J.K. Rowling is a genius

Yeah whatever, we already knew that- she created Harry Potter!

I'm not only talking about the fantastic world she created in the books, or the characters that come to feel like best friends. There is so much going on in the Harry Potter books right beneath the surface that you may not realize your first, second, or maybe even fifth read! She uses theories of psychoanalysis and feminism, and even bases all the spells on latin words.

In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Rowling uses Lacan's Mirror Stage and describes it through the Mirror of Erised (but you probably already know that if you have looked at my previous blog posts).  That, in itself, is an incredibly smart thing to do. However, J.K. Rowling also added a whole new dimension to Lacan's theory; she took it and made it her own. Jacques Lacan theorized that only infants go through the Mirror Stage.  J.K. Rowling uses the Mirror of Erised in her book to show that we never leave the mirror stage. We never feel absolutely content. Society is always pressing new expectations and beliefs on us. Both Ron and Harry, whose experiences in the mirror are explicitly explained, are not infants.

Coolest thing I've ever seen!

I love YouTube

Isn't is awesome how we can just YouTube almost any clip and find it within seconds?
But anyways,
I posted up this scene from the movie Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone because I felt that it was a good representation of the scene J.K. Rowling wrote for the book. I have some problems with the movies, but I think that this scene was done very well. The clip does a good job of setting up the scene: the grand mysterious mirror and the sad boy standing alone who just wants his family.

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Now how does all this relate to the Harry Potter series?

I know you're thinking it- How exactly does this all apply to Harry Potter? If you think about it, the answer is kind of obvious.  The Mirror of Erised!  In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, J.K. Rowling uses the mirror to give her characters more depth, and also to create chaos in their lives. The Mirror of Erised is a manifestation of their deepest wants, dreams, and desires. While Lacan says that when you look in a mirror you see that you are lacking something, Rowling's Mirror of Erised shows you exactly what you are missing, making the feeling of loss and lack even more profound.

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You know you want to!

Here we go...

First off you're probably thinking- What in the world is Lacan's Mirror Stage?!  I'll try to give it in somewhat simple terms.  Here we go:


Jacques Lacan was a psychologist who came after Freud (I know you know who he is!). His most popular theory (and most relevant to Harry Potter) is his mirror stage of development. He said that this stage was experienced starting at about 6 months when the infant first recognizes itself in a mirror. It is here that we learn that we are separate from everything else. The jumble of ideas and confusing thoughts about ourselves is solidified into a single image- our reflections. However, this reflection becomes the 'other'. It encompasses all of the social constructions (what society tells us is right and appropriate). We will never truly be able to reach that ideal we see in the mirror- the perfect, put-together reflection.

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St. Mungo's was nice enough to show me one of their medical brochures!