Wednesday, July 9, 2003

In reply to Chris Turner's letter that likened a harmless children's novel to that of a stepping stone towards moral bankruptcy, I must firmly contend against the opinion he supports of suffocating adolescent imagination in order to preserve Christianity.

Harry Potter is no more than an innocent, magical character fashioned with the intention of quenching a kid's undying thirst for adventure and all things enchanting.

You cannot honestly believe that this series is capable of moving mass amounts of kindergartners to the "ever uprising" occult movement in Peachtree City, can you? That's absurd.

Why children fall in love with these novels, why they are so captivated by this boy wizard with messy hair and awkward glasses is because they identify a part of themselves with him.

Harry represents just an ordinary kid, with family problems and insecurities like the rest of his peers; however, he was able to latch on to the impossible, the unbelievable, which deep down, I believe we all desire to do.

What's the harm in dreaming a little, in finding solace in a book which contains the same amount of magic as preceding fairy tales of evil stepmothers and frogs turning into princes?

If you try to stifle children's fantasies, then our world will truly be hopeless and dark. I think one reason why God instructs believers come to him like children is because children are able to put faith in things which adults, with all their knowledge and realistic approaches, are quick to dismiss as foolish and inconceivable.

Well, let the kids believe. Let them run down the stairs each Christmas morning with the belief that a jolly old man in a red suit has rewarded their goodness Let them trust in a God who they can neither hear nor see, and lastly, let them be captivated by literature which is heartfelt and dreamlike.

Today, in our country, people grow up too fast. They are forced into acquiring a rational and pragmatic attitude towards life because, for some reason, people seem to fear what creativity can bring. These books bring happiness to children, not evil intentions; everything that isn't realistic isn't wrong.

The great philosopher Thoreau once wrote that "dreams are the touchstones of our character." J.K. Rowling's whimsical writing simply gives young men and women of the world somewhere enthralling to escape in; for what's the point of being a kid if you can't hope in something magical?

Marybeth Williams

Peachtree City, Ga.