Professor Severus Snape of Harry Potter shame is seen as a hero by some for putting his life at risk to act as a double agent in the fight against Lord Voldemort. Snape is far from that. The reason Snape puts his life at risk is because his childhood crush's life is at risk and in the hand of Voldemort. Issue is the lives of her young son and husband are also at risk. Snape does not care if they live or die, just that Lily Potter be spared. This is inherently creepy.
I think it is important to recognize that Snape is brave to act as a double agent for Dumbledore. But he is creepy as hell in doing it. He never stops loving Lily and it seems as though he never got over his hate for her husband James. To be fair, James bullied him badly at school, but Snape retaliates for that by bullying their son Harry for 6 years. He abused his position of power to make a student who has been to hell and back feel terrible whenever he had the opportunity.
Does unrequited love have to die at some point? Yes. If one person moves on, then the other person has to accept that. Lily saw the choices that Snape was making at school. He was hanging out with Death Eaters and highly interested in the Dark Arts. On the other hand the boy that had loved her for a while actually grew up and stopped being a jerk. Lily fell in love with him, they got married, had a kid, went into hiding and were killed all before they turned 22. This left their son an orphan in need of protection. Dumbledore ensured that protection was provided, but he needed help from those who were in Hogwarts.
Snape was the only teacher who hated Harry. Professor McGonnagall got frustrated with his constant rule-breaking with his friends, but most of the teachers liked him and somehow he ended up being a well-adjusted and generally smart student...unless you asked Snape. Instead, Snape viewed him as an untalented nitwit who could do no right. Yet Harry managed to do a lot of right that Snape failed to recognize. Instead he bullied and antagonized Harry to no end, constantly trying to make him out to be the bad guy even when he was in the right.
I think it is because of how severely terrible J.K. Rowling wrote Snape that she made his redemption story seem sweet. He loved Lily. He risked his life to try to save hers. He obsessed about her after her death. It was creepy. Instead of being like Harry and finding love after never knowing what it felt like, Snape hated the one person who could have helped him find some closure. Instead of helping her son find success, Snape tried to make him a failure.
Snape is not a hero. Snape is a guy who was okay with two people dying, including a one year old, as long as the "love of his life" lived. Instead, he tried to break the kid when he got the chance.
Monday 10 August 2015
Tuesday 28 July 2015
The Imperfect Perfection of Anne and Gilbert
Romance novels are unappealing to me because they create every character to be perfect. These flawless humans are lovely, but they make for a boring, unrealistic read because no one is like that. I begrudgingly decided to read the Anne of Green Gables books because I am a good Canadian and those are Canadian books. I ended up falling in love with how L.M. Montgomery wrote Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe's romance.
First of all, Montgomery does the age old "boy teases girl because he likes her." This works because it is true and it sets up the story of their love: imperfection leads to a perfectly imperfect love. Anne detests Gilbert and refuses to like him from this point forward; only engaging with him when it came to academic competition. Anne was too proud to admit that at some point she started liking Gilbert and because of that she almost lost him.
At some point Anne takes multiple marriage proposals, all of which she declines. The only one she accepts is the one she always wanted, but never expected to get a second chance at, the one from Gilbert. Pride and youth already tried to end their romance, but yet they found each other and finally made it...except Gilbert still had three years of medical school. After all that time though, it was a nothing wait for them.
Most of the marriages in Anne of Green Gables are marriages of convenience. Girls have to get married so they marry the first nice boy they meet. Anne and Gilbert's marriage is the exact opposite of that. Anne is the most inconvenient girl for Gilbert to marry and yet he keeps on trying to get her until she matures enough to see that he cares about her and loves her, as she does to him.
Even in their marriage, they are not portrayed as always happy. At the end of Anne of Ingleside, Anne is terribly jealous because Gilbert is distracted by what she thinks is a former flame and is ignoring her own emotional turmoil. And then she thinks he has forgotten their anniversary and completely does not care about what she wears when they go out. Turns out a sick patient was causing him so much stress that he was not himself and he had noticed all the little things Anne had tried to do for him but stopped because he was ignoring them. Instead of acting like everything was happy all the time in a marriage, Montgomery portrayed the idea that it isn't, but love wins.
Anne of Green Gables is a somewhat flawed series, some books are superfluous and some characters are quite shallow. But the bones of the book are a strong-minded woman who is allowed to remain who she is in a restrictive environment and a man who loves her because of that, not in spite of it. Montgomery's bravery in writing the characters as flawed people instead of perfect humans. In doing so, she wrote near perfect characters who have a near perfect love story.
First of all, Montgomery does the age old "boy teases girl because he likes her." This works because it is true and it sets up the story of their love: imperfection leads to a perfectly imperfect love. Anne detests Gilbert and refuses to like him from this point forward; only engaging with him when it came to academic competition. Anne was too proud to admit that at some point she started liking Gilbert and because of that she almost lost him.
At some point Anne takes multiple marriage proposals, all of which she declines. The only one she accepts is the one she always wanted, but never expected to get a second chance at, the one from Gilbert. Pride and youth already tried to end their romance, but yet they found each other and finally made it...except Gilbert still had three years of medical school. After all that time though, it was a nothing wait for them.
Most of the marriages in Anne of Green Gables are marriages of convenience. Girls have to get married so they marry the first nice boy they meet. Anne and Gilbert's marriage is the exact opposite of that. Anne is the most inconvenient girl for Gilbert to marry and yet he keeps on trying to get her until she matures enough to see that he cares about her and loves her, as she does to him.
Even in their marriage, they are not portrayed as always happy. At the end of Anne of Ingleside, Anne is terribly jealous because Gilbert is distracted by what she thinks is a former flame and is ignoring her own emotional turmoil. And then she thinks he has forgotten their anniversary and completely does not care about what she wears when they go out. Turns out a sick patient was causing him so much stress that he was not himself and he had noticed all the little things Anne had tried to do for him but stopped because he was ignoring them. Instead of acting like everything was happy all the time in a marriage, Montgomery portrayed the idea that it isn't, but love wins.
Anne of Green Gables is a somewhat flawed series, some books are superfluous and some characters are quite shallow. But the bones of the book are a strong-minded woman who is allowed to remain who she is in a restrictive environment and a man who loves her because of that, not in spite of it. Montgomery's bravery in writing the characters as flawed people instead of perfect humans. In doing so, she wrote near perfect characters who have a near perfect love story.
Friday 17 July 2015
Love, Loyalty, and Harry Potter
I finally re-read Harry Potter after first reading them when I was no older than 14. At the time the books were good to me, but the actual meaning in them; the mature themes in them were lost. The writing carries the last three books for younger people. The writing is strong enough to mean something even then, but to get the themes of the books, love and loyalty always winning, you have to have a more mature understanding of what is valued.
Harry's longing for his parents is a common part of the books. He misses them greatly, especially in times of trouble. The longing is aided by his need for love. Harry can love though and that love is what makes him unique. Because he can feel love, Voldemort cannot touch him. Dumbledore says that often, but J.K. Rowling makes love a much bigger theme in the books than being about just Lily Potter's love for Harry.
There is love everywhere you look in the series. In the second book Harry and Ron go into the Chamber of Secrets to save Ginny. In the third book Sirius risked his life to see his Godson in person. Harry repays him by saving him from the Dementors. In the fourth book McGonagall fights to get Harry out of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Sirius makes sure Harry is alright by checking in on him and risking being caught again to make sure Harry is not hurt. The fifth book Harry loves Sirius so much that he leaves the safety of Hogwarts to go save him from a place he is not even at. Sirius loves Harry enough to go into the Ministry of Magic to save him and ends up dying. The fifth book is also when Dumbledore explains how love saved him (along with other information pertaining to Voldemort) and Harry starts to understand what magic protected him that night in Godric's Hollow. The seventh book features the Battle of Hogwarts where Tonks came to help Lupin (her husband) fight, Percy rejoined his family and then reacted like someone who still loved his family when his brother was killed and Molly Weasley killed Bellatrix Lestrange because she was fighting her daughter. Narcissa Malfoy even helped Harry deceive Voldemort and regain himself so he could kill him. All so she could see her son.
The best example of love though is Professor Snape and why he is no longer on Voldemort's side. Snape knew Lily before she went to Hogwarts and Lily was kind to him when few were. Snape loved Lily, she loved James. When Snape knew that they were next and Voldemort was going to kill them and Harry, he went to Dumbledore. He left Voldemort because his love of Lily was too strong. Dumbledore knew Snape would not turn on him, but he needed Snape to play both sides. Snape being a double agent was a risky thing that came from love.
Aside from love there is also the theme of loyalty. The character that best shows this loyalty is Neville Longbottom. From the first book on Neville is a someone who always tries to do the right thing. He stands up to his friends when they go to break rules. He masters defence spells against dark magic so he can fight alongside Harry. He goes to the Ministry to fight. He starts up an underground resistance when Snape is headmaster and he continues to fight until the end. Neville is loyal to Harry, to Dumbledore and is a sign of all the good in the world. Although not a prominent early on, from book five on Luna Lovegood becomes another loyal friend of Harry's, always up for a fight even with the odds not in their favour.
Harry Potter is a Young Adult series, but Rowling manages to talk about the intense theme of love as not something between two young people, but in the sense of family and how love will prevail when all seems lost. Rowling explores a common theme, love, but in a way that is rarely explored for young people: familial love. She then sprinkles in loyalty to show that love and loyalty and nothing else can beat evil.
Harry's longing for his parents is a common part of the books. He misses them greatly, especially in times of trouble. The longing is aided by his need for love. Harry can love though and that love is what makes him unique. Because he can feel love, Voldemort cannot touch him. Dumbledore says that often, but J.K. Rowling makes love a much bigger theme in the books than being about just Lily Potter's love for Harry.
There is love everywhere you look in the series. In the second book Harry and Ron go into the Chamber of Secrets to save Ginny. In the third book Sirius risked his life to see his Godson in person. Harry repays him by saving him from the Dementors. In the fourth book McGonagall fights to get Harry out of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Sirius makes sure Harry is alright by checking in on him and risking being caught again to make sure Harry is not hurt. The fifth book Harry loves Sirius so much that he leaves the safety of Hogwarts to go save him from a place he is not even at. Sirius loves Harry enough to go into the Ministry of Magic to save him and ends up dying. The fifth book is also when Dumbledore explains how love saved him (along with other information pertaining to Voldemort) and Harry starts to understand what magic protected him that night in Godric's Hollow. The seventh book features the Battle of Hogwarts where Tonks came to help Lupin (her husband) fight, Percy rejoined his family and then reacted like someone who still loved his family when his brother was killed and Molly Weasley killed Bellatrix Lestrange because she was fighting her daughter. Narcissa Malfoy even helped Harry deceive Voldemort and regain himself so he could kill him. All so she could see her son.
The best example of love though is Professor Snape and why he is no longer on Voldemort's side. Snape knew Lily before she went to Hogwarts and Lily was kind to him when few were. Snape loved Lily, she loved James. When Snape knew that they were next and Voldemort was going to kill them and Harry, he went to Dumbledore. He left Voldemort because his love of Lily was too strong. Dumbledore knew Snape would not turn on him, but he needed Snape to play both sides. Snape being a double agent was a risky thing that came from love.
Aside from love there is also the theme of loyalty. The character that best shows this loyalty is Neville Longbottom. From the first book on Neville is a someone who always tries to do the right thing. He stands up to his friends when they go to break rules. He masters defence spells against dark magic so he can fight alongside Harry. He goes to the Ministry to fight. He starts up an underground resistance when Snape is headmaster and he continues to fight until the end. Neville is loyal to Harry, to Dumbledore and is a sign of all the good in the world. Although not a prominent early on, from book five on Luna Lovegood becomes another loyal friend of Harry's, always up for a fight even with the odds not in their favour.
Harry Potter is a Young Adult series, but Rowling manages to talk about the intense theme of love as not something between two young people, but in the sense of family and how love will prevail when all seems lost. Rowling explores a common theme, love, but in a way that is rarely explored for young people: familial love. She then sprinkles in loyalty to show that love and loyalty and nothing else can beat evil.
Friday 5 June 2015
Christine Sinclair aura of being makes her vital a vital role model
The game had the perfect timing. It was on my birthday and I wanted nothing that year so I asked my parents to take me. Just a 21 year old out with her parents at a soccer game. As you will, Canada. When we were there my mom and dad both observed that the stands were packed with young people watching the women's soccer team and how good that was. Young girls don't have a lot of female role models and there was a team of them playing sports. Perfection.
The linchpin for the team is Christine Sinclair. She grew up on the team and will forever be the one all others are compared to. Way back when she was featured in Owl magazine (issue since recycled). But it is how she carries herself that is more important than anything she does in sport. There was an article in Walrus about her and it talked about how she refuses to be marketed for her looks. This was presented as a bad thing because it means she is leaving money on the table. It is a great thing. Quietly, uncompromisingly Sinclair is making a silent statement to young girls and women everywhere: be you and let people see you for you.
Male athletes are marketed for their talent alone everyday, yet the expectation is that female athletes are only marketable if they are conventionally pretty. Sinclair refuses to let anyone do that to her. Instead, she only allows herself to be marketed as a peer to her male counterparts. In a recent SportChek commercial, she was featured alongside other athletes: male, female, professional, amateur, abled and disabled. The theme of the commercial was "all sweat is equal". Every single athlete was presented as equal.
A lot is written about Sinclair the player and what she means to Canada and soccer. Not a lot is written about how her uncompromising personality and her stance on how she is marketed. It sends a message, even without it being known to females: I am equal and I am going to be known as an athlete. Unflinchingly going against the norm and staying true to oneself is more important than any legacy left on the field of play. Unknowingly there will be a generation of girls who see themselves as not needing to be sexualized to be seen as the best because they have someone who was willing to be themselves and while doing that they were also able to be one of the best at what they do.
At the end of the day, the legacy of one player will not be determined by a World Cup. Instead, that legacy will silently be determined by young girls learning that you do not have to change for others to like you. Be yourself. Be uncompromising. Do what you love. Do it with every ounce of your being. Do not change. The smart people will accept you and love you for being you.
The linchpin for the team is Christine Sinclair. She grew up on the team and will forever be the one all others are compared to. Way back when she was featured in Owl magazine (issue since recycled). But it is how she carries herself that is more important than anything she does in sport. There was an article in Walrus about her and it talked about how she refuses to be marketed for her looks. This was presented as a bad thing because it means she is leaving money on the table. It is a great thing. Quietly, uncompromisingly Sinclair is making a silent statement to young girls and women everywhere: be you and let people see you for you.
Male athletes are marketed for their talent alone everyday, yet the expectation is that female athletes are only marketable if they are conventionally pretty. Sinclair refuses to let anyone do that to her. Instead, she only allows herself to be marketed as a peer to her male counterparts. In a recent SportChek commercial, she was featured alongside other athletes: male, female, professional, amateur, abled and disabled. The theme of the commercial was "all sweat is equal". Every single athlete was presented as equal.
A lot is written about Sinclair the player and what she means to Canada and soccer. Not a lot is written about how her uncompromising personality and her stance on how she is marketed. It sends a message, even without it being known to females: I am equal and I am going to be known as an athlete. Unflinchingly going against the norm and staying true to oneself is more important than any legacy left on the field of play. Unknowingly there will be a generation of girls who see themselves as not needing to be sexualized to be seen as the best because they have someone who was willing to be themselves and while doing that they were also able to be one of the best at what they do.
At the end of the day, the legacy of one player will not be determined by a World Cup. Instead, that legacy will silently be determined by young girls learning that you do not have to change for others to like you. Be yourself. Be uncompromising. Do what you love. Do it with every ounce of your being. Do not change. The smart people will accept you and love you for being you.
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