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Last week, MuggleNet ran a story covering a certain post that originated on WhatCulture.com about how Harry Potter was a better book series than the Lord of the Rings trilogy, written by J.R.R Tolkien years ago. After publishing that story, we expected a strong response from the Harry Potter fandom - and you guys didn't disappoint - however the comments were far from what we expected.
By and large, Harry Potter fans came out in support of the Lord of the Rings, claiming the original writer of the WhatCulture! article was at fault with several of his points, probably hadn't read J.R.R. Tolkien's classic series, and that to rank one series as "better" than the other in the first place was a wholly subjective argument, and therefore ludicrous!
Well... well reasoned Harry Potter fans! We put out a challenge to you all to submit an article in response to this original piece and one fan, Adam S., answered the call! Check out this new MuggleNet editorial which rebuts '9 Reasons' reason by reason.
If you would like to read more editorials and learn how you can submit one of your own, head to this link!
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More likely than not, the question of how Dementors may breed has not been as pressing on your mind lately as it has been on mine. You see, on the last episode of Alohomora! during our general discussion of these fascinating creatures, I challenged the fandom to write an editorial speculating the mechanics of how Dementors breed.
Today I would like to feature the work of one fan who has answered the call.
In this new editorial, Julia Hastings comes up with a plethora of excellent theories about not only how Dementors breed, but also how they may form their society. She also considers the degree to which Dementors are manipulated by the Ministry of Magic in the series and discovers some ethical dilemmas.
If you would like to respond to this quibble or submit one of your own, send me an e-mail.
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Daniel Radcliffe’s tendency to prank his fellow Harry Potter cast-mates often added levity to the set, but there was at least one time when his antics went a little too far.
Reportedly, Robbie Coltrane, who portrayed Hagrid in the films, was once a victim of a prank where the young actor changed the settings on his friend’s phone from English to Turkish. The joke seems harmless enough—except that Coltrane was left unable to make calls!
The infuriated actor had a hard time finding anyone on set who could change the settings of his phone back to English, and Radcliffe was left feeling understandably sheepish about what he had done. Coltrane remembers the event clearly:
Eventually we found a girl in the Harry Potter make-up department who was Turkish Cypriot. She phoned her mum and was chatting away in great detail until they sorted it out. I think Daniel was so upset at what had happened that he wrote me that note...'Dear Mr. Coltrane, I'm sorry I changed your mobile telephone into Turkish...
Have you ever been part of a prank gone too far? Let us know in the comments!
Posted by Jessica on 12-06-2012 at 12:50 AM
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Yes, perhaps not your commonplace kind of question - but I brought it up on a recent episode of the MuggleNet podcast, Alohomora! In addition to a great deal of speculation on this question and others in our new forums, one of our most active commenters, Hippogriff, has written a quibble entirely about how Floo Powder might work. He even takes a shot at answering my question:
...its important to remember that wizarding owls seem to be much more intelligent and have a better sense of direction than our regular Muggle owls do. Therefore, it might be possible, with a little determination, to train these owls to use the Floo Network as wizards do. The only problem would be the naming of the desired destination, as “hoot” will not always cut it. So, a modification might be possible to allow the wizard sending the owl to say the name, and trust the owl to get out at the right time.
Our quibble this week is yet another essay that comes from our Alohomora! section on MuggleNet, where fans can discuss the newest podcasts and also discuss aspects of the chapters we analyze each week. It's a whole lot of fun, and if you'd like to submit a quibble to us to possibly be featured, right here on this page, you can manually publish your work on that part of the site, or submit in an e-mail to me at mugglenetessays@gmail.com.
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Ever since the additions of the Alohomora! and Academia sections/podcasts to the site, fans have had a great deal to discuss regarding their favorite book series. All the while the MuggleNet Editorials section has been actively following this intelligent discourse, and some of the most thrilling arguments have been featured as the MuggleNet Quibble of the Week.
This week we'd like to do this again, and feature a quibble written in our Alohomora! section by Ali Wood about the ethics of Transfiguration. Read it at this link!
We know the imposter Moody turns Draco Malfoy into a ferret and bounces him around the entrance hall in Goblet of Fire. We can assume that Moody/Crouch was an accomplished enough wizard to complete this transfiguration completely. But did he really turn Malfoy all the way into a ferret, or just turn his body into a ferret? From Malfoy’s fear of Moody and terror after the event, I would conclude that just his body took on a ferret shape...
Is this ethical? Probably not. Though turning objects into other objects, or conjuring or vanishing things may be all well and good, the question of human and animal transfiguration is a tricky one. You could seriously damage a living creature with magic, perhaps even, in a way, kill them. Or are the inanimate objects, such as the slippers made out of bunnies, still possessed with a dormant kind of life?
Truly the implications of animal Transfiguration are quite frightening! But are they as grim as Ali believes? If you transfigure a living object into an inanimate object are you, in actuality, killing it? And could you bring it back to life. . .
To read more great quibbles like this one, or to learn how you can submit one of your very own, head over to the MuggleNet Quibbler Section!
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This week’s Quibble of the Week discusses social media, and its profound influences on the Harry Potter fandom. In his essay, “From Books to Blogs: Harry Potter and Social Media,” apwbdumbs clarifies how invaluable social media truly is to fans:
“Through the use of social media, fans themselves have been able to create an enriching Harry Potter experience that promotes community and perpetuates the series. But Harry Potter's presence in social media does much more than just creating community, and preserving the series.Because of its universal themes of love, adventure and social justice, and the ease of being able to relate to and empathize with its characters and situations, Harry Potter has broken down racial, gender and socioeconomic barriers, and acts as a common interest that brings people together. Today, as fans converse about the series, characters, themes, and values on social media sites, understanding and cooperation are formed. In the process, friendships are made.”
What do you think? Have social media sites (such as MuggleNet) enhanced your experience as a fan? Do you feel a greater sense of being a part of this fandom, because you can chat with other Harry Potter fans from all over the world?
To read more essays like this one, or to learn how to submit one of your own, head over to the MuggleNet Quibbler.
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