HARRY POTTER AND THE MARKETING OF THE OCCULT

Evil books will be abundant on earth and the spirits of darkness will spread everywhere a universal slackening in all that concerns the service of God.

All the civil governments will have one and the same plan, which will be to abolish and do away with every religious principal, to make way for materialism, atheism, spiritualismX and vice of all kinds.[i] 

Our Lady at La Salette, 19 September 1846

Patricia MacLean

Popular Occult-ure

A trip to The Omega Centre Bookstore, located in downtown Toronto, self-proclaimed to be Canada's largest Holistic & Metaphysical Bookstore : Devoted to Self-Discovery, in other words an occult store, reveals the growth of the necromantically inclined.  The entire store is an experience.  The background music, rhythmic African drums, after a period of time begin to feel as though it is a reel being played in your own mind. The smell of incense still linger after a long subway ride home. There are lots of books on many arcane topics. Interesting looking but inexplicable items. And people. The store appears to be doing well from a financial point of view, it has expanded recently. In the budding witches and wizards section (children's section) you can find such gems as The Book of Wizard Craft : In which the Apprentice Finds Spells, Potions, Fantastic Tales & 50 Enchanting Things to Make, and from the Girls Club we have Fortune Telling : Unlock the Secrets of Your Fantastic Future.  Teenagers will be enthralled with Teen Witch :  Wicca for a New Generation.  This blockbuster has a special introduction, Just for Parents : This is an okay book for your children to read.  There's nothing bad in here, and maybe the book will help you understand why WitchCraft is one of the fastest growing religions in America.[ii] Whew! Prominently displayed, adjacent to the various Hades publications, are the Harry Potter books.  In fact, the Harry Potter books are not only in the children's section but also the adult fiction as well as under "Staff Picks".  Michaela chose Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire as her suggested good read.  The occultists accept Harry.  C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien are nowhere to be found in this store.  The Harry Potter books are about more than fantasy. We could equate them to a sort of marketing plan developed to sell the occult.  

J. K. (Joanne Kathleen) Rowling, the now famous not to mention incredibly wealthy, creator of the Harry Potter series, has been successful in portraying the occult in a seemingly positive manner gaining both the imagination of children, directly, and sympathy for the plight of witches, indirectly. The Harry Potter books have such an appeal, in fact, that the series has sold in excess of 40 million copies and has been translated into 35 languages. Beyond the print media, Warner Brothers currently has a movie in production based on the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. The movie is expected to be released this summer.

Waiting lists at libraries for the third and forth books in the series are unprecedented for children's books.  As of March 21, 2001, at approximately 4:30 PM, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the third book in the series published in 1999, had 666 (I kid you not!) reserves placed on it in the Metropolitan Toronto public library system.  In other words, 666 persons are still waiting to borrow this book from the library, a book published two years ago. There are 258 copies of the book in the Metro Toronto public library system alone. Released in July 2000, the fourth book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, had 115 reserves and no less than 464 copies available in Metro Toronto; almost double the amount of copies of the third book, not to mention, a hefty read for children at 636 pages.  The numbers for the above reserves do not include the copies available in large print, Compact Disc or audiocassette tapes.  As is fitting for our inclusive age, the books have been published in Braille.

The public schools, funded by the Canadian government, permit the Harry Potter books to be used as part of the curriculum.  Students and teachers, alike, have written to Rowling to praise her books.  One letter published at the back of the Raincoast paperback edition of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets quotes nine year old Fiona Chadwick, I really like the book Harry Potter.  My class and I are reading it as a novel.  I think all the class are enjoying it (too) but the only thing wrong with it is that you can't put it down. 

Through Harry Potter, J. K. Rowling has brought the world of the occult to young audiences and has made it accessible as well as seemingly empowering on an individual level. In older audiences her books have mitigated a natural sense of taboo towards the occult.

In the Harry Potter books young witches and wizards learn about and are actively involved in the preparation of magic potions and the casting of spells.  They converse casually with a host of ghosts and poltergeists. The character of the popular wizard, Harry Potter, has a special gift.  He can speak Parselmouth.  That is, he can speak the language of snakes. The inclusion of flying brooms, cauldrons and magic wands serve as more than dramatic props - they form an active part of the culture of the young witches and wizards.  The Harry Potter books are different from many other fantasy novels in that the world of the witches and wizards is portrayed as something the child can aspire to and become. In actual fact, children have written to Rowling asking how they may enroll in the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. To become a witch or wizard is presented as a "gift".  The witches and wizards in the Harry Potter books are not the fabled evil antagonist of old, they are children who exist in a world of moral relativity.  . . . Harry Potter is not the perfect little boy.  He bends and breaks the rules when it suits his purpose . . ..[iii]There are, quite simply, no rules in a Harry Potter book - or at least none that cannot be broken in the name of fun and adventure.[iv] Harry Potter is a free spirit.  Rowling deliberately created the main character in this manner.  The poor little wizard is an orphan, for which Rowling believes that  . . . it is a freeing thing because a certain weight of parental expectation is lifted. [v]  In other word, the child becomes a law unto himself. 

The title and basis of the plot of the first book in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (released as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the United States), is derived from the aura of the Philosopher's Stone.  The Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology, 3^rd edition, explains that the philosopher's stone was believed to contain the secret of transmutation.  That is, the capacity to turn base metals into gold.  In addition, it held the secret of health and life, for through its agency could be distilled the Elixir of Life.  Yes, through the philosopher's stone, the present life could be extended and/or the quality bettered. This is one of the messages propagated in Rowling's first book. However, should the stone elude you, this is not a cause for concern.  After all, to the well-organised mind, death is but the next great adventure[vi], explained Dumbledore, a professor admired by Harry Potter, to console him after he realised the philosopher's stone had been destroyed.  It is a belief of the practitioners of WitchCraft that there is no heaven or hell. They believe in reincarnation, or that death is but the next great adventure!

The elements of the occult are paraded in the Harry Potter books as fun and intrigue. For the future witch or wizard, these books are welcomed reading. For the future saint, these books corrupt the imagination.  As a child readeth so is he.[vii]The spectacular popularity of these books, coupled with their potential to influence an entire generation, is certain to have the Devil dancing a jig on the head of J. K. Rowling, quite a windfall for the old father of lies.

The Woman Behind Harry Potter

J. K. (Joanne Kathleen) Rowling was born in Chipping Sodbury near Bristol in southwestern England on July 31, 1965.  She attended Exeter University where she studied languages.  Rowling relates of her University experience : At first Exeter was a bit of a shock.  I was expecting to be amongst lots of similar people - thinking radical thoughts.[viii] It was fantastic but it did not offer quite the chance to be a radical that I planned.[ix]  It is frustrating that she never elaborates on what she means exactly by "radical", leaving one to speculate.

Rowling's upbringing was predominately liberal and secular. Throughout the interviews and an unauthorized biography available to date, the Christian faith is never mentioned as having been a part of her life during any time. However, she does mention that her favourite holiday is Hallowe’en.  With respect to her childhood, she explained that the . . . important thing (was) that no books (were) ever forbidden or censored . . . I was like my mother - I'd read anything and everything.  Neither of my parents (were) interested in classical music - they loved The Beatles and other 60s stuff, and I like those too.[x]

Hucksters and Rabble-Rousers

Two persons, in particular, were noted to have had a strong influence on Rowling during adolescence. One is a secondary school English teacher, Miss Shepherd, whom she described in an interview. She was an introduction to a different kind of woman, I suppose.  She was a feminist, and clever . . . I learned such a lot from her and we're still in touch. She was the only teacher I ever confided in.  She inspired trust.[xi] The second figure is feminist and author Jessica Mitford with whom Rowling has been described as having been "infatuated". My most influential writer, without a doubt, is Jessica Mitford. When my great aunt gave me Hons and Rebels when I was 14 she instantly became my heroine.  She ran away from home to fight in the civil war in Spain, taking with her a camera that she had charged to her father's account.  I wished I'd had the nerve to do something like that. She had tremendous moral courage . . . I love the way she never outgrew some of her adolescent traits, remaining true to her politics - she was a self-taught socialist - throughout her life.  I think I've read everything she wrote.  I even called my daughter after her. [xii]

Revealing are the words of Evelyn Waugh, author and friend of the Mitford family, written in a letter to Nancy Mitford, sister of Jessica, he inquired : Is Decca (family nickname for Jessica) still a communist?  Jolly uncomfortable for her in U.S.A. I should have thought.  She doesn't seem to have done anything to help the 'Loyalists'X in Spain.  Just sponged on them.[xiii]

Rowling's heroine paints a cheeky picture of herself in her autobiography, A fine Old Conflict, where Mitford reminiscences on her days as a Communist in America. It is ironic though that this insolent and unapologetic communist should vindicate Senator McCarthy in this one book alone.  Mitford, true to nature, "sponged" off the system in the United States and without scruple divulged her antics in A fine Old Conflict : To qualify for unemployment benefits one had to prove that one was actively seeking work in one's trade or occupation.  I explained to the case worker to whom I was assigned that there was no work in my particular field; the Communist Party of Alameda County already had a financial director, and I had ascertained that the Republican and Democratic Party offices had no openings for me.  Rather to my surprise, I was put on the rolls and I collected for several weeks.[xiv] Later, when the case worker attempted to discontinue her benefits, Mitford threatened that her husband's law firm would appeal the case to the Supreme Court!  Moral courage? No. Adolescent? Indeed.  Hence the independent and idealistic feminist heroine of J. K. Rowling. 

It becomes clear, after considering the above testimonies, that J. K. Rowling is a woman of her times, inebriated with many of its tastes, erroneous ideologies and contradictions.  What can we expect from a person so inclined?

The Witch Grows-Up

According to childhood friends, Rowling's favourite refrain was Oh, let's play witches and wizards. [xv] This game has transpired into a lucrative adult occupation, so to speak.  The ongoing series of Harry Potter books narrate tales of child witches and wizards as they progress through the Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Truly, it is interesting that a self-professed radical and feminist should choose to write books about witches.  Interesting, as it has been observed that (w)itchcraft is undergoing an enormous revival in feminists circles as the antagonist of Christian faith. [xvi] The Christian faith, of course, is patriarchal, which is an abhorrence to feminists; rather than pray to Him, (f)eminist gatherings within traditional denominations celebrate and pray to pagan goddesses.[xvii] Although Rowling has never indicated her adherence to the practise of any form of witchcraft, her books reveal a degree of familiarity with the occult that represents more than a passing interest.  When a question was posed by youngsters asking how they may begin to write, Rowling replied : Start by writing the things that you know.  Write about your own experiences and your own feelings.  That's what I do.[xviii](!)