You are the Quest coordinator but you also teach a Harry Potter course. How did you come up with the idea for the course?<strong>You are the Quest coordinator but you also teach a Harry Potter course. How did you come up with the idea for the course?</strong> You are the Quest coordinator but you also teach a Harry Potter course. How did you come up with the idea for the course?
I’ve taught it three times. I’ve always really enjoyed the Harry Potter novels, and I know that especially this generation of students has a special place in their heart for Harry Potter because they grew up with the series, and I really wanted to explore with students this idea of whether or not Harry Potter is worthy of being called literature or is it just pop fiction. So I wanted to, with the students, look at those types of definitions and how people label different types of literature. And then we could use the Harry Potter story and look at ways that the author might have been influenced by other literature like Charles Dickens and Jane Austen and those types of things.
Why did you first read the Harry Potter series?<strong>Why did you first read the Harry Potter series?</strong> Why did you first read the Harry Potter series?
I had just heard about it. I heard of people that had been reading them and they said they were great, and I think I started reading them right when the fourth book came out. I remember one year over interterm I wasn’t teaching a class and I stayed up the entire night and finished the fourth book because I just couldn’t put it down.
So would you say it’s one of your favorite book series then?<strong>So would you say it&#8217;s one of your favorite book series then?</strong> So would you say it’s one of your favorite book series then?
Absolutely.
Do you have a favorite Harry Potter book?<strong>Do you have a favorite Harry Potter book?</strong> Do you have a favorite Harry Potter book?
I like the fourth one because that’s when we first see death of somebody that Harry knows that dies, and things get darker and more complex, and the characters are getting older. So I’d say I did like the fourth book the best.
Are there any other fictional novels that you like? Twilight or any of those type of books?<strong>Are there any other fictional novels that you like? Twilight or any of those type of books?</strong> Are there any other fictional novels that you like? Twilight or any of those type of books?
I have read Twilight. I’m not a fan. I just don’t think the level of writing is nearly what (Harry Potter’s is) and even the concepts just don’t go together. I just think Harry Potter’s a well-written story, not just in the language that the author uses, but there’s humor. The plot is really well-constructed, the characters are well-developed; I don’t feel the same way about Twilight. We’re actually, in my 112 class, getting ready to read Hunger Games, which I think also is well-written, the first one I think particularly. Gosh, I’ve read so many things that I enjoy.
Harry Potter or Hunger Games?<strong>Harry Potter or Hunger Games?</strong> Harry Potter or Hunger Games?
Harry Potter. Hands down.
If you had a favorite Harry Potter character who would it be?<strong>If you had a favorite Harry Potter character who would it be?</strong> If you had a favorite Harry Potter character who would it be?
Oh gosh. I’d have to say Luna. Luna Lovegood. I just think she’s great; she’s quirky, she’s kinda out in her own little world. She’s smart. She’s loyal. Yeah, I like Luna.
