The first of the final Harry Potter movies will be released on November 19, 2010. It is over a month away, and it is already creating a huge buzz at Wake Forest. “Harry Potter and the Golden Pumpkin” has been chosen as the theme of this year’s Project Pumpkin. Harry Potter is also one of the new courses that is being taught in the Experimental College. I have already been approached by friends who want to order tickets to the movie’s midnight premier. I was on Skype the other day with a friend that is studying abroad in London, and she complained that she could not find Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Student Union’s weekly Trivia Night brought in a record number of participants for tonight’s Harry Potter edition. I actually waited in line for over thirty minutes to be seated in Shorty’s to participate. I even had to convince my freshmen residents that it would not be a good idea to dress up for this event.
My trivia team suffered a terrible loss. I thought I was a dedicated fan because I have read all of the books, but I felt like an amateur when I met the competition. A guy on the second place team has read every book and listened to all seven tapes at least 13 times. The t-shirt he wore to trivia night said, “Your mother is a muggle.” Two other girls were dueling on their iPhones while they waited to be seated. I also overheard a few fans excitedly chatting about the new Harry Potter amusement park at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.
What is it about Harry Potter that excites so many people? Someone told me not long ago, “Harry and I grew up together. We started snogging around the same time.” I tried not to laugh, but I realized that it was true. I read my first Harry Potter book in the fourth grade. I am now a senior in college, and I am still getting excited to go see the new movie premier. Still, why did we start reading Harry Potter? I think it is about escapism. Harry Potter offers an escape and fantasy world that cannot be rivaled by the Lord of the Rings or The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Lord of the Rings was targeted too heavily to an older generation. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (a classic movie and novel that, in my opinion, will never be outdated) were too reflective of the Great Depression. Harry Potter on the other hand, has transcended generational gaps. I can talk Harry Potter with my parent’s friends, my older sister’s friends, and the children I babysit. The Harry Potter series has also survived some of the greatest economic fluctuations the global economy has ever seen. When I was younger, it was about the fantasy of living in a magical world. Now that I am looking for a job in a downtrodden economy it is more about the escape. Debi Andrus, a marketing professor at the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business completed a study about Harry Potter and remarked that, “Escapism is what all children and adults are looking for. They want good to triumph over evil.”
Nikiforuk, A. (2003). The real power of Harry and Frodo. Canadian Business, 76(2), 16. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
-Leigh Vogedes
-Leigh Vogedes
I think this post holds great insight into how the Harry Potter books have engaged the consumer needs on the revised Maslow pyramid. When we talk about books being “good” we mention the story, the characters, the plot twists, and the author’s writing ability. To me, these all seem like bottom shelf needs from a book. Like you said, the reason Harry potter has moved from a book to a worldwide phenomenon is that it met the need at the top of the pyramid: the need to escape. In fact, with the completion of the Harry Potter theme park, the franchise moved from providing a metaphorical escape in a book to a tangible vacation in Hogwarts, Florida. Great post.
ReplyDelete-Will McQuain
I loved this blog. I am an avid Harry Potter fan, and was upset that I was not able to attend the trivia night at Shorty’s. Being a Harry Potter fan comes at a price though. From peers who enjoy Harry Potter, you can always find something to discuss—the new movie, names of spells and so on. However those peers who aren’t Harry Potter fans often look down on you for your beliefs. It makes you question why you are such a fan and if you should be. As I near 22 years old, I am beginning to feel a bit old to be infatuated with a children’s book. This creates an awkward approach-avoidance conflict. I am seeking a post graduation job, somewhere I could be the rest of my life, yet instead of anxiously awaiting responses from job applications, I am longing for “Deathly Hallows.” While this is embarrassing, I cannot shake my great enjoyment from the series. Whether this be because I actually love it, or because I am seeking closure to a story line I already know, I cannot tell you, but the bottom line is that these mixed emotions and good versus bad attitude, keep me questioning my fanhood.
ReplyDelete-Jordan Jacobson