Harry Potter is a Black Man... What???

            Never judge a book by its cover. Ever. You will most likely be wrong, I guarantee it. This past week we read Nikki Giovanni’s Sanctuary: For Harry Potter the Movie. One of the main reasons I read it was because it had Harry Potter in it, the other, obviously, it’s homework.

            The beginning is amazing and unexpected. Giovanni shows great style that keeps the reader on the edge of his/her seat. The drums beating. The fragments. It keeps it short and sweet and leaves you wondering what’s going to happen next. Then it cuts to the story of the baby elephant. It shows a protective pack of elephants trying to save the one and only baby elephant from the poachers. After the intense scene, she uses rhetorical questions to get the audience into the mind of the lone baby elephant and to show you what it is thinking. After his internal questioning it shows a flicker of hope.

            Next, it cuts to Harry Potter. And this is where all the chaos and over thinking every possible situation starts. So let me break it down for you. Harry Potter isn’t really Harry Potter. He is actually a black man and a baby elephant and kind of Harry Potter. Talk about having multiple personalities. She flashes from being Harry Potter, the boy who lived, to the black man, who is given into slavery, to the lone baby elephant, who is defenseless.

            Now if you would like something to read that confuses you, read this. If you don’t, ignore everything you just read. If you don’t really know, read it and find out.

Suicidal Coward

In the novel, The Scarlet Letter, we begin to see character development in characters such as Dimmesdale. We have seen contrast between characters such as Dimmesdale and Hester. The most dramatic character was Dimmesdale. He is supposedly a well respected man amongst the town’s people and is a good man. However, he starts to feel agonizing pain right where his heart is hence the symbolism of Hester’s scarlet letter over her heart. They are both connected and their stories are intertwined. Dimmesdale begins to understand Hester’s pain and struggle. Although, it is not the same. He goes into the square during the night and stood on the scaffold. He clutches his heart and cries out in pain but quickly regrets yelling because he is scared the town’s people will come out and see him in his shame and misery.

            Finally after seven years, Dimmesdale and Hester meet and discuss a future together in England. He agrees but wants to tie up loose ends. Once they are ready to leave and embark on their journey, Dimmesdale rips open his shirt, shows the town what’s on his heart, and kills himself. After everything, this coward decides to kill himself. He put Hester through Hell and back and leaves her for good. Hester had to put up with this life for seven years while Dimmesdale is just having a bloody good time. He got off easy taking his life while Hester was strong, independent, and never gave up.

This is not a trait of a tragic hero but of a suicidal coward.

Sad Beautiful Tragic

                Hester is portrayed as a strong woman. She can also be classified as a not so strong character. She has been mocked by her peers and society and has to live with that burden for the rest of her life. She picks herself up from the ground and brushes herself off and moves on with her life. However, the townspeople disagree. The children of the townspeople even feel that she shouldn’t ever forget her sin. They play tricks on Hester and Pearl and throw mud at them even when Hester is trying to redeem herself as an individual. However, she is reminded everyday for her fault with the bright red “A” on her chest.

                Her counter character, Dimmesdale is having some health problems. It becomes evident that his heart hurts him when he starts to clutch at his chest. This is funny because Hester has the red “A” on her chest right where Dimmesdale seems to be hurting. This also shows that the red “A” can also be shown as an emotional pain on Hester when that is all she is recognized for and Dimmesdale is experiencing physical pain in his heart right where Hester has her red “A”. They have become bonded by a fault physical and emotional to both Hester and Dimmesdale.