Emotional abuse in Harry Potter

[MrsRogerLima]

Don't get me wrong, I love Harry Potter but I never thought about the Ron/Hermione thing this way before and she is SO RIGHT.

AIBU to think this is irresponsible in children's literature?

www.bustle.com/articles/198364-ron-hermiones-relationship-in-harry-potter-wasnt-just-disappointing-but-dangerous

Oh for goodness sake what a load of old rubbish. This woman thinks her fan fiction that she wrote when she was 11 is better than actual Harry Potter. No.

J K Rowling has said that if she was writing Harry Potter now she would not have matched Ron and Hermione but to say their relationship is promoting emotional abuse to children is very deeply offensive to people who have experienced actual abuse. There is a big difference in the way Ron is portrayed in the films to the books with book Ron being much more supportive to Hermione. He is not a bad person but is immature and realistically flawed.

Yes maybe Hermione could have done better but in real life it is hard for a very accomplished woman to meet someone who is her equal and who is not threatened by her achievements. I think that Ron is not threatened by her and does always praise her but he is not perfect.

JK Rowling started writing the Harry Potter books when she was in an abusive relationship so this is just another stick to beat her with.

She loves Harry Potter and the HP universe but is definitely not on the 'side' of JKR, which is fine, I love Ernest Hemingways writing but in rl he was awful

If we only depict perfect people with perfect behavior in realistic settings - where's the story in that?

Bridget Jones diary? Expresses much worse relationship "goals" as does tolken and especially twilight

Ron is the clownish character, Harry's loyal side-kick, and he although he's not malevolent he obviously resents both Harry and Hermione for their traits - whether it's bravery or intelligence. I didn't pick up anything particularly worrying in the relationship between Ron and Hermione, but it doesn't seem right that they ended up together. He's a duffer, she's not. She needs someone exciting and smart.

[spoilers] Was Oliver Twist not a manual for how to run an orphanage? Jane Eyre not guidance for managing MH within a marriage? Perhaps creative autobiography would be your thing, OP?

MrsMiaWallis I mean the current trend of trying to find faults with JKR specficially through nitpicking her works. She has been smeared and harassed as a "transphobe" but since there is no real evidence of that, there are now accusations of her being a racist because of Cho Chang's name and an anti-Semite because of goblins working at a bank.

How much literature is filled with flawed relationships, and damaged individuals? I would hazard a guess at a large percentage. I don't think that children's literature should be any different, my Dc have read a wide range of books where various characters have treated each other very poorly, and it provides good opportunity for discussion, rather than role models.

It is the relationships that children see modelled in real life that have the most effect on them as they grow up.

I'm sure that JKR's own relationships influenced the books as she wrote them, I think it's inevitable. There are many many people in relationships, both men and women, who have ended up in long term relationships with people who have not treated them well. That's human nature, and it's how growth and learning occurs, however painful the process is.

I have just been through long term therapy to understand why I ended up in a very unhealthy relationship. Spoiler - it wasn't because of the books that I read.

Seriously?!

They were kids ffs! Kids are often vile to each other. All of the ones I know tease, put down, fallout constantly. It’s been like that forever and as long as it doesn’t roll into bullying it’s just how kids are with each other. They fall out then make up. Or in many cases they fallout and then it’s as if it never happened.

Ron is often lovely with Hermione and try’s to protect her.

Seeing these sort of articles makes me dispair for the future.

@SebastianTheCrab

What I find remarkable about the younger generation of HP obsessive is they seem to absolutely resent the fact that JKR wrote the books - they want ownership over the series and bash her at every opportunity

That’s nuts! Do you have some particularly egregious examples? I could do with a laugh.

God I loved Flowers in the attic

@MrsMiaWallis An ex-BF wrote a feminist critique of Winnie the Pooh as part of his English degree. After reading it, I could never look at what had been my favourite childhood book in the same way again!

I do think it's quite interesting to analyse relationships in literature but, like art, my feeling is that the response of the individual is subjective and therefore shouldn't be viewed as right or wrong. I agree with other posters that there is a danger in over analysis and the resulting dulling down of fiction - particularly teen fiction - in an attempt to make everything okay for everyone. For me, that's kind of missing the point of any art form - literature or otherwise. It should provoke a reaction & not necessarily one that tallies with your world view.

Of course Ron was a git as a teenager, lots of teenagers are and he had deep-rooted family issues because Molly wanted a girl.

But as a character he saved himself for me during the Malfoy Manor scene where he was in the cellar listening to Hermione being tortured and lost it basically. He adores her. Of course he’s punching above, but so what.

I watched Jane the Virgin recently. It's lauded as being great by all the woke people I know. I couldn't actually finish watching the final series as before it was halfway through, the relationship that was clearly going to be shown as Jane's true love was showing red flags of emotional abuse all over. It was absolutely fucking awful. I don't want to give anything away, but all of the characters find themselves in a situation that would be emotional torture most especially Jane. But a certain male character very quickly forgets all about how insanely impossible a situation she is in. Rather than wallow in his pain (which would be understandable) he gets angry at her and just punishes her and punishes her for how hard she is finding everything, making an already awful situation into pure torture.

I stopped watching, but I did read a review of the last episode and it's confirmed that she marries him. The happily ever after of this super feminist series is our hero marrying a clear emotional abuser and big fucking baby who is the only person who's feelings count. Women in utterly horrendous marriages, that the author has written but can't see, is an absolute staple of fiction.

All the posters saying “omg stop nitpicking” you know people do entire degrees where they sit about nit picking at literature. Am sure JKR is on some curriculums. Should we stop all that too?

I mean the current trend of trying to find faults with JKR specficially through nitpicking her works. She has been smeared and harassed as a "transphobe" but since there is no real evidence of that, there are now accusations of her being a racist because of Cho Chang's name and an anti-Semite because of goblins working at a bank.

People were nitpicking HP when the series ended, when Cursed Child came out, etc. I still remember the hoopla over Dumbledore being gay.

I’m on several social media sites yet have not heard anything like what you posted except on MN where there seeming massive talk about trans people which gets quickly cringe especially in the feminist chat.

@herecomesthsun

Meanwhile is it very bad that I immediately misinterpreted this title in an unduly adult fashion?

How unfortunate! Is it Australian?

i dont think that what it is though, i think we're seeing young people (mostly in america) trying to retrospectively smear jkr's work.

look at flat stanley- what kind of parenting was that?

Sweet Jesus

@Helmetbymidnight

i dont think that what it is though, i think we're seeing young people (mostly in america) trying to retrospectively smear jkr's work.

look at flat stanley- what kind of parenting was that?

Yes, this. This what is tiresome.

@Jollibeezus

All the posters saying “omg stop nitpicking” you know people do entire degrees where they sit about nit picking at literature. Am sure JKR is on some curriculums. Should we stop all that too?

Nope but just put it in its place, navel watching.

Did Shakespeare write plays to be dissected and analysed or did he write them to make money by entertaining the drunks as they came out the bars.

What we write as critiques of literature now won't be valid in a few years as social values change and the criticism will need to change to reflect the new values.

JK tried to bring elements of “real world” growing up to the HP series rather than keep
them as Enid Blytonesque stunted pre-pubescent kids for seven years. This included imperfect relationships.

@BigFatLiar so we just shouldn’t critique any literature at all because our ideas will shift with the times? Sorry I’m not trying to be disingenuous I just don’t really understand your response.

@BigFatLiar sorry pressed post too soon. I always thought that part of literary criticism was to observe what social mores were evident in a particular piece of work, not necessarily for comparison, but as a reflection. Maybe I’m wrong, but it would be a shame not to discuss books and their ideas

@MrsMiaWallis

She loves Harry Potter and the HP universe but is definitely not on the 'side' of JKR, which is fine, I love Ernest Hemingways writing but in rl he was awful

Ah - would have been so much more interesting if she did support JKR's stance. Takes courage for teens to challenge the woke norm now though: I'm always impressed by those of my students who are confident enough to call out the emperor for being naked.

An EPQ on cancel culture - now that would be worth doing.