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By Root 740 0

’s view of good and evil, and Hermione’s philosophical musings about death. Then there are the family trees of the Blacks, Gaunts, and Peverells, like a wizarding version of the royal history of Great Britain. It’s the adult readers who love to sift through the tidbits of mythology, alchemy, and the hero’s journey. It’s rare in the world for a series to keep an adult audience hooked for so many years. But in this case, it’s the grown-ups who have been buying the books all along.

For Children

The Harry Potter books are obviously not written for adults: The publishers list them as children’s books, and so do most bestseller lists. Everything in the story is seen through the eyes of a young and not-altogether-quickwitted boy who, like all children, needs a fair bit of help interpreting his world. Adults may smile at Harry’s confusion, but they can’t really identify with him. He is fearless but not the brightest light, and has to be led around by geniuses like Hermione the Bookworm or Dumbledore the Wise. Sometimes, Harry is rescued by his sidekicks: Ron Weasley the Honest and True and Neville Longbottom, the Boy-Who-Overcomes-Fear. The plot is just a simple action-adventure, with flying horses and cars, dragon battles, and wizard duels. Who else but a child would appreciate such predictable fairy tales?

Everything is simplified in black and white, with Harry separating the world into people he likes or doesn’t like, with predictable bad guys and inspirational good guys. The characters in between are mostly forgettable, but there are also the strong stereotypes of the “mean teacher” or the “nice mommy who cooks a lot.” If this were an adult book, then instead of Harry becoming a child hero, which rarely happens in adult books, Voldemort, with his political control of the government, would probably be the winner. The triumph of darkness would be explored in depth and detail. As it is, the government is bumbling and Harry is smarter than both prime ministers. Voldemort is just a weak baddie for Harry the child to destroy. The Dark Lord could never truly win because that would not be appropriate for children, and that’s why there has to be a happily-ever-after Epilogue for Harry and Ginny in their safe, sunny, and segregated Gryffindor-centric world.

Granted J.K.R. is a writer who loves details, and children and adults can appreciate the fantastic beasts and magical spells. But the author also relies on embarrassing sight gags such as Ron being attacked by an aquarium full of B-movie brains, Snape being turned into a bag lady, or Hagrid singing a lullaby to his baby dragon. Cousin Dudley is fat, so of course, he gets a pig’s tail, and Neville is meek, so of course, he wears bunny slippers. It’s predictable and certainly not written for adults. However, kids love it when something feels “right” to them in the books, and J.K.R. gives them what they crave. The Marauders take risks and look handsome, so of course, they are the coolest of the cool kids. The pretty girls like Lily, Ginny, and Cho have the best magical skills, which makes them worthy of heroes such as James, Harry, and Cedric. The worst villains have no sense of humor but are, nevertheless, unintentionally funny. Dolores Umbridge is carried away by centaurs, and later uses Mad-Eye Moody’s eyeball as a surveillance camera. Death Eaters are turned into “baby heads” at the Department of Mysteries. Peter Pettigrew squeaks more than a murderer should when he has to feed baby Voldemort his bottle of venom at bedtime. Bellatrix Lestrange is just the cackling wicked witch from Hansel and Gretel.

There is nothing wrong with a simple hero tale for children, and Harry Potter is one of the best ones ever written. But there’s a reason these books are listed as children’s book: Even if Jo didn’t intend to do so, she wrote the series primarily for the appreciation of children—and adults with good imaginations.

Verdict

This debate will never go away. Are the books dark adult novels with complex characters? Or are they simple childhood fantasies filled with stereotypes?