(continued)
| I studied Lewis. All literary criticism worth reading, says Lewis in “Psycho-Analysis and Literary Criticism,” begins with the critical question, “Why, and how, should we read this?” In A Preface to Paradise Lost, he states, “The first qualification for judging any piece of workmanship from a corkscrew to a cathedral is to know what it is – what it was intended to do and how it is meant to be used.” I have no doubt Lewis would have read Harry Potter as a narrative fantasy or fairy tale because that is what it is. To do otherwise would be to risk, as he says in another place, “miss[ing] what is there and think[ing] we see what is not.” Lewis would have accepted Harry Potter as a work of fantasy. He would have read it “lightly” for entertainment and pleasure. As an apologist for the faith, however, he would certainly have engaged the issues raised in the current debate. For Christians, the most disturbing issue is Rowling’s positive portrayal of magic and witchcraft. Interestingly, Lewis’ Narnia stories were and still are criticized for the same reason. Based on Lewis’ comments here, I imagine that unlike some conservative Christians, Lewis would give Rowling the benefit of the doubt and assume that however much research into the history of magic and witchcraft she may or may not have done in writing Harry Potter, she is not attempting to seduce children into the real world of the occult. What is meant lightly, we must take lightly or run the risk of missing what is there and thinking we see what is not. |
Lewis was drawn to fantasy for other reasons as well. All fantasy truly written, even when it is not Christian in intent, can “baptize the imagination,” says Lewis in Miracles, and impart a “real though unfocused gleam of divine truth.” We glimpse Kingdom principles and values – bravery, loyalty, honesty, faith, hope, love – in the truest fairy tales. In some tales, we even glimpse the King or at least His goodness and moral wisdom. Fairy tales and fantasy literature do not simply meet children’s psychological needs, then, as Bruno Bettelheim and other child psychologists suppose. Though they may do that, they also evoke, and to some degree satisfy, spiritual longings. As such, they have a role to play in bringing us to Christ. What about Harry Potter? Is it a true fantasy of the kind Lewis is talking about? I believe it is. Bravery, loyalty, and honesty are important values at Hogwarts, as Harry learns in the Sorting Hat ritual. Honest Gryffindors or conniving Slitherins – who will his role models be? Harry chooses Gryffindor and must continue to choose Gryffindor throughout the series. |
