Most of the current youth has been shaped by the influence of the Harry Potter books which form part of almost all of our childhoods. Before JK Rowling made it a habit to retroactively change things all the time, the ideals from the novels and movies were taken very seriously by fans.
We’re not saying it’s a guarantee that the potential bad lessons always apply to readers, but what we’re stressing here is that the story was set out in such a way that bad interpretations are a definite possibility. If you want to know more of what we’re talking about here, read on these 10 points to see the potentially wrong lessons kids might learn from the Harry Potter series.
To Expect Magical Solutions For Problems
JK Rowling injected a ton of realism in the shape of a magical setting, but there’s no doubt that all of us who read the books still wait for that Hogwarts acceptance letter no matter how much older we’ve gotten.
The books have added a savior trope mentality in us in that thoughts of being rescued from our humdrum existences are enhanced once you see how Harry was whisked away from his awful family and placed in the shoes of someone important. Harboring these kinds of fantasies isn’t healthy, especially for children who end up having unrealistic expectations from life.
It’s Okay To Be Horrible If You’re In Love
The fact of the matter is that Snape wasn’t a good person in the slightest; he bullied children, became a follower of a person who murdered non-magic folk, and held grudges for decades. All of these are easily forgiven by readers, though, simply because Snape was in love.
For this reason, he’s absolved of all the horrible qualities he had as “love prevails” in the end in the minds of readers. This is very wrong, however, as people should be held responsible for how they treat others, and being in love doesn’t make a difference.
Pining Desperately After Someone Eventually Works
To be honest, Ginny was a pretty weak character despite her fiery personality, as she kept harboring hopes that Harry would one day be interested in her. She revealed that Hermione had advised her to go out more and be more vibrant so that Harry would, in turn, notice her.
If you really think about it, all of Ginny’s supposed character development was just for Harry’s benefit, and she reverted to following him around once he settled with her; evidenced by the fact that she didn’t even get to name any of her own children. It’s far better to be your own person rather than pine around for someone else and pretend to be someone you’re not.
Being Partial Can Be Justified
Dumbledore became a full-on villain during the ending of Sorcerer’s Stone where he gave Harry and his friends extra points just to mess with Slytherin’s House Cup victory. You could see in Malfoy and the other students’ faces that they were close to tears due to the injustice.
And yet, the story played out in such a way that Dumbledore’s bias was given justification because Harry was supposed to be the main character. In reality, there shouldn’t be any excuse for being unfair, especially to make a bunch of students cry when the majority of them weren’t even at fault.
Constant Arguments Equals Love
Ron and Hermione were positioned as the main couple in the series right from the start, which was why everyone overlooked the obvious problems they had. Their constant quarrels and arguments were made out to look cute, and it was highlighted that their fights were because of romantic tension.
This would be the wrong message to send to kids, who could be led to believe that quarreling with a spouse or significant other was supposed to be how real couples went about. In reality, couples need to get the right kind of guidance if they fought as much as Ron and Hermione did.
Slackers Are Cool
All of the “cool” characters in the Harry Potter series were notably lazy, but they were never called out for their attitudes and were instead lauded for it. We saw how George and Fred failed their classes yet were shown as successful businessmen; while they worked hard for their business, that doesn’t mean studies aren’t important as they claimed.
More than that, James and Sirius were the biggest slackers you could find, but they were shown as the coolest duo in the school and skirted past their exams due to natural talent. The value of hard work was undermined, not because there’s a problem with being gifted, but because the hard workers like Hufflepuff students were made out to look like losers.
Eccentric People Can’t Have Many Friends
Luna Lovegood was one such character who was confirmed to have been friendless for all of four years before she happened upon Harry and the others. Even after that, Luna was only shown sparingly in the main characters’ company.
Professor Trelawney, on the other hand, was always seen on her own and shunned by the rest of the staff for being a weirdo. This kind of representation can encourage children to assume anybody who acts a bit different or has distinct beliefs shouldn’t be taken seriously. At most, people should just be cordial to them and not indulge too much around these eccentric types.
You Have To Throw Yourself In Harm’s Way To Be Respected
Neville was a total loser for much of his life at Hogwarts, and his inner turmoil was never touched upon until he became a prominent character. How did he become prominent, you ask? That would be when he almost died at the Ministry of Magic.
Thereafter, Neville gained the respect of his aunt squarely because she was impressed he fought Death Eaters while she’d earlier always belittled him. The narration in the books too made Neville’s earlier failures out to be seen in a funny light, and only switched to sympathizing once Neville had been established as a thrill-seeker like Harry and his friends. Had he remained shy and timid, readers would’ve been inclined to keep treating Neville as a joke.
Rule Breaking Is Okay
None of the conflicts would’ve been resolved had Harry been a nice boy who kept to his own business; it was because he had no respect for the rules that he became successful. Harry wasn’t shown bearing much of the consequences either, as he walked away on numerous occasions after attacking teachers or using the Unforgivable Curses.
There’s no question that the readers of the series were inclined to be more rebellious with their beliefs, as the main characters got to have their way by overlooking the rules. Kids can definitely assume themselves to be right when they see their favorite fandom promotes this way of thinking.
You Can Get Away With Bullying
You can argue against every point we’ve made before this one, but this is something the series was notoriously poor at tackling. Heroic characters such as Sirius, James Potter, Snape, George and Fred, and even Ron were shown at numerous points making fun of others, and none of them were made out to be bad.
Even Malfoy, someone who is really the biggest coward and unworthy of respect has found rabid fangirls because they assume his bullying tendencies were because of some latent despair he carried. James Potter in particular messed up with Snape’s life hard, but he never got his comeuppance and instead stole the girl Snape loved. Meanwhile, poor bullying victim Moaning Myrtle was made a joke out of and ended the series all alone as a comedy act.
