The Effacement of Post-9/11 Orphanhood: Re-reading the Harry Potter Series as a Melancholic Rhetoric
Kim Hong Nguyen
High Point University
Abstract
Contrary to critics and scholars interested in the series’ therapeutic value, Harry Potter encourages post-9/11 subjects to neither heal nor mourn. Instead of taking up the potential pain and transformation in realizing and coming to terms with the deaths of his parents, Harry’s reattachment to the institution precludes his abilities to mourn constructively and his orphanhood effectively gets effaced over the course of the series. This article suggests that the therapeutic value ascribed to Harry Potter indicates a hope that it will serve as a pedagogical device to produce loyal, patriotic citizen-subjects that will hold on to rather than mourn loss.
- Journal
- Poroi
- Published
- 2011-02-01
- DOI
- 10.13008/2151-2957.1079
- CompPile
- Open Access
- OA PDF Gold
- Topics
-
- Export
- BibTeX RIS
Citation context
Cited by in this index (0)
No articles in this index cite this work.
References (0)
No references on file for this article.
Related articles
-
Business and Professional Communication Quarterly Feb 2024Entrepreneurial Mindsets & Rhetorical Canons: Enhancing Business Communication Pedagogy via Cross-disciplinary Theory, Praxis ↗Josie A. Burks; Craig E. Armstrong
-
Philosophy & Rhetoric Jul 2023Nathaniel A. Rivers
-
Philosophy & Rhetoric Oct 2022Rachel Stroup
-
Rhetoric & Public Affairs Sep 2022Christopher Tindale
-
Rhetorica Mar 2022Don Paul Abbott