Sunday, November 10, 2002 :::
Volokh, and subsequently the Kitchen Cabinet, has pointed to a tongue-in-cheek column about Harry Potter being a "pampered jock, patsy, [and] fraud." As Lily Malcom quotes:
He's a glory hog who unfairly receives credit for the accomplishments of others and who skates through school by taking advantage of his inherited wealth and his establishment connections.
This has elements of truth, but he's not really a glory "hog", in that he doesn't really seek it out. His legend grew for ten years without his knowledge. His later adventures add to his reputation, but he doesn't undertake them for that purpose, and he doesn't take credit for more than he does.
The "patsy" charge does ring particularly true with respect to the fourth book, and it's one of the things that bothered me about that book -- even more than most of his adventures, he falls into, or is pushed into, his successes.
The books are named after Harry Potter, of course, because the stories are told from his point of view.
A few people have noticed the quip I've added just above the blog entries; I've already rotated it several times in the ten days or so that I've had it up. I do plan a Harry Potter quote soon, in honor of the opening of the second movie.
::: posted by Steven at 1:01 AM
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