tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post3899918310662570113..comments2024-03-10T20:46:19.274-04:00Comments on In the Middle: Department of Slow-Moving Targets: Gay WizardsCord J. Whitakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06224143153295429986noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post-52242860032531525942007-11-06T08:27:00.000-05:002007-11-06T08:27:00.000-05:00I appreciate this thread as it has offered some so...I appreciate this thread as it has offered some solid thinking matter for when I actually get a chance to relax and am thankful that I found a place it was brought up in a more mature way than "OMG he's GAY?!" etc...<BR/><BR/>And the fact that you used an image of Jareth for the post is fabulous.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post-5533856318908456402007-10-30T21:06:00.000-04:002007-10-30T21:06:00.000-04:00Oh...my last comment was NOT directed toward the f...Oh...my last comment was NOT directed toward the fine folks here at In the Middle. I apologize if it came off as a bit snarky.<BR/><BR/>Re JJC: Children's lit may appear desexed, but that doesn't mean it is, does it? I'm trying to think back to what I read as a kid, and much of it seems to be about the separation of the protagonist from parental figures and subsequent adventures/trials on his/her own, and all the personal/sexual discovery such journeys imply (me, I read lots of Robert Louis Stevenson and Tolkien, as well as the Hardy Boys, but this fits with "Charlotte's Web" or "Peter Pan" as well). HP seems to fit this mold. Whether or not a book sees growth and discovery as a good thing is interesting...HP does, while C.S. Lewis (for example) doesn't.<BR/><BR/>But this is just my perception. Are there subgenres of children's lit that really AREN'T about separation and growth? Seems possible, but I'm not sure.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post-2147701103448933072007-10-30T19:56:00.000-04:002007-10-30T19:56:00.000-04:00Wow, so much to say on that one. I'll limit myself...Wow, so much to say on that one. I'll limit myself to two as I lurk by Kid #2's door to see if she really needs intervention or is going to fuss it out.<BR/><BR/>(1) the desexualization of characters (or the displacement of sexuality into other forms, like magic) is a feature of children's literature from its start in the 19th C, isn't it? Also, the figure of the Wise Old Man is likewise also a nonsexual being. Generalization: old folks who express any sexuality are characters in adult comedies.<BR/><BR/>(2) What's all this about Niviane/the Lady of the Lake being to blame for Merlin's downfall? In the Suite du Merlin, the wizrd lusts after his 15 year old protege and plots to deflower her. terrified of his sexual advances and not all that fond of being violated by the son of a demon, Niviane entombs Merlin to keep his randy inclinations permanently in check. <BR/><BR/>And don't I remember that in the Lord of the Rings Gandalf falls in love with a lady orc and they sail to the Grey Havens for their honeymoon? Or did I read the unauthorized version?<BR/><BR/>(3) a bonus. Dumbledore being gay was actually quite the good opportunity for the Harry Potter books' young audience to talk about what it means to love someone of the same sex (and yes, it is hokey that it had to be in youth and for a short time and tragic and be followed by celibacy ... but it is a start in children's lit)Jeffrey Cohenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17346504393740520542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21165575.post-46701471408466657282007-10-30T19:28:00.000-04:002007-10-30T19:28:00.000-04:00The questions about intention this has raised are ...The questions about intention this has raised are interesting, if predictable, but Rothstein seems to be a bit dense in his reading of HP, particularly in his denial of sexuality in the books. Granted, he only talked about Dumbledore in his column, but there's definitely sex in those books: much of the story, especially in the later books, revolves around the characters dealing with puberty, after all. Rowling is never explicit (nothing beyond some make-out scenes in book 6 I think) about the characters' burgeoning sexuality, but it's clearly there. As for Dumbledore, no one I've talked to who has read the books was particularly surprised by this revelation. Lit critics have certainly pulled out stranger things from texts...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com