Tuesday 19 March 2019

Week 2 [18-24.03.19] “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.”

It's been over 20 years since the release of the first book about the adventures of Harry Potter and you must admit that this is a story that is still going on. Less than two years ago, J.K Rowling wrote a continuation of the adventures in the form of a script, which was also published as a book. At the cinema, we could watch “Fantastic Beasts” which are the prequels of the story about the young wizard. I really hope that J.K Rowling and Warner Bros will surprise us not once.


Harry Potter is a success story. The novels have been translated into 80 languages. By 2018, global sales of seven books exceeded 500 million copies, the highest result among all novel series. What's more, the last four parts have broken the records of the fastest-selling books in history. The screen adaptation of the novel has yielded 7.7 million dollars income, it is the highest-grossing film series in history, and all the individual parts are at the forefront of the most profitable films of all time.


I remember exactly how my adventure with Harry Potter began. The first two volumes I got from my grandfather for Christmas. It was the first book that fascinated me enough to read it out of  my own free will. I was waiting in suspense for every next part of this story. I always had to have a book on the day of its premiere. While waiting for the next book, I had read a lot of fanfics. I'm the person who is still waiting for her letter from Hogwarts. 😉


Harry Potter had a profound effect on the young-adult fiction. A huge publishing success of J. K. Rowling's books led to the emergence of a phenomenon later called Pottermaniac.

According to the report “The greatest magic of Harry Potter: Reducing prejudice”, children who have read books about the adventures of Harry Potter are more tolerant. This is because young readers identify with the heroes of books who stand out from other members of the school of magic. The world of Harry Potter is divided into the world of muggles and wizards. Hermione comes from a Muggle family, Harry is an orphan and Ron comes from a poor, large family.

I encourage you to watch a short movie about the Harry Potter phenomenon.

Are you fans of Harry's adventures?
Do you also think that Rowling's books influenced your life?
Have you noticed the impact of Harry Potter story on your friends?

Sources:
1) Image 1
2) Image 2
3) Bazhum

32 comments:

  1. Calling myself a fan is a little bit overrated. I watched each episode for like 2 or 3 times, and I enjoyed it, I really did. I do not identify myself with Harry's or any other characters adventures. Once I was a child I dreamed about being a magician, but is there anyone who did not? I am looking forward to see some more stories based in that magic world. I did not read any of J. K. Rowling's books, so I can not say that they had any impact on my life. Movies were fun and interesting to watch, but unfortunately I do not find any example of their influance in my life. Perhaps it is a good thing, who knows. I have some friends that read these books several times, but honestly there were no special behaviour from their side. They did not go to some meeting oriented on this topic, wear some Harry's props like glasses or cloaks. Somehow I did not have such people around in my childhood, nor in my adulthood.

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  2. I'm not sure if I can call myself fan of Harry Potter. I've always enjoyed story about young magicians but I was never too much into this topic. Keeping to this I also can't tell how Rowling's art influenced my life. I can only say that there were some episodes when I was reviewing all Harry Potter's movies but it was once but I can say different about my friends. Some of them are still waiting for letter from Hogwart, even one of them was on the orginal plan where HP was being shot.
    Currently we can divide people interested in fantasy stuff into few groups. One of them is of course Harry Potter but there are also people who are more into Pokemon, LOTR, Marvel or DC. Sometimes interest in such topics come together but I'm definitely the "one group" guy so it's hard for me to identify with Rowling and her books.

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  3. Yes, I was and I am a fan of the adventures of Harry Potter. I read all the parts in one breath, I watched all the parts in the cinema and played computer games based on books. The magical world of Harry Potter had a big impact on me. I even managed to persuade my parents to a magical camp, which turned out to be one of the best trips in my life. I met many people who were also enchanted with the world of magic. I think that none of my friends were so fascinated by the world of Harry Potter as I was.

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  4. I read all books about Harry. First three for fun, . I liked them really much,
    than rather to check what would happen and passing some parts, which were not important to a plot. Last volume I found exaggerated and odd, having nothing to do with funny story from the first part. I was disappointed how this book was developed. From nice story about wizards, friendship to mix of terrifying scenes like from thriller. I didn’t see film. I don’t remember if my friends read it or not, I have impression it wasn’t an important theme in our talks and for sure it has no impact on my life. As woman in video said she had been the same age as characters so it was easy for her to identify with them, I was a little bit older, so maybe it’s why it didn’t absorb me much.

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  5. Harry Potter was also my first book that I read without anyone making me to do it. When I got the first book I read it in one sitting, stayed up all night couldn't stopped reading it. The next day I borrowed the second book from the library and read it in three days. I really enjoyed them back then.
    I don't think that the books influenced my life that much, it opened my mind to reading other books too, but other than that can't think of anything else.

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  6. I read all of the Harry Potter books when I was a teenager. I remember that I really enjoyed them but I never had a need to read them againg.
    I think it's because of the movies. First they are a great movies in my opinion and second they are very often played on tv so I never was able to miss that universe.
    Happr Potter series is such a commerical succes and it is so deeply rooted in popculture it definitely infuencing our lives in some way. I'm sure it strengthen my fascination with fantasy.
    I don;t know any people that were obsessed with Harry Potter - everyobdy liked it and read the books but that's all.

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  7. Since I remember, I have read all seven books countless times. Even now I have the whole set in the black edition won in the competition. Maybe I'm not a fan like I used to be earlier, but sometimes I watch Harry Potter movie with my fiancee who is a huge fan of series. I don't think books influenced my life in any way. My friends aren't fans of series so probably Harry Potter didn't affect them too.

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  8. 1. Yeees!!!
    2. In some way for sure, but there are more books like her, which influenced me, so Rowling's books influenced me, but only in some part.
    3. I do not see that my friends are fans of Harry Potter, maybe only few of them are. The books for sure influenced some of them more than the others but I didn't seem them waving wand and shouting "lumos!" ;P

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  9. Not really. I watched some movies and they were alright but they didn't encourage me to read books. To be honest I liked first Fantasy Beasts movie more than Potter ones.

    I don't think so. I've never been a big fan of it and The Chamber of Secrets was the first fantasy movie that actually bored me.

    Yes, I've got many friends who are fan of Harry Potter books or movies and I think it had a big impact on them, since they still have a habit of saying some spells randomly, which I find quite amusing.

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  10. As a teenager I read all seven books and thoroughly enjoyed them. The magical world of Harry Potter is still one of my favourite fictional universe. However I don't think those book impacted my life at all. Same goes for my friends and family.

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  11. When I was a child I read first volume, i.e. “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” and as far as I remember I enjoyed it a lot. Then I grew up and became more, I would say, serious and this whole magic world didn’t seem so appealing to me. I cannot fairly review the books because I read only one of them, but I did watch all the movies. I have to admit I was really impressed. I especially liked “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”. Probably that’s because I like characters having more complex psychological profile, i.e. Sirius Black. This makes this story extraordinary and involving. It’s incredible how big impact Harry Potter had on many people. I know some friends who are big fans. For example in my recent job due to the very strong lobby of pottermaniacs our scrum teams were named Gryffindor, Slytherin and so on.

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  12. 1. I'm not a fan of Harry Potter.
    2. Rowling's books didn't influence to my life. As I wrote above, I'm not a fan.
    3. Honestly, I didn't notice anything like that.

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  13. I've never been crazy for Happy Potter. As a child, I was eagerly reading books and films about Harry Potter - basically, I have the same view on the story as one of the speakers. I remember the impression that the first two parts of the film made on me. Then I found "Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban" somewhat disappointing - it was still a good movie, but without the magic that the previous parts had (it was rather like a thriller was said). Interestingly, there are several adaptations of Harry Potter - I especially like the musical called The Musical A Very Potter - it presents the story of Harry Potter in a bit comedic manner. The life story of J.K Rowling and the way in which she bacame renowned, rich writer can be really inspiring for us as well (https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/j-k-rowling-born)

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  15. I have read all seven books countless times! I am a big fan of the whole series. When Harry Potter movie is in television - it's a tradition that I will definitely watch the movie. We have netflix, internet and I can view each of these parts at any time ... but watching that movie in TV is magic.

    I grew up on this book and with this book I started to read.

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    2. And yes, those who read Harry Potter, among my friends, are more tolerant. It's true.

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  16. Really enjoyed Harry Potter books as a teenager. I have read each of them more than once, always with great enthusiasm. With my brother, we're having a lot of brainstorms with conjectures about possible ends or possible next horcruxes (special magic items with part of Voldemort soul inside). I can call myself as a big fan of books, but movies weren't so captivating for me. Do I think that Harry Potter influenced my or my friends life? Definitely yes, I will always have good memories regarding that.

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  17. When I was a kid I enjoyed the book. I could spend the whole day just reading. I have never read so much and so fast in my entire life. I remember how I read "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" just in 2 days... that was my personal record. A few years ago I tried to reread the whole series and I could not even make it through the first book. It just seemed too childish for me. But I would definitely recommend Harry Potter to children for it is a good book to spend time on.

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  18. Yes. I have read all the books and watched every movie
    Although it's a pity that there are no books about Newton Skamander's adventures.
    Did the books affect my life? Honestly, I don't know it myself. I like his adventures and the world presented there. The books allowed me to break away from everyday life and look at the world from a different perspective, from a magical perspective. Not long I will probably read all the books again to feel this magic again and become a part of this world again :)
    Among my friends and acquaintances there are probably no such Harry fans.

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  19. I learned about Harry Potter from the films I watched because of the fast action and amazing special effects.
    Perhaps I was too old for such stories (currently I am 40 years old). Probably if I tried to read the book first, I could have a different opinion. That was the case with a series of books by Dan Brown and Marc Elsberg.
    In my youth, I en masse absorbed books related to science and technology, science fiction did not arouse my enthusiasm at that time, and I honestly hated school reading. At that time knowledge was my substitute for magic.
    I respect people fascinated with Harry Potter, but I do not share their enthusiasm.

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  20. In 1997 I was only 4 - I was too young to read books. My cousins took me to movie theater to watch first Harry Potter movie and it became our tradition to watch every HP movie together as soon as it came out. I remember reading first Harry Potter book when I was in 3rd grade of primary school, but beacause I knew the plot I did not read more of them. Even so I can say the story was brilliant and Luna Lovegood was my favourite character.
    I can't say that it influenced my life but I have friends that are into this story. They are real collectors of HP related stuff.

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  21. To be honest I have red a few books of Harry Potter series. It was a long time ago so maybe I will refresh the knowledge about plot and continue to read next books.
    Harry Potter series didn’t hardly influence my life. But I’ve noticed the impact of Potter story on my friends. They were always booking tickets for new movie about Harry. I had also a friend who was trying to get to the Harvard University just because of similarity of Hogwart school.

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  22. To be honest I have red a few books of Harry Potter series. It was a long time ago so maybe I will refresh the knowledge about plot and continue to read next books.
    Harry Potter series didn’t hardly influence my life. But I’ve noticed the impact of Potter story on my friends. They were always booking tickets for new movie about Harry. I had also a friend who was trying to get to the Harvard University just because of similarity of Hogwart school.

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  23. I have read all books. Till last book about Harry Potter I really enjoyed them. I wasn't reading HP till fourth book came out. I tried first one just to see why everyone are so excited about this book. After few pages I knew why :)
    I thought about this book as part of entertainment. It didn't infuence my live a lot.
    Also among my friends I didn't see much influence that this book made on them.

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  24. I cannot identify myself as a Harry Potter fan. The reason is trivial. I’m a little bit too old for being a fan of this series. I saw some episodes but without a great fascination. I can imagine that for my younger friends it was fantastic story and they could identify themselves with characters from the books. Honestly, I prefer stories more like “Game of Thrones”. It’s more brutal and scarier but in my opinion more interesting. Finally, answering to your last question at the end of article, no one of my friends is a Potter fan. I asked even my girlfriend and she answered that she hasn't watched any episode. So, as you see I’m not a target for this story :)

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  25. I cant say that Harry Potter had any impact on my or my friends live, but I have read all the books and watched all the movies. I took me some time to start with the series, if I recall it was only after 5th or 6th book came out, I just thought it was childish. However after realizing how dark and horrifying the store became I was interested to know how it actually get to that point. To sum up I would say its a really nice story and if not reading its at least worth watching :)

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  26. Back in the days it was literally one of the 1st book I read at my free will! I also remember, that I used to read long nigh hours on the day of each premiere. It's quite nice piece of memories but I don't think I was that kind of fan who might be influenced by PH stories. I've got one friend of mine who is ( from my perspective) psycho fan but I didn't notice any "special" behavior of her in "normal" life that I can assume any kind of special skill or mental- development made by the J.K. Rowling novel. I'm amazed of commercial success of whole PH-thing but that's it to be honest.

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  27. Now I do not consider myself a huge fan, but I used to be one. I have watched all the movies and read all the books. What's unusual, I started reading books from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, having seen the first three movies before. Rowling's books are a great tale of true, sincere friendship. The most important lesson I have learned from this book is how to be a good friend and how important friendship is in life. Unfortunately, I was the only fan of Harry among my friends.

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  28. I remember awaiting every new Harry Potter movie. I enjoyed the story line and characters presented in the book. I think the series has become a part of popular culture, there are lot of references to the series. One american friend even told me she attended a Harry Potter themed wedding, where the bride and groom would exchange snitch balls instead of weddings rings.

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  29. I do not consider myself as Harry Potter fan. Especially if change a topic a little and talk about Harry Potter movies - I think most of them is pretty bad. Books are much better! They provide better details about the universe and characters. I really like first three books as they focus on describing the world in better details. I liked them a lot when I was much younger. Now, as my taste changed and I do not read fantasy book anymore I am also not interested in any HP books or movies. I don't think those books had any influence on me or my friends.

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  30. I remember story with "half prince blood" book.
    I bought it just after release and one week after my mom asked me "Why did you bought it? It's been week since you get it and it's still on the table" and I said: "mom, I've already read it." it took me three days and nights to read it, i was 9.
    I'm a big fan of Harry Potter, books and movies, all of it.
    J.K. Rowling just gave us an example of perfect friends, great adventures and show us amazing world that is right next to us, be we, the Muggles can't see it at all.
    Great article, thanks!

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