Reading Journal Feb 17

Katherine3 Comments

Still Using Magic.

Birgit Wiedl article “Magic for Daily Use and Profit” is the first chapter in Harry Potter and History. Wiedl discusses how magic formed among the cultures of the world before Rowling wrote the beloved story of the boy who lived. The majority of her article illustrates the magic element such as potions, charms, and astrology were used for people to make profit before Snape teaches at Hogwarts. Wield’s research reveals the influence that magic had on our culture, but what if the concept of magic is still influencing us. It is common to shop organically or green today or how politicians exaggerated facts. We may not be under a spell or have to harvest mandrakes, but the magical charm may be hidden under these strategies. Continue reading →

Journal 1

rjpt2 Comments

Reading Journal 1

One of the elements necessary for a book to be deemed fantasy literature is a secondary world. However, for a book to be considered good fantasy literature that secondary world must be relatable in the struggles the characters are presented with. The secondary world of the Harry Potter series presents us with a vast and complex world that suffers from injustice, intolerance, and violence much like our own. The struggle between good and evil is present and we see a villain that looks remarkably like one from our own world. But just how similar is Voldemort to Hitler? Within the chapter “Was Voldemort a Nazi? Death Eater Ideology and National Socialism” Nancy Reagin explores this idea and shows that the biggest similarity did not fall in the Hitler-Voldemort comparison, but in the ideas propagated by their supporters. Continue reading →

Journal #1: Marx, Magic, and Muggles

Kylie2 Comments

Journal #1: Marx, Magic, and Muggles

Throughout the golden trios adventures in the wizarding world, they are subjected to the whims of the Ministry of Magic. Although in the first few books the Ministry was seen as a beneficial governmental organization, in the final books it is easy to see how ugly the Ministry can get, and that’s before it’s taken over by Voldemort in the final book. I believe that the Ministry holds a great deal of power in the British Wizarding world because it has its hands (or wands) in so many things.

Continue reading →

Katherine – Reading Journal #1

Katherine1 Comment

Talking about Hogwarts leads to the question of which house one belongs in. Hard core fans know their houses and its traits like the back of their hand. Chantel Lavoie discusses in her article, “Safe as Houses Sorting and School Houses at Hogwarts” the role of the houses in the Harry Potter series. Lavoie discusses that due to the mood of the series, Rowling is supporting that Gryffindor and Slytherin are the two best houses out of the four. Lavoie claims this due to the amount of knowledge that the reader acquires from the series about the Slytherin and Gryffindor houses and the little understanding there is given for Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Continue reading →

On Posting Reading Journals for Edits

Krista Shellhammer

Hi guys! When I made a new page for my reading journal, it showed up as a link above the house banner, but there isn’t an option to comment on pages. To fix this issue, and make all of the reading journals accessible, I’ve created a new category titled “Reading Journals” for us to post in, that way we have a section that specifically features our reading journals! All you have to do to post there is go to the top of the page like for a regular post, hover over “New” and click “Post.” Then, when you’re in the editing screen, scroll down to “Categories” on the right, and click the “Reading Journals” checkbox when you post your journal! A useful tool that you’ll also want to know about is the “Read More” button. It’s in the tool bar on the top of the text section – second one on the right. If you just post a summary of your journal, you can include the entirety of it under a read more link by using it, which makes it easier to follow through to comment on your journal. You can see an example of it on my reading journal post, which is up now!

Reading Journal Questions

rjpt2 Comments

Hey guys! I know it’s kinda late the day before they’re due, but do you guys know if there is a max cap on the journals? I’m not intending to go crazy or anything. I’m just nearing the 500 word mark and am not done making my point or using the three quote minimum (it was three right?).

Thanks guys <3