From Here to Hogwarts

The social relations, societal structures and existential conundrums in the world of Harry Potter novels reflect our own. When the authoritarianism of Hogwarts falls upon Harry, it is an echo of disciplinary practices in real-world high schools. The economic inequities of the wizarding world mirror those of modern societies. The art, literature and mass media of wizard society reveal our deep-rooted fears. Harry’s world is our world. This collection presents new essays by contributors across a range of disciplines, bringing fresh perspectives on one of the most influential texts in modern history.

Christopher E. Bell is an associate professor of media studies in the department of communication at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, specializing in the study of the ways in which race, class and gender intersect in different forms of children’s media. He is a TED speaker, a diversity and inclusiveness consultant for Pixar Animation Studios, a 2017 David Letterman Award winning media scholar and the 2017 Denver Comic Con Popular Culture Educator of the Year.

Edited by Christopher E. Bell

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 232
Bibliographic Info: notes, bibliographies, index
Copyright Date: 2016
pISBN: 978-0-7864-9931-1
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2246-0
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments vi
Introduction (Christopher E. Bell) 1

From Here
“I will have order”: A Potterish Examination of Authoritarian School Disciplinary Trends and Reactions (Kelly E. Collinsworth) 7
Magical Econ 101: Wealth, Labor and Inequality in Harry Potter and Its Fandom (Megan Farnel) 28
Keeping the Magic Alive: The Fandom and “Harry Potter Experience” After the Franchise (Chin-Ting Lee) 54
Teaching Harry Potter: How the Wizarding World Has Transformed Higher Education (Elizabeth Morrow Clark) 78
“It’s a natural part of us!” The Potter Generation Reflect on Their Ongoing Relationship with a Cultural Phenomenon (Bronwyn E. Beatty) 99

To Hogwarts
Ministry of Misinformation: Harry Potter and Propaganda (Christine Klingbiel) 123
More Than Moving Images: The Visual Culture of Harry Potter (Tolonda Henderson and Amy M. Von Lintel) 140
Unplottable: Subversive Books and Radical Reading in Harry Potter (Tracy L. Bealer) 159
Political Economy of Media in the Magical World of Harry Potter (Jennifer M. Proffitt and Juliann Cortese) 184
Political Activism and Harry Potter (Kalen M.A. Churcher and Meghan S. Sanders) 199

About the Contributors 219
Index 223

“Bell has collected a series of contemporary essays from a variety of international scholars in various disciplines, focused on the varieties of significance of the Harry Potter series of books.”—ProtoView.