and suddenly finding themselves in deep trouble."<ref></ref> | |||
]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bloomsbury.com/media/bookseller_image_tandcs.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070710055833/http://www.bloomsbury.com/media/bookseller_image_tandcs.pdf |archive-date=10 July 2007 |title=Harry Potter Books (UK Editions) Terms and Conditions for Use of Images for Book Promotion |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing Plc |date=10 July 2007 |access-date=7 September 2012}}</ref>]] | |||
After twelve other publishers had rejected ''Philosopher's Stone'', ] agreed to publish the book.{{sfn|Smith|2002|pp=159–160}} Despite Rowling's statement that she did not have any particular ] in mind when beginning to write the ''Harry Potter'' books, the publishers initially targeted children aged nine to eleven.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.newsobserver.com/308/story/637623.html |title=The magic years |last=Huler |first=Scott |work=The News & Observer |access-date=28 September 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081218170339/http://www.newsobserver.com/308/story/637623.html |archive-date=18 December 2008 }}</ref> On the eve of publishing, Rowling was asked by her publishers to adopt a more ] pen name in order to appeal to the male members of this age group, fearing that they would not be interested in reading a novel they knew to be written by a woman. She elected to use J. K. Rowling (Joanne Kathleen Rowling), using her grandmother's name as her second name because she has no ].{{sfn|Kirk|2003|p=76}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1349288/Harry-Potter-and-the-mystery-of-J-Ks-lost-initial.html|title=Harry Potter and the mystery of J K's lost initial|last=Savill|first=Richard|date=21 June 2001|work=The Daily Telegraph|access-date=27 September 2008|location=London|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220012350/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1349288/Harry-Potter-and-the-mystery-of-J-Ks-lost-initial.html|archive-date=20 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
==Achievements== | |||
===Cultural impact=== | |||
{{details|Harry Potter fandom}} | |||
Since the publishing of ''Philosopher's Stone'' a number of societal trends have been attributed to the series. | |||
''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' was published by Bloomsbury, the publisher of all ''Harry Potter'' books in the United Kingdom, on 26 June 1997.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/harry-potter-and-the-philosophers-stone-9780747532699/|title=Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|access-date=27 November 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626181223/http://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/harry-potter-and-the-philosophers-stone-9780747532699/|archive-date=26 June 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref> It was released in the United States on 1 September 1998 by ]—the American publisher of the books—as ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'',<ref>{{cite news|url= http://www.nypost.com/seven/07022007/news/nationalnews/wild_about_harry_nationalnews_.htm|title=Wild about Harry|publisher=NYP Holdings, Inc.|access-date=27 September 2008 | date=2 July 2007|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090821084927/http://www.nypost.com/seven/07022007/news/nationalnews/wild_about_harry_nationalnews_.htm |archive-date=21 August 2009}}</ref> after the American rights sold for US$105,000—a record amount for a children's book by an unknown author.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/21/business/web21interview.html|title=A Brief Walk Through Time at Scholastic|last=Rozhon|first=Tracie|work=The New York Times|date=21 April 2007|access-date=21 April 2007|page=C3|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416133919/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/21/business/web21interview.html|archive-date=16 April 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Scholastic feared that American readers would not associate the word "philosopher" with magic, and Rowling suggested the title ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' for the American market.{{sfn|Errington|2017|p=145}} Rowling has later said that she regrets the change.{{sfn|Whited|2015|pp=75}} | |||
The most notable trend attributed to ''Harry Potter'' has been an increase in literacy among the young. ] suggesting such an increase was seemingly confirmed in 2006 when the Kids and Family Reading Report (in conjunction with Scholastic) released a survey finding that 51% of ''Harry Potter'' readers ages 5–17 said that while they did not read books for fun before they started reading ''Harry Potter'', they now did. The study further reported that according to 65% of children and 76% of parents, they or their children's performance in school improved since they started reading the series.<ref name="New Study Finds That the Harry Potter Series Has a Positive Impact on Kids' Reading and Their School Work">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://www.scholastic.com/aboutscholastic/news/press_07252006_CP.htm | |||
|publisher= Scholastic | |||
|title=New Study Finds That the Harry Potter Series Has a Positive Impact on Kids' Reading and Their School Work | |||
|date= 2006-25-07 | |||
|accessdate = 2007-02-10}}</ref> Charlie Griffiths, director of the National Literacy Association, said "Anyone who can persuade children to read should be treasured and what given us in ''Harry Potter'' is little short of miraculous."<ref name="mcginty">{{Citation | last =Stephen | first =McGinty | title = The legacy of Harry: The JK ROwling Story—Part III | newspaper=The Scotsman | date=] | url =http://news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=3&id=669512003 | accessdate=2007-05-29}}</ref> British Prime Minister ], a long time fan, said, "I think JK Rowling has done more for literacy around the world than any single human being."<ref name="brownpraise">{{cite web | title =Chancellor praises Potter books | publisher = BBC News | date = ], ] | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4683219.stm| accessdate = 2007-06-25}}</ref><ref name="land">{{cite web | last = Land | first = Jon | title =Harry Potter tops Godron Brown's summer reading list | publisher = 24dash.com | date = ], ] | url =http://www.24dash.com/education/21107.htm| accessdate = 2007-06-25}}</ref> | |||
The second book, ''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'', was originally published in the UK on 2 July 1998 and in the US on 2 June 1999. ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' was published a year later in the UK on 8 July 1999 and in the US on 8 September 1999.<ref name="Harry Potter UK Release Dates">{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/article/235354|title=A Potter timeline for muggles|date=14 July 2007|work=Toronto Star|access-date=27 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220001353/http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/article/235354|archive-date=20 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' was published on 8 July 2000 at the same time by Bloomsbury and Scholastic.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/jul/19/jkjoannekathleenrowling|title=Speed-reading after lights out|date=19 July 2000|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|access-date=27 September 2008|location=London|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131231101931/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/jul/19/jkjoannekathleenrowling|archive-date=31 December 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' is the longest book in the series, at 766 pages in the UK version and 870 pages in the US version.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/14/business/harry-potter-and-the-internet-pirates.html |title=Harry Potter and the Internet Pirates |work=The New York Times |access-date=21 August 2008 |first=Amy |last=Harmon |date=14 July 2003 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090403074718/http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/14/business/harry-potter-and-the-internet-pirates.html |archive-date=3 April 2009 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> It was published worldwide in English on 21 June 2003.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/jan/16/harrypotter.books|title=Harry Potter and the hottest day of summer|last=Cassy|first=John|date=16 January 2003|work=The Guardian|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|access-date=27 September 2008|location=London|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131231091101/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/jan/16/harrypotter.books|archive-date=31 December 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' was published on 16 July 2005.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4113663.stm|title=July date for Harry Potter book|date=21 December 2004|work=BBC News|access-date=27 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081229024606/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4113663.stm|archive-date=29 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="finale sales">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6912529.stm|title=Harry Potter finale sales hit 11 m|work=BBC News|access-date=21 August 2008|date=23 July 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081225034725/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6912529.stm|archive-date=25 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The seventh and final novel, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', was published on 21 July 2007.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6320733.stm|title=Rowling unveils last Potter date|date=1 February 2007|work=BBC News|access-date=27 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081228101051/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6320733.stm|archive-date=28 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Rowling herself has stated that the last chapter of the final book (in fact, the epilogue) was completed "in something like 1990".<ref name="last chapter">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5119836.stm|title=Rowling to kill two in final book|work=BBC News|date=27 June 2006|access-date=25 July 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090803133633/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5119836.stm|archive-date=3 August 2009}}</ref> | |||
Indeed as the series progresses, each book gets progressively longer, developing along with the reader's literary abilities. A word-count comparison shows how each book, save the sixth, is longer than its predecessor, requiring greater concentration and longer attention spans to complete. This fact in itself can be seen as contributory to improved literary abilities in children who tackle the series.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.writinginstructor.com/penrod.html |title=Writinginstructor.com: The Trouble with Harry: A Reason for Teaching Media Literacy to Young Adults|accessdate=2007-11-25 }}</ref> | |||
Rowling retained rights to digital editions and released them on the Pottermore website in 2012. Vendors such as Amazon displayed the ebooks in the form of links to Pottermore, which controlled pricing.{{sfn|Clark|Phillips|2019|p=47}} All seven ''Harry Potter'' novels have been released in unabridged ] versions, with ] reading the British editions and ] voicing the series for the American editions.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rich |first1=Mokoto |title=The Voice of Harry Potter Can Keep a Secret |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/17/books/17dale.html |work=The New York Times |date=17 July 2007 |access-date=6 September 2019 |archive-date=6 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190906002232/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/17/books/17dale.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Harry Potter Audiobooks and E-Books |url=http://www.mugglenet.com/harry-potter/harry-potter-series/audiobooks-and-e-books/ |website=Mugglenet |publisher=Dose Media |access-date=6 September 2019 |archive-date=6 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190906002235/http://www.mugglenet.com/harry-potter/harry-potter-series/audiobooks-and-e-books/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> On ], the series has been listened, as of November 2022, for over a billion hours.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/63794444 |title=Harry Potter: Fans have listened to books for one billion hours |work=BBC Newsround |date=30 November 2022 |access-date=8 February 2023 |archive-date=6 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206180533/https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/63794444 |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
In 2005, doctors at the ] in ] reported that their research of the weekends of Saturday ]] and Saturday ] ] (the release dates of the ''Order of the Phoenix'' and the ''Half-Blood Prince'', respectively) found that only 36 children needed emergency medical assistance for injuries sustained in accidents, as opposed to other weekends' average of 67.<ref name="Reading 'cuts childhood injuries'">{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/oxfordshire/4553110.stm |publisher= BBC News |title=Reading 'cuts childhood injuries' |date= ] ]}}</ref> | |||
] in Newark, ] for the midnight release of '']'']] | |||
Notable also is the development of a massive following of fans. So eager were these fans for the latest series release that bookstores around the world began holding events to coincide with the midnight release of the books, beginning with the 2000 publication of ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire''. The events, commonly featuring mock sorting, games, face painting, and other live entertainment have achieved popularity with Potter fans and have been incredibly successful at attracting fans and selling books with nearly nine million of the 10.8 million initial print copies of ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' sold in the first 24 hours.<ref name="Harry Potter casts spell at checkouts">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,927-1698839,00.html | |||
|publisher=Times Online | |||
|title=Harry Potter casts spell at checkouts | |||
|date=] ] | |||
}}</ref><ref name="Potter book smashes sales records">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4692093.stm | |||
|publisher=BBC | |||
|title=Potter book smashes sales records | |||
|date=] ] | |||
}}</ref> Among this large base of ]s are a minority of "super-fans", similar to the ]s of the '']'' ]. Besides meeting online through ]s, ]s, and ]s, ''Harry Potter'' super-fans can also meet at ''Harry Potter'' ]. These events draw people from around the world to attend lectures, discussions and a host of other ''Potter'' themed activities. | |||
=== Translations === | |||
The ''Harry Potter'' books have inspired the "]" movement, where a number of bands were formed whose names, image and song lyrics relate to the ''Harry Potter'' world. Examples include ] and ].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.syracuse.com/articles/cny/index.ssf?/base/living-3/118492494174900.xml&coll=1|title=Wizard Rock|publisher=]|date=2007-07-20|accessdate=2007-10-21|last=Loftus|first=Meghan}}</ref> | |||
{{Main|Harry Potter in translation}} | |||
], 2007]] | |||
The series has been translated into more than 80 languages,<ref name="Harry Potter copies">{{cite press release |author=<!--Not stated--> |title=Scholastic Marks 25 Year Anniversary of The Publication of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone |url=http://mediaroom.scholastic.com/press-release/scholastic-marks-25-year-anniversary-publication-jk-rowling-s-harry-potter-and-sorcere |location=New York, New York |publisher=Scholastic |agency= |date=2023-02-06 |access-date=2023-02-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230313054050/http://mediaroom.scholastic.com/press-release/scholastic-marks-25-year-anniversary-publication-jk-rowling-s-harry-potter-and-sorcere|archive-date=13 March 2023|url-status=live}}</ref> placing Rowling among the most translated authors in history. The books have seen translations to diverse languages such as ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. The first volume has been translated into ] and even ],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~loxias/harry_potter.htm|title=Harry Potter in Greek|last=Wilson|first=Andrew|year=2006|publisher=Andrew Wilson|access-date=28 July 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080621122227/http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~loxias/harry_potter.htm|archive-date=21 June 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> making it the longest published work in Ancient Greek since the novels of ] in the 3rd century AD.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://playalicious.com/reference/news/greek_harry.html |title=Harry Potter? It's All Greek to Me |last=Castle |first=Tim |date=2 December 2004|agency=Reuters |access-date=28 July 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080119214752/http://playalicious.com/reference/news/greek_harry.html |archive-date= 19 January 2008}}</ref> The second volume has also been translated into Latin.<ref>{{cite web|title = Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Latin)|url = http://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/harry-potter-and-the-chamber-of-secrets-latin-9780747588771/|website = Bloomsbury Publishing|access-date = 13 August 2015|first = Skyron|last = LTD|url-status=live|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150905162802/http://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/harry-potter-and-the-chamber-of-secrets-latin-9780747588771/|archive-date = 5 September 2015|df = dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
''Harry Potter'' has also brought changes in the publishing world, one of the most noted being the reformation of the ]. The change came immediately preceding the release of ''Goblet of Fire'' in 2000 when publishers complained of the number of slots on the list being held by ''Harry Potter'' and other children's books. The Times subsequently created a separate children's list for ''Harry Potter'' and other children's literature.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=CNN| url=http://archives.cnn.com/2000/books/news/07/21/potter7_21.a.tm/|title=Why 'Harry Potter' did a Harry Houdini|date=] ]}}</ref> | |||
Some of the translators hired to work on the books were well-known authors before their work on ''Harry Potter'', such as ], who oversaw the Russian translation of the series' fifth book. The ] translation of books two to seven was undertaken by ], a popular literary critic and cultural commentator.<ref>{{cite web|title=Not lost in translation: Harry Potter in Turkish |last=Güler |first=Emrah |url=http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=29054|year=2005|work=The Turkish Daily News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930171135/http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=29054|archive-date=30 September 2007 |access-date =9 May 2007}}</ref> For reasons of secrecy, translation on a given book could only start after it had been released in English, leading to a lag of several months before the translations were available. This led to more and more copies of the English editions being sold to impatient fans in non-English speaking countries; for example, such was the clamour to read ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' that its English language edition became the first English-language book ever to top the best-seller list in France.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/world/newsid_3036000/3036350.stm|work=BBC News|title=OOTP is best seller in France—in English!|date=1 July 2003|access-date=28 July 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170613202533/http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/world/newsid_3036000/3036350.stm|archive-date=13 June 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
The word ] has spread beyond its ''Harry Potter'' origins, used by many groups to indicate those who are not aware or are lacking in some skill. In 2003, "muggle", entered the ] with that definition.<ref>{{cite web|title='Muggle' Redux in the Oxford English Dictionary|author=Meg McCaffrey|url=http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA294413.html|year=2003|accessdate = 2007-05-01}}</ref> | |||
The United States editions were adapted into ] to make them more understandable to a young American audience.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uta.fi/FAST/US1/REF/potter.html |title=Differences in the UK and US Versions of Four Harry Potter Books |date=21 January 2008 |publisher=FAST US-1 |access-date=17 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150319041313/http://www15.uta.fi/FAST/US1/REF/potter.html |archive-date=19 March 2015}}</ref> | |||
There is an accredited course at ] devoted to the literature of Harry Potter titled "The World of Harry Potter."<ref>{{cite web|title=The World of Harry Potter|url=http://dolphin-diver.com/277HP.htm|accessdate=2007-07-14}}</ref> | |||
=== Cover art === | |||
The 2007 ] featured a statue of Harry Potter sculpted entirely out of butter. The sculpture was based on Harry's appearance in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', and featured sculptures of Harry's owl Hedwig and his school trunk as depicted at the beginning of the book. | |||
For cover art, Bloomsbury chose painted art in a classic style of design, with the first cover a watercolour and pencil drawing by illustrator ] showing Harry boarding the Hogwarts Express, and a title in the font ].<ref name="Me and Harry Potter">{{cite web|last1=Taylor|first1=Thomas|title=Me and Harry Potter|url=http://www.thomastaylor-author.com/me-and-harry-potter/|website=Thomas Taylor (author site)|date=26 July 2012|access-date=23 September 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923144627/http://www.thomastaylor-author.com/me-and-harry-potter/|archive-date=23 September 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The first releases of the successive books in the series followed in the same style but somewhat more realistic, illustrating scenes from the books. These covers were created by first ] and then Jason Cockroft.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/jan/20/books.booksnews|title=Harry Potter beats Austen in sale rooms|last=Thorpe|first=Vanessa|date=20 January 2002|work=The Observer|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|access-date=21 November 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140613021140/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/jan/20/books.booksnews|archive-date=13 June 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
Due to the appeal of the books among an adult audience, Bloomsbury commissioned a second line of editions in an 'adult' style. These initially used black-and-white photographic art for the covers showing objects from the books (including a very American Hogwarts Express) without depicting people, but later shifted to partial colourisation with a picture of Slytherin's locket on the cover of the final book.{{citation needed|date=June 2021}} | |||
===Awards and honours=== | |||
J.K. Rowling and the Harry Potter series have been the recipients of a host of awards since the initial publication of ''Philosopher's Stone'' including four Whitaker Platinum Book Awards (all of which were awarded in 2001), three ]s (1997–1999), two ] (1999 and 2001), the inaugural ], (1999), the ] (2006), among others. In 2000, '']'' was nominated for Best Novel in the ] while in 2001, '']'' won said award. Honours include a commendation for the ] (1997), a short listing for the Guardian Children's Award (1998), and numerous listings on the notable books, editors' Choices, and best books lists of the ], ], ], and ].<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Arthur A. Levine Books| url=http://www.arthuralevinebooks.com/awards.asp| title=Awards| first= Levine| last=Arthur| accessdate = 2006-05-21}}</ref> | |||
International and later editions have been created by a range of designers, including ] for US audiences and ] in Finland.<ref>Rowling, J.K. '']''; American edition; ]; 2007; Final credits page</ref><ref name=msnbc>{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|title=Illustrator puts a bit of herself on Potter cover: GrandPré feels pressure to create something special with each book|publisher=Today.com|date=8 March 2005|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/illustrator-puts-bit-herself-potter-cover-wbna7127158|access-date=12 February 2007|df=dmy-all|archive-date=7 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407112748/https://www.today.com/popculture/illustrator-puts-bit-herself-potter-cover-wbna7127158|url-status=live}}</ref> For a later American release, ] created covers in a somewhat anime-influenced style.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://archive.wired.com/geekdad/2013/02/new-harry-potter-covers/ |title=New Harry Potter Covers by Kazu Kibuishi |last=Liu |first=Jonathan H. |date=13 February 2013 |magazine=Wired |access-date=6 July 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712183204/http://archive.wired.com/geekdad/2013/02/new-harry-potter-covers/ |archive-date=12 July 2015 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name='reading'>{{cite web|url=http://www.reading.org/literacy-daily/literature/post/books/2014/08/15/5-questions-with-kazu-kibuishi-(amulet-series) |title=5 Questions With... Kazu Kibuishi (Amulet series) |last=Hall |first=April |date=15 August 2014 |website=www.reading.org |access-date=6 July 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150418145444/http://reading.org/literacy-daily/literature/post/books/2014/08/15/5-questions-with-kazu-kibuishi-%28amulet-series%29 |archive-date=18 April 2015 }}</ref> | |||
===Commercial success=== | |||
In November 2007, the magazine '']'' estimated the total value of the ''Harry Potter'' brand at roughly $15 billion (£7 billion).<ref>. Business Week. Accessed ] ].</ref> The popularity of the ''Harry Potter'' series has translated into substantial financial success for Rowling, her publishers, and other ''Harry Potter'' related license holders. This success has made Rowling the first and thus far only ] author.<ref>{{Citation |last=Watson |first=Julie |title=J.K. Rowling And The Billion-Dollar Empire |url=http://www.forbes.com/2004/02/26/cx_jw_0226rowlingbill04.html |publisher=''Forbes'' |date=2004-02-26 |accessdate=2007-12-03}}</ref> The books have sold over 325 million copies worldwide and have also given rise to the popular film adaptations produced by ], all of which have been successful in their own right with the first, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', ranking number four on the ] and the other four ''Harry Potter'' films each ranking in the top 20.<ref name="million">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2007-02-04-harry-potter_x.htm?csp=34 | |||
|publisher=USA Today | |||
|title= Potter book sales top 400 million | |||
|date=] ] | |||
}}</ref> The films have in turn spawned five video games and have in conjunction with them led to the licensing of over 400 additional Harry Potter products (including an ]) that have, ], made the Harry Potter brand worth an estimated 4 billion US dollars and J.K. Rowling a ] ],<ref>. ]. ] ].</ref> making her, by some reports, richer than ].<ref name="J.K. Rowling Richer than the Queen">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2979033.stm | |||
|publisher=BBC | |||
|title=J.K. Rowling Richer than the Queen | |||
|date=] ] | |||
}}</ref><ref name="Harry Potter Brand Wizard">{{cite news | |||
|url=http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jul2005/di20050721_060250.htm | |||
|publisher= Business Week | |||
|title=Harry Potter Brand Wizard | |||
|date= ] ]}}</ref> | |||
== Reception == | |||
On ] ], ] declared that ''Deathly Hallows'' has broken its pre-order record, with over 500,000 copies pre-ordered through its site.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/arts/2007/0413/potterh.html|title=New Harry Potter breaks pre-order record|date=2007-04-13|publisher=RTÉ.ie Entertainment|accessdate = 2007-04-23}}</ref> | |||
=== Commercial success === | |||
{{See also|List of best-selling books}} | |||
]''|alt=A large crowd of fans wait outside of a Borders store in Delaware, waiting for the release of ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'']] | |||
The popularity of the ''Harry Potter'' series has translated into substantial financial success for Rowling, her publishers, and other ''Harry Potter'' related license holders. This success has made Rowling the first and thus far only billionaire author.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/2004/02/26/cx_jw_0226rowlingbill04.html|title=J. K. Rowling and the Billion-Dollar Empire|last=Watson|first=Julie|date=26 February 2004|work=Forbes|access-date=3 December 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071211114104/http://www.forbes.com/2004/02/26/cx_jw_0226rowlingbill04.html|archive-date=11 December 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The books have sold more than 600 million copies worldwide and have also given rise to the popular ]s produced by ], ].<ref name="boxofficemojo">{{cite web|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world/|website=Box Office Mojo|title=All Time Worldwide Box Office Grosses|date=1998–2008|access-date=29 July 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101103063039/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world|archive-date=3 November 2010|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="Harry Potter copies" /> The total revenue from the book sales is estimated, as of November 2018, to be around $7.7 billion.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Billion Dollar Business Behind 'Harry Potter' Franchise|url=https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/323363|website=entrepreneur|date=18 November 2018|access-date=22 December 2020|archive-date=28 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028235753/https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/323363|url-status=live}}</ref> The first novel in the series, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', has sold in excess of 120 million copies, making it one of the bestselling books in history.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Chalton|first1=Nicola|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eF8HDgAAQBAJ&q=philosopher%27s+stone+120+million&pg=PA129|title=20th Century in Bite-Sized Chunks|last2=Macardle|first2=Meredith|date=2017-03-15|publisher=Book Sales|isbn=978-0-7858-3510-3|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2018-09-05|title=Burbank Public Library offering digital copies of first 'Harry Potter' novel to recognize the book's 20th anniversary|url=https://www.latimes.com/socal/burbank-leader/news/tn-blr-me-burbank-library-harry-potter-20180831-story.html|access-date=2020-09-03|website=Burbank Leader|language=en-US|archive-date=9 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009114803/https://www.latimes.com/socal/burbank-leader/news/tn-blr-me-burbank-library-harry-potter-20180831-story.html/|url-status=live}}</ref> The films have in turn spawned eight video games and have led to the licensing of more than 400 additional ''Harry Potter'' products. The ''Harry Potter'' brand has been estimated to be worth as much as $25 billion.<ref name="Time25" /> | |||
A ] bookseller said she had to sign a legal form stating that she wouldn't open the boxes of '']'' until their official release date at midnight, and that she would cover the boxes with blankets in her back room so they would not be seen.<ref name=Maine-today-hbp>{{cite news|url=http://news.mainetoday.com/stories/050714potter.shtml|title=Latest Rowling release? It'll be Harry|last=Routher|first=Ray|work=Maine Today|date=]|accessdate=2007-01-15}}</ref> For the release of ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', extra security was added by limiting the number of librarians who handle the book prior to its release. Those who failed to comply with the written agreement, which employees were required to sign, would jeopardise those libraries' access to "future embargoed titles."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,264391,00.html|title=Libraries Must Follow Rules of Secrecy to Get New 'Potter' Book|date=]|accessdate=2007-04-05|work=]}}</ref> Prior to the release of ''Deathly Hallows'', the ] reported that some booksellers and libraries may have been tempted to break the embargo for publicity, as there were no future ''Potter'' books to be banned from selling.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6292128.stm|title=Potter embargo 'could be broken'|date=]|last=Savage|first=Mark|publisher=BBC|accessdate=2007-07-27}}</ref> | |||
For the release of ''Goblet of Fire'', |
The great demand for ''Harry Potter'' novels motivated '']'' to create a separate best-seller list for children's literature in 2000, just before the release of ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire''. By 24 June 2000, Rowling's novels had been on the list for 79 straight weeks; the first three novels were each on the hardcover best-seller list.<ref name="NYT_2000/06/24">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/24/books/the-times-plans-a-children-s-best-seller-list.html|title=The Times Plans a Children's Best-Seller List|last=Smith|first=Dinitia|date=24 June 2000|work=The New York Times|access-date=30 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090621233421/http://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/24/books/the-times-plans-a-children-s-best-seller-list.html|archive-date=21 June 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> On 12 April 2007, ] declared that ''Deathly Hallows'' had broken its ] record, with more than 500,000 copies pre-ordered through its site.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.rte.ie/arts/2007/0413/potterh.html|title=New Harry Potter breaks pre-order record|date=13 April 2007|publisher=RTÉ.ie Entertainment|access-date=23 April 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070418090204/http://www.rte.ie/arts/2007/0413/potterh.html|archive-date=18 April 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> For the release of ''Goblet of Fire'', 9,000 ] trucks were used with no other purpose than to deliver the book.<ref name=ew-gof-midnight>{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/2000/07/21/harry-potter-craze/ |title=Wild About Harry|date=21 July 2000 |access-date=26 October 2019 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |last=Fierman |first=Daniel |quote=When I buy the books for my grandchildren, I have them all gift wrapped but one...that's for me. And I have not been 12 for over 50 years. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070331142859/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,276735_2,00.html |archive-date=31 March 2007}}</ref> Together, Amazon.com and ] pre-sold more than 700,000 copies of the book.<ref name=ew-gof-midnight /> In the United States, the book's initial printing run was 3.8 million copies.<ref name=ew-gof-midnight /> This record statistic was broken by ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'', with 8.5 million, which was then shattered by ''Half-Blood Prince'' with 10.8 million copies.<ref name=cnn-hbp>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/books/07/14/harry.potter/index.html|title=Harry Potter hits midnight frenzy|date=15 July 2005|publisher=CNN|access-date=15 January 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061221021913/http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/books/07/14/harry.potter/index.html |archive-date = 21 December 2006}}</ref> Within the first 24 hours of its release, 6.9 million copies of ''Prince'' were sold in the US; in the UK more than two million copies were sold on the first day.<ref name=bbc-hbp-record>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_4700000/newsid_4701400/4701409.stm|title=Worksheet: Half-Blood Prince sets UK record|date=20 July 2005|work=BBC News|access-date=19 January 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070204111225/http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_4700000/newsid_4701400/4701409.stm|archive-date=4 February 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The initial US print run for ''Deathly Hallows'' was 12 million copies, and more than a million were pre-ordered through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6452987.stm|title=Record print run for final Potter|date=15 March 2007|work=BBC News|access-date=22 May 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070325235438/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6452987.stm|archive-date=25 March 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | ||
Fans of the series were so eager for the latest instalment that bookstores around the world began holding events to coincide with the midnight release of the books, beginning with the 2000 publication of ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire''. The events, commonly featuring mock sorting, games, face painting, and other live entertainment have achieved popularity with Potter fans and have been highly successful in attracting fans and selling books with nearly nine million of the 10.8 million initial print copies of ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' sold in the first 24 hours.<ref name="Harry Potter casts spell at checkouts">{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article545338.ece|work=The Times|title=Harry Potter casts spell at checkouts|date=18 July 2005|access-date=29 July 2008|last=Freeman|first=Simon|location=London|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615074030/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article545338.ece|archive-date=15 June 2011|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name="Potter book smashes sales records">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4692093.stm|work=BBC News|title=Potter book smashes sales records|date=18 July 2005|access-date=29 July 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227212208/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4692093.stm|archive-date=27 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The final book in the series, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' became the fastest selling book in history, moving 11 million units in the first twenty-four hours of release.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/23/business/worldbusiness/23iht-potter.4.6789605.html | work=The New York Times | date=23 July 2007 | access-date=30 March 2010 | title='Harry Potter' tale is fastest-selling book in history | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111208091143/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/23/business/worldbusiness/23iht-potter.4.6789605.html | archive-date=8 December 2011 | url-status=live }}</ref> The book sold 2.7 million copies in the UK and 8.3 million in the US.<ref name="finale sales" /> The series has also gathered adult fans, leading to the release of two editions of each ''Harry Potter'' book, identical in text but with one edition's cover artwork aimed at children and the other aimed at adults.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bloomsbury.com/harrypotter/default.aspx?sec=2 |title=Harry Potter at Bloomsbury Publishing – Adult and Children Covers |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |access-date=18 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828054035/http://www.bloomsbury.com/harrypotter/default.aspx?sec=2 |archive-date=28 August 2008 }}</ref> | |||
Others have claimed that sales of the Harry Potter books have not been highly profitable for book retailers. Intense competition to offer the best price on the popular novels has whittled away expected revenue. The suggested retail for ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' was $35 but Amazon.com offered the book at a discounted price of $18, with other major chains following suit to remain competitive. Some hope that the frenzy associated with the book will create sales of other items when customers are drawn to bookstores. Other small, independent sellers have tried to protect revenues necessary to keep them in business by selling the book at the suggested cover price but offering other "add-on" items like Potter memorabilia or coupons towards other purchases.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.projo.com/business/content/BZ_HARRY_21_07-21-07_N86EGSK.266a0b5.html|title=Projo.com: Business: Sells Like A Charm|accessdate=2007-11-25 }}</ref> | |||
{| class="wikitable" | |||
==Criticism, praise, and controversy== | |||
|+ | |||
<!-- linked to from ]--> | |||
!Book | |||
===Literary critics=== | |||
!Sales<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-10-19 |title=Harry Potter books stats and facts |publisher=WordsRated |url=https://wordsrated.com/harry-potter-stats/ |access-date=2023-06-11 |language=en-US |archive-date=15 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230515153907/https://wordsrated.com/harry-potter-stats/ |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
Early in its history, ''Harry Potter'' received overwhelmingly positive reviews, which helped the series to quickly grow a large readership. Upon its publication, the first volume, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', was greatly praised by most of Britain's major newspapers: the '']'' rated it as "the most imaginative debut since ]"; a view echoed by the '']'' ("comparisons to Dahl are, this time, justified"), while '']'' called it "a richly textured novel given lift-off by an inventive wit" and '']'' said it had "all the makings of a classic".<ref>{{cite book|title=Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets|author=JK Rowling|year=1998|pages=253|publisher=Bloomsbury}}</ref> | |||
|- | |||
|''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' | |||
|120 million | |||
|- | |||
|''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' | |||
|77 million | |||
|- | |||
|''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' | |||
|65 million | |||
|- | |||
|''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' | |||
|65 million | |||
|- | |||
|''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' | |||
|65 million | |||
|- | |||
|''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' | |||
|65 million | |||
|- | |||
|''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' | |||
|65 million | |||
|} | |||
=== Literary criticism === | |||
By the time of the release of the fifth volume, ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,'' the books began to receive strong criticism from a number of literary scholars. ] ], ] ] and ] ] raised pungent criticisms of the books' literary merits, saying, “Rowling's mind is so governed by clichés and dead metaphors that she has no other style of writing."<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Boston.com| url=http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2003/09/24/dumbing_down_american_readers/| title=Dumbing down American readers| first= Harold| last=Bloom| accessdate = 2006-06-20}}</ref> ] authored a '']'' op-ed article calling Rowling's universe a “], made up of intelligently patchworked derivative motifs from all sorts of ] … written for people whose imaginative lives are confined to TV cartoons, and the exaggerated (more exciting, not threatening) mirror-worlds of soaps, reality TV and celebrity gossip".<ref name="Harry Potter and the Childish Adult">{{cite news|publisher=New York Times|title=Harry Potter and the Childish Adult|date=] ]}}</ref> | |||
Early in its history, ''Harry Potter'' received positive reviews. On publication, the first book, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', attracted attention from the Scottish newspapers, such as '']'', which said it had "all the makings of a classic",<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps">{{harvnb|Eccleshare|2002|p=10}}</ref> and '']'', which called it "Magic stuff".<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps" /> Soon the English newspapers joined in, with '']'' comparing it to ]'s work ("comparisons to Dahl are, this time, justified"),<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps" /> while '']'' called it "a richly textured novel given lift-off by an inventive wit".<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps" /> | |||
By the time of the release of the fifth book, ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,'' the books began to receive strong criticism from a number of literary scholars. Yale professor, literary scholar, and critic ] raised criticisms of the books' literary merits, saying, "Rowling's mind is so governed by clichés and dead metaphors that she has no other style of writing."<ref>{{cite news|work=The Boston Globe|date=24 September 2003|url=https://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2003/09/24/dumbing_down_american_readers/|title=Dumbing down American readers|first=Harold|last=Bloom|access-date=20 June 2006|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060617015302/http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2003/09/24/dumbing_down_american_readers/|archive-date=17 June 2006|df=dmy-all}}</ref> ] authored an op-ed article in ''The New York Times'' calling Rowling's universe a "secondary secondary world, made up of intelligently patchworked derivative motifs from all sorts of children's literature ... written for people whose imaginative lives are confined to TV cartoons, and the exaggerated (more exciting, not threatening) mirror-worlds of soaps, reality TV and celebrity gossip."<ref name="Harry Potter and the Childish Adult">{{cite news|work=The New York Times|title=Harry Potter and the Childish Adult|date=7 July 2003|access-date=1 August 2008|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/07/opinion/harry-potter-and-the-childish-adult.html|first=A. S.|last=Byatt|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417131152/http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/07/opinion/harry-potter-and-the-childish-adult.html|archive-date=17 April 2009|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
The critic ] wrote in '']'' on his experience of judging '']'' for the ]. His overall view of the series was very negative—"the Potter saga was essentially patronising, very conservative, highly derivative, dispiritingly nostalgic for a bygone Britain," and he speaks of "pedestrian, ungrammatical prose style<ref>{{cite news|url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,6903,335923,00.html|publisher=The Observer|title=Why Harry Potter doesn't cast a spell over me|date=] ]}}</ref>." | |||
], a novelist and poet, held the opinion that the books were not suited for children, as they would be unable to grasp the complex themes. Rosen also stated that "J. K. Rowling is more of an adult writer."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article3958599.ece|work=The Times|title=Harry Potter 'is too boring and grown-up for young readers'|date=19 May 2008|access-date=15 January 2011|last=Sweeney|first=Charlene|location=London|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615234710/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article3958599.ece|archive-date=15 June 2011|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The critic ] wrote in '']'' on his experience of judging '']'' for the ]. His overall view of the series was negative—"the Potter saga was essentially patronising, conservative, highly derivative, dispiritingly nostalgic for a bygone Britain", and he speaks of "a pedestrian, ungrammatical prose style".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/jun/25/booksforchildrenandteenagers.guardianchildrensfictionprize2000|work=The Observer|title=Why Harry Potter does not cast a spell over me|date=25 June 2000|access-date=1 August 2008|last=Holden|first=Anthony|location=London|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130824155219/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2000/jun/25/booksforchildrenandteenagers.guardianchildrensfictionprize2000|archive-date=24 August 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> ] said, "I have no great opinion of it it seemed a lively kid's fantasy crossed with a '],' good fare for its age group, but stylistically ordinary, imaginatively derivative, and ethically rather mean-spirited."<ref>{{cite news|title=Chronicles of Earthsea|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2004/feb/09/sciencefictionfantasyandhorror.ursulakleguin|access-date=2 October 2009|location=London|date=9 February 2004|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002164434/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2004/feb/09/sciencefictionfantasyandhorror.ursulakleguin|archive-date=2 October 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> By contrast, author ], while admitting that the series is "not what the poets hoped for", nevertheless goes on to say, "but this is not poetry, it is readable, saleable, everyday, useful prose".<ref name="Rowling books 'for people with stunted imaginations'">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/jul/11/books.harrypotter|work=The Guardian|title=Rowling books 'for people with stunted imaginations'|date=11 July 2003|access-date=1 August 2008|last=Allison|first=Rebecca|location=London|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140518003516/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/jul/11/books.harrypotter|archive-date=18 May 2014|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
By contrast, author ], while admitting that the series is "not what the poets hoped for," nevertheless goes on to say, "but this is not poetry, it is readable, saleable, everyday, useful prose".<ref name="Rowling books 'for people with stunted imaginations'">{{cite news|url=http://books.guardian.co.uk/harrypotter/story/0,,996243,00.html|publisher=The Guardian|title=Rowling books 'for people with stunted imaginations' |date=] ]}}</ref> The literary critic A.N. Wilson praised the Harry Potter series in 'The Times', stating: "There are not many writers who have JK’s Dickensian ability to make us turn the pages, to weep – openly, with tears splashing – and a few pages later to laugh, at invariably good jokes…We have lived through a decade in which we have followed the publication of the liveliest, funniest, scariest and most moving children’s stories ever written." <ref>The Times, 29th July 2007, article title:'A Farewll To Charms'</ref> Charles Taylor of ], who is primarily a movie critic,<ref>http://www.salon.com/col/bios/tayl/index.html</ref> took issue with Byatt's criticisms in particular. While he conceded that she may have "a valid cultural point—a teeny one—about the impulses that drive us to reassuring pop trash and away from the troubling complexities of art", he rejected her claims that the series is lacking in serious literary merit and that it owes its success merely to the childhood reassurances it offers. Taylor stressed the progressively darker tone of the books, shown by the murder of a classmate and close friend and the psychological wounds and social isolation each causes. Taylor also pointed out that ''Philosopher's Stone'', said to be the most lighthearted of the seven published books, disrupts the childhood reassurances that Byatt claims spur the series' success: the book opens with news of a double murder, for example.<ref name="A.S. Byatt and the goblet of bile">{{cite news| title=www.purevolume.com/rendermn|url=http://archive.salon.com/books/feature/2003/07/08/byatt_rowling/index_np.html|publisher=Salon.com|title=A. S. Byatt and the goblet of bile|date=] ]}}</ref> | |||
The literary critic A. N. Wilson praised the ''Harry Potter'' series in '']'', stating, "There are not many writers who have JK's ] ability to make us turn the pages, to weep—openly, with tears splashing—and a few pages later to laugh, at invariably good jokes ... We have lived through a decade in which we have followed the publication of the liveliest, funniest, scariest and most moving children's stories ever written."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/children/article2139573.ece|title=Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling|last=Wilson|first=A. N.|date=29 July 2007|work=The Times|access-date=28 September 2008|location=London|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706162943/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/children/article2139573.ece|archive-date=6 July 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Charles Taylor of ], who is primarily a movie critic,<ref>{{cite news|year=2000 |work=Salon.com |url=http://www.salon.com/col/bios/tayl/index.html |title=Salon Columnist |access-date=3 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080616165227/http://www.salon.com/col/bios/tayl/index.html |archive-date=16 June 2008 }}</ref> took issue with Byatt's criticisms in particular. While he conceded that she may have "a valid cultural point—a teeny one—about the impulses that drive us to reassuring pop trash and away from the troubling complexities of art",<ref name="A.S. Byatt and the goblet of bile" /> he rejected her claims that the series is lacking in serious ] and that it owes its success merely to the childhood reassurances it offers.<ref name="A.S. Byatt and the goblet of bile">{{cite news|title=A. S. Byatt and the goblet of bile |url=http://archive.salon.com/books/feature/2003/07/08/byatt_rowling/index.html |work=Salon.com |date=8 July 2003 |access-date=3 August 2008 |first=Charles |last=Taylor |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080616143458/http://archive.salon.com/books/feature/2003/07/08/byatt_rowling/index.html |archive-date=16 June 2008 }}</ref> ] called the series "a feat of which only a superior imagination is capable", and declared "Rowling's punning, one-eyebrow-cocked sense of humor" to be "remarkable". However, he wrote that he is "a little tired of discovering Harry at home with his horrible aunt and uncle", the formulaic beginning of all seven books.<ref name="Wild About Harry" /><ref>{{cite news| work=The Guardian| url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/dec/31/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling| title=JK Rowling: The mistress of all she surveys| first=Killian| last=Fox| date=31 December 2006| access-date=10 February 2007| location=London| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140928204220/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/dec/31/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling| archive-date=28 September 2014| df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
] called the series "a feat of which only a superior imagination is capable," and declared "Rowling's punning, one-eyebrow-cocked sense of humor" to be "remarkable." However, he wrote that despite the story being "a good one," he is "a little tired of discovering Harry at home with his horrible aunt and uncle," the formulaic beginning of all seven books.<ref name="Wild About Harry">{{cite news|publisher=New York Times|title="Wild About Harry"|date=] ]}}</ref> King has also joked that "'s never met an ] she didn't like!" He does however predict that Harry Potter "will indeed stand time's test and wind up on a shelf where only the best are kept; I think Harry will take his place with ], ], ], and ] and this is one series not just for the decade, but for the ages."<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Guardian Unlimited| url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/7days/story/0,,1980741,00.html| title=JK Rowling:The mistress of all she surveys| first= Killian| last=Fox|date=2006-31-12|accessdate = 2007-02-10}}</ref> ] wrote a review of '']'' in which he said, "J.K. Rowling has created something that . . . deserves to last, to become a permanent classic of English literature, and not just as 'children's fiction.'"<ref></ref> Tina Jordan of '']'' called ''Deathly Hallows'' "stunningly beautiful" and predicted that "these books are going to be on my grandchildren's shelves, and my great-grandchildren's, and maybe even further down the line than that."<ref>Tina Jordan, "Enchanted,"|http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20047649,00.html</ref> | |||
A '']'' review of ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' and of the series as a whole, observed that Rowling's success was entirely self-made and not due to hype of her books by the publishing world, which has instead followed in her wake.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml;?xml=/arts/2005/07/24/borow24.xml |title= It smacks of the dark arts | publisher = Telegraph.co.uk |accessdaymonth = ]|accessyear= ] | date=] ] }}</ref> | |||
Sameer Rahim of '']'' disagreed, saying "It depresses me to see 16- and 17-year-olds reading the series when they could be reading the great novels of childhood such as '']'' or '']''."<ref>{{cite news| work=The Telegraph| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/9202484/The-Casual-Vacancy-why-Im-dreading-JK-Rowlings-adult-novel.html| title=The Casual Vacancy: why I'm dreading JK Rowling's adult novel| first=Sameer| last=Rahim| date=13 April 2012| access-date=28 March 2017| location=London| url-status=live| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102191526/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/9202484/The-Casual-Vacancy-why-Im-dreading-JK-Rowlings-adult-novel.html| archive-date=2 January 2018| df=dmy-all}}</ref> '']'' book critic ] opined in July 2007 that "through no fault of Rowling's", the cultural and marketing "hysteria" marked by the publication of the later books "trains children and adults to expect the roar of the coliseum, a mass-media experience that no other novel can possibly provide".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/13/AR2007071301730_pf.html|title=Harry Potter and the Death of Reading|date=15 July 2007|last=Charles|first=Ron|access-date=16 April 2008|newspaper=The Washington Post|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725212731/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/13/AR2007071301730_pf.html|archive-date=25 July 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Jenny Sawyer wrote in '']'' on 25 July 2007 that Harry Potter neither faces a "moral struggle" nor undergoes any ethical growth and is thus "no guide in circumstances in which right and wrong are anything less than black and white".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0725/p09s02-coop.html|title=Missing from 'Harry Potter" – a real moral struggle|last=Sawyer|first=Jenny|access-date=16 April 2008|work=]|date=25 July 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927193238/http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0725/p09s02-coop.html|archive-date=27 September 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In contrast Emily Griesinger described Harry's first passage through to ] as an application of faith and hope, and his encounter with the ] as the first of many in which Harry is shaped by the choices he makes.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Griesinger |first=E. |year=2002 |title=Harry Potter and the "deeper magic": narrating hope in children's literature |journal=Christianity and Literature |volume=51 |issue=3 |pages=455–480 |doi=10.1177/014833310205100308 }}</ref> | |||
The books have also spawned studies investigating the saga's literary merit. One collaboration by a number of critics is ''The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter''. In this volume, Amanda Cockrell concludes, "Harry Potter is not the lightweight imitation of such serious high fantasy as ''A Wizard of Earthsea'' or ''The Lord of the Rings'', but a legitimate descendant of the darker and more complicated school story," and suggests that "we need to take a deeper look into Harry Potter, who is deeper than we think."<ref>Amanda Cockrell, “Harry Potter and the Secret Password: Finding Our Way in the Magical Genre,” in: Lana A. Whited (ed.), ''The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon'' (Columbia, MI: University of Missouri Press, 2002), p. 18.</ref> She points to Rudyard Kipling, C.S. Lewis, Jill Murphy, Anthony Horowitz, Diana Wynne Jones, Thomas Hughes, Roald Dahl, and others as legitimate literary predecessors to the Harry Potter saga.<ref>Cockrell, in ''Ibid''.</ref> Lana A. Whithead, editor of the book, notes that Rowling "appears to be very seriously attempting a literary achievement."<ref>Lana A. Whithead, “Introduction: Harry Potter. From Craze to Classic?” in: Whited, ''The Ivory Tower'', p. 11.</ref> ], a conservative ] and English Literature professor at Peninsula College, writes that the "Harry Potter books are classics—and not just 'kid-lit' but as classics of world literature," and believes the books carry a "mother-lode" of deeper literary and symbolic meaning than meets the eye.<ref>], ''Looking for God in Harry Potter'' (Carol Stream, IL: SaltRiver, 2004), p. 50. Granger also states (page 53) that he is writing ''The English Major's Guide to Harry Potter''.</ref> | |||
In an 8 November 2002, '']'' article, Chris Suellentrop likened Potter to a "trust-fund kid whose success at school is largely attributable to the gifts his friends and relatives lavish upon him".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.slate.com/?id=2073627 | title=Harry Potter: Fraud | last=Suellentrop | first=Chris | access-date=16 April 2008 | work=] | date=8 November 2002 | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080327002437/http://www.slate.com/?id=2073627 | archive-date=27 March 2008 | df=dmy-all }}</ref> In a 12 August 2007 review of ''Deathly Hallows'' in ''The New York Times'', however, ] praised Rowling for "unmooring" her "English school story" from literary precedents "bound up with dreams of wealth and class and snobbery", arguing that she had instead created "a world of youthful democracy and diversity".<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/12/books/review/Hitchens-t.html| title=The Boy Who Lived| last=Hitchens| first=Christopher| access-date=1 April 2008| newspaper=The New York Times| author-link=Christopher Hitchens| date=12 August 2007| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416024446/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/12/books/review/Hitchens-t.html| archive-date=16 April 2009| url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
===Controversy=== | |||
In 2016, an article written by ] compared the politics of Harry Potter to the 2016 Donald Trump presidential campaign. She suggests that these themes are also present in the presidential election and it may play a significant role in how Americans have responded to the campaign.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=C. Mutz|first=Diana|year=2016|title=Harry Potter and the Deathly Donald|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ps-political-science-and-politics/article/harry-potter-and-the-deathly-donald/84B3BED39ACA703DC7B8BE2D5486B185/core-reader|journal=Elections in Focus|volume=49|access-date=29 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180921153343/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ps-political-science-and-politics/article/harry-potter-and-the-deathly-donald/84B3BED39ACA703DC7B8BE2D5486B185/core-reader|archive-date=21 September 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
{{main|Legal disputes over the Harry Potter series|Religious debates over the Harry Potter series|Politics of Harry Potter}} | |||
There is ongoing discussion regarding the extent to which the series was inspired by ]'s ''Lord of the Rings'' books.<ref>Wetherill, Louise. "Harry Potter: Merely Frodo Baggins with a Wand?", in ''Ampthill Literary Festival Yearbook 2015''. Ampthill: Literary Festival Committee, 2015. {{ISBN|978-1-5175506-8-4}}, pp. 85–92.</ref> | |||
The books have been the subject of a number of legal proceedings, largely stemming either from claims by the American religious groups that the magic in the books promotes witchcraft among children, or from various conflicts over copyright and trademark infringements. | |||
=== Thematic critique === | |||
The books' immense popularity and high market value has led Rowling, her publishers, and film distributor ] to take legal measures to protect their copyright, which have included banning the sale of ''Harry Potter'' imitations, targeting the owners of websites over the "Harry Potter" domain name, and suing author ] to counter her accusations that Rowling had plagiarised her work.<ref>{{cite web|title=SCHOLASTIC, INC., J.K. ROWLING, and TIME WARNER ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY, L.P., Plaintiffs/Counterclaim Defendants, -against- NANCY STOUFFER: UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK|url=http://www.eyrie.org/~robotech/stouffer.htm|year=2002|accessdate=2007-06-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Warner Brothers bullying ruins Field family Xmas|author=Kieren McCarthy|work=The Register|url=http://www.theregister.co.uk/2000/12/21/warner_brothers_bullying_ruins_field/ |year=2000|accessdate=2007-05-03}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/2092661.stm|publisher=]|title=Fake Harry Potter novel hits China|date=2002-07-04|accessdate=2007-03-11}}</ref> | |||
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The portrayal of women in ''Harry Potter'' has been described as complex and varied, but nonetheless conforming to stereotypical and ] depictions of gender.<ref>{{Harvnb|Heilman|Donaldson|2008|pp=139–41}}; {{Harvnb|Pugh|Wallace|2006}}; {{Harvnb|Eberhardt|2017}}.</ref> Gender divides are ostensibly absent in the books: Hogwarts is ] and women hold positions of power in wizarding society. However, this setting obscures the typecasting of female characters and the general depiction of conventional gender roles.{{sfn|Pugh|Wallace|2006}} According to scholars Elizabeth Heilman and Trevor Donaldson, the subordination of female characters goes further early in the series. The final three books "showcase richer roles and more powerful females": for instance, the series' "most matriarchal character", Molly Weasley, engages substantially in the final battle of ''Deathly Hallows'', while other women are shown as leaders.{{sfn|Heilman|Donaldson|2008|pp=139–41}} Hermione Granger, in particular, becomes an active and independent character essential to the protagonists' battle against evil.{{sfn|Berents|2012|pp= 144–49}} Yet, even particularly capable female characters such as Hermione and ] are placed in supporting roles,{{sfn|Heilman|Donaldson|2008|pp= 142–47}} and Hermione's status as a feminist model is debated.{{sfn|Bell|Alexander|2012|pp=1–8}} Girls and women are more frequently shown as emotional, more often defined by their appearance, and less often given agency in family settings.{{sfn|Pugh|Wallace|2006}}{{sfn|Heilman|Donaldson|2008|pp=149–55}} | |||
The social hierarchy of wizards in Rowling's world has drawn debate among critics. "Purebloods" have two wizard parents; "half-bloods" have one; and "Muggle-born" wizards have magical abilities, although neither of their parents is a wizard.{{Sfn|Barratt|2012|p=64}} Lord Voldemort and his followers believe that blood purity is paramount and that Muggles are subhuman.{{Sfn|Barratt|2012|pp=63, 67}} According to the literary scholar Andrew Blake, ''Harry Potter'' rejects blood purity as a basis for social division;{{Sfn|Blake|2002|p=103}} Suman Gupta agrees that Voldemort's philosophy represents "absolute evil";{{sfn|Gupta|2009|p=104}} and Nel and Eccleshare agree that advocates of racial or blood-based hierarchies are antagonists.{{Sfn|Nel|2001|p=44}}{{Sfn|Eccleshare|2002|p=78}} Gupta, following Blake,{{Sfn|Gupta|2009|p=105}} suggests that the essential superiority of wizards over Muggles—wizards can use magic and Muggles cannot—means that the books cannot coherently reject anti-Muggle prejudice by appealing to equality between wizards and Muggles. Rather, according to Gupta, ''Harry Potter'' models a form of tolerance based on the "charity and altruism of those belonging to superior races" towards lesser races.{{sfn|Gupta|2009|pp=108–10}} | |||
]'s official newspaper, ] said that Harry Potter, who promotes witchcraft and occult, ''was the wrong kind of hero'' and poses a danger to children around the world.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/009200801161230.htm|publisher=]|title=Harry Potter a 'wrong kind of hero': Vatican|date=]|accessdate=2008-01-16}}</ref> Various religious conservatives have claimed that the books promote witchcraft and are therefore unsuitable for children,<ref>{{cite web|title=Opinion Roundup: Positive About Potter|author=Ted Olsen|url=http://www.cesnur.org/recens/potter_010.htm|accessdate=2007-07-06}}</ref> while a number of critics have criticised the books for promoting various political agendas.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tolkien's Timeless Tale|url=http://www.thenewamerican.com|author= Steve Bonta|work=The New American|year=2002|accessdate=2007-05-03}}</ref><ref>Liddle,Rod The Times, July 21, 2007 | |||
</ref> Her revelation that the character ] was a homosexual has increased the political controversies surrounding the series.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://popwatch.ew.com/popwatch/2007/10/rowling-outs-du.html |title=J.K. Rowling outs Dumbledore! |accessdate=2007-12-18 |format=HTML |work=Entertainment Weekly, October 2007 }}</ref> | |||
''Harry Potter's''{{'s}} depiction of race, specifically the slavery of ], has received varied responses. Scholars such as ] have praised the books' ] sentiments, viewing Hermione's ] as a model for younger readers' political engagement.{{sfn|Carey|2003|pp=105–107, 114}}{{sfn|Horne|2010|p=76}} Other critics including ] find the portrayal of house-elves "most difficult to accept": the elves are denied the right to free themselves and rely on the benevolence of others like Hermione.{{sfn|Mendlesohn|2002|pp=178–181}}{{sfn|Horne|2010|p=81}} Pharr terms the house-elves a disharmonious element in the series, writing that Rowling leaves their fate hanging;{{sfn|Pharr|2016|pp=12–13}} at the end of ''Deathly Hallows'', the elves remain enslaved and cheerful.{{sfn|Barratt|2012|p=52}} The goblins of the world of Harry Potter have also received criticism for following antisemitic caricatures{{snd}}particularly for their grotesque "hook-nosed" portrayal in the films, an appearance associated with ].<ref>{{cite web |last=Levy |first=Marianne |title=Is this picture of Harry Potter's goblin bankers offensive? |url=https://www.thejc.com/comment/comment/harry-potter-is-gringotts-picture-antisemitic-1.482785 |website=The Jewish Chronicle |access-date=30 September 2022 |archive-date=30 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930030859/https://www.thejc.com/comment/comment/harry-potter-is-gringotts-picture-antisemitic-1.482785 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Richer |first=Stephen |title=Debunking the Harry Potter Antisemitism Myth |url=https://momentmag.com/debunking-the-harry-potter-anti-semitism-myth/ |website=Moment Magazine |access-date=30 September 2022 |date=14 July 2011 |archive-date=27 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221127175405/https://momentmag.com/debunking-the-harry-potter-anti-semitism-myth/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Berlatsky |first=Noah |title=Opinion {{!}} Why most people still miss these antisemitic tropes in "Harry Potter" |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/j-k-rowling-s-harry-potter-goblins-echo-jewish-caricatures-ncna1287043 |website=NBC News |date=6 January 2022 |access-date=30 September 2022 |language=en |archive-date=28 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328185424/https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/j-k-rowling-s-harry-potter-goblins-echo-jewish-caricatures-ncna1287043 |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
==Other media== | |||
===Films=== | |||
{{main|Harry Potter film series}} | |||
=== Controversies === | |||
In 1999, Rowling sold the film rights to the first four ''Harry Potter'' books to ] for a reported ]1 million (US$1,982,900).<ref name="WiGBPd About Harry">{{cite news |url=http://www.quick-quote-quill.org/articles/2000/0700-austfinrev-bagwell.html|publisher=Australian Financial Review|title=WiGBPd About Harry|date=2000-07-19|accessdate=2007-05-26}}</ref> A demand Rowling made was that the principal cast be kept strictly British, nonetheless allowing for the inclusion of many Irish actors such as the late ] as Dumbledore, and for casting of French and Eastern European actors in '']'' where characters from the book are specified as such.<ref name="Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone">{{cite news|url=http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_Film_of_the_week/0,,595317,00.html|publisher=Guardian Unlimited|title=Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone|date=2001-11-16|accessdate=2007-05-26}}</ref> After considering many directors such as ], ], ], and ], on ], ], ] was appointed as director for '']'' (titled "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the United States), with Warner Bros. citing his work on other family films such as '']'' and '']'' as influences for their decision.<ref name=columbus>{{cite news|url=http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/034/034098p1.html|title=Chris Columbus to Direct Harry Potter|accessdate=2007-07-08|date=]|publisher=IGN|author=Bran Linder}}</ref> After ],<ref>{{cite news|url=http://movies.warnerbros.com/pub/movie/releases/harrycast.html|publisher=Warner Brothers|title=DANIEL RADCLIFFE, RUPERT GRINT AND EMMA WATSON BRING HARRY, RON AND HERMIONE TO LIFE FOR WARNER BROS. PICTURES'"HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE"|date=]|accessdate=2007-05-26}}</ref> filming began in October 2000 at ] and in ] itself, with production ending in July 2001.<ref name=greg>{{cite web|url=http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/preview/1808404331|title=Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)|accessdate=2007-05-30|author=Greg Dean Schmitz|publisher=]}}</ref> ''Philosopher's Stone'' was released on ], ]. | |||
{{Main|Legal disputes over the Harry Potter series|Religious debates over the Harry Potter series|Politics of Harry Potter|Tanya Grotter}} | |||
The books have been the subject of a number of ], stemming from various conflicts over copyright and trademark infringements. The popularity and high ] of the series has led Rowling, her publishers, and film distributor ] to take legal measures to protect their copyright, which have included banning the sale of ''Harry Potter'' imitations, targeting the owners of websites over the "Harry Potter" ], and suing author ] to counter her accusations that Rowling had plagiarised her work.<ref>{{cite web|title=Scholastic Inc, J.K. Rowling and Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P, Plaintiffs/Counterclaim Defendants, -against- Nancy Stouffer: United States District Court for the Southern District of New York|url=http://www.eyrie.org/~robotech/stouffer.htm|date=17 September 2002|access-date=12 June 2007|publisher=ICQ|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070607163634/http://www.eyrie.org/~robotech/stouffer.htm|archive-date=7 June 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Warner Brothers bullying ruins Field family Xmas|last=McCarthy|first=Kieren|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2000/12/21/warner_brothers_bullying_ruins_field/|year=2000|work=The Register|access-date=3 May 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151103090134/http://www.theregister.co.uk/2000/12/21/warner_brothers_bullying_ruins_field/|archive-date=3 November 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/2092661.stm|work=BBC News|title=Fake Harry Potter novel hits China|date=4 July 2002|access-date=11 March 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070901094955/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/2092661.stm|archive-date=1 September 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
Just three days after ''Philosopher's Stone's'' release, production for '']'', also directed by Columbus, began, finishing in Summer 2002.<ref name="yahoo"></ref> The film was released on ], ]. | |||
Various religious fundamentalists have claimed that the books promote witchcraft and religions such as ] and are therefore unsuitable for children,<ref>O'Kane, Caitlin. . ]. Retrieved on 3 September 2019. "Rev. Reehil believes, 'The curses and spells used in the books are actual curses and spells; which when read by a human being risk conjuring evil spirits into the presence of the person reading the text.' It is unclear if the movies have been banned, since they don't require children to read spells." Archived from the </ref><ref>Anatol, Giselle Liza (2003). ''Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays''. p. 54.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/12052212/Religious-parents-want-Harry-Potter-banned-from-the-classroom-because-it-glorifies-witchcraft.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/12052212/Religious-parents-want-Harry-Potter-banned-from-the-classroom-because-it-glorifies-witchcraft.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Religious parents want Harry Potter banned from the classroom because it 'glorifies witchcraft'|first=Javier|last=Espinoza|date=16 December 2015|via=The Telegraph }}{{cbignore}}</ref> while a number of critics have criticised the books for promoting various political agendas.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Tolkien's Timeless Tale |last=Bonta |first=Steve |magazine=The New American |date=28 January 2002 |volume=18 |issue=2}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/rod_liddle/article2116237.ece|title=Hogwarts is a winner because boys will be sexist neocon boys|last=Liddle|first=Rod|date=21 July 2007|work=The Times|access-date=17 August 2008|location=London|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100604212652/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/rod_liddle/article2116237.ece|archive-date=4 June 2010|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The series has landed the ]s' Top 10 Banned Book List in 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2019 with claims it was anti-family, discussed magic and witchcraft, contained actual spells and curses, referenced the occult/Satanism, violence, and had characters who used "nefarious means" to attain goals, as well as conflicts with religious viewpoints.<ref>{{Cite web|last=American Library Association|date=26 March 2013|title=Top 10 Most Challenged Books Lists|url=http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10|access-date=2021-03-05|website=Advocacy, Legislation & Issues|language=en|archive-date=24 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170724195723/http://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
Chris Columbus declined to direct '']'', only acting as ]. ] director ] took over the job, and after shooting in 2003, the film was released on ], ]. Due to the fourth film beginning its production before the third's release, ] was chosen as the director for '']'',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/433/433108p1.html|title=Goblet Helmer Confirmed|publisher=]|date=2003-08-11|accessdate=2007-07-29}}</ref> released on ], ]. Newell declined to direct the next movie, and British TV director ] was chosen for '']'', which began production on January 2006,<ref>{{cite news|title='Phoenix' Rising|date=]|work=]|page=28|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20016352,00.html|last=Daly|first=Steve|accessdate=2007-04-01}}</ref> and was released on ], ]. Yates is confirmed to direct '']'',<ref name=yates-director-scifi>{{cite news|url=http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=41338|title=Yates Confirmed For Potter VI|date=]|work=Sci Fi Wire|accessdate=2007-05-03|last=Spelling|first=Ian}}</ref> for release on ], ].<ref name="release-date-hbp-film">{{cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0417741/|title=Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (IMdB)}}</ref> '']'' has its production confirmed with release set for 2010. | |||
The books also aroused controversies in the literary and publishing worlds. From 1997 to 1998, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' won almost all the United Kingdom awards judged by children, but none of the children's book awards judged by adults,{{sfn|Eccleshare|2002|pp=7–14}} and Sandra Beckett suggested the reason was ] towards books that were popular among children.<ref name="Beckett2008Crossover" /> In 1999, the winner of the ] children's division was entered for the first time on the shortlist for the main award, and one judge threatened to resign if ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' was declared the overall winner; it finished second, very close behind the winner of the poetry prize, ]'s translation of the ] epic '']''.<ref name="Beckett2008Crossover">{{cite book|last=Beckett|first=S.L.|title=Crossover Fiction|publisher=Taylor & Francis|year=2008|pages=112–115|chapter=Child-to-Adult Crossover Fiction|isbn=978-0-415-98033-3|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9ipnQ2ryU7IC&q=%22Harry+Potter+and+the+Philosopher%27s+Stone%22+book+sales+bestseller&pg=PA114|access-date=16 May 2009|archive-date=16 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230316064618/https://books.google.com/books?id=9ipnQ2ryU7IC&q=%22Harry+Potter+and+the+Philosopher%27s+Stone%22+book+sales+bestseller&pg=PA114|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
The ''Harry Potter'' films were huge ] hits, with all five on the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world/|title=All Time Worldwide Box Office Grosses|publisher=]|accessdate=2007-07-29}}</ref> | |||
In 2000, shortly before the publication of '']'', the previous three ''Harry Potter'' books topped ''The New York Times'' fiction best-seller list and a third of the entries were children's books. The newspaper created a new children's section covering children's books, including both fiction and non-fiction, and initially counting only hardback sales. The move was supported by publishers and booksellers.<ref name="NYT_2000/06/24" /> In 2004, ''The New York Times'' further split the children's list, which was still dominated by ''Harry Potter'' books, into sections for series and individual books and removed the ''Harry Potter'' books from the section for individual books.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://papercuts.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/ten-years-later-harry-potter-vanishes-from-the-best-seller-list/|title=Ten Years Later, Harry Potter Vanishes From the Best-Seller List|last=Garner|first=D.|date=1 May 2008|work=The New York Times|access-date=16 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090210215250/http://papercuts.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/ten-years-later-harry-potter-vanishes-from-the-best-seller-list/|archive-date=10 February 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> The split in 2000 attracted condemnation, praise and some comments that presented both benefits and disadvantages of the move.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://archive.salon.com/mwt/feature/2000/08/16/bestseller/index.html |title=A list of their own |last=Bolonik |first=K. |date=16 August 2000 |work=Salon.com |access-date=16 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090504135643/http://archive.salon.com/mwt/feature/2000/08/16/bestseller/index.html |archive-date=4 May 2009 }}</ref> '']'' suggested that, on the same principle, '']'' should have created a separate "]s" list in 1964 when ] held the top five places in its list, and ] should have created a separate game-show list when '']'' dominated the ].<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Corliss|first=R.|date=21 July 2000|title=Why 'Harry Potter' Did a Harry Houdini|magazine=]|url=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,50554,00.html|access-date=16 May 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100310173814/http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,50554,00.html|archive-date=10 March 2010|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
===Games=== | |||
] has so far released five ]s movies based on the books and movies storylines, '']'', '']'', '']'', '']'', and '']''. EA also produced a ] simulation game, '']'', released in 2003. | |||
== |
==Legacy== | ||
===Influence on literature=== | |||
On ] ] ], ] and ] announced that a ''Harry Potter'' area will be built in ] at ].<ref name="wizardingworld"></ref> The announcement described "]" as "the world's first immersive Harry Potter themed environment." According to the Warner Bros. press release, the section is "Expected to open in late 2009. The new environment will feature immersive rides and interactive attractions, as well as experimental shops and restaurants;."<ref name="WB-Universal">{{cite web |url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070531/ts_nm/arts_potter_dc_2 |title=All aboard for the Harry Potter rollercoaster |publisher=Reuters |author=Majendie, Paul |date=2007-05-31 |accessdate = 2007-05-31}}</ref> In an online announcement it was revealed that plans have been in place for over a year and a half; with contributions from ] and ].<ref name="wizardingworld"/> | |||
], London]] | |||
''Harry Potter'' transformed children's literature.{{sfn|Levy|Mendlesohn|2016|pp=8, 164–65}}{{sfn|Butler|2012|p= 232}} In the 1970s, children's books were generally ] as opposed to fantastic,{{Sfn|Eccleshare|2002|pp=106–8}} while adult fantasy became popular because of the influence of '']''.{{sfn|Stableford|2009|pp=xli, lx–lxi, 72}} The next decade saw an increasing interest in grim, realist themes, with an outflow of fantasy readers and writers to adult works.{{sfn|Levy|Mendlesohn|2016|p=161–62}}{{sfn|Stableford|2009|pp=72–73}} | |||
===Theatre=== | |||
The commercial success of ''Harry Potter'' reversed this trend.{{sfn|Stableford|2009|p=73}} The scale of its growth had no precedent in the children's market: within four years of the series' inception, it occupied 28% of that field by revenue.{{Sfn|Eccleshare|2002|pp=108–9}} Children's literature rose in cultural status,{{Sfn|Eccleshare|2002|pp=105–6}} and fantasy became a dominant genre.{{sfn|Levy|Mendlesohn|2016|pp=164–65}} Older works in the genre, including ]'s '']'' series and ]'s '']'', were reprinted and rose in popularity; some authors re-established their careers.{{sfn|Levy|Mendlesohn|2016|p=167}} In the following decades, many ''Harry Potter'' imitators and subversive responses grew popular.{{sfn|Levy|Mendlesohn|2016|p=168–70}}{{sfn|Striphas|2009|pp=158–59, 166–67}} | |||
A musical based on the series is currently being planned, tentatively scheduled for a 2008 run in ]. The ] reports that producers are hoping to have a "big-name composer" write the music. It has not yet been decided whether the production will tell the entire story, or focus on one particular subplot, though they do hope to include "spectacular flying scenes, live Quidditch and big showdowns with Voldemort".<ref>{{Citation |last=Hamilton |first=Sean |title=Harry Potter... The Musical |url=http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/sunday/2007/08/26/harry-potter-the-musical-98487-19689251/ |accessdate=08-27-2007}}</ref> | |||
Rowling has been compared to ], who also wrote in simple language about groups of children and long held sway over the British children's market.{{sfn|Mendlesohn|James|2012|p=167}}{{sfn|Eccleshare|2002|pp=33–35}} She has also been described as an heir to ].{{sfn|Eccleshare|2002|pp=10–12}} Some critics view ''Harry Potter''{{'s}} rise, along with the concurrent success of ]'s '']'', as part of a broader shift in reading tastes: a rejection of literary fiction in favour of plot and adventure.{{sfn|Mendlesohn|James|2012|pp=165, 171}} This is reflected in the BBC's 2003 "]" survey of the UK's favourite books, where Pullman and Rowling ranked at numbers 3 and 5, respectively, with very few British literary classics in the top 10.{{sfn|Mendlesohn|James|2012|p=165}} | |||
==See also== | |||
*]—Theme park | |||
*] | |||
*]—The author | |||
=== Cultural impact === | |||
==References== | |||
{{further|Harry Potter fandom}} | |||
{{reflist|2}} | |||
]]] | |||
''Harry Potter'' has been described as a cultural phenomenon.{{sfn|Gunelius|2008|p=99}}{{sfn|Taub|Servaty-Seib|2008|p=13}} The word "Muggle" has spread beyond its origins in the books, entering the '']'' in 2003.{{sfn|Gunelius|2008|p=121}} A real-life version of the sport ] was created in 2005 and featured as an exhibition tournament in the ].{{sfn|Popple|2015|pp=194–95}} Characters and elements from the series have inspired ]s of several organisms, including the dinosaur '']'', the spider '']'', the wasp '']'', and the crab '']''.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Kean|first1=Danuta|title=Harry Potter character provides name for new species of crab|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jan/27/harry-potter-name-species-crab-harryplax-severus-severus-snape|work=The Guardian|date=27 January 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223092112/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jan/27/harry-potter-name-species-crab-harryplax-severus-severus-snape|archive-date=23 February 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
==Harry Potter books== | |||
{{HPref | |||
Librarian Nancy Knapp pointed out the books' potential to improve ] by motivating children to read much more than they otherwise would.<ref name="Knapp2003InDefenseOfHP">{{cite journal|last=Knapp |first=N.F. |year=2003 |title=In Defense of Harry Potter: An Apologia |journal=School Libraries Worldwide |publisher=International Association of School Librarianship |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=78–91 |url=http://www.iasl-online.org/files/jan03-knapp.pdf |access-date=14 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110309051050/http://www.iasl-online.org/files/jan03-knapp.pdf |archive-date=9 March 2011 }}</ref> The seven-book series has a word count of 1,083,594 (US edition). Agreeing about the motivating effects, Diane Penrod also praised the books' blending of simple entertainment with "the qualities of highbrow literary fiction", but expressed concern about the distracting effect of the prolific merchandise that accompanies the book launches.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Penrod |first=D |date=December 2001 |title=The Trouble with Harry: A Reason for Teaching Media Literacy to Young Adults |journal=The Writing Instructor |publisher=Professional Writing Program at Purdue University |url=http://www.writinginstructor.com/penrod.html |access-date=16 May 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081216160155/http://www.writinginstructor.com/penrod.html |archive-date=16 December 2008 }}</ref> However, the assumption that Harry Potter books have increased literacy among young people is "largely a folk legend".<ref name=Heilman2008 /> | |||
| hp1 = yes | |||
| hp2 = yes | |||
Research by the ] (NEA) has found no increase in reading among children coinciding with the Harry Potter publishing phenomenon, nor has the broader downward trend in reading among Americans been arrested during the rise in the popularity of the Harry Potter books.<ref name=Heilman2008 /><ref>{{Cite web |url= http://arts.gov/sites/default/files/ToRead.pdf |title= To Read or Not to Read; A question of national consequence |publisher= ] |date= November 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151115010136/https://www.arts.gov/sites/default/files/ToRead.pdf |archive-date= 15 November 2015 |df= dmy-all }}</ref> The research also found that children who read Harry Potter books were not more likely to go on to read outside the fantasy and mystery genres.<ref name=Heilman2008 /> NEA chairman ] said the series, "got millions of kids to read a long and reasonably complex series of books. The trouble is that one Harry Potter novel every few years is not enough to reverse the decline in reading."<ref name=Rich2007 /> | |||
| hp3 = yes | |||
| hp4 = yes | |||
Many ] and ] works about ''Harry Potter'' have been made. In March 2007, "Harry Potter" was the most commonly searched fan fiction subject on the internet.<ref name=most-searched-fanfiction>{{cite news|url=http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/67161/fantastic-fiction |title=Fantastic Fiction |date=20 March 2007 |access-date=7 April 2007 |last=Hurd |first=Gordon |work=] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071222003119/http://buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/67161/fantastic-fiction |archive-date=22 December 2007 }}</ref> | |||
| hp5 = yes | |||
Jennifer Conn used Snape's and Quidditch coach Madam Hooch's teaching methods as examples of what to avoid and what to emulate in clinical teaching,<ref>{{cite journal|last=Conn|first=J.J.|year=2002|title=What can clinical teachers learn from ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone''?|journal=Medical Education|volume=36|issue=12|pages=1176–1181|doi=10.1046/j.1365-2923.2002.01376.x|pmid=12472752|citeseerx=10.1.1.463.8854|s2cid=22560995}}</ref> and Joyce Fields wrote that the books illustrate four of the five main topics in a typical first-year sociology class: "sociological concepts including culture, society, and ]; ] and ]; ]; and ]".<ref name="Fields2007HPSociologicalImagination">{{cite journal|last=Fields|first=J.W.|year=2007|title=''Harry Potter'', Benjamin Bloom, and the Sociological Imagination|journal=International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education|volume=19|issue=2|url=http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe/pdf/IJTLHE160.pdf|access-date=15 May 2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100818204930/http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe/pdf/IJTLHE160.pdf|archive-date=18 August 2010|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
| hp6 = yes | |||
| hp7 = yes | |||
From the early 2000s onwards, several news reports appeared in the UK of the Harry Potter book and movie series driving demand for pet owls,<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1716013.stm|title=Potter sparks pet owl demand|date=2001-12-18|access-date=2018-04-12|language=en-GB|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815182750/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1716013.stm|archive-date=15 August 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and even reports that after the end of the movie series these same pet owls were now being abandoned by their owners.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/hundreds-of-pet-owls-abandoned-after-840299|title=Hundreds of pet owls abandoned after Harry Potter craze fades|last=Paul|first=David|date=2012-05-19|work=mirror|access-date=2018-04-12|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180412145317/https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/hundreds-of-pet-owls-abandoned-after-840299|archive-date=12 April 2018|df=dmy-all}}</ref> This led J. K. Rowling to issue several statements urging Harry Potter fans to refrain from purchasing pet owls.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/harry-potter-studio-tour-accused-of-cruelty-over-use-of-owls-in-live-shows-10127081.html|title=Harry Potter tour accused of cruelty for use of live 'Hedwigs'|date=2015-03-23|work=The Independent|access-date=2018-04-12|language=en-GB|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180412211800/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/harry-potter-studio-tour-accused-of-cruelty-over-use-of-owls-in-live-shows-10127081.html|archive-date=12 April 2018|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Despite the media flurry, research into the popularity of Harry Potter and sales of owls in the UK failed to find any evidence that the Harry Potter franchise had influenced the buying of owls in the country or the number of owls reaching animal shelters and sanctuaries.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Megias|first1=Diane A.|last2=Anderson|first2=Sean C.|last3=Smith|first3=Robert J.|last4=Veríssimo|first4=Diogo|date=2017-10-04|title=Investigating the impact of media on demand for wildlife: A case study of Harry Potter and the UK trade in owls|journal=PLOS ONE|language=en|volume=12|issue=10|pages=e0182368|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0182368|pmid=28976986|pmc=5627891|bibcode=2017PLoSO..1282368M|issn=1932-6203|df=dmy-all|doi-access=free}}</ref> | |||
== Awards, honours, and recognition == | |||
{{further|List of awards and nominations received by J. K. Rowling}} | |||
The ''Harry Potter'' series has been recognised by a host of awards since the initial publication of ''Philosopher's Stone'', including a platinum award from the Whitaker Gold and Platinum Book Awards (2001),<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bill|first=Neto|date=19 April 2021|title=Fiction Genres|url=https://ebooksdiscounts.com/literary-genres/fiction-genres/|access-date=19 April 2021|website=eBooks Discounts|archive-date=28 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328052246/https://ebooksdiscounts.com/literary-genres/fiction-genres/|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/1556674.stm|title=Book honour for Harry Potter author|date=21 September 2001|work=BBC News|access-date=28 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081228112437/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/1556674.stm|archive-date=28 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> three ]s (1997–1999),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7626896.stm|title=JK Rowling: From rags to riches|date=20 September 2008|work=BBC News|access-date=28 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120713/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7626896.stm|archive-date=13 July 2012|df=dmy-all}}</ref> two ] Book Awards (1999 and 2001),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1360641.stm|title=Book 'Oscar' for Potter author|date=30 May 2001|work=BBC News|access-date=28 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227212449/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1360641.stm|archive-date=27 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> the inaugural ] (1999),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/books/news/9907/16/harry/index.html|title=Harry Potter casts a spell on the world|date=18 July 1999|publisher=CNN|access-date=28 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080726101923/http://www.cnn.com/books/news/9907/16/harry/index.html|archive-date=26 July 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and the ] (2006),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/books/author/index.htm|title=Harry Potter: Meet J.K. Rowling|publisher=Scholastic Inc|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070604101828/http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/books/author/index.htm|archive-date=4 June 2007 |access-date=27 September 2008}}</ref> among others. In 2000, '']'' was nominated for a ], and in 2001, '']'' won said award.<ref>{{Cite web|title=2001 Hugo Awards|url=http://www.thehugoawards.org/hugo-history/2001-hugo-awards/|access-date=19 April 2021|website=]|date=26 July 2007|archive-date=7 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110507164752/http://www.thehugoawards.org/hugo-history/2001-hugo-awards/|url-status=live}}</ref> Honours include a commendation for the ] (1997),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/823533.stm|title=Harry Potter beaten to top award|date=7 July 2000|work=BBC News|access-date=28 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081228101106/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/823533.stm|archive-date=28 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> a short listing for the ] (1998), and numerous listings on the notable books, editors' choices, and best books lists of the ], ''The New York Times'', ], and '']''.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Arthur A. Levine Books |url=http://www.arthuralevinebooks.com/awards.asp |title=Awards |first=Arthur |last=Levine |access-date=21 May 2006 |date=2001–2005 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060429093544/http://www.arthuralevinebooks.com/awards.asp |archive-date=29 April 2006 }}</ref> | |||
In 2002, sociologist Andrew Blake named ''Harry Potter'' a British pop culture icon along with the likes of ] and ].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Fenske|first1=Claudia|title=Muggles, Monsters and Magicians: A Literary Analysis of the Harry Potter Series|date=2008|publisher=Peter Lang|page=3}}</ref> In 2003, four of the books were named in the top 24 of the BBC's ] survey of the best loved novels in the UK.<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121031065136/http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/bigread/top100.shtml |date=31 October 2012 }}. BBC. Retrieved 7 December 2016</ref> A 2004 study found that books in the series were commonly read aloud in elementary schools in ].<ref>{{cite journal|year=2004 |title=Interactive Read-Alouds: Is There a Common Set of Implementation Practices? |journal=] |volume=58 |issue=1 |pages=8–17 |url=http://www.fisherandfrey.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/rt-read-alouds.pdf |access-date=19 August 2012 |last=Fisher |first=Douglas |doi=10.1598/RT.58.1.1 |display-authors=etal |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207031123/http://www.fisherandfrey.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/rt-read-alouds.pdf |archive-date=7 December 2013 }}</ref> Based on a 2007 online poll, the US ] listed the series in its "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children".<ref name=NEA2007>{{cite web |url= http://www.nea.org/grants/13154.htm/ |title= Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children |author= National Education Association |year= 2007 |access-date= 19 August 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120920064649/http://www.nea.org/grants/13154.htm/ |archive-date= 20 September 2012 |df= dmy-all }}</ref> ] named Rowling as a runner-up for its 2007 ] award, noting the social, moral, and ] she has given ].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1695388_1695436,00.html|title=Person of the Year 2007 Runners-up: J. K. Rowling|date=23 December 2007|magazine=]|access-date=23 December 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071221164141/http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1695388_1695436,00.html|archive-date=21 December 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Three of the books placed among the "Top 100 Chapter Books" of all time, or children's novels, in a 2012 survey published by '']'': ''Sorcerer's Stone'' ranked number three, ''Prisoner of Azkaban'' 12th, and ''Goblet of Fire'' 98th.<ref name=SLJChapter2012>{{cite web |url= http://blog.schoollibraryjournal.com/afuse8production/2012/07/07/top-100-chapter-book-poll-results |title= Top 100 Chapter Book Poll Results |last= Bird |first= Elizabeth |publisher= A Fuse #8 Production. Blog. ] (blog.schoollibraryjournal.com) |date= 7 July 2012 |access-date= 19 August 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120713031015/http://blog.schoollibraryjournal.com/afuse8production/2012/07/07/top-100-chapter-book-poll-results |archive-date= 13 July 2012 |df= dmy-all }}</ref> | |||
In 2007, the seven ''Harry Potter'' book covers were depicted on a ] issued by ].<ref>{{cite news |title=Owls get the sack, Harry Potter gets a set of stamps |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2007/may/21/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling |access-date=22 September 2022 |work=The Guardian |archive-date=22 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922154714/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2007/may/21/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2012, the ] of the ] in ] featured a 100-foot tall rendition of Lord Voldemort in a segment designed to showcase the UK's cultural icons.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/27/london-olympics-voldemort-mary-poppins_n_1710785.html|title=London Olympics: Voldemort, Mary Poppins Have An Epic Duel|last=Bell|first=Crystal|date=2012-07-27|work=The Huffington Post|access-date=2017-08-15|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170414081107/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/27/london-olympics-voldemort-mary-poppins_n_1710785.html|archive-date=14 April 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In November 2019, the ] listed the ''Harry Potter'' series on its list of the ].<ref>{{cite news| url = https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-50302788| title = 100 'most inspiring' novels revealed by BBC Arts| work = ]| date = 5 November 2019| access-date = 10 November 2019| archive-date = 3 November 2020| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201103164736/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-50302788| url-status = live}}</ref> | |||
== Adaptations == | |||
{{further|Wizarding World}} | |||
=== Films === | |||
{{Main|Harry Potter (film series)}} | |||
] | |||
In 1999, Rowling sold the film rights for ''Harry Potter'' to ] for a reported ]1 million (US$2,000,000).{{sfn|Gunelius|2008|pp=8, 37}}{{sfn|Smith|2002|p=210}} Rowling had creative control on the film series, observing the filmmaking process of ''Philosopher's Stone'' and serving as producer on the two-part ''Deathly Hallows'', alongside ] and ].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100920005538/en/Warner-Bros.-Pictures-Worldwide-Satellite-Trailer-Debut%C2%A0Harry |title=Warner Bros. Pictures mentions J. K. Rowling as producer |publisher=Business Wire |date=20 September 2010 |access-date=24 February 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101227092506/http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100920005538/en/Warner-Bros.-Pictures-Worldwide-Satellite-Trailer-Debut%C2%A0Harry |archive-date=27 December 2010 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Rowling demanded the principal cast be kept strictly British and Irish, nonetheless allowing for the inclusion or French and Eastern European actors where characters from the book are specified as such.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/nov/16/jkjoannekathleenrowling|work=The Guardian|title=Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone|date=16 November 2001|access-date=26 May 2007|location=London|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130930184717/http://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/nov/16/jkjoannekathleenrowling|archive-date=30 September 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
] was selected as the director for '']'' (titled "''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone''" in the United States).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/034/034098p1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080113042745/http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/034/034098p1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 January 2008 |title=Chris Columbus to Direct Harry Potter |access-date=8 July 2007 |date=28 March 2000 |website=IGN |last=Linder |first=Bran }}</ref> ''Philosopher's Stone'' was released on 14 November 2001. Just three days after the film's release, production for '']'', also directed by Columbus, began and the film was released on 15 November 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1807858489/info |title=Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) |publisher=Yahoo! Inc |access-date=18 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724130653/http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1807858489/info |archive-date=24 July 2008 }}</ref> Columbus declined to direct '']'', only acting as producer. Mexican director ] took over the job, and after shooting in 2003, the film was released on 4 June 2004. Due to the fourth film beginning its production before the third's release, ] was chosen as the director for '']'', released on 18 November 2005.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/433/433108p1.html|title=Goblet Helmer Confirmed|website=IGN|date=11 August 2003|access-date=29 July 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070629051548/http://movies.ign.com/articles/433/433108p1.html|archive-date=29 June 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Newell became the first British director of the series, with television director ] following suit after he was chosen to helm '']''. Production began in January 2006 and the film was released the following year in July 2007.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Sneak peek: ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix''|date=6 April 2007|page=28|url=https://ew.com/article/2007/04/03/sneak-peek-harry-potter-and-order-phoenix/|last=Daly|first=Steve|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=26 October 2019|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070406191438/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20016352,00.html|archive-date=6 April 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Yates was selected to direct '']'', which was released on 15 July 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://movies.tvguide.com/Movie-News/Harry-Potter-Changes-1005104.aspx |title=Coming Sooner: ''Harry Potter'' Changes Release Date |work=TV Guide |access-date=15 April 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090418151643/http://movies.tvguide.com/Movie-News/Harry-Potter-Changes-1005104.aspx |archive-date=18 April 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/harry-potter-half-blood-prince-moves/story.aspx?guid={F4F52B7F-D1B1-4DC0-BF8A-AD0D9252BE7A}&dist=hppr |title=Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince |date=14 August 2008 |publisher=Market Watch |access-date=17 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080820102646/http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/harry-potter-half-blood-prince-moves/story.aspx?guid=%7BF4F52B7F-D1B1-4DC0-BF8A-AD0D9252BE7A%7D |archive-date=20 August 2008 |df=dmy }}</ref> The final instalment in the series, '']'' was released in two cinematic parts: '']'' on 19 November 2010 and '']'' on 15 July 2011.<ref>{{cite news|title=Final 'Harry Potter' book will be split into two movies|date=13 March 2008|url=https://latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-potter13mar13,1,5626063.story|work=Los Angeles Times|access-date=13 March 2008|first=Geoff|last=Boucher|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517002014/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-potter13mar13,1,5626063.story|archive-date=17 May 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.snitchseeker.com/harry-potter-news/june-12-2010-confirmed-final-day-deathly-hallows-principal-photography-73871/ |title=Last Day 12 June 2010 |publisher=Snitchseeker.com |access-date=24 February 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100817184257/http://www.snitchseeker.com/harry-potter-news/june-12-2010-confirmed-final-day-deathly-hallows-principal-photography-73871/ |archive-date=17 August 2010 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> | |||
==== Spin-off prequels ==== | |||
{{Main|Fantastic Beasts (film series)}} | |||
A prequel series is planned to consist of five films, taking place before the main series.<ref>{{cite web|title=Fantastic Beasts: JK Rowling confirms there will be five films in Harry Potter spin-off series|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/jk-rowlingfive-films-harry-potter-spin-off-fantastic-beasts-and-where-to-find-them-a7360481.html|website=Independent.co.uk|date=14 October 2016|access-date=7 January 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170108003319/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/jk-rowlingfive-films-harry-potter-spin-off-fantastic-beasts-and-where-to-find-them-a7360481.html|archive-date=8 January 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The first film '']'' was released in November 2016, followed by the second '']'' in November 2018 and '']'' in April 2022. Rowling wrote the screenplays for all three films,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a870007/fantastic-beasts-3-cast-release-date-plot-title-city/|title=Fantastic Beasts 3 cast, release date, plot, title and everything you need to know|date=10 December 2018|work=Digital Spy|access-date=28 December 2018|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181229031505/https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a870007/fantastic-beasts-3-cast-release-date-plot-title-city/|archive-date=29 December 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> marking her foray into screenwriting. | |||
=== Games === | |||
{{see also|Harry Potter video games}} | |||
A number of non-interactive media games and board games have been released such as ''] Harry Potter Edition'', ''] Harry Potter'' and '']'' models, which are influenced by the themes of both the novels and films. | |||
There are fourteen ''Harry Potter'' video games, eight corresponding with the films and books and six spin-offs. The film/book-based games are produced by ] (EA), as was '']'', with the game version of the first entry in the series, '']'', being released in November 2001. ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' went on to become one of the best-selling ] games ever.<ref name="ownt">{{cite web |url=http://www.ownt.com/qtakes/2003/gamestats/gamestats.shtm |title=All Time Top 20 Best Selling Games |access-date=1 December 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060221044930/http://www.ownt.com/qtakes/2003/gamestats/gamestats.shtm |archive-date=21 February 2006 |date=21 May 2003}}</ref> The video games were released to coincide with the films. Objectives usually occur in and around ]. The story and design of the games follow the selected film's characterisation and plot; EA worked closely with Warner Bros. to include scenes from the films. The last game in the series, ''Deathly Hallows'', was split, with '']'' released in November 2010 and '']'' debuting on consoles in July 2011.<ref> {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120310225855/http://harrypotter.ea.com/ |date=10 March 2012 }} Retrieved 19 June 2010.</ref><ref> Retrieved 19 June 2010. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100701172944/http://www.ea.com/videos?video_id=89a42107c3649210VgnVCM1000001065140aRCRD |date=1 July 2010 }}</ref> | |||
The spin-off games '']'' and '']'' were developed by ] and published by ]. The spin-off games '']'' and '']'' were developed by ] and use the ], an ] book designed to be used in conjunction with the ] and ].<ref>{{cite news|last=Robinson |first=Andy |title=E3 2012: Sony announces intriguing Wonderbook for PS3—Harry Potter author on board |url=http://www.computerandvideogames.com/351325/sony-announces-intriguing-wonderbook-for-ps3-harry-potter-author-on-board/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120608043904/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/351325/sony-announces-intriguing-wonderbook-for-ps3-harry-potter-author-on-board/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 June 2012 |access-date=5 June 2012 |newspaper=Computer and Video Games |date=5 June 2012 }}</ref> The ''Harry Potter'' universe is also featured in '']'', with the settings and side characters featured in the Harry Potter Adventure World, and Harry, Voldemort, and Hermione as playable characters. In 2017, ] opened its own Harry Potter-themed game design studio, by the name of ], before releasing '']'', developed by Jam City, in 2018 and '']'', developed by ], in 2023.<ref>{{Cite web | title = Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery game now available on iPhone and iPad, but it's an obnoxious free-to-play game | author = Mayo, Benjamin | work = 9to5Mac | date = 24 April 2018 | access-date = 25 April 2018 |url=https://9to5mac.com/2018/04/25/harry-potter-hogwarts-mystery-game-now-available-on-iphone-and-ipad-but-its-an-obnoxious-free-to-play-game/ | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180425134242/https://9to5mac.com/2018/04/25/harry-potter-hogwarts-mystery-game-now-available-on-iphone-and-ipad-but-its-an-obnoxious-free-to-play-game/ | archive-date = 25 April 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-11 |title=Hogwarts Legacy—extended gameplay showcase |url=https://www.gematsu.com/2022/11/hogwarts-legacy-extended-gameplay-showcase |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=Gematsu |language=en-US}}</ref> | |||
=== Stage production === | |||
{{Main|Harry Potter and the Cursed Child}} | |||
''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts I and II'' is a play which serves as a sequel to the books, beginning nineteen years after the events of '']''. It was written by ] based on an original new story by Thorne, Rowling and ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.harrypottertheplaylondon.com|title=Harry Potter and the Cursed Child|year=2016|website=Harry Potter The Play|publisher=harrypottertheplaylondon.com|access-date=26 July 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160926023138/http://www.harrypottertheplaylondon.com/|archive-date=26 September 2016|df=dmy-all}}</ref> It has run at the ] in London's ] since previews began on 7 June 2016 with an official premiere on 30 June 2016.<ref name="nyt07june2016">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/08/theater/harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-preview.html|title='Harry Potter and the Cursed Child' Begins Previews in London, as Magic Continues|last=Lyall|first=Sarah|date=7 June 2016|work=The New York Times|access-date=29 June 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170410234000/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/08/theater/harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-preview.html|archive-date=10 April 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> The first four months of tickets for the June–September performances were sold out within several hours upon release.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-34660716 | title=First batch of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child tickets sell out | work=BBC News | date=29 October 2015 | access-date=29 October 2015 | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151029094840/http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-34660716 | archive-date=29 October 2015 | df=dmy-all }}</ref> Forthcoming productions are planned for Broadway<ref>{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-april-22-2018-broadway-opening-1202083963/|title='Harry Potter And The Cursed Child' Sets April 22, 2018 Broadway Opening|last=Gerard|first=Jeremy|date=4 May 2017|work=Deadline|access-date=4 May 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170504184601/http://deadline.com/2017/05/harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-april-22-2018-broadway-opening-1202083963/|archive-date=4 May 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and Melbourne.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.harrypottertheplay.com/au/|title=Harry Potter and the Cursed Child {{!}} Melbourne|website=Harry Potter and the Cursed Child {{!}} Melbourne|language=en-US|access-date=2017-10-25|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171024044426/https://www.harrypottertheplay.com/au/|archive-date=24 October 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
The script was released as a book at the time of the premiere, with a revised version following the next year. | |||
===Television=== | |||
On 25 January 2021, it was reported that a live-action television series has been in early development at ]. Though it was noted that the series has "complicated rights issues", due to a seven-year rights deal with Warner Bros. Domestic TV Distribution that included US broadcast, cable and streaming rights to the franchise, which ends in April 2025.<ref>{{cite web|last=Goldberg|first=Lesley|title='Harry Potter' Live-Action TV Series in Early Development at HBO Max (Exclusive)|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/harry-potter-live-action-tv-series-in-early-development-at-hbo-max-exclusive|date=25 January 2021|access-date=25 January 2021|website=]|archive-date=28 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210428045541/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/harry-potter-live-action-tv-series-in-early-development-at-hbo-max-exclusive|url-status=live}}</ref> On 12 April 2023, the series was confirmed to be in development, and will be streamed on the new streaming service ] (formerly known as HBO Max).<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 April 2023 |title=First ever Harry Potter television series ordered by new streaming service, Max |url=https://www.wizardingworld.com/news/first-ever-harry-potter-television-series-coming-to-max |access-date=2023-04-13 |website=Wizarding World |language=en |archive-date=12 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230412214511/https://www.wizardingworld.com/news/first-ever-harry-potter-television-series-coming-to-max |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=12 April 2023 |title=Introducing the enhanced streaming service: Max |url=https://www.wizardingworld.com/news/introducing-enhanced-streaming-service-max |access-date=2023-04-13 |website=Wizarding World |language=en |archive-date=12 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230412214510/https://www.wizardingworld.com/news/introducing-enhanced-streaming-service-max |url-status=live }}</ref> On 23 February 2024, ] CEO ] announced that the series would debut on Max in 2026.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tapp |first=Tom |date=2024-02-23 |title='Harry Potter' TV Series Due To Hit Max In 2026: Everything We Know About The Cast, What J.K. Rowling Says & More—Update |url=https://deadline.com/2024/02/harry-potter-tv-series-max-release-date-cast-1235323284/ |access-date=2024-02-23 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}}</ref> On 25 June 2024, it was announced the series was moved from Max to ].<ref>{{cite web|last=White|first=Peter|title='Harry Potter' & 'Welcome To Derry' Moving From Max To HBO As Part Of Big-Budget Streaming Strategy Rethink|url=https://deadline.com/2024/06/harry-potter-welcome-to-derry-moving-from-max-to-hbo-1235983023/|website=Deadline Hollywood|date=25 June 2024|access-date=25 June 2024}}</ref> | |||
== Attractions == | |||
{{Main|The Wizarding World of Harry Potter|Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter}} | |||
] | |||
Universal and Warner Brothers created ''The Wizarding World of Harry Potter'', a ''Harry Potter''-themed expansion to the ] theme park at ] in Florida. It opened to the public on 18 June 2010.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/wizarding-world-of-harry-potter/os-universal-harry-potter-staying-pow20100617,0,1970029.story|title=Big day is here: Universal hopes Harry Potter's magic will last|first=Jason|last=Garcia|date=17 June 2010|access-date=19 June 2010|newspaper=Orlando Sentinel|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120905/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/wizarding-world-of-harry-potter/os-universal-harry-potter-staying-pow20100617,0,1970029.story|archive-date=5 September 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> It includes a recreation of ] and several rides; its flagship attraction is '']'', which exists within a recreation of ] School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.australia-times.com.au/entertainment/article.php?id=7096 |title=Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park opens |date=June 19, 2010 |access-date=June 19, 2010 |publisher=Australia Times |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706101707/http://www.australia-times.com.au/entertainment/article.php?id=7096 |archive-date=July 6, 2011 }}</ref> | |||
In 2014 Universal opened a ''Harry Potter''-themed area at the ] theme park. It includes a recreation of ].<ref name=tpinsider140708>{{cite news |last=Niles |first=Robert |date=July 8, 2014 |title=The Wizarding World of Harry Potter—Diagon Alley opens officially at Universal Studios Florida |url=http://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/201407/4112/ |work=Theme Park Insider |access-date=15 September 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140915120158/http://www.themeparkinsider.com/flume/201407/4112/ |archive-date=September 15, 2014 |df=mdy-all }}</ref> The flagship attraction is the '']'' roller coaster ride.<ref>{{Cite magazine|author=Kohler, Chris|year=2014|title=What to Expect From the Wild New Harry Potter Ride, 'Escape From Gringotts'|magazine=Wired|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/06/diagon-alley-gringotts-ride/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702225829/http://www.wired.com/2014/06/diagon-alley-gringotts-ride/|archive-date=2 July 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> A completely functioning ] was created for the Diagon Alley expansion, connecting King's Cross Station at Universal Studios to the Hogsmeade station at Islands of Adventure.<ref name="IGN">{{cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/05/08/details-on-expansion-of-wizarding-world-of-harry-potter-in-orlando-confirmed-including-diagon-alley-as-second-location?abthid=518a6ec50c27b4992700000e|title=Details on Expansion of Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando Confirmed, Including Diagon Alley as Second Location|last=Goldman|first=Eric|date=May 8, 2013|access-date=May 8, 2013|website=IGN|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131008180723/http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/05/08/details-on-expansion-of-wizarding-world-of-harry-potter-in-orlando-confirmed-including-diagon-alley-as-second-location?abthid=518a6ec50c27b4992700000e|archive-date=October 8, 2013|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref name="What may come to Wizarding World of Harry Potter 2.0 at Universal Orlando">{{cite news|last=MacDonald|first=Brady|title=What may come to Wizarding World of Harry Potter 2.0 at Universal Orlando|url=https://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/themeparks/la-trb-diagon-alley-wizarding-world-harry-potter-universal-studios-05201309,0,640470,full.story|access-date=May 18, 2013|newspaper=]|date=May 9, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130510183411/http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/themeparks/la-trb-diagon-alley-wizarding-world-harry-potter-universal-studios-05201309%2C0%2C640470%2Cfull.story|archive-date=May 10, 2013|df=mdy-all}}</ref> ''The Wizarding World of Harry Potter'' opened at the ] theme park near ], ] in 2016,<ref name=nytimes20140409>{{cite news |last=Barnes |first=Brooks |date=8 April 2014 |title=A Makeover at Universal Studios Hollywood Aims at Disney |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/09/business/media/a-makeover-of-universal-studios-hollywood-aims-to-catch-up-to-disney.html |newspaper=] |location=] |access-date=12 September 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140912083943/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/09/business/media/a-makeover-of-universal-studios-hollywood-aims-to-catch-up-to-disney.html |archive-date=12 September 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://latimes.com/travel/themeparks/la-trb-wizarding-world-harry-potter-universal-studios-hollywood-20160114-story.html|title=What to expect when the Wizarding World at Universal Studios Hollywood opens in April|website=]|date=14 January 2016|access-date=3 April 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160403091029/http://www.latimes.com/travel/themeparks/la-trb-wizarding-world-harry-potter-universal-studios-hollywood-20160114-story.html|archive-date=3 April 2016|df=dmy-all}}</ref> and in ] theme park in ], Japan in 2014. The Osaka venue includes the village of Hogsmeade, ''Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey'' ride, and '']'' roller coaster.<ref name=orlando20140418>{{cite news |last=Bevil |first=Dewayne |date=18 April 2014 |title=Universal Studios Japan: Wizarding World of Harry Potter to open July 15 |url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/theme-park-rangers-blog/os-universal-studios-japan-harry-potter-20140418-post.html |newspaper=] |access-date=12 September 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140912073410/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/travel/attractions/theme-park-rangers-blog/os-universal-studios-japan-harry-potter-20140418-post.html |archive-date=12 September 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name=cnn20140716>{{cite news |last=Cripps |first=Karla |date=16 July 2014 |title=Universal Studios Japan's 'Wizarding World of Harry Potter' opens |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/16/travel/universal-studios-japan-harry-potter/ |newspaper=] |access-date=12 September 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140912075407/http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/16/travel/universal-studios-japan-harry-potter/ |archive-date=12 September 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Other ''Harry Potter'' roller coasters are the '']'' and '']'', both at ]. | |||
] is a behind-the-scenes walking tour in London featuring authentic sets, costumes and props from the film series. The attraction is located at ], where all eight of the ''Harry Potter'' films were made. Warner Bros. constructed two new sound stages to house and showcase the sets from each of the British-made productions, following a £100 million investment.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-12645416|title=Harry Potter tour to open at Leavesden studios in 2012|access-date=18 May 2011|work=BBC News|date=5 March 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110325033117/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-12645416|archive-date=25 March 2011|df=dmy-all}}</ref> It opened to the public in March 2012.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-16257334 |title=Harry Potter tour at Leavesden Studios reveals new sets |access-date=16 February 2012 |work=BBC News |date=19 December 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222215659/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-16257334 |archive-date=22 February 2012 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> | |||
== Supplementary works == | |||
{{See also|J. K. Rowling#Philanthropy}} | |||
Rowling expanded the ] with short books produced for charities.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6903111.stm|title=How Rowling conjured up millions|work=BBC News|access-date=7 September 2008|date=19 July 2007|first=Simon|last=Atkinson|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081228111436/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6903111.stm|archive-date=28 December 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.alibris.com/search/books/qwork/1198169/used/Comic%20Relief%20:%20Quidditch%20through%20the%20ages |title=Comic Relief: Quidditch Through the Ages|publisher=Albris|access-date=7 September 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080726050800/http://www.alibris.com/search/books/qwork/1198169/used/Comic%20Relief%20%3A%20Quidditch%20through%20the%20ages|archive-date=26 July 2008|df=dmy-all}}</ref> In 2001, she released '']'' (a purported Hogwarts textbook) and '']'' (a book Harry reads for fun). Proceeds from the sale of these two books benefited the charity ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comicrelief.com/stuff-to-buy/harrys-books/the-money/|title=The Money|publisher=Comic Relief| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20071029034316/http://www.comicrelief.com/stuff-to-buy/harrys-books/the-money/|archive-date=29 October 2007 |access-date=25 October 2007}}</ref> In 2007, Rowling composed seven handwritten copies of '']'', a collection of fairy tales that is featured in the final novel, one of which was auctioned to raise money for the Children's High Level Group, a fund for mentally disabled children in poor countries. The book was published internationally on 4 December 2008.<ref name="fetches">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7142656.stm|title=JK Rowling book fetches £2 m|date=13 December 2007|work=BBC News|access-date=13 December 2007|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215120757/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7142656.stm|archive-date=15 December 2007|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/feature.html?docId=1000137983 |title=The Tales of Beedle the Bard |website=Amazon UK |access-date=14 December 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217031800/http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/feature.html?docId=1000137983 |archive-date=17 December 2007 }}</ref> Rowling also wrote an 800-word ] in 2008 as part of a fundraiser organised by the bookseller ].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/may/29/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling|title=Rowling pens Potter prequel for charities|date=29 May 2008|newspaper=]|location=London|last=Williams|first=Rachel|access-date=30 March 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002203005/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/may/29/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling|archive-date=2 October 2013|df=dmy-all}}</ref> All three of these books contain extra information about the wizarding world not included in the original novels. | |||
In 2016, she released three new e-books: '']'', '']'' and '']''.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Chan |first=Melissa |date=17 August 2016 |title=J.K. Rowling Is About to Release 3 New 'Harry Potter' Books |url=https://time.com/4455746/j-k-rowling-pottermore-new-harry-potter-books/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161216234750/http://time.com/4455746/j-k-rowling-pottermore-new-harry-potter-books/ |archive-date=16 December 2016 |access-date=2016-12-22 |magazine=] |df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
{{anchor|Pottermore}} | |||
Rowling's website ] was launched in 2012.<ref name="waiting">{{cite web|url=http://insider.pottermore.com/2012/03/waiting-for-pottermore.html |title=Waiting for Pottermore? |work=Pottermore Insider |date=8 March 2012 |access-date=9 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120310102525/http://insider.pottermore.com/2012/03/waiting-for-pottermore.html |archive-date=10 March 2012 }}</ref> Pottermore allows users to be sorted, be chosen by their wand and play various minigames. The main purpose of the website was to allow the user to journey through the story with access to content not revealed by JK Rowling previously, with over 18,000 words of additional content.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://newsfeed.time.com/2011/06/23/pottermore-secrets-revealed-j-k-rowlings-new-site-is-e-book-meets-interactive-world/ |title='Pottermore' Secrets Revealed: J.K. Rowling's New Site is E-Book Meets Interactive World |first=Sonia |last=van Gilder Cooke |date=23 June 2011 |magazine=] |access-date=6 January 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829110641/http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/06/23/pottermore-secrets-revealed-j-k-rowlings-new-site-is-e-book-meets-interactive-world/ |archive-date=29 August 2012 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> The site was redesigned in 2015 as WizardingWorld and it mainly focuses on the information already available, rather than exploration.<ref>{{cite web|title=Pottermore|url=https://www.pottermore.com/news/Welcome-to-the-new-Pottermore|website=Pottermore|access-date=8 October 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150926135910/https://www.pottermore.com/news/Welcome-to-the-new-Pottermore|archive-date=26 September 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref> | |||
== See also == | |||
* ] | |||
* '']'' | |||
== References == | |||
{{Reflist|refs= | |||
<ref name="meanings">Sources that refer to the many genres, cultural meanings and references of the series include: | |||
* {{cite web|last=Fry|first=Stephen|author-link=Stephen Fry|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0076w0r|title=Living with Harry Potter|publisher=BBC Radio 4|date=10 December 2005|access-date=10 December 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141021121215/https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0076w0r|archive-date=21 October 2014|url-status=dead |ref=none}} | |||
* {{cite magazine|title=Why J.K. Rowling waited to read ''Harry Potter'' to her daughter|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|last=Jensen|first=Jeff|author-link=Jeff Jensen|url=https://ew.com/article/2000/09/07/why-jk-rowling-waited-read-harry-potter-her-daughter|access-date=19 August 2015|date=7 September 2000|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905211717/http://www.ew.com/article/2000/09/07/why-jk-rowling-waited-read-harry-potter-her-daughter|archive-date=5 September 2015|df=dmy-all|ref=none}} | |||
* {{cite web|title=The Last Chapter|author=Nancy Carpentier Brown|publisher=Our Sunday Visitor|year=2007|url=http://www.osv.com/Portals/0/images/pdf/TheLastChapter.pdf|access-date=28 April 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013134200/http://www.osv.com/Portals/0/images/pdf/TheLastChapter.pdf|archive-date=13 October 2007|url-status=dead|ref=none}} | |||
* {{cite web |author=J. K. Rowling |title=J. K. Rowling at the Edinburgh Book Festival |url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/news_view.cfm?id=80 |access-date=10 October 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060820213620/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/news_view.cfm?id=80 <!--Added by H3llBot--> |archive-date=20 August 2006 |url-status=dead |ref=none}}</ref> | |||
<ref name=Heilman2008>{{harvnb|Heilman|2008|p=2}}</ref> | |||
<ref name=Rich2007>{{Cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/11/arts/11iht-11potter.6606863.html |newspaper=] |last= Rich |first= Motoko |author-link=Motoko Rich |title= Harry Potter has limited effect on reading habits |date= 11 July 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170223130911/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/11/arts/11iht-11potter.6606863.html |archive-date= 23 February 2017 |df= dmy-all |ref=none}}</ref> | |||
}} | }} | ||
==Sources== | |||
==External links== | |||
{{ |
{{refbegin|30em}} | ||
<!-- Book chapters from Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays --> | |||
{{wikiquote}} | |||
* {{Cite book|editor-last=Anatol|editor-first=Giselle Liza |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780313320675|url-access=registration|title=Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays|date=2003|publisher=Praeger|isbn=978-0-313-32067-5|location=Westport, Connecticut|oclc=50774592|ref=none}} | |||
{{commons|Category:Harry Potter|Harry Potter}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first=Brycchan|last=Carey|author-link=Brycchan Carey|title=Hermione and the house-elves: the literary and historical contexts of J. K. Rowling's antislavery campaign|editor-last=Anatol|editor-first=Giselle Liza |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780313320675|url-access=registration|encyclopedia=Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays|date=2003|publisher=Praeger|isbn=9780313320675}} | |||
<!-- Fan sites are covered within ]. No need to include them again here. --> | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Ximena|last1=Gallardo|first2=C. Jason|last2=Smith|title=Cinderfella: J. K. Rowling's wily web of gender|editor-last=Anatol|editor-first=Giselle Liza |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780313320675|url-access=registration|encyclopedia=Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays|date=2003|publisher=Praeger|isbn=9780313320675}} | |||
* | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first=Elaine|last=Ostry|title=Accepting Mudbloods: the ambivalent social vision of J. K. Rowling's fairy tales|editor-last=Anatol|editor-first=Giselle Liza |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780313320675|url-access=registration|encyclopedia=Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays|date=2003|publisher=Praeger|isbn=9780313320675}} | |||
* | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first=Julia|last=Park|title=Class and socioeconomic identity in Harry Potter's England|editor-last=Anatol|editor-first=Giselle Liza |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780313320675|url-access=registration|encyclopedia=Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays|date=2003|publisher=Praeger|isbn=9780313320675}} | |||
* | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first=Veronica|last=Shanoes|title=Cruel heroes and treacherous texts: educating the reader in moral complexity and critical reading in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter books|editor-last=Anatol|editor-first=Giselle Liza |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780313320675|url-access=registration|encyclopedia=Reading Harry Potter: Critical Essays|date=2003|publisher=Praeger|isbn=9780313320675}} | |||
* | |||
*{{Cite book|last=Barratt|first=Bethany|title=The Politics of Harry Potter|publisher=]|year=2012|isbn=978-0-230-60899-3|location=New York|doi=10.1057/9781137016546}} | |||
* | |||
* | |||
<!-- Book chapters from Hermione Granger Saves the World --> | |||
{{Harrypotter}} | |||
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Bell |editor1-first=Christopher |title=Hermione Granger Saves the World: Essays on the Feminist Heroine of Hogwarts |year=2012 |publisher=] |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |isbn=978-0-7864-7137-9|ref=none}} | |||
** {{cite encyclopedia|first1=Christopher|last1=Bell|first2=Julie|last2=Alexander|title=Introduction|editor1-last=Bell |editor1-first=Christopher |encyclopedia=Hermione Granger Saves the World: Essays on the Feminist Heroine of Hogwarts |year=2012 |publisher=]}} | |||
** {{cite encyclopedia|first1=Helen|last1=Berents|title=Hermione Granger goes to war|editor1-last=Bell |editor1-first=Christopher |encyclopedia=Hermione Granger Saves the World: Essays on the Feminist Heroine of Hogwarts |year=2012 |publisher=] }} | |||
<!-- Book chapters from Heroism in the Harry Potter Series --> | |||
* {{Cite book|editor-last1=Berndt|editor-first1=Katrin|editor-last2=Steveker|editor-first2=Lena|title=Heroism in the Harry Potter Series|date=22 April 2016|publisher=]|isbn=978-1-317-12211-1|doi=10.4324/9781315586748|ref=none}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Christine|last1=Berberich|title=Harry Potter and the idea of the gentleman as hero|encyclopedia=Heroism in the Harry Potter Series|date=22 April 2016|publisher=]|editor-last1=Berndt|editor-first1=Katrin|editor-last2=Steveker|editor-first2=Lena}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Kathleen|last1=McEvoy|title=Heroism at the margins|encyclopedia=Heroism in the Harry Potter Series|date=22 April 2016|publisher=]|editor-last1=Berndt|editor-first1=Katrin|editor-last2=Steveker|editor-first2=Lena}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Maria|last1=Nikolajeva|author-link=Maria Nikolajeva|title=Adult heroism and role models in the Harry Potter novels|encyclopedia=Heroism in the Harry Potter Series|date=22 April 2016|publisher=]|editor-last1=Berndt|editor-first1=Katrin|editor-last2=Steveker|editor-first2=Lena}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Mary|last1=Pharr|title=A paradox: the Harry Potter series as both epic and postmodern|encyclopedia=Heroism in the Harry Potter Series|date=22 April 2016|publisher=]|editor-last1=Berndt|editor-first1=Katrin|editor-last2=Steveker|editor-first2=Lena}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Rita|last1=Singer|title=Harry Potter and the battle for the soul: the revival of the psychomachia in secular fiction|encyclopedia=Heroism in the Harry Potter Series|date=22 April 2016|publisher=]|editor-last1=Berndt|editor-first1=Katrin|editor-last2=Steveker|editor-first2=Lena}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Blake|first=Andrew|url=https://archive.org/details/irresistiblerise0000blak|url-access=registration|title=The Irresistible Rise of Harry Potter|publisher=]|year=2002|isbn=1-85984-666-1|location=London|oclc=49594480}} | |||
* {{Cite encyclopedia|first=Catherine|last=Butler|title=Modern children's fantasy|author-link=Catherine Butler|editor1-last=James|editor1-first=Edward|editor1-link=Edward James (historian)|editor2-last=Mendlesohn|editor2-first=Farah|editor2-link=Farah Mendlesohn|encyclopedia=The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature|publisher=]|year=2012|isbn=978-0-521-42959-7|doi=10.1017/CCOL9780521429597}} | |||
* {{cite book |last1=Clark |first1=Giles |last2=Phillips |first2=Angus |title=Inside Book Publishing |publisher=] |year=2019 |isbn=978-1-351-26571-3}} | |||
* {{Cite journal|last=Eberhardt|first=Maeve|title=Gendered representations through speech: The case of the Harry Potter series|journal=]|year=2017|volume=26|issue=3|pages=227–246|doi=10.1177/0963947017701851|s2cid=149129001}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Eccleshare|first=Julia|author-link=Julia Eccleshare|url=https://archive.org/details/guidetoharrypott0000eccl/|url-access=registration|title=A Guide to the Harry Potter Novels|year=2002|publisher=]|isbn=978-1-84714-418-8|location=London|oclc=229341237}} | |||
* {{cite book|last=Errington|first=Philip W.|date=2017|title=J.K. Rowling: A Bibliography|publisher=]|isbn=978-1-4742-9737-0}} | |||
* {{Cite journal|last=Farmer|first=Joy|date=2001|title=The magician's niece: the kinship between J. K. Rowling and C. S. Lewis|journal=]|volume=23|issue=2|pages=53–64|issn=0146-9339|jstor=26814627}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Groves |first=Beatrice |title=Literary Allusion in Harry Potter |publisher=] |year=2017 |isbn=978-1-315-26933-7 |doi=10.4324/9781315269337}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Gunelius |first=Susan |title=Harry Potter: The Story of a Global Business Phenomenon |publisher=] |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-230-59410-4 |doi=10.1057/9780230594104 }} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Gupta|first=Suman|title=Re-Reading Harry Potter|publisher=]|year=2009|isbn=978-0-230-21958-8|location=London|doi=10.1057/9780230279711|edition=2nd}} | |||
<!-- Book chapters from Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter --> | |||
* {{Cite book|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|title=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|isbn=978-1-135-89154-1|edition=2nd|doi=10.4324/9780203892817}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Anne Hiebert|last1=Alton|title=Playing the genre game: generic fusions of the Harry Potter series|encyclopedia=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|edition=2nd}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Peter|last1=Applebaum|title=The great Snape debate|encyclopedia=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|edition=2nd}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Megan L.|last1=Birch|title=Schooling Harry Potter: teachers and learning, power and knowledge|encyclopedia=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|edition=2nd}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Peter|last1=Ciaccio|title=Harry Potter and Christian theology|encyclopedia=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|edition=2nd}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Elizabeth E.|last1=Heilman|first2=Trevor|last2=Donaldson|title=From sexist to (sort-of) feminist representations of gender in the Harry Potter series|encyclopedia=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|edition=2nd}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Maria|last1=Nikolajeva|author-link=Maria Nikolajeva|title=Harry Potter and the secrets of children's literature|encyclopedia=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|edition=2nd}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia|first1=Deborah J.|last1=Taub|first2=Heather L.|last2=Servaty-Seib|title=Controversial content: is Harry Potter harmful to children?|encyclopedia=Critical Perspectives on Harry Potter|publisher=Routledge|date=7 August 2008|editor-last=Heilman|editor-first=Elizabeth E.|edition=2nd}} | |||
* {{Cite journal|last=Horne|first=Jackie C.|title=Harry and the other: answering the race question in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter|journal=]|volume=34|number=1|year=2010|pages=76–104|doi=10.1353/uni.0.0488|s2cid=143738308|id={{ProQuest|221753179}}}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Kirk|first=Connie Ann|author-link= Connie Ann Kirk |url=https://archive.org/details/jkrowlingbiograp0000kirk|url-access=registration|title=J.K. Rowling: A Biography|year=2003|publisher=]|isbn=0-313-32205-8|oclc=49991592}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last1=Levy|first1=Michael|author1-link=Michael M. Levy|title=]|last2=Mendlesohn|first2=Farah|publisher=]|year=2016|isbn=978-1-107-01814-3|author2-link=Farah Mendlesohn|doi=10.1017/CBO9781139087421}} | |||
* {{Cite journal|last=Los|first=Fraser|date=2008|title=Harry Potter and the nature of death|journal=Alternatives Journal|volume=34|issue=1|pages= 32–33|jstor=45033580}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last1=Mendlesohn|first1=Farah|author1-link=Farah Mendlesohn|last2=James|first2=Edward|author2-link=Edward James (historian)|title=A Short History of Fantasy|publisher=Libri Publishing|year=2012|isbn=978-1-907471-66-7|oclc=857653620}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Nel|first=Philip|author-link=Philip Nel |url=https://archive.org/details/jkrowlingsharryp0000nelp|url-access=registration|title=J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Novels: A Reader's Guide|year=2001|publisher=]|isbn=0-8264-5232-9|location=New York|oclc=47050453}} | |||
* {{cite book |last=Popple |first=Jennifer E. |chapter=Embracing the magic: Muggle Quidditch and the transformation of gender equality from fantasy to reality |editor-last=Brenner |editor-first=Lisa S. |title=Playing Harry Potter: Essays and Interviews on Fandom and Performance |year=2015 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-4766-2136-4}} | |||
* {{Cite journal|last1=Pugh|first1=Tison|last2=Wallace|first2=David L.|title=Heteronormative heroism and queering the school story in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series|journal=]|volume=31|issue=3|date=Fall 2006|pages=260–281|doi=10.1353/chq.2006.0053|s2cid=143508785 }} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Smith|first=Sean|url=https://archive.org/details/jkrowlingbiograp0000smit_j1n9|url-access=registration|title=J.K. Rowling: A Biography|year=2002|publisher=]|isbn=0-09-944542-5|oclc=51303518}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Stableford|first=Brian M.|author-link=Brian Stableford|title=The A to Z of Fantasy Literature|publisher=]|year=2009|isbn=978-0-8108-6345-3|oclc=1200815959}} | |||
* {{Cite book|last=Striphas|first=Theodore G.|title=The Late Age of Print: Everyday Book Culture from Consumerism to Control|title-link=The Late Age of Print|publisher=]|year=2009|isbn=978-0-231-14814-6|location=New York|pages=]|chapter=Harry Potter and the Culture of the Copy|oclc=256532755|author-link=Ted Striphas}} | |||
* {{Cite journal|last=Stojilkov|first=Andrea|date=2015|title=Life(and)death in 'Harry Potter': the immortality of love and soul|journal=Mosaic: An Interdisciplinary Critical Journal|volume=48|issue=2|pages=133–148|issn=0027-1276|jstor=44030425}} | |||
<!-- Book chapters from The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter --> | |||
* {{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/ivorytowerharryp00unse |title=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon |publisher=] |year=2002 |isbn=978-0-8262-6330-8 |editor-last1=Whited |editor-first1=Lana A. |location=Columbia, Missouri |oclc=56424948 |url-access=registration |ref=none}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia |first1=Terri |last1=Doughty |title=Locating Harry Potter in the 'Boys' Book' market |url=https://archive.org/details/ivorytowerharryp00unse |encyclopedia=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon |publisher=] |year=2002 |isbn=9780826214430 |editor-last1=Whited |editor-first1=Lana A. |url-access=registration}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia |first=Farah |last=Mendlesohn |author-link=Farah Mendlesohn |title=Crowning the king: Harry Potter and the construction of authority |url=https://archive.org/details/ivorytowerharryp00unse |encyclopedia=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon |publisher=] |year=2002 |isbn=9780826214430 |editor-last1=Whited |editor-first1=Lana A. |url-access=registration}} | |||
** {{Cite encyclopedia |first=Roni |last=Natov |title=Harry Potter and the extraordinariness of the ordinary |url=https://archive.org/details/ivorytowerharryp00unse |encyclopedia=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon |publisher=] |year=2002 |isbn=9780826214430 |editor-last1=Whited |editor-first1=Lana A. |url-access=registration}} | |||
* {{Cite book |chapter=A survey of the critical reception of the Harry Potter series |last=Whited |first=Lana A. |title=Critical Insights: The Harry Potter Series |editor1-last=Grimes |editor1-first=M. Katherine |editor2-last=Whited |editor2-first=Lana A. |date=2015 |publisher=] |isbn=978-1-61925-520-3 |id={{EBSCOhost|108515151|dbcode=lkh}}}} | |||
{{refend}} | |||
== Further reading == | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Agarwal |first=Nikita |author2=Chitra Agarwal |year=2005 |title=Friends and Foes of Harry Potter: Names Decoded |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JGQBcu5O_ZcC&q=Harry%20Potter&pg=PP1 |publisher=Outskirts Press |isbn=978-1-59800-221-8 }} | |||
* {{Cite web |last=Allardice |first=Lisa |date=18 June 2022 |title='There was practically a riot at King's Cross': an oral history of Harry Potter at 25 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/jun/18/riot-kings-cross-oral-history-harry-potter-philosophers-stone-25-publishers |access-date=26 August 2024 |website=The Guardian}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Burkart |first=Gina |year=2005 |title=A parent's guide to Harry Potter |url=https://archive.org/details/parentsguidetoha00burk |url-access=registration |quote=Harry Potter. |publisher=InterVarsity Press |isbn=978-0-8308-3288-0 }} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Duriez |first=Colin |year=2007 |title=Field Guide to Harry Potter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WZwZWP5Sl3AC&q=Harry%20Potter&pg=PP1 |publisher=IVP Books |isbn=978-0-8308-3430-3 }} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Mulholland |first=Neil |year=2007 |title=The Psychology of Harry Potter: An Unauthorized Examination of the Boy Who Lived |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BoX-6R21MgQC&q=Harry%20Potter&pg=PP1 |publisher=BenBella Books |isbn=978-1-932100-88-4 }} | |||
* {{Cite book |last=Silvester |first=William |year=2010 |title=Harry Potter Collector's Handbook |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hnRQmAEACAAJ |publisher=Krause |isbn=978-1-4402-0897-3 }} | |||
== External links == | |||
{{Spoken Misplaced Pages|Misplaced Pages - Harry Potter (spoken by AI voice).mp3|date=28 October 2024}} | |||
{{Sister project links|wikt=Appendix:Harry Potter |commons=yes |commonscat=yes |n= |q=Harry Potter (series) |b=Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter |d=Q8337|voy=Harry Potter tourism}} | |||
* | |||
* —Official website (Warner Bros.) | |||
* at Bloomsbury.com (International publisher) | |||
* at Scholastic.com (US publisher) | |||
* at Raincoast.com (Canadian publisher) | |||
* {{Guardian topic}} | |||
* {{NYTtopic|complete_coverage/harry_potter|Harry Potter}} | |||
* | |||
{{Harry Potter|state=uncollapsed}} | |||
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Latest revision as of 04:05, 5 December 2024
Series of fantasy novels by J. K. Rowling This article is about the novel series. For the character, see Harry Potter (character). For the film series, see Harry Potter (film series). For the franchise, see Wizarding World. For the universe, see Fictional universe of Harry Potter. For other uses, see Harry Potter (disambiguation).
| |
Author | J. K. Rowling |
---|---|
Cover artist | Thomas Taylor, Cliff Wright, Giles Greenfield, Jason Cockcroft |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Genre | Fantasy |
Publisher | Bloomsbury |
Published | 26 June 1997 – 21 July 2007 |
Media type | |
No. of books | 7 |
Website | www |
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The main story arc concerns Harry's conflict with Lord Voldemort, a dark wizard who intends to become immortal, overthrow the wizard governing body known as the Ministry of Magic, and subjugate all wizards and Muggles (non-magical people).
The series was originally published in English by Bloomsbury in the United Kingdom and Scholastic Press in the United States. A series of many genres, including fantasy, drama, coming-of-age fiction, and the British school story (which includes elements of mystery, thriller, adventure, horror, and romance), the world of Harry Potter explores numerous themes and includes many cultural meanings and references. Major themes in the series include prejudice, corruption, madness, love, and death.
Since the release of the first novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, on 26 June 1997, the books have found immense popularity and commercial success worldwide. They have attracted a wide adult audience as well as younger readers and are widely considered cornerstones of modern literature, though the books have received mixed reviews from critics and literary scholars. As of February 2023, the books have sold more than 600 million copies worldwide, making them the best-selling book series in history, available in dozens of languages. The last four books all set records as the fastest-selling books in history, with the final instalment selling roughly 2.7 million copies in the United Kingdom and 8.3 million copies in the United States within twenty-four hours of its release.
Warner Bros. Pictures adapted the original seven books into an eight-part namesake film series. In 2016, the total value of the Harry Potter franchise was estimated at $25 billion, making it one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is a play based on a story co-written by Rowling. A television series based on books is in production at HBO.
The success of the books and films has allowed the Harry Potter franchise to expand with numerous derivative works, a travelling exhibition that premiered in Chicago in 2009, a studio tour in London that opened in 2012, a digital platform on which J. K. Rowling updates the series with new information and insight, and a trilogy of spin-off films premiering in November 2016 with Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, among many other developments. Themed attractions, collectively known as The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, have been built at several Universal Destinations & Experiences amusement parks around the world.
Plot
Further information: Fictional universe of Harry PotterEarly years
The series follows the life of a boy named Harry Potter. In the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the US), Harry lives in a cupboard under the stairs in the house of the Dursleys, his aunt, uncle and cousin, who all treat him poorly. At the age of 11, Harry discovers that he is a wizard. He meets a half-giant named Hagrid who gives him a letter of acceptance to attend the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry learns that his parents, Lily and James Potter, also had magical powers and were murdered by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort when Harry was a baby. When Voldemort attempted to kill Harry, his curse rebounded, seemingly killing Voldemort, and Harry survived with a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. The event made Harry famous among the community of wizards and witches.
Harry becomes a student at Hogwarts and is sorted into Gryffindor House. He gains the friendship of Ron Weasley, a member of a large but poor wizarding family, and Hermione Granger, a witch of non-magical, or Muggle, parentage. The trio develop an enmity with the rich pure-blood student Draco Malfoy. Harry encounters the school's headmaster, Albus Dumbledore; the potions professor, Severus Snape, who displays a dislike for him; and the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Quirinus Quirrell. Quirrell turns out to be allied with Voldemort, who is still alive as a weak spirit. The first book concludes with Harry's confrontation with Voldemort, who, in his quest to regain a body, yearns to possess the Philosopher's Stone, a substance that bestows everlasting life.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets describes Harry's second year at Hogwarts. Students are attacked and petrified by an unknown creature; wizards of Muggle parentage are the primary targets. The attacks appear related to the mythical Chamber of Secrets and resemble attacks fifty years earlier. Harry discovers an ability to speak the snake language Parseltongue, which he learns is rare and associated with the Dark Arts. When Hermione is attacked and Ron's younger sister, Ginny Weasley, abducted, Harry and Ron uncover the chamber's secrets and enter it. Harry discovers that Ginny was possessed by an old diary, inside which the memory of Tom Marvolo Riddle, Voldemort's younger self, resides. On Voldemort's behalf, Ginny opened the chamber and unleashed the basilisk, an ancient monster that kills or petrifies those who make direct or indirect eye contact, respectively. With the help of Dumbledore's phoenix, Fawkes, and the Sword of Gryffindor, Harry slays the basilisk and destroys the diary.
In the third novel, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry learns that he is targeted by Sirius Black, an escaped convict who allegedly assisted in his parents' murder. Dementors, creatures that feed on happiness, search for Sirius and guard the school. As Harry struggles with his reaction to the dementors, he reaches out to Remus Lupin, a new professor who teaches him the Patronus charm. On a windy night, Ron is dragged by a black dog into the Shrieking Shack, a haunted house, and Harry and Hermione follow. The dog is revealed to be Sirius Black. Lupin enters the shack and explains that Sirius was James Potter's best friend; he was framed by another friend of James, Peter Pettigrew, who hides as Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. As the full moon rises, Lupin transforms into a werewolf and bounds away, and the group chase after him. They are surrounded by dementors, but are saved by a figure resembling James who casts a stag Patronus. This is later revealed to be a future version of Harry, who traveled back in time with Hermione using a device called a Time Turner. The duo help Sirius escape on a Hippogriff, while Pettigrew escapes.
Voldemort returns
In Harry's fourth year of school (detailed in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire), Hogwarts hosts the Triwizard Tournament, a contest between Hogwarts and the schools Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. Harry is unwillingly entered into the contest, becoming Hogwarts' second participant after Cedric Diggory, an unusual occurrence that causes his friends to distance themselves from him. Harry claims the Triwizard Cup with Cedric, but he is teleported to a graveyard where Pettigrew kills Cedric, then resurrects Voldemort using Harry's blood. Voldemort convenes his supporters, the Death Eaters, and Harry manages to escape after a duel with Voldemort. Upon returning to Hogwarts, it is revealed that a Death Eater, Barty Crouch, Jr, in disguise as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, engineered Harry's entry into the tournament, secretly helped him, and had him teleported to Voldemort.
In the fifth book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the Ministry of Magic refuses to believe that Voldemort has returned. Dumbledore re-activates the Order of the Phoenix, a secret society to counter Voldemort; meanwhile, the Ministry tightens control of Hogwarts by appointing Dolores Umbridge as High Inquisitor of Hogwarts, and she gradually increases her powers. When Umbridge bans practical teaching of Defence Against the Dark Arts, Harry, Ron and Hermione form "Dumbledore's Army", a secret group to continue the teachings. Harry has recurring dreams of a dark corridor in the Ministry of Magic, eventually dreaming that Sirius is being tortured there. He races to the Ministry with his friends, but it is a trap, planted in his head by Voldemort. The group are attacked by Death Eaters and saved by the Order of the Phoenix, but Sirius is killed in the battle. A duel between Dumbledore and Voldemort convinces the ministry of Voldemort's return. A prophecy concerning Harry and Voldemort is revealed: one must die at the hands of the other.
In the sixth book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Snape teaches Defence Against the Dark Arts while Horace Slughorn becomes the Potions master. Harry finds an old textbook with annotations by the Half-Blood Prince, due to which he achieves success in Potions class. Harry also takes lessons with Dumbledore, viewing memories about the early life of Voldemort in a device called a Pensieve. Harry learns from a drunken Slughorn that he used to teach Tom Riddle, and that Voldemort divided his soul into pieces, creating a series of Horcruxes. Harry and Dumbledore travel to a distant lake to destroy a Horcrux; they succeed, but Dumbledore weakens. On their return, they find Draco Malfoy and Death Eaters attacking the school. The book ends with the killing of Dumbledore by Professor Snape, the titular Half-Blood Prince.
In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and final novel in the series, Lord Voldemort gains control of the Ministry of Magic. Harry, Ron and Hermione learn about the Deathly Hallows, legendary items that lead to mastery over death. The group infiltrates the ministry, where they steal a locket Horcrux, and visit Godric's Hollow, where they are attacked by Nagini, Voldemort's snake. A silver doe Patronus leads them to the Sword of Gryffindor, with which they destroy the locket. They steal a Horcrux from Gringotts and travel to Hogwarts, culminating in a battle with the Death Eaters. Snape is killed by Voldemort out of paranoia, but he lends Harry his memories before he dies. Harry learns that Snape was always loyal to Dumbledore, and that Harry is himself a Horcrux. Harry surrenders to Voldemort and is killed. The defenders of Hogwarts continue to fight on; Harry is resurrected, faces Voldemort and kills him.
An epilogue titled "Nineteen Years Later" describes the lives of the surviving characters and the impact of Voldemort's death. Harry and Ginny are married with three children, and Ron and Hermione are married with two children.
Style and allusions
Genre and style
The novels fall into the genre of fantasy literature, and qualify as a type of fantasy called "urban fantasy", "contemporary fantasy", or "low fantasy". They are mainly dramas, and maintain a fairly serious and dark tone throughout, though they do contain some notable instances of tragicomedy and black humour. In many respects, they are also examples of the bildungsroman, or coming of age novel, and contain elements of mystery, adventure, horror, thriller, and romance. The books are also, in the words of Stephen King, "shrewd mystery tales", and each book is constructed in the manner of a Sherlock Holmes-style mystery adventure. The stories are told from a third person limited point of view with very few exceptions (such as the opening chapters of Philosopher's Stone, Goblet of Fire and Deathly Hallows and the first two chapters of Half-Blood Prince).
The series can be considered part of the British children's boarding school genre, which includes Rudyard Kipling's Stalky & Co., Enid Blyton's Malory Towers, St. Clare's and the Naughtiest Girl series, and Frank Richards's Billy Bunter novels: the Harry Potter books are predominantly set in Hogwarts, a fictional British boarding school for wizards, where the curriculum includes the use of magic. In this sense they are "in a direct line of descent from Thomas Hughes's Tom Brown's School Days and other Victorian and Edwardian novels of British public school life", though they are, as many note, more contemporary, grittier, darker, and more mature than the typical boarding school novel, addressing serious themes of death, love, loss, prejudice, coming-of-age, and the loss of innocence in a 1990s British setting.
In Harry Potter, Rowling juxtaposes the extraordinary against the ordinary. Her narrative features two worlds: a contemporary world inhabited by non-magical people called Muggles, and another featuring wizards. It differs from typical portal fantasy in that its magical elements stay grounded in the mundane. Paintings move and talk; books bite readers; letters shout messages; and maps show live journeys, making the wizarding world both exotic and familiar. This blend of realistic and romantic elements extends to Rowling's characters. Their names are often onomatopoeic: Malfoy is difficult, Filch is unpleasant, and Lupin is a werewolf. Harry is ordinary and relatable, with down-to-earth features such as wearing broken glasses; the scholar Roni Natov terms him an "everychild". These elements serve to highlight Harry when he is heroic, making him both an everyman and a fairytale hero.
Each of the seven books is set over the course of one school year. Harry struggles with the problems he encounters, and dealing with them often involves the need to violate some school rules. If students are caught breaking rules, they are often disciplined by Hogwarts professors. The stories reach their climax in the summer term, near or just after final exams, when events escalate far beyond in-school squabbles and struggles, and Harry must confront either Voldemort or one of his followers, the Death Eaters, with the stakes a matter of life and death—a point underlined, as the series progresses, by characters being killed in each of the final four books. In the aftermath, he learns important lessons through exposition and discussions with head teacher and mentor Albus Dumbledore. The only exception to this school-centred setting is the final novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, in which Harry and his friends spend most of their time away from Hogwarts, and only return there to face Voldemort at the dénouement.
Allusions
The Harry Potter stories feature imagery and motifs drawn from Arthurian myth and fairytales. Harry's ability to draw the Sword of Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat resembles the Arthurian sword in the stone legend. His life with the Dursleys has been compared to Cinderella. Hogwarts resembles a medieval university-cum-castle with several professors who belong to an Order of Merlin; Old Professor Binns still lectures about the International Warlock Convention of 1289; and a real historical person, a 14th-century scribe, Sir Nicolas Flamel, is described as a holder of the Philosopher's Stone. Other medieval elements in Hogwarts include coats-of-arms and medieval weapons on the walls, letters written on parchment and sealed with wax, the Great Hall of Hogwarts, which is similar to the Great Hall of Camelot, the use of Latin phrases, the tents put up for Quidditch tournaments, which are similar to the "marvellous tents" put up for knightly tournaments, imaginary animals like dragons and unicorns that exist around Hogwarts, and the banners with heraldic animals for the four Houses of Hogwarts.
Many of the motifs of the Potter stories, such as the hero's quest invoking objects that confer invisibility, magical animals and trees, a forest full of danger and the recognition of a character based upon scars, are drawn from medieval French Arthurian romances. Other aspects borrowed from French Arthurian romances include the use of owls as messengers, werewolves as characters, and white deer. The American scholars Heather Arden and Kathrn Lorenz in particular argue that many aspects of the Potter stories are inspired by a 14th-century French Arthurian romance, Claris et Laris, writing of the "startling" similarities between the adventures of Potter and the knight Claris. Arden and Lorenz noted that Rowling graduated from the University of Exeter in 1986 with a degree in French literature and spent a year living in France afterwards.
Like C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia, Harry Potter also contains Christian symbolism and allegory. The series has been viewed as a Christian moral fable in the psychomachia tradition, in which stand-ins for good and evil fight for supremacy over a person's soul. Children's literature critic Joy Farmer sees parallels between Harry and Jesus Christ. Comparing Rowling with Lewis, she argues that "magic is both authors' way of talking about spiritual reality". According to Maria Nikolajeva, Christian imagery is particularly strong in the final scenes of the series: Harry dies in self-sacrifice and Voldemort delivers an "ecce homo" speech, after which Harry is resurrected and defeats his enemy.
Rowling stated that she did not reveal Harry Potter's religious parallels in the beginning because doing so would have "give too much away to fans who might then see the parallels". In the final book of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Rowling makes the book's Christian imagery more explicit, quoting both Matthew 6:21 and 1 Corinthians 15:26 (King James Version) when Harry visits his parents' graves. Hermione Granger teaches Harry Potter that the meaning of these verses from the Christian Bible are "living beyond death. Living after death", which Rowling states "epitomize the whole series". Rowling also exhibits Christian values in developing Albus Dumbledore as a God-like character, the divine, trusted leader of the series, guiding the long-suffering hero along his quest. In the seventh novel, Harry speaks with and questions the deceased Dumbledore much like a person of faith would talk to and question God.
Themes
Harry Potter's overarching theme is death. In the first book, when Harry looks into the Mirror of Erised, he feels both joy and "a terrible sadness" at seeing his desire: his parents, alive and with him. Confronting their loss is central to Harry's character arc and manifests in different ways through the series, such as in his struggles with Dementors. Other characters in Harry's life die; he even faces his own death in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The series has an existential perspective—Harry must grow mature enough to accept death. In Harry's world, death is not binary but mutable, a state that exists in degrees. Unlike Voldemort, who evades death by separating and hiding his soul in seven parts, Harry's soul is whole, nourished by friendship and love.
Love distinguishes Harry and Voldemort. Harry is a hero because he loves others, even willing to accept death to save them; Voldemort is a villain because he does not. Harry carries the protection of his mother's sacrifice in his blood; Voldemort, who wants Harry's blood and the protection it carries, does not understand that love vanquishes death.
Rowling has spoken about thematising death and loss in the series. Soon after she started writing Philosopher's Stone, her mother died; she said that "I really think from that moment on, death became a central, if not the central theme of the seven books". Rowling has described Harry as "the prism through which I view death", and further stated that "all of my characters are defined by their attitude to death and the possibility of death".
While Harry Potter can be viewed as a story about good vs. evil, its moral divisions are not absolute. First impressions of characters are often misleading. Harry assumes in the first book that Quirrell is on the side of good because he opposes Snape, who appears to be malicious; in reality, Quirrell is an agent of Voldemort, while Snape is loyal to Dumbledore. This pattern later recurs with Moody and Snape. In Rowling's world, good and evil are choices rather than inherent attributes: second chances and the possibility of redemption are key themes of the series. This is reflected in Harry's self-doubts after learning his connections to Voldemort, such as Parseltongue; and prominently in Snape's characterisation, which has been described as complex and multifaceted. In some scholars' view, while Rowling's narrative appears on the surface to be about Harry, her focus may actually be on Snape's morality and character arc.
Rowling said that, to her, the moral significance of the tales seems "blindingly obvious". In the fourth book, Dumbledore speaks of a "choice between what is right and what is easy"; Rowling views this as a key theme, "because that ... is how tyranny is started, with people being apathetic and taking the easy route and suddenly finding themselves in deep trouble".
Academics and journalists have developed many other interpretations of themes in the books, some more complex than others, and some including political subtexts. Themes such as normality, oppression, survival, and overcoming imposing odds have all been considered as prevalent throughout the series. Similarly, the theme of making one's way through adolescence and "going over one's most harrowing ordeals—and thus coming to terms with them" has also been considered. Rowling has stated that the books comprise "a prolonged argument for tolerance, a prolonged plea for an end to bigotry" and that they also pass on a message to "question authority and... not assume that the establishment or the press tells you all of the truth".
Development history
Main article: Harry Potter influences and analoguesIn 1990, Rowling was on a crowded train from Manchester to London when the idea for Harry suddenly "fell into" her head. Rowling gives an account of the experience on her website saying:
I had been writing almost continuously since the age of six but I had never been so excited about an idea before. I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, black-haired, bespectacled boy who did not know he was a wizard became more and more real to me.
Rowling completed Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in 1995 and the manuscript was sent off to several prospective agents. The second agent she tried, Christopher Little, offered to represent her and sent the manuscript to several publishers.
Publishing history
After twelve other publishers had rejected Philosopher's Stone, Bloomsbury agreed to publish the book. Despite Rowling's statement that she did not have any particular age group in mind when beginning to write the Harry Potter books, the publishers initially targeted children aged nine to eleven. On the eve of publishing, Rowling was asked by her publishers to adopt a more gender-neutral pen name in order to appeal to the male members of this age group, fearing that they would not be interested in reading a novel they knew to be written by a woman. She elected to use J. K. Rowling (Joanne Kathleen Rowling), using her grandmother's name as her second name because she has no middle name.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was published by Bloomsbury, the publisher of all Harry Potter books in the United Kingdom, on 26 June 1997. It was released in the United States on 1 September 1998 by Scholastic—the American publisher of the books—as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, after the American rights sold for US$105,000—a record amount for a children's book by an unknown author. Scholastic feared that American readers would not associate the word "philosopher" with magic, and Rowling suggested the title Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone for the American market. Rowling has later said that she regrets the change.
The second book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, was originally published in the UK on 2 July 1998 and in the US on 2 June 1999. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was published a year later in the UK on 8 July 1999 and in the US on 8 September 1999. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was published on 8 July 2000 at the same time by Bloomsbury and Scholastic. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the longest book in the series, at 766 pages in the UK version and 870 pages in the US version. It was published worldwide in English on 21 June 2003. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was published on 16 July 2005. The seventh and final novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was published on 21 July 2007. Rowling herself has stated that the last chapter of the final book (in fact, the epilogue) was completed "in something like 1990".
Rowling retained rights to digital editions and released them on the Pottermore website in 2012. Vendors such as Amazon displayed the ebooks in the form of links to Pottermore, which controlled pricing. All seven Harry Potter novels have been released in unabridged audiobook versions, with Stephen Fry reading the British editions and Jim Dale voicing the series for the American editions. On Audible, the series has been listened, as of November 2022, for over a billion hours.
Translations
Main article: Harry Potter in translationThe series has been translated into more than 80 languages, placing Rowling among the most translated authors in history. The books have seen translations to diverse languages such as Korean, Armenian, Ukrainian, Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, Bengali, Bulgarian, Welsh, Afrikaans, Albanian, Latvian, Vietnamese and Hawaiian. The first volume has been translated into Latin and even Ancient Greek, making it the longest published work in Ancient Greek since the novels of Heliodorus of Emesa in the 3rd century AD. The second volume has also been translated into Latin.
Some of the translators hired to work on the books were well-known authors before their work on Harry Potter, such as Viktor Golyshev, who oversaw the Russian translation of the series' fifth book. The Turkish translation of books two to seven was undertaken by Sevin Okyay, a popular literary critic and cultural commentator. For reasons of secrecy, translation on a given book could only start after it had been released in English, leading to a lag of several months before the translations were available. This led to more and more copies of the English editions being sold to impatient fans in non-English speaking countries; for example, such was the clamour to read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix that its English language edition became the first English-language book ever to top the best-seller list in France.
The United States editions were adapted into American English to make them more understandable to a young American audience.
Cover art
For cover art, Bloomsbury chose painted art in a classic style of design, with the first cover a watercolour and pencil drawing by illustrator Thomas Taylor showing Harry boarding the Hogwarts Express, and a title in the font Cochin Bold. The first releases of the successive books in the series followed in the same style but somewhat more realistic, illustrating scenes from the books. These covers were created by first Cliff Wright and then Jason Cockroft.
Due to the appeal of the books among an adult audience, Bloomsbury commissioned a second line of editions in an 'adult' style. These initially used black-and-white photographic art for the covers showing objects from the books (including a very American Hogwarts Express) without depicting people, but later shifted to partial colourisation with a picture of Slytherin's locket on the cover of the final book.
International and later editions have been created by a range of designers, including Mary GrandPré for US audiences and Mika Launis in Finland. For a later American release, Kazu Kibuishi created covers in a somewhat anime-influenced style.
Reception
Commercial success
See also: List of best-selling booksThe popularity of the Harry Potter series has translated into substantial financial success for Rowling, her publishers, and other Harry Potter related license holders. This success has made Rowling the first and thus far only billionaire author. The books have sold more than 600 million copies worldwide and have also given rise to the popular film adaptations produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, all of which have been highly successful in their own right. The total revenue from the book sales is estimated, as of November 2018, to be around $7.7 billion. The first novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, has sold in excess of 120 million copies, making it one of the bestselling books in history. The films have in turn spawned eight video games and have led to the licensing of more than 400 additional Harry Potter products. The Harry Potter brand has been estimated to be worth as much as $25 billion.
The great demand for Harry Potter novels motivated The New York Times to create a separate best-seller list for children's literature in 2000, just before the release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. By 24 June 2000, Rowling's novels had been on the list for 79 straight weeks; the first three novels were each on the hardcover best-seller list. On 12 April 2007, Barnes & Noble declared that Deathly Hallows had broken its pre-order record, with more than 500,000 copies pre-ordered through its site. For the release of Goblet of Fire, 9,000 FedEx trucks were used with no other purpose than to deliver the book. Together, Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble pre-sold more than 700,000 copies of the book. In the United States, the book's initial printing run was 3.8 million copies. This record statistic was broken by Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, with 8.5 million, which was then shattered by Half-Blood Prince with 10.8 million copies. Within the first 24 hours of its release, 6.9 million copies of Prince were sold in the US; in the UK more than two million copies were sold on the first day. The initial US print run for Deathly Hallows was 12 million copies, and more than a million were pre-ordered through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Fans of the series were so eager for the latest instalment that bookstores around the world began holding events to coincide with the midnight release of the books, beginning with the 2000 publication of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The events, commonly featuring mock sorting, games, face painting, and other live entertainment have achieved popularity with Potter fans and have been highly successful in attracting fans and selling books with nearly nine million of the 10.8 million initial print copies of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince sold in the first 24 hours. The final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows became the fastest selling book in history, moving 11 million units in the first twenty-four hours of release. The book sold 2.7 million copies in the UK and 8.3 million in the US. The series has also gathered adult fans, leading to the release of two editions of each Harry Potter book, identical in text but with one edition's cover artwork aimed at children and the other aimed at adults.
Book | Sales |
---|---|
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | 120 million |
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets | 77 million |
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | 65 million |
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire | 65 million |
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix | 65 million |
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince | 65 million |
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows | 65 million |
Literary criticism
Early in its history, Harry Potter received positive reviews. On publication, the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, attracted attention from the Scottish newspapers, such as The Scotsman, which said it had "all the makings of a classic", and The Glasgow Herald, which called it "Magic stuff". Soon the English newspapers joined in, with The Sunday Times comparing it to Roald Dahl's work ("comparisons to Dahl are, this time, justified"), while The Guardian called it "a richly textured novel given lift-off by an inventive wit".
By the time of the release of the fifth book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the books began to receive strong criticism from a number of literary scholars. Yale professor, literary scholar, and critic Harold Bloom raised criticisms of the books' literary merits, saying, "Rowling's mind is so governed by clichés and dead metaphors that she has no other style of writing." A. S. Byatt authored an op-ed article in The New York Times calling Rowling's universe a "secondary secondary world, made up of intelligently patchworked derivative motifs from all sorts of children's literature ... written for people whose imaginative lives are confined to TV cartoons, and the exaggerated (more exciting, not threatening) mirror-worlds of soaps, reality TV and celebrity gossip."
Michael Rosen, a novelist and poet, held the opinion that the books were not suited for children, as they would be unable to grasp the complex themes. Rosen also stated that "J. K. Rowling is more of an adult writer." The critic Anthony Holden wrote in The Observer on his experience of judging Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban for the 1999 Whitbread Awards. His overall view of the series was negative—"the Potter saga was essentially patronising, conservative, highly derivative, dispiritingly nostalgic for a bygone Britain", and he speaks of "a pedestrian, ungrammatical prose style". Ursula K. Le Guin said, "I have no great opinion of it it seemed a lively kid's fantasy crossed with a 'school novel,' good fare for its age group, but stylistically ordinary, imaginatively derivative, and ethically rather mean-spirited." By contrast, author Fay Weldon, while admitting that the series is "not what the poets hoped for", nevertheless goes on to say, "but this is not poetry, it is readable, saleable, everyday, useful prose".
The literary critic A. N. Wilson praised the Harry Potter series in The Times, stating, "There are not many writers who have JK's Dickensian ability to make us turn the pages, to weep—openly, with tears splashing—and a few pages later to laugh, at invariably good jokes ... We have lived through a decade in which we have followed the publication of the liveliest, funniest, scariest and most moving children's stories ever written." Charles Taylor of Salon.com, who is primarily a movie critic, took issue with Byatt's criticisms in particular. While he conceded that she may have "a valid cultural point—a teeny one—about the impulses that drive us to reassuring pop trash and away from the troubling complexities of art", he rejected her claims that the series is lacking in serious literary merit and that it owes its success merely to the childhood reassurances it offers. Stephen King called the series "a feat of which only a superior imagination is capable", and declared "Rowling's punning, one-eyebrow-cocked sense of humor" to be "remarkable". However, he wrote that he is "a little tired of discovering Harry at home with his horrible aunt and uncle", the formulaic beginning of all seven books.
Sameer Rahim of The Daily Telegraph disagreed, saying "It depresses me to see 16- and 17-year-olds reading the series when they could be reading the great novels of childhood such as Oliver Twist or A House for Mr Biswas." The Washington Post book critic Ron Charles opined in July 2007 that "through no fault of Rowling's", the cultural and marketing "hysteria" marked by the publication of the later books "trains children and adults to expect the roar of the coliseum, a mass-media experience that no other novel can possibly provide". Jenny Sawyer wrote in The Christian Science Monitor on 25 July 2007 that Harry Potter neither faces a "moral struggle" nor undergoes any ethical growth and is thus "no guide in circumstances in which right and wrong are anything less than black and white". In contrast Emily Griesinger described Harry's first passage through to Platform 9+3⁄4 as an application of faith and hope, and his encounter with the Sorting Hat as the first of many in which Harry is shaped by the choices he makes.
In an 8 November 2002, Slate article, Chris Suellentrop likened Potter to a "trust-fund kid whose success at school is largely attributable to the gifts his friends and relatives lavish upon him". In a 12 August 2007 review of Deathly Hallows in The New York Times, however, Christopher Hitchens praised Rowling for "unmooring" her "English school story" from literary precedents "bound up with dreams of wealth and class and snobbery", arguing that she had instead created "a world of youthful democracy and diversity". In 2016, an article written by Diana C. Mutz compared the politics of Harry Potter to the 2016 Donald Trump presidential campaign. She suggests that these themes are also present in the presidential election and it may play a significant role in how Americans have responded to the campaign.
There is ongoing discussion regarding the extent to which the series was inspired by Tolkien's Lord of the Rings books.
Thematic critique
The portrayal of women in Harry Potter has been described as complex and varied, but nonetheless conforming to stereotypical and patriarchal depictions of gender. Gender divides are ostensibly absent in the books: Hogwarts is coeducational and women hold positions of power in wizarding society. However, this setting obscures the typecasting of female characters and the general depiction of conventional gender roles. According to scholars Elizabeth Heilman and Trevor Donaldson, the subordination of female characters goes further early in the series. The final three books "showcase richer roles and more powerful females": for instance, the series' "most matriarchal character", Molly Weasley, engages substantially in the final battle of Deathly Hallows, while other women are shown as leaders. Hermione Granger, in particular, becomes an active and independent character essential to the protagonists' battle against evil. Yet, even particularly capable female characters such as Hermione and Minerva McGonagall are placed in supporting roles, and Hermione's status as a feminist model is debated. Girls and women are more frequently shown as emotional, more often defined by their appearance, and less often given agency in family settings.
The social hierarchy of wizards in Rowling's world has drawn debate among critics. "Purebloods" have two wizard parents; "half-bloods" have one; and "Muggle-born" wizards have magical abilities, although neither of their parents is a wizard. Lord Voldemort and his followers believe that blood purity is paramount and that Muggles are subhuman. According to the literary scholar Andrew Blake, Harry Potter rejects blood purity as a basis for social division; Suman Gupta agrees that Voldemort's philosophy represents "absolute evil"; and Nel and Eccleshare agree that advocates of racial or blood-based hierarchies are antagonists. Gupta, following Blake, suggests that the essential superiority of wizards over Muggles—wizards can use magic and Muggles cannot—means that the books cannot coherently reject anti-Muggle prejudice by appealing to equality between wizards and Muggles. Rather, according to Gupta, Harry Potter models a form of tolerance based on the "charity and altruism of those belonging to superior races" towards lesser races.
Harry Potter's's depiction of race, specifically the slavery of house-elves, has received varied responses. Scholars such as Brycchan Carey have praised the books' abolitionist sentiments, viewing Hermione's Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare as a model for younger readers' political engagement. Other critics including Farah Mendlesohn find the portrayal of house-elves "most difficult to accept": the elves are denied the right to free themselves and rely on the benevolence of others like Hermione. Pharr terms the house-elves a disharmonious element in the series, writing that Rowling leaves their fate hanging; at the end of Deathly Hallows, the elves remain enslaved and cheerful. The goblins of the world of Harry Potter have also received criticism for following antisemitic caricatures – particularly for their grotesque "hook-nosed" portrayal in the films, an appearance associated with Jewish stereotypes.
Controversies
Main articles: Legal disputes over the Harry Potter series, Religious debates over the Harry Potter series, Politics of Harry Potter, and Tanya GrotterThe books have been the subject of a number of legal proceedings, stemming from various conflicts over copyright and trademark infringements. The popularity and high market value of the series has led Rowling, her publishers, and film distributor Warner Bros. to take legal measures to protect their copyright, which have included banning the sale of Harry Potter imitations, targeting the owners of websites over the "Harry Potter" domain name, and suing author Nancy Stouffer to counter her accusations that Rowling had plagiarised her work.
Various religious fundamentalists have claimed that the books promote witchcraft and religions such as Wicca and are therefore unsuitable for children, while a number of critics have criticised the books for promoting various political agendas. The series has landed the American Library Associations' Top 10 Banned Book List in 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2019 with claims it was anti-family, discussed magic and witchcraft, contained actual spells and curses, referenced the occult/Satanism, violence, and had characters who used "nefarious means" to attain goals, as well as conflicts with religious viewpoints.
The books also aroused controversies in the literary and publishing worlds. From 1997 to 1998, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone won almost all the United Kingdom awards judged by children, but none of the children's book awards judged by adults, and Sandra Beckett suggested the reason was intellectual snobbery towards books that were popular among children. In 1999, the winner of the Whitbread Book of the Year award children's division was entered for the first time on the shortlist for the main award, and one judge threatened to resign if Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was declared the overall winner; it finished second, very close behind the winner of the poetry prize, Seamus Heaney's translation of the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf.
In 2000, shortly before the publication of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the previous three Harry Potter books topped The New York Times fiction best-seller list and a third of the entries were children's books. The newspaper created a new children's section covering children's books, including both fiction and non-fiction, and initially counting only hardback sales. The move was supported by publishers and booksellers. In 2004, The New York Times further split the children's list, which was still dominated by Harry Potter books, into sections for series and individual books and removed the Harry Potter books from the section for individual books. The split in 2000 attracted condemnation, praise and some comments that presented both benefits and disadvantages of the move. Time suggested that, on the same principle, Billboard should have created a separate "mop-tops" list in 1964 when The Beatles held the top five places in its list, and Nielsen should have created a separate game-show list when Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? dominated the ratings.
Legacy
Influence on literature
Harry Potter transformed children's literature. In the 1970s, children's books were generally realistic as opposed to fantastic, while adult fantasy became popular because of the influence of The Lord of the Rings. The next decade saw an increasing interest in grim, realist themes, with an outflow of fantasy readers and writers to adult works.
The commercial success of Harry Potter reversed this trend. The scale of its growth had no precedent in the children's market: within four years of the series' inception, it occupied 28% of that field by revenue. Children's literature rose in cultural status, and fantasy became a dominant genre. Older works in the genre, including Diana Wynne Jones's Chrestomanci series and Diane Duane's Young Wizards, were reprinted and rose in popularity; some authors re-established their careers. In the following decades, many Harry Potter imitators and subversive responses grew popular.
Rowling has been compared to Enid Blyton, who also wrote in simple language about groups of children and long held sway over the British children's market. She has also been described as an heir to Roald Dahl. Some critics view Harry Potter's rise, along with the concurrent success of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials, as part of a broader shift in reading tastes: a rejection of literary fiction in favour of plot and adventure. This is reflected in the BBC's 2003 "Big Read" survey of the UK's favourite books, where Pullman and Rowling ranked at numbers 3 and 5, respectively, with very few British literary classics in the top 10.
Cultural impact
Further information: Harry Potter fandomHarry Potter has been described as a cultural phenomenon. The word "Muggle" has spread beyond its origins in the books, entering the Oxford English Dictionary in 2003. A real-life version of the sport Quidditch was created in 2005 and featured as an exhibition tournament in the 2012 London Olympics. Characters and elements from the series have inspired scientific names of several organisms, including the dinosaur Dracorex hogwartsia, the spider Eriovixia gryffindori, the wasp Ampulex dementor, and the crab Harryplax severus.
Librarian Nancy Knapp pointed out the books' potential to improve literacy by motivating children to read much more than they otherwise would. The seven-book series has a word count of 1,083,594 (US edition). Agreeing about the motivating effects, Diane Penrod also praised the books' blending of simple entertainment with "the qualities of highbrow literary fiction", but expressed concern about the distracting effect of the prolific merchandise that accompanies the book launches. However, the assumption that Harry Potter books have increased literacy among young people is "largely a folk legend".
Research by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has found no increase in reading among children coinciding with the Harry Potter publishing phenomenon, nor has the broader downward trend in reading among Americans been arrested during the rise in the popularity of the Harry Potter books. The research also found that children who read Harry Potter books were not more likely to go on to read outside the fantasy and mystery genres. NEA chairman Dana Gioia said the series, "got millions of kids to read a long and reasonably complex series of books. The trouble is that one Harry Potter novel every few years is not enough to reverse the decline in reading."
Many fan fiction and fan art works about Harry Potter have been made. In March 2007, "Harry Potter" was the most commonly searched fan fiction subject on the internet. Jennifer Conn used Snape's and Quidditch coach Madam Hooch's teaching methods as examples of what to avoid and what to emulate in clinical teaching, and Joyce Fields wrote that the books illustrate four of the five main topics in a typical first-year sociology class: "sociological concepts including culture, society, and socialisation; stratification and social inequality; social institutions; and social theory".
From the early 2000s onwards, several news reports appeared in the UK of the Harry Potter book and movie series driving demand for pet owls, and even reports that after the end of the movie series these same pet owls were now being abandoned by their owners. This led J. K. Rowling to issue several statements urging Harry Potter fans to refrain from purchasing pet owls. Despite the media flurry, research into the popularity of Harry Potter and sales of owls in the UK failed to find any evidence that the Harry Potter franchise had influenced the buying of owls in the country or the number of owls reaching animal shelters and sanctuaries.
Awards, honours, and recognition
Further information: List of awards and nominations received by J. K. RowlingThe Harry Potter series has been recognised by a host of awards since the initial publication of Philosopher's Stone, including a platinum award from the Whitaker Gold and Platinum Book Awards (2001), three Nestlé Smarties Book Prizes (1997–1999), two Scottish Arts Council Book Awards (1999 and 2001), the inaugural Whitbread children's book of the year award (1999), and the WHSmith book of the year (2006), among others. In 2000, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was nominated for a Hugo Award for Best Novel, and in 2001, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire won said award. Honours include a commendation for the Carnegie Medal (1997), a short listing for the Guardian Children's Award (1998), and numerous listings on the notable books, editors' choices, and best books lists of the American Library Association, The New York Times, Chicago Public Library, and Publishers Weekly.
In 2002, sociologist Andrew Blake named Harry Potter a British pop culture icon along with the likes of James Bond and Sherlock Holmes. In 2003, four of the books were named in the top 24 of the BBC's The Big Read survey of the best loved novels in the UK. A 2004 study found that books in the series were commonly read aloud in elementary schools in San Diego County, California. Based on a 2007 online poll, the US National Education Association listed the series in its "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children". Time magazine named Rowling as a runner-up for its 2007 Person of the Year award, noting the social, moral, and political inspiration she has given her fandom. Three of the books placed among the "Top 100 Chapter Books" of all time, or children's novels, in a 2012 survey published by School Library Journal: Sorcerer's Stone ranked number three, Prisoner of Azkaban 12th, and Goblet of Fire 98th.
In 2007, the seven Harry Potter book covers were depicted on a series of UK postage stamps issued by Royal Mail. In 2012, the opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London featured a 100-foot tall rendition of Lord Voldemort in a segment designed to showcase the UK's cultural icons. In November 2019, the BBC listed the Harry Potter series on its list of the 100 most influential novels.
Adaptations
Further information: Wizarding WorldFilms
Main article: Harry Potter (film series)In 1999, Rowling sold the film rights for Harry Potter to Warner Bros. for a reported £1 million (US$2,000,000). Rowling had creative control on the film series, observing the filmmaking process of Philosopher's Stone and serving as producer on the two-part Deathly Hallows, alongside David Heyman and David Barron. Rowling demanded the principal cast be kept strictly British and Irish, nonetheless allowing for the inclusion or French and Eastern European actors where characters from the book are specified as such.
Chris Columbus was selected as the director for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (titled "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" in the United States). Philosopher's Stone was released on 14 November 2001. Just three days after the film's release, production for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, also directed by Columbus, began and the film was released on 15 November 2002. Columbus declined to direct Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, only acting as producer. Mexican director Alfonso Cuarón took over the job, and after shooting in 2003, the film was released on 4 June 2004. Due to the fourth film beginning its production before the third's release, Mike Newell was chosen as the director for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, released on 18 November 2005. Newell became the first British director of the series, with television director David Yates following suit after he was chosen to helm Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Production began in January 2006 and the film was released the following year in July 2007. Yates was selected to direct Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, which was released on 15 July 2009. The final instalment in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released in two cinematic parts: Part 1 on 19 November 2010 and Part 2 on 15 July 2011.
Spin-off prequels
Main article: Fantastic Beasts (film series)A prequel series is planned to consist of five films, taking place before the main series. The first film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them was released in November 2016, followed by the second Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald in November 2018 and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore in April 2022. Rowling wrote the screenplays for all three films, marking her foray into screenwriting.
Games
See also: Harry Potter video gamesA number of non-interactive media games and board games have been released such as Cluedo Harry Potter Edition, Scene It? Harry Potter and Lego Harry Potter models, which are influenced by the themes of both the novels and films.
There are fourteen Harry Potter video games, eight corresponding with the films and books and six spin-offs. The film/book-based games are produced by Electronic Arts (EA), as was Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup, with the game version of the first entry in the series, Philosopher's Stone, being released in November 2001. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone went on to become one of the best-selling PlayStation games ever. The video games were released to coincide with the films. Objectives usually occur in and around Hogwarts. The story and design of the games follow the selected film's characterisation and plot; EA worked closely with Warner Bros. to include scenes from the films. The last game in the series, Deathly Hallows, was split, with Part 1 released in November 2010 and Part 2 debuting on consoles in July 2011.
The spin-off games Lego Harry Potter: Years 1–4 and Lego Harry Potter: Years 5–7 were developed by Traveller's Tales and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The spin-off games Book of Spells and Book of Potions were developed by London Studio and use the Wonderbook, an augmented reality book designed to be used in conjunction with the PlayStation Move and PlayStation Eye. The Harry Potter universe is also featured in Lego Dimensions, with the settings and side characters featured in the Harry Potter Adventure World, and Harry, Voldemort, and Hermione as playable characters. In 2017, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment opened its own Harry Potter-themed game design studio, by the name of Portkey Games, before releasing Hogwarts Mystery, developed by Jam City, in 2018 and Hogwarts Legacy, developed by Avalanche Software, in 2023.
Stage production
Main article: Harry Potter and the Cursed ChildHarry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts I and II is a play which serves as a sequel to the books, beginning nineteen years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It was written by Jack Thorne based on an original new story by Thorne, Rowling and John Tiffany. It has run at the Palace Theatre in London's West End since previews began on 7 June 2016 with an official premiere on 30 June 2016. The first four months of tickets for the June–September performances were sold out within several hours upon release. Forthcoming productions are planned for Broadway and Melbourne.
The script was released as a book at the time of the premiere, with a revised version following the next year.
Television
On 25 January 2021, it was reported that a live-action television series has been in early development at HBO Max. Though it was noted that the series has "complicated rights issues", due to a seven-year rights deal with Warner Bros. Domestic TV Distribution that included US broadcast, cable and streaming rights to the franchise, which ends in April 2025. On 12 April 2023, the series was confirmed to be in development, and will be streamed on the new streaming service Max (formerly known as HBO Max). On 23 February 2024, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav announced that the series would debut on Max in 2026. On 25 June 2024, it was announced the series was moved from Max to HBO.
Attractions
Main articles: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry PotterUniversal and Warner Brothers created The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a Harry Potter-themed expansion to the Islands of Adventure theme park at Universal Orlando Resort in Florida. It opened to the public on 18 June 2010. It includes a recreation of Hogsmeade and several rides; its flagship attraction is Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, which exists within a recreation of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
In 2014 Universal opened a Harry Potter-themed area at the Universal Studios Florida theme park. It includes a recreation of Diagon Alley. The flagship attraction is the Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts roller coaster ride. A completely functioning full-scale replica of the Hogwarts Express was created for the Diagon Alley expansion, connecting King's Cross Station at Universal Studios to the Hogsmeade station at Islands of Adventure. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened at the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park near Los Angeles, California in 2016, and in Universal Studios Japan theme park in Osaka, Japan in 2014. The Osaka venue includes the village of Hogsmeade, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride, and Flight of the Hippogriff roller coaster. Other Harry Potter roller coasters are the Dragon Challenge and Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, both at Universal Islands of Adventure.
Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter is a behind-the-scenes walking tour in London featuring authentic sets, costumes and props from the film series. The attraction is located at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden, where all eight of the Harry Potter films were made. Warner Bros. constructed two new sound stages to house and showcase the sets from each of the British-made productions, following a £100 million investment. It opened to the public in March 2012.
Supplementary works
See also: J. K. Rowling § PhilanthropyRowling expanded the Harry Potter universe with short books produced for charities. In 2001, she released Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (a purported Hogwarts textbook) and Quidditch Through the Ages (a book Harry reads for fun). Proceeds from the sale of these two books benefited the charity Comic Relief. In 2007, Rowling composed seven handwritten copies of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a collection of fairy tales that is featured in the final novel, one of which was auctioned to raise money for the Children's High Level Group, a fund for mentally disabled children in poor countries. The book was published internationally on 4 December 2008. Rowling also wrote an 800-word prequel in 2008 as part of a fundraiser organised by the bookseller Waterstones. All three of these books contain extra information about the wizarding world not included in the original novels.
In 2016, she released three new e-books: Hogwarts: An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide, Short Stories from Hogwarts of Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists and Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies.
Rowling's website Pottermore was launched in 2012. Pottermore allows users to be sorted, be chosen by their wand and play various minigames. The main purpose of the website was to allow the user to journey through the story with access to content not revealed by JK Rowling previously, with over 18,000 words of additional content. The site was redesigned in 2015 as WizardingWorld and it mainly focuses on the information already available, rather than exploration.
See also
References
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Further reading
- Agarwal, Nikita; Chitra Agarwal (2005). Friends and Foes of Harry Potter: Names Decoded. Outskirts Press. ISBN 978-1-59800-221-8.
- Allardice, Lisa (18 June 2022). "'There was practically a riot at King's Cross': an oral history of Harry Potter at 25". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
- Burkart, Gina (2005). A parent's guide to Harry Potter. InterVarsity Press. ISBN 978-0-8308-3288-0.
Harry Potter.
- Duriez, Colin (2007). Field Guide to Harry Potter. IVP Books. ISBN 978-0-8308-3430-3.
- Mulholland, Neil (2007). The Psychology of Harry Potter: An Unauthorized Examination of the Boy Who Lived. BenBella Books. ISBN 978-1-932100-88-4.
- Silvester, William (2010). Harry Potter Collector's Handbook. Krause. ISBN 978-1-4402-0897-3.
External links
Listen to this article (59 minutes) This audio file was created from a revision of this article dated 28 October 2024 (2024-10-28), and does not reflect subsequent edits.(Audio help · More spoken articles)- J. K. Rowling's personal website
- Harry Potter movies—Official website (Warner Bros.)
- Harry Potter at Bloomsbury.com (International publisher)
- Harry Potter at Scholastic.com (US publisher)
- Harry Potter at Raincoast.com (Canadian publisher)
- Harry Potter collected news and commentary at The Guardian
- Harry Potter collected news and commentary at The New York Times
- The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Orlando resort, Florida
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