Do you really see the characters in Harry Potter as absolutely good and evil? Harry himself often breaks rules and makes foolish decisions, and Dumbledore famously tells him that it's "our choices that show who we are" (as opposed to our absolute natures). The third book in the series even rests on the idea that those who seem evil (Sirius Black) might be good, and those who seem trustworthy (Peter) might be spineless. In later books, Snape is revealed to be a hero in that sense that he's a mole, but his cruelty toward Harry still isn't excused. And your comment about Draco is interesting, because he is not shown to be purely "bad" by the end of the series, and even makes an effort to help Harry in the final book. I do agree that the series is meant to show good triumphing over evil, but I don't think the characters are absolutely good or evil. Rather, when they choose to embrace love, they find the best in themselves, and when they choose to embrace selfishness they find the worst in themselves, which is true even for Harry, who ultimately acts with love but who often chooses secrecy, self-pity, and isolation, to his and other's detriment. If there's clarity in the series, it's in the value of love over selfishness, which defines the value of good over evil. And isn't that the kind of clarity we want?
Beautifully said. I think there's just more compass points as to how to orient yourself -- i.e. Slytherin is the "bad" house and usually loses... But there are certainly nuances to the characters which is what made the series so beloved.
I now have a burning desire to read your books. Curse you! My TBR pile is like a mountain right now.
Seriously, though, this is a great post.
On adverbs, I sometimes have fights about them with editors. There are times when a bit of dialog really could be read in more than one way. But the examples you use are pretty straightforward.
Rowling's situation is a good example of what one of my friends said in a different context. "Don't spend time on Twitter. Spend time writing your next book." She would have been so much better off...
What's really odd is that a lot of her earlier political statements wouldn't necessarily have led one to anticipate her transgender statements. After all, she injected the fact that Dumbledore was gay into the conversation, despite the fact that there's no indication of that in the books. That suggests a relatively liberal attitude on sexual preference. And she's been constantly critical of Trump. These positions didn't prepare her fans for her views on transgender issues, which I think explains part of the backlash.
Personally, I am fairly active politically, but I don't use my author persona to comment publicly. (Not that anyone would pay that much attention anyway!) Someone reading my books could probably discern some of my philosophy--as they should be able to. But commenting directly on issues outside the scope of my writing is probably not what my fans (few as they are) want. They seem to have a fairly wide ideological spread. The old saying about not discussing politics and religion with friends may also have a certain applicability to fanbases.
I agree with you on remaining somewhat mysterious about politics and ideology -- I really don't discuss much of that here, because I think it does end up tainting the work a bit. But in this case, I was fascinated by WHY she chose to come out and be so open about her thoughts instead of filtering and wrestling with them in the work. Her commenting publicly still seems utterly mystifying to me!
They're mystifying to all of us. You are not alone!
Also, I wasn't intending to be critical of your post. (Your response makes it sound a little as if that's the way you took it.) You're writing about issues relevant to your literature. That's quite different from Rowling, who, as you point out, isn't addressing the issues she feels so passionate about in her literature at all.
I love how you explained the intention of sge to blur the lines and make the characters mouldable in our heads,
it reminds me of how Emily Duncan said she wanted her perceived evil characters to be trying their best to be good but using perspective to swap the morals,
it’s a really great reflection of fiction and how what you are trying to say is represented,
I love seeing what provoked your artistry in what restraints you aim to break,
you’re a long term favourite author and I'm so interested in what you have to say next ‼️‼️💯
Thank you so much and you phrase it all so beautifully. I think I just want to read and write fiction that feels like real life, where everything is uncertain and scary and strange but also joyous and uplifting and romantic. Anything can happen in life. And it should be that way in books!
“Each book, then, in the School for Good and Evil tackled a set of binaries that the Disneys, Rowlings, and other cultural authorities treated as fixed: Good vs Evil in Book 1, Boys vs Girls in Book 2, Old vs Young in Book 3, Truth vs Lies in Book 4, Past vs Present in Book 5, Fate vs Free Will in Book 6.”
THIS is why I love your books so much. Not only are those topics being addressed and explored in a way that is both digestible for all age groups and actually promotes deeper thinking, but also these are the topics that all english majors and readers alike LIVE for!! I remember loving the subtle confusion i would feel reading your books when i was younger because I couldn’t figure out what was “right” and absolutely adoring the way it made me think further. Not many other books (especially for kids) do that and you did it again book after book. So thank you!! For both engaging my young mind and pushing me to think deeper about issues that are and were very much applicable to real life, and for also feeding my literature loving mind these big questions (and subsequently leading me to study lit in college LOL). The world could use more writers like you.
This almost made me cry! I think that's why I loved writing the SGE books -- is to just keep upending everything I was taught as a kid... because so much of it was wrong!!! I just keep thinking of anyone who holds themselves up as Good and Righteous and Moral Authority... and inevitably *those* were the fallen. I always thought of myself as messy, anxious, looking for safe harbor, wobbling between good thoughts and evil thoughts... And writing SGE made me realize EVERYONE is like that!!!
I feel people’s opinions about gender choice mask their inner insecurities, and often we fear what we don’t really know. I have had several encounters with transgender people and they have been very nice. I never felt fear when I saw a woman in the public restroom, I remember an occasion when a lady was very chatty, not nervously but almost as if to justify her presence there. That shouldn’t be the case. I find transgender people to have particularly beautiful souls. We could do with more kindness and less hatred in our world.
I've come across this post, and I love all the themes you've raised I've never thought of! Which is why I wanted to reflect on it.
Personally, even though I've read Harry Potter as a child and did like it back then, as an adult I can't say these series left a profound impact on me. I could understand how the stories have gained their appeal and become a recognised classic (and her own story, rising to fame as an unemployed, single mother, played a role for sure), but I never could quite feel it and reaaally connect with the story. To me, it lacked substance, though some ideas were very interesting.
Now that I think about it after your post, there's definitely a strong element of "black-and-white" present, as well as forced suggestiveness of what every character ought to think or be, as portrayed through adverbs. But at the same time, I'd say it's also characteristic of the genre, especially of the time? Another example I can think of is Lord of the Rings (not particularly with adverbs, but in general principle). I've never read the books, but judging from the movies, there's clear distinguishment between good and evil, and even though I'm not a fan, I think it's a great work. I feel like "greyness" in fantasy is niche, but I admit I don't know the genre as well, and I may be wrong.
So, yes, she is, just like her work, quite rigid and definitive, leaving no wiggle room for possibility. At the same time, it's very much reflective of her time, and her generation, which is why it still resonates with many people... But it's possible that back then, her book was, indeed, something revelational. For example, I've read somewhere that dementors symbolised depression, as she herself described, which might have been quite a novel theme for her time.
Of course, no excuse for her close-minded attitude and the refusal to create inclusive spaces for a variety of perspectives.
this got me thinking about the characters in sge, and how they’ve always felt like real people with flaws and virtues regardless of what side they’re on (even aric and rafal my problematic faves)
whereas harry potter characters always felt a bit more flat and black-and-white in a way where i feel the reader is forced to only root for the good guys and desire the bad guys to be entirely defeated in contrast to sge, where you kinda see where even the villains are coming from (i believe strongly that japeth and evelyn need a hug)
anyway idk those are just my two cents, i love how real the characters in sge feel (so much so that i have very elaborate sexuality headcannons that i am willing to die on the hill of bc the characters feel like people i know)
Why must you bring up geometric proofs 😭the trauma
I really love this though, I truly admire and envy the way that you press boundaries and challenge the system!
I read SGE when I was a lot younger and actually quite homophobic myself (oh if I could see me now 🤪 the difference is hilarious) and SGE was one of my first encounters with gay material and it made me really anxious, I read it anyway though because I was so in love with it! As I got older (and realized some things lol) I re read the books many MANY times and now I LOVE the aspects of the books that made me anxious or upset. I feel like the way you write is so deep and risky in a way and I’m so in love with it! Book two is so fascinating and honestly on of my favorites due to that dynamic between the girls and girls! And then in the Camelot Years Rhian and his mom (Evelyn), and Aric and Japeth, Rhian and especially Japeth are “evil” but it’s only because they are craving love making you question what “evil” really is
And then in Fall of SGE you have that whole plot twist and you really question everything 😭
I am so dearly in love with your writing Soman and I’m so thankful I picked up SGE in Barnes and Nobel that day! Hope that made any sense 😂😅
Good god I just hope she reads this. I hope she HEARS this. It’s the most sensical thing I have read about the whole absurd kerfuffle. I adore the world of Harry Potter and have IMMENSE conflict with her public views and doubling down. I just think that world does have room for all to belong, and I hate that the whole discourse has made that place of sanctuary a place where so many wonderful souls have been banished. Unceremoniously, coldly, and inhospitably.
Hmmmm. Firstly, I've always though JK Rowling was a terrible writer. She has an amazing imagination and her world-building skills are phenomenal. In fact, these are probably the reason I devoured each and every book. Because the characters and story were captivating. But, I did, and still do, think her writing is rubbish. And that's probably why I couldn't get into any of her other books.
As far as the whole twitter thing goes, I kind of feel sorry for her. I think she's taken a lot of flack because she's done something perhaps a bit silly, she's received backlash, she's tried to explain herself and all hell has broken loose.
Today, I was reading a post written by JK (sorry, I can't find the link). where she said that the very first comment she made was in support of one person, rather than the topic and that it all wents nuts from there.
I'd be interested to have a genuine conversation with the woman to find out what her actual views are, and how much has been social media runaway train.
She's been tweeting 10x a day the last few days! It really feels like that's her primary mode of expression now in a lot of ways... So if anything, she's doubling down. Problem is, there is no winning on Twitter. It feels like being dragged down into a pit of zombies and bots.
I loved the gender bending in these books and I'm glad you did it. Sophie as Filip was SO MUCH FUN. I haven't read them in a few, but the sweating. This post isn't about adverbs but I'm down for it.
my first thought is, the world should not be forced to communicate wildly (sorry, had to thow in an adverb for ya there) complicated issues in 200 characters or less!
as your 500+ page novels attest: these issues are complex.
soundbites are not reality--are the not the full extent of a person's ideas, or wrestling with such ideas. ideas, that like in shakespeare, don't need to be defended in absolutes. they ought to be explored.
no judgements made.
both sides should be able to exist and listen to the other side rationally: to challenge each other.
grey all over the place! :)
as the theme song to "crazy ex-girlfriend" says: "actually, the situation is a lot more nuanced than that."
(& i hadn't heard about jlo yet. have we not learned to separate the art from the artist yet? as these posts take you everywhere-- let's just keep going. enough with the cancel culture already!)
So complex! And no one's sorted out gender and sexuality for thousands of years, so we're not about to figure it out today. Lived experience is just too specific and I think the power of art today is that many more artists can articulate their lived experience on a platform accessible to audiences. No more gatekeepers that enforce orthodoxy...
I watched most of the Harry Potter movies while reading books such as the Narnia series, The Keys to the Kingdom, and The Lord of the Rings. I didn't read the Harry Potter books because I wasn't a fan of their movies. Still, one day, I decided to humble down and read, just in case I was biased for no reason.
Hell no – humans aren't seen anywhere as good, there is either good or there's evil.... I wrote a whole blog post about it a few years ago. I hate JKR. I don't like her books which are windows to her personality. I truly believe that people write what they truly think.
The interesting thing about Potter is that at the the time they were written, the moral compass of Good triumphing over Evil was so warm and comforting and routine culturally that her ability to do it *so well* truly made it an epic for everyone. What fascinates me is the idea that we never would have revisited the books if not for these public pronouncements on gender. I think the books would have endured as a monument to a Good over Evil narrative and we would have believed ourselves representative of Goodness (even us secret Slytherins). But now... we look back with revisionist eyes... So slippery!
Do you really see the characters in Harry Potter as absolutely good and evil? Harry himself often breaks rules and makes foolish decisions, and Dumbledore famously tells him that it's "our choices that show who we are" (as opposed to our absolute natures). The third book in the series even rests on the idea that those who seem evil (Sirius Black) might be good, and those who seem trustworthy (Peter) might be spineless. In later books, Snape is revealed to be a hero in that sense that he's a mole, but his cruelty toward Harry still isn't excused. And your comment about Draco is interesting, because he is not shown to be purely "bad" by the end of the series, and even makes an effort to help Harry in the final book. I do agree that the series is meant to show good triumphing over evil, but I don't think the characters are absolutely good or evil. Rather, when they choose to embrace love, they find the best in themselves, and when they choose to embrace selfishness they find the worst in themselves, which is true even for Harry, who ultimately acts with love but who often chooses secrecy, self-pity, and isolation, to his and other's detriment. If there's clarity in the series, it's in the value of love over selfishness, which defines the value of good over evil. And isn't that the kind of clarity we want?
Beautifully said. I think there's just more compass points as to how to orient yourself -- i.e. Slytherin is the "bad" house and usually loses... But there are certainly nuances to the characters which is what made the series so beloved.
I now have a burning desire to read your books. Curse you! My TBR pile is like a mountain right now.
Seriously, though, this is a great post.
On adverbs, I sometimes have fights about them with editors. There are times when a bit of dialog really could be read in more than one way. But the examples you use are pretty straightforward.
Rowling's situation is a good example of what one of my friends said in a different context. "Don't spend time on Twitter. Spend time writing your next book." She would have been so much better off...
What's really odd is that a lot of her earlier political statements wouldn't necessarily have led one to anticipate her transgender statements. After all, she injected the fact that Dumbledore was gay into the conversation, despite the fact that there's no indication of that in the books. That suggests a relatively liberal attitude on sexual preference. And she's been constantly critical of Trump. These positions didn't prepare her fans for her views on transgender issues, which I think explains part of the backlash.
Personally, I am fairly active politically, but I don't use my author persona to comment publicly. (Not that anyone would pay that much attention anyway!) Someone reading my books could probably discern some of my philosophy--as they should be able to. But commenting directly on issues outside the scope of my writing is probably not what my fans (few as they are) want. They seem to have a fairly wide ideological spread. The old saying about not discussing politics and religion with friends may also have a certain applicability to fanbases.
I agree with you on remaining somewhat mysterious about politics and ideology -- I really don't discuss much of that here, because I think it does end up tainting the work a bit. But in this case, I was fascinated by WHY she chose to come out and be so open about her thoughts instead of filtering and wrestling with them in the work. Her commenting publicly still seems utterly mystifying to me!
They're mystifying to all of us. You are not alone!
Also, I wasn't intending to be critical of your post. (Your response makes it sound a little as if that's the way you took it.) You're writing about issues relevant to your literature. That's quite different from Rowling, who, as you point out, isn't addressing the issues she feels so passionate about in her literature at all.
omg! So cool that you have a substack. Will be following :))
Aww I kind of like adverbs lol! It reminds me I’m a proud genre author. I know they are “bad writing” and that’s why I love them lol .
I use adverbs a LOT. I just always felt hers were aggressive and strange! Like they didn't quite match the rest of the writing...
I love how you explained the intention of sge to blur the lines and make the characters mouldable in our heads,
it reminds me of how Emily Duncan said she wanted her perceived evil characters to be trying their best to be good but using perspective to swap the morals,
it’s a really great reflection of fiction and how what you are trying to say is represented,
I love seeing what provoked your artistry in what restraints you aim to break,
you’re a long term favourite author and I'm so interested in what you have to say next ‼️‼️💯
Thank you so much and you phrase it all so beautifully. I think I just want to read and write fiction that feels like real life, where everything is uncertain and scary and strange but also joyous and uplifting and romantic. Anything can happen in life. And it should be that way in books!
“Each book, then, in the School for Good and Evil tackled a set of binaries that the Disneys, Rowlings, and other cultural authorities treated as fixed: Good vs Evil in Book 1, Boys vs Girls in Book 2, Old vs Young in Book 3, Truth vs Lies in Book 4, Past vs Present in Book 5, Fate vs Free Will in Book 6.”
THIS is why I love your books so much. Not only are those topics being addressed and explored in a way that is both digestible for all age groups and actually promotes deeper thinking, but also these are the topics that all english majors and readers alike LIVE for!! I remember loving the subtle confusion i would feel reading your books when i was younger because I couldn’t figure out what was “right” and absolutely adoring the way it made me think further. Not many other books (especially for kids) do that and you did it again book after book. So thank you!! For both engaging my young mind and pushing me to think deeper about issues that are and were very much applicable to real life, and for also feeding my literature loving mind these big questions (and subsequently leading me to study lit in college LOL). The world could use more writers like you.
This almost made me cry! I think that's why I loved writing the SGE books -- is to just keep upending everything I was taught as a kid... because so much of it was wrong!!! I just keep thinking of anyone who holds themselves up as Good and Righteous and Moral Authority... and inevitably *those* were the fallen. I always thought of myself as messy, anxious, looking for safe harbor, wobbling between good thoughts and evil thoughts... And writing SGE made me realize EVERYONE is like that!!!
I feel people’s opinions about gender choice mask their inner insecurities, and often we fear what we don’t really know. I have had several encounters with transgender people and they have been very nice. I never felt fear when I saw a woman in the public restroom, I remember an occasion when a lady was very chatty, not nervously but almost as if to justify her presence there. That shouldn’t be the case. I find transgender people to have particularly beautiful souls. We could do with more kindness and less hatred in our world.
Nazneen A. Rahim
What happened to JK Rowling?
She got involved in identity and sexual intersectionality on twitter instead of exploring it by writing a killer novel.
I've come across this post, and I love all the themes you've raised I've never thought of! Which is why I wanted to reflect on it.
Personally, even though I've read Harry Potter as a child and did like it back then, as an adult I can't say these series left a profound impact on me. I could understand how the stories have gained their appeal and become a recognised classic (and her own story, rising to fame as an unemployed, single mother, played a role for sure), but I never could quite feel it and reaaally connect with the story. To me, it lacked substance, though some ideas were very interesting.
Now that I think about it after your post, there's definitely a strong element of "black-and-white" present, as well as forced suggestiveness of what every character ought to think or be, as portrayed through adverbs. But at the same time, I'd say it's also characteristic of the genre, especially of the time? Another example I can think of is Lord of the Rings (not particularly with adverbs, but in general principle). I've never read the books, but judging from the movies, there's clear distinguishment between good and evil, and even though I'm not a fan, I think it's a great work. I feel like "greyness" in fantasy is niche, but I admit I don't know the genre as well, and I may be wrong.
So, yes, she is, just like her work, quite rigid and definitive, leaving no wiggle room for possibility. At the same time, it's very much reflective of her time, and her generation, which is why it still resonates with many people... But it's possible that back then, her book was, indeed, something revelational. For example, I've read somewhere that dementors symbolised depression, as she herself described, which might have been quite a novel theme for her time.
Of course, no excuse for her close-minded attitude and the refusal to create inclusive spaces for a variety of perspectives.
this got me thinking about the characters in sge, and how they’ve always felt like real people with flaws and virtues regardless of what side they’re on (even aric and rafal my problematic faves)
whereas harry potter characters always felt a bit more flat and black-and-white in a way where i feel the reader is forced to only root for the good guys and desire the bad guys to be entirely defeated in contrast to sge, where you kinda see where even the villains are coming from (i believe strongly that japeth and evelyn need a hug)
anyway idk those are just my two cents, i love how real the characters in sge feel (so much so that i have very elaborate sexuality headcannons that i am willing to die on the hill of bc the characters feel like people i know)
Why must you bring up geometric proofs 😭the trauma
I really love this though, I truly admire and envy the way that you press boundaries and challenge the system!
I read SGE when I was a lot younger and actually quite homophobic myself (oh if I could see me now 🤪 the difference is hilarious) and SGE was one of my first encounters with gay material and it made me really anxious, I read it anyway though because I was so in love with it! As I got older (and realized some things lol) I re read the books many MANY times and now I LOVE the aspects of the books that made me anxious or upset. I feel like the way you write is so deep and risky in a way and I’m so in love with it! Book two is so fascinating and honestly on of my favorites due to that dynamic between the girls and girls! And then in the Camelot Years Rhian and his mom (Evelyn), and Aric and Japeth, Rhian and especially Japeth are “evil” but it’s only because they are craving love making you question what “evil” really is
And then in Fall of SGE you have that whole plot twist and you really question everything 😭
I am so dearly in love with your writing Soman and I’m so thankful I picked up SGE in Barnes and Nobel that day! Hope that made any sense 😂😅
Good god I just hope she reads this. I hope she HEARS this. It’s the most sensical thing I have read about the whole absurd kerfuffle. I adore the world of Harry Potter and have IMMENSE conflict with her public views and doubling down. I just think that world does have room for all to belong, and I hate that the whole discourse has made that place of sanctuary a place where so many wonderful souls have been banished. Unceremoniously, coldly, and inhospitably.
Hmmmm. Firstly, I've always though JK Rowling was a terrible writer. She has an amazing imagination and her world-building skills are phenomenal. In fact, these are probably the reason I devoured each and every book. Because the characters and story were captivating. But, I did, and still do, think her writing is rubbish. And that's probably why I couldn't get into any of her other books.
As far as the whole twitter thing goes, I kind of feel sorry for her. I think she's taken a lot of flack because she's done something perhaps a bit silly, she's received backlash, she's tried to explain herself and all hell has broken loose.
Today, I was reading a post written by JK (sorry, I can't find the link). where she said that the very first comment she made was in support of one person, rather than the topic and that it all wents nuts from there.
I'd be interested to have a genuine conversation with the woman to find out what her actual views are, and how much has been social media runaway train.
She's been tweeting 10x a day the last few days! It really feels like that's her primary mode of expression now in a lot of ways... So if anything, she's doubling down. Problem is, there is no winning on Twitter. It feels like being dragged down into a pit of zombies and bots.
I loved the gender bending in these books and I'm glad you did it. Sophie as Filip was SO MUCH FUN. I haven't read them in a few, but the sweating. This post isn't about adverbs but I'm down for it.
my first thought is, the world should not be forced to communicate wildly (sorry, had to thow in an adverb for ya there) complicated issues in 200 characters or less!
as your 500+ page novels attest: these issues are complex.
soundbites are not reality--are the not the full extent of a person's ideas, or wrestling with such ideas. ideas, that like in shakespeare, don't need to be defended in absolutes. they ought to be explored.
no judgements made.
both sides should be able to exist and listen to the other side rationally: to challenge each other.
grey all over the place! :)
as the theme song to "crazy ex-girlfriend" says: "actually, the situation is a lot more nuanced than that."
(& i hadn't heard about jlo yet. have we not learned to separate the art from the artist yet? as these posts take you everywhere-- let's just keep going. enough with the cancel culture already!)
So complex! And no one's sorted out gender and sexuality for thousands of years, so we're not about to figure it out today. Lived experience is just too specific and I think the power of art today is that many more artists can articulate their lived experience on a platform accessible to audiences. No more gatekeepers that enforce orthodoxy...
I watched most of the Harry Potter movies while reading books such as the Narnia series, The Keys to the Kingdom, and The Lord of the Rings. I didn't read the Harry Potter books because I wasn't a fan of their movies. Still, one day, I decided to humble down and read, just in case I was biased for no reason.
Hell no – humans aren't seen anywhere as good, there is either good or there's evil.... I wrote a whole blog post about it a few years ago. I hate JKR. I don't like her books which are windows to her personality. I truly believe that people write what they truly think.
The interesting thing about Potter is that at the the time they were written, the moral compass of Good triumphing over Evil was so warm and comforting and routine culturally that her ability to do it *so well* truly made it an epic for everyone. What fascinates me is the idea that we never would have revisited the books if not for these public pronouncements on gender. I think the books would have endured as a monument to a Good over Evil narrative and we would have believed ourselves representative of Goodness (even us secret Slytherins). But now... we look back with revisionist eyes... So slippery!