The Ivory Tower Takes on Harry Potter: Are Literary Critics Wild About Harry?

           Advance copies of The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter, a book of critical essays about Harry and Hogwarts, ship next week to coincide with the blockbuster theatrical release of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. The book, edited by Ferrum College Professor of English Dr. Lana A. Whited, features 16 essays on the J. K. Rowling tales. While the University of Missouri Press’s book will have special appeal to literature professionals, it is written to be accessible to avid readers and fans of the series as well.

           A book like The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter has a couple of obstacles to overcome, notes Whited. The first is the grudging acceptance of children’s literature as a scholarly field; however, Whited contends that, “Children may be the most important readers in the world.” The second is hesitation, even among some children’s literature scholars, to endorse books that experience widespread commercial success. “Some elitists imply that the general reading public doesn’t know a classic when they see one,” Whited says. “I think the Harry Potter books prove that wrong.”

           The idea for the book came to Whited when, at a children’s Literature conference in June 2000, she presented a paper co-authored with Ferrum colleague Dr. M. Katherine Grimes. The room overflowed as scholars sought to hear an analysis of the books.

           First-time book author Whited submitted queries to about a dozen publishing houses and, within one week, received phone calls from two interested editors and letters from a few others. When Whited solicited essay proposals internationally, she received almost 30, and she narrowed the group to 14. In order to better round out the book’s content, she solicited two more submissions.

           Although a fan, Whited believes she and the other authors comprehensive and fair in their analyses, saying, “I hoped we would take a hard look at the books.” She also was not concerned about fan backlash, albeit admitting that the Potter phenomenon is already a “sacred cow.” Whited says her goal “is not to do public relations work for J.K. Rowling but to promote awareness of the complexity and richness of her books.”

           Some essays may draw the ire of Potter fans. The most provocative, “Crowning the King: Harry Potter and the Construction of Authority,” by Dr. Farah Mendlesohn, of University of Middlesex (U.K.), likens Potter to a stereotypical white, privileged, boarding school male, whose life is parallel to and even endorses the traditions of an upper-middle class, patriarchal society.

           Other essays explore topics including gender, commercialization, fan communities, how the books depict current British politics, problems facing translators of the books, and Rowling’s use of elements of fantasy, epic, and myth. Whited plans a second book on the series after publication of the seventh and final Potter installment.

           Ferrum College is a four-year, private, co-educational, liberal arts college affiliated with the United Methodist Church. For more information on Ferrum, visit www.ferrum.edu. # # #

Article on Dr. Whited's Harry Potter Book In Roanoke Times