Under The Spell By Joan Acocella

The Harry Potter series can be an enjoyment for children or a literary failure depending on the reader. Joan Acocella, the author of “Under the Spell” thinks the Harry Potter books are an amazing series that took a new turn on fairy tales. She was able to enjoy the series while feeling a connection with the characters. Harold Bloom, the author of “Can 35 Million Book Buyers Be Wrong? Yes.” has a different view of the series. He believes that the books may be interesting, but they lack literary structure and reading a book that doesn’t help you gain knowledge is a mistake. While reading the essays you may be entertained but begin to realize the lack of proper literature throughout the series. Both authors had a different view on the Harry …show more content…
In the essay “Under the Spell”, Acocella talks about the series being great books and very interesting. She states “The great beauty of the Potter books is their wealth of imagination, their sheer, shining fullness” (Acocella, 530). This part of the essay shares the authors’ thoughts on the books and how great she believes they are. The author is saying that the books are well written and that they are full of creativity and independent thoughts. Acocella also states “After all that, I would love to tell you that the book is a big nothing. In fact, it’s wonderful, just like its predecessors” (Acocella, 527). This quote follows Joan Acocella’s description of her experience on waiting in line for a Harry Potter book. She waited several hours for her book but said it was worth it because the book was just as wonderful as the books before “The Goblet of Fire”. However, Harold Bloom believes that the books were a literary failure but still fascinating. He states “Though the book is not well written, that is not in itself a crucial liability” (Bloom, 538). Bloom wrote this in his essay to express his thoughts on J.K Rowling’s writing but still show that’s not all he thinks about the series. Harold Boom also states “Her prose style, heavy on cliché, makes no demands upon her readers” (Bloom, 540). The authors’ belief on the books being literary failures is supported by this statement. …show more content…
Joan Acocella believes it can help children feel like they have more power and understand situations in life better. In the essay she states “But that is the main virtue of these books, their philosophical seriousness. Rowling is a good psychotherapist, and she teaches excellent morals” (Acocella, 535). This part of the essay is explaining that the books teach children to share their feelings and thoughts, and better ways to handle their behaviors. She also states “The subject of the Harry Potter series is power, an important matter for children, since they have so little of it” (Acocella, 532). Children usually feel like they have less power because they are young and cannot make decisions on their own. With this book series children feel like they have the powers that the characters have, which causes children to feel more important. Harold Bloom had a different point of view on this, he believes Harry Potter doesn’t help a child grow as an individual or gain a stronger personality. He explains this when he says “A vast concourse of inadequate works, for adults and for children, crams the dustbins of the ages” (Bloom, 541). The author is saying that work like Harry Potter is filling our heads with material that isn’t going to help us. Reading the Potter series may be fun, but Bloom would prefer if someone read a book that had proper literature