Harry Potter and Christianity

Religious allusions are a mark of great literature. The Bible, the Koran, the Tao Te Ching, the Bhagavad Gita, the Avesta, and other such works are pillars of culture, and by leaning on this spiritual and temporal wisdom, authors bring power to their own writing.

I know, I know. The preceding paragraph doesn't jive with political secularists. But I don't care.

Harry Potter has been a particularly controversial work. From 1990 to 2000, the series by J.K. Rowling was the seventh most challenged book in the world. Certain Christian groups, appalled by the Hogwartz practicum, which has similarities to modern Wicca, have denounced Harry Potter as flat-out evil.

Father Michael Bernier, parochial vicar at St. Mary Parish in Westfield, MA, has a different opinion. He told the Catholic News Service, "I happen to be one of the people who believes that there's a great deal of Christian imagery and symbolism in the books. And I think it answers, at least in parts, a longing that we have for Christ."

However, Father Bernier also admitted that, "On the surface level, [the magic in Harry Potter] does sound suspect and does raise red flags."

Jeff Diamant, a religious reporter, and Dave Kopel, a columnist for National Review Online, have likewise noticed Christian allusions in Harry Potter.

Citing John Granger's book, The Hidden Key to Harry Potter, Kopel argues that the Potter series is not, as some have claimed, anti-Christian. The phoenix, unicorn, the stag, the griffin, and other beneficent animals found in the books, he says, are traditional symbols for Christ. Further, the young wizard's parents are named "James" (the brother of Jesus Christ) and "Lily" (the flower of Easter).

"It's Pilgrim's Progress for a new audience," Kopel says.

Is Harry Potter great literature? Many critics, including Harold Bloom, have aruged to the contrary, though only time can reveal which books are ephemeral phenomena and which are truly great. Without question, however, Rowling has included no shortage of Christian allusions in her narratives, and although her publishers have not specifically marketed the Potter series as a Christian allegory, the religious debate surrounding Harry Potter has undoubtedly boosted publicity.

Controversy, particularly Christian controversy, sells.

Harry Potter: Teasers

The first review of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix has hit the press fans.

Awarding the film only 3 out of 5 stars, Leo Lewis wrote that "The fifth - and longest - book on which the film is based plays a crucial but faintly turgid role in the saga. Much is explained, much is left hanging and there is nothing like the pace of action that readers had grown accustomed to in earlier episodes (especially The Goblet of Fire). The book pulled this off because it was tantalising in what it didn’t tell us. The film, meanwhile, a necessary digest of the 800-page book, leaves us faintly annoyed that the true denouement of the cycle is now two movies distant."

In his review, Lewis highlights an essential element of serialized fiction: the teaser. In magazines and newspapers, for example, front pages are not uncommonly littered with lines like "Who's the hottest hunk in Hollywood? See page 12." The purpose of these teasers is to, well, "tease" readers so that they delve deeper into the publication. As a novelist, you have to give readers a reason to continue from Book One to Book Two. Readers want to be intrigued. They want to be teased.

Scholastic, Potter's American publisher, has been tease-crazy over the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Their marketing campaign has rallied behind questions like "Is Snape evil? See Book Seven." "Who will live? Who will die? See Book Seven." "Will Voldemort be defeated? See Book Seven."

In short, see Book Seven.

Millions of fans are waiting to do just that. A month ago, more than 1,000,000 copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows had already been pre-ordered on Amazon.com.

Of course, marketing hooks like those in Scholastic's playbook rely on good storytelling. With so many conflicts awaiting resolution in the Harry Potter story, readers are kept in suspense, and they wait eagerly for July 21, when all of J.K. Rowling's secrets will be revealed.

Save your secrets. Tease your readers. It makes for good fiction and even better marketing.

Harry Potter: Darkness

Something in the human spirit is attracted to darkness.

I'm not suggesting that men and women are inherently evil, but a glance at the New York Times Bestseller list reveals a few trends. As of June 25, these are the top five sellers for hardcover fiction:

1) A Thousand Splendid Suns. Two women maintain a friendship in Afhganistan, a country long ravaged by war.

2) Blaze. A man who was abused as a child plots a kidnapping.

3) Double Take. FBI agents try to solve a murder mystery and locate a missing woman.

4) The Children of Hurin. A dark lord in Middle-earth seeks to destroy the children of his rivals. (Yep. It's a Tolkien.)

5) The Harlequin. Vampires, vampires, vampires. And vampire hunters.

Really, the only book in the top fifteen that isn't based on murders, kidnappings, or some other atrocity is Mitch Albom's For One More Day. The reading public have a taste for evilry. I suppose they always have.

Thus, when fans hear that the latest Harry Potter installment is darker than the others, they flock to the bookstores and take to the theaters, eager for spine-numbing plots, characters, and motifs.

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, director David Yates has reportedly portrayed the movie's protagonist as an "adolescent boy wizard walk[ing] a thin line between good and evil as he experiences the growing pains of teenage angst." To borrow the word used by Daniel Radcliffe, Phoenix has more "grit." (See itv.com)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is likewise attracting attention because of its darkness. Fans want to know which characters die and whether Snape is good or evil.

Marketers love giving people the chills. Darkness sells.

Harry Potter and the "Golden Ticket"

In the classic movie, Willie Wonka hides five golden tickets in his mass-distributed confections. The lucky children who find those tickets are then granted an all expense paid trip to Wonka's chocolate factory, where they can take part in the magic themselves.

That's one heck of a marketing campaign. Chocolate sales must have skyrocketed.

Fans of any age will scramble to live in the world of their dreams. At Hogwartz, however, there are age limits. Golden tickets? There's only two of them.

Recently, Harry Potter producers announced an open casting call for the roles of Lavender Brown and Tom Riddle. They describe the two characters thusly:

Tom Riddle is "not a warm boy, but he is very charismatic. Both staff and children are probably all a little scared of him."

Lavender Brown, who becomes Ron Weasley's first girlfriend, is a "pretty and lively girl who loves to be the center of attention [and] reacts in an extreme way to everything."

Previous acting experience is optional. As with other Potter movies, the producers are simply looking for the right fit. In the casting of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, for example, first-time actor Evanna Lynch beat out 15,000 other girls for the role of Luna Lovegood.

At Hogwartz, dreams can indeed come true - as long as you're a British teenager. To try out for the role of Tom or Lavender, potential wizards aged 15 to 18 must validate their British citizenship.

Nevertheless, in spite of the nationality and age requirements, newspapers worldwide are reporting Harry Potter's open casting call. Even if they're ineligible for the roles, Potter fans anywhere like to dream.

Even if the golden ticket is out of reach for some readers and viewers, any good marketing plan helps people to dream.

Harry Potter: Controversy

Controversy has long been a standard in the entertainment industry.

J.K. Rowling is no Dan Brown; I don't think she wrote the Harry Potter series with the intent of offending, shocking, or surprising her audience. Nevertheless, she has been the target of numerous accusations.

Consider this tirade:



Another of Rowling's critics is Steve Wohlberg, bestselling author of Exposing Harry Potter and Witchcraft: The Menace Beneath the Magic. Wohlberg told the Canada Free Press, "There's plenty of real occultism embedded in Rowling's fantasy works, and in spite of naïve popular opinion, Pottermania is aiding Wicca's growth." He further warned, "Occultism has a dark side, and practitioners can easily become trapped like a fly in a spider web."

Wohlberg is currently setting up a new anti-Potter website, AvoidHarryPotter.com.

Of course, the irony of fighting controversial media is that, the more attention critics give them, the more they'll sell. Think of The DaVinci Code, If I Had Done It, The Passion of the Christ, Borat, and Fahrenheit 911.

Controversy may also take the form of rumors, many of which are ignited by over-eager gossip columnists. One of the latest rumors is that of a rivalry between actresses Katie Leung and Emma Watson; in one sentence, however, newspapers like Daily India squelched this Harry Potter hear-say:

"Harry Potter actress Katie Leung has dismissed rumours that there's a cold war going on between her and Emma Watson."

Sure, rumors can be amusing, even if they're untrue. Marketing-wise, they've ensured that Harry Potter stays in the press lights.

If used ethically, controversy can make a fine addition to any novel's marketing plan.

Harry Potter: Sweepstakes, Contests, and Competitions

Sweepstakes can be found anywhere from TV shows to cereal boxes. They add excitement to any product, captivating audiences with dreams of sports cars, luxury cruises, or even a "moonlight signing."

After reviewing more than 40,000 entries, Scholastic recently announced the winners of their Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows competition. Muggles Andrew Lee, Paige Raudenbush, Ayoluwa Hill, Sophie DeGroot, Joseph Walsh, Anne Harbaugh, and Yanira Rodriguez will be flown to London's celebrated Natural History Museum to attend "J.K. Rowling and the Midnight Signing."

"Just like millions of other fans in the U.S. and around the world," said Lisa Holton, President of Scholastic Trade and Book Fairs, "our sweepstakes winners have been inspired and touched by Rowling's genius work, and this is sure to be an unforgettable experience." (See Earthtimes.org)

According to Abe Books, 1,700 fans will receive a signed copy of Deathly Hallows at the event, and a randomly-chosen 500 will be invited to the midnight reading.

But wait, there's more.

For fans under 18, Amazon.com is hosting a contest of its own. To enter, children must submit a 300 word essay on their favorite Harry Potter character, and if chosen as one of the nine winners, they will receive a free copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The deadline is June 27, and the official rules can be found here.

Most novelists and publishers can't offer all-expense paid trips to London, but give-aways of any kind, if widely publicized, can work wonders for a book's marketing plan.

Harry Potter: A Love Story

The media continues to grasp for anything related to Harry Potter. Hear-say, hoaxes, trivia - anything.

One of the hot stories at present is the boy wizard's first kiss. Sources say that the entire film crew gathered to watch Daniel Radcliffe lay one on Katie Leung; seeking to make that kiss realistically awkward, Leung refused to practice the scene before filming.



Marketers love romance. Love stories sell.

Of course, people don't want to see Pride and Prejudice in everything they read, but in any coming-of-age story, they want to see the characters, well, come of age. Spoofing the sentimental connection that many readers feel with Harry Potter, one man offered the following prediction of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows:

"Harry, having seen off Voldemort, sweeps Ginny up in his arms in a Richard Gere in An Officer And A Gentleman type way but in overly camp wizarding clothes. I will cry for hours on end I can feel it now. Public outcry will force Rowling to write another book."

In creating this romance, J.K. Rowling's storytelling has been especially effective. By writing budding love relationships as mere secondary plots, she has attracted an audience far beyond the typical "chick lit" readership. Plus, by building romantic tension throughout the series, reserving official coupleship - Ron and Hermione? Harry and Ginny? - until book seven, page seven hundred, she ensures that her fans keep those pages turning.

Readers are more than willing to invest in a subtle love story.