When I gave my Ring Compositions talk in Columbus Circle, NYC, to ‘The Group That Shall Not Be Named,’ the notes and charts from which talk are available here, I was interviewed beforehand by a video journalist from CUNY named Vineeth Thomas, who I met again last summer in Orlando. He wrote me yesterday to share the film piece in which he included a part of what was a long and involved talk. Here is the YouTube edition for your consideration and comment:

Jeanne Hoffman: Welcome to this Kosmos Online Podcast. I’m Jeanne Hoffman. Today I’m talking about Harry Potter and Themes of Liberty with Benjamin Barton, Professor of Law at the University of Tennessee. Professor Barton has written book chapters and articles in governance in the Harry Potter books including Harry Potter and the Half-Crazed Bureaucracy. Welcome Professor Barton and thanks for being on our podcast….

As loyal readers of this site know, I am not a fan of so-called Reader Response literary criticism. Taking the Wikipedia definition as just-about-right, as usual, it’s the relativism of it that I find demeaning to both writer and reader, not to mention the injured truth:

Reader-response criticism is a school of literary theory that focuses on the reader (or “audience”) and his or her experience of a literary work, in contrast to other schools and theories that focus attention primarily on the author or the content and form of the work.

I’m all in, of course, with not focusing on the author’s intentions rather than the intention implicit to the work and for neglecting the reflection of the author’s psycho-biography to look for the artistry and meaning that deliver a shared experience greater than the necessarily fragmented individual one. Accepting that Coleridge is right in his suggestion that we enter text by “suspending disbelief” i.e., that we read with our heart or noetic faculty more than our rational and ego persona, in an act of “poetic faith,” the idea that each reader creates the greater ‘meaning’ of poem, play, or novel strikes me as almost exactly upside-down. Hence our focus here in examining story structure, symbolism, and the supernatural referents that give better writing its power.

I’ll note that I am not entirely consistent in this rejection of Reader Response. C. S. Lewis suggested, for example, that a text has value in so much as it makes the reader or audience “better wiser, and happier” and if they “like it” (“George Sayer on C.S. Lewis’ Definition of a Great Book: Excerpts from our Conversation,” Mark Koonz, CSL December, 2006). Lewis decried, as I do, the Personal Heresy of pre-occupation with an author’s politics and private circumstances but allowed that faith shaped fantasy and the effect of artistry on readers was the point of it, in the end. In this it seems Lewis avoided both the Scylla of relativism and the Charybdis of the inaminate text sans living relationship with a reader’s heart.

Having said all that, I urge you read The Mother Who Lived by ‘Drinking Cocoa’ (PotterDelphian), a LiveJournal post forwarded to me by David. In brief, it is the a gathering of the reflections and experience of a nursing mother while reading Harry Potter and her identification with the author’s struggles with a baby she loves yet loathes because of the sacrificial obligations implicit in the demanding dependency.

No, I don’t think this is an invaluable key for understanding Ms. Rowling’s artistry and meaning akin to alchemy, soul triptychs, and ring composition. But, yes, I know I will never read the opening chapter of Goblet or Harry’s discovery of his mother’s letter in Prince the same way again — and that my appreciation of the work has been enriched in some fashion rather than diminished by this focus on Ms. Rowling’s probable experience as a mom and writer. I look forward to reading your thoughts.

Way back in the day (April, 2010), we celebrated here the announcement that Hobby Lobby philanthropist David Green had purchased a beautiful campus in central Massachusetts’ Connecticut River Valley for a C. S. Lewis (CSL) College that would be devoted to the Arts and Humanities. It turns out, however, that the gift came with prudent strings; if the CSL Foundation could not raise sufficient funds for college operations by January 2012, the deal was off and the donors would look for another recipient.

Which outcome, it appears, has come to pass. Read the story here. It seems the CSL Foundation is still looking for supporters though the philanthropists have opened the doors to other proposals for the remarkable property. Unless I misread the article, it is a matter of several million dollars. Forgive me for thinking that the CSL Estate, flush with its movie millions (?), might have been expected to step in here?

Oh, well. Your thoughts?

Booktrade: Little, Brown To Publish J.K. Rowling’s First Novel For Adults

Media Bistro: J. K. Rowling to Publish First Adult Novel

A little birdie at Leaky Cauldron told me a year ago that Ms. Rowling was writing an adult novel and that she could do nothing else but write, that “it was something all consuming, like a love affair.” That’s the little birdie talking, not Ms. Rowling. I half expected that this would mean a Christmas release in 2011. Nope. It took a little longer than that. Look for pre-publication announcements of title, plot, etc., in the coming months in preparation for the most anticipated book since Deathly Hallows.

Anyone else out there find it amusing that Ms. Rowling and Mrs. Meyer share a publisher? (Hat tip to James for the links!)

Friend of this blog, Dr, Joel Hunter of the Barrett Honors College at Arizona State University, is conducting some research and would like input from the serious readers here. In his paper for an upcoming conference, Dr. Hunter was going to mention the preferences readers have for some of the Hogwarts Adventures, and while we’ve all heard anecdotes about which books are readers’ least/most favorites, he wanted a more thoughtful study. So he created this very simple survey for readers to rank the books from most to least favorite (it’s great if you love them all; just decide which ones you are more likely to crawl back into when you re-visit Harry). If you have read all seven books at least once, please participate in the survey and feel free to pass it along to others who would like to participate. Please only take the survey once (I know some of you want to make Chamber of Secrets number 1 at all costs–restrain yourselves!). Thanks so much for your feedback and for taking part in our on-going goals of research and scholarship!

Read all about it at The Sounds of District 12 (and the Capitol, too)!

It’s been an exciting week for Hunger Games movie news. New images are appearing, and merchandising, most of which makes my skin crawl, is really going wild. But for me, the big news revolves around music. From Grammy shout-outs to the release of the first official video and two more songs from the soundtrack (as well as the complete official soundtrack list), this week may not make the mockingjays fall silent, but it has provided some very interesting food (er, music?) for thought. Join me after the jump for some thoughts on these very intriguing musical developments and what the The Hunger Games has to do with the loss of one very beautiful voice.

There is no denying that The Hunger Games is a remarkably musical story. Despite Katniss’s protests that she little values music (placing it somewhere between hair ribbons and rainbows), she is a singer like her father, and songs like Rue’s Meadow “lullaby” and “The Hanging Tree” are resonant aspects of the trilogy. When I first heard that T. Bone Burnett was going to be producing the film’s soundtrack,I was ecstatic. I knew he would beautifully capture the Appalachian Culture undertones while bringing in amazing, edgy, traditional musicians.

When the first soundtrack single was released, the haunting “Safe and Sound” by Taylor Swift featuring The Civil Wars, the odds seemed very much in favor of a fantastic musical backdrop for the film. The new video for the song does not disappoint. Filmed in the bleak winter in Nashville with rain (and some digital fire), the video ideally captures the novel’s tone. Swift, barefoot and in a ragged white gown, wears little make-up as she croons the song she calls “a death lullaby”; interestingly, with her blond hair and white dress, she strongly resembles Madge Undersee, a character who appears to have been cut from the film (I tweeted a question to MTV about this touch, but the after-preview interviewer instead chose really important questions like whether or not Swift likes cheese; she tried to turn it back to Prim’s goat cheese, but it was pretty useless).

The video cuts from dark, indoor, fireside shots of the Civil Wars, ( this emerging duo also has another song on the soundtrack as well) to Swift, wandering aimlessly across the sodden, bleak landscape, lying on the ground, clutching dead flowers (maybe Rue. I couldn’t identify it), or even sitting huddled on crumbling gravestones. Toward the end of the video, she enters a burned-out house that looks much like the one used for the Everdeen family (but the video was shot in Nashville, not North Carolina). Here she picks up a scorched Mockingjay pin, only one of the wonderful, subtle symbols woven throughout the whole video: the stopped clock in the burned house foreshadowing the arena of Catching Fire, the rain-sodden berry bushes and thorn trees, a deer that turns to ash, and, of course, all those flames. In her post-premier interview, Swift noted that the graves were from 1853 (they certainly look like ones I see in Civil War-era cemeteries) and that she was deeply moved by filming there.

Swift also stated in her post-video interview that this is her favorite video ever, and that’s quite a statement considering some of the ones she’s produced. The after-interview was super, despite the absolutely clueless host who had not bothered to read the novel (honestly, MTV, couldn’t you find someone on your staff who at least understood a third of what made Swift so happy about the way the video turned out? Caesar Flickerman, where are you?), was very revealing. Swift herself is extremely familiar with the novel, which she read after many friends suggested it and there was the possibility of her doing a song. I particularly like how she described how the novel changed her. Like me, she has become a “tree-watcher”–always sizing up trees to evaluate their potential if there is a need to climb one. She also quickly revised her initial ideas about the song she would write and perform. When she first heard about the possibility, she thought she would be writing a “we’re gonna win” kind of song for an action film, but once she read the book, she realized she would be doing something very different. The sparse, eerie song, accentuated by the gorgeous but understated tones of The Civil Wars (they do unbelievable murder ballads), may not completely clue non-readers in to the true nature of the novel, but it certainly shows that at least some of the musicians know what they are about.

I also have high hopes for some of the other songs on the soundtrack. Two others have already emerged for purchase on iTunes: The Decemberists doing “One Engine” and the spine-tingling “Tomorrow will be Kinder” by The Secret Sisters. “One Engine” is a folksy yet industrial-sounding piece that made me think of some of the more tech-oriented/factory districts, like 3 and 8. “Tomorrow will be Kinder” is a phenomenal song that perfectly embodies the Appalachian mindset: our way of saying “don’t worry, be happy” is more along the lines of “God willing, we’ll still be alive tomorrow, perhaps even with food and a warm place to sleep.” Fatalism is what we do best, and our brand of optimism is usually pretty bleak. The song also evokes early country music recordings, like Hank Williams’s definitive “I’m so Lonesome I Could Cry,” taking us to the Depression-era look the filmmakers have given District 12.
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No other songs have emerged yet, but the official soundtrack list is exceptionally promising, inlcuding additional songs from both The Civil Wars and Swift. I actually jumped into the air at the sight of the Carolina Chocolate Drops on the list. This amazing group beautifully preserves traditional African-American musical and performance styles. I hoped in an earlier post that we might be able to have a song from this amazing group on the soundtrack (I often hear them in my head as I read). What a treat to know they will, indeed, be included. Alas, no Gillian Welch doing her little bird song that I always have in the back of my head as I’m working with the novel, but you can’t have everything, I guess.

Of course, this album is being marketed as a different product than the actual score, which will likely include Jennifer Lawrence singing the Meadow Song as well as all the orchestral arrangements for the film.

Speaking of marketing, it was nice to see the Hunger Games spot during the Grammys, and the appropriate positioning of the Civil Wars and Taylor Swift (with her show-stopping number in Depression-era garb, like the video, yes, but also like District 12; don’t get too excited, folks, she’s had that 13 on her banjo/guitar for some time.).

At the same time, I could not help thinking, as presenter after musician paused to acknowledge the just-announced death of Whitney Houston, how this world, with its uber-glam singers, its special effects, and its goal to keep audiences glued to their seats, reflects the Games. It is a world in which these gorgeous young talents must produce ever more glorious performances, or they are tossed to the wolves. Many of them, with a huge prep team in tow, work to create increasingly shocking, surprising, or just plain weird looks for themselves–No one had cat whiskers like Tigris yet; I give Lady Gaga three years before she tries it, if that. There are those who survive this world, even seeming, like Bruce Springsteen, remarkably balanced, though his declaration that we “take care of our own” seemed a bit hollow in light of another lost star. Others, though, like the District 6 morphlings, try to numb their misery with drugs and alcohol, all the while painting on a happy face for the crowds (remember, they love camouflage). While commentators kept asking “what killed” Ms. Houston, I noticed no one had the right answer: She was a Victor who was eventually overcome by the Games, like so many of the others. It always amazes me when people express surprise over these dreadful deaths. I am surprised they don’t all have such tragic fates. Only time can tell which of the darlings of the music, movie, and television industries will be embittered like Johanna Mason, chemically dependent like Haymitch, victimized by their own allure like Finnick Odair, level-headed but cold-blooded like BT, or like Katniss and Peeta, wondering for the rest of their lives what is real, and what is not real.

Complete Soundtrack list
1. Safe & Sound (feat. The Civil Wars) – Taylor Swift
2. Eyes Open – Taylor Swift
3. Abraham’s Daughter – Arcade Fire
4. Come Away (feat. Rozzi Crane) – Maroon 5
5. The Ruler and The Killer – Kid Cudi
6. Run Daddy Run (feat. Pistol Annies) – Miranda Lambert
7. Kingdom Come – Neko Case
8. One Engine – The Decemberists
9. Take The Heartland – Glen Hansard
10. Lover Is Childlike – The Low Anthem
11. Dark Days – Punch Brothers
12. Tomorrow Will Be Kinder – The Secret Sisters
13. The Daughter’s Lament – The Carolina Chocolate Drops
14. Nothing to Remember – Neko Case
15. Just a Game – Birdy
16. Rules – Jayme Dee

I have invested a good portion of my reading life the past year to catching up with the series of Inklings adventures penned by James Owen. The six books are known as The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica and they reward all effort. That being said, they require a lot of effort just to follow the surface meaning.

I cannot begin to explain or discuss it here — let’s leave it at my confession of finding it the most convoluted and bizarre yet challenging and engaging narrative I have ever read — but I know many HogPro readers are also Owen junkies (out there. Christina?), so I rush to tell you that he has made his book Drawing Out The Dragons: A Meditation on Art, Destiny, and the Power of Choice, $4.99 at Amazon (Kindle only), free as an eBook or pdf to all comers. The offer was for one day only but Owen extended the book’s availability for a few more days. Enjoy!

Wow! There are Eight (8) Harry Potter conferences in 2012 that a simple Google search turns up. I assume that there are several more I haven’t heard of, though this lot is a mind-boggling set. I have listed them after the jump in chronological order for lack of an easier parameter; the set covers the complete spectrum from fandom madness blowouts to egghead academic conference, from private college affairs to a wide-open totally online smorgasbord, from adventures in the United Kingdom to Universal Studios to University student centers in the States…

Really, there should be something here (below the jump) for everyone! Enjoy the surfing and please share in the comments box the conferences you know about that I have overlooked.

It All Ended: Harry Potter and Popular Culture — 29 February, De Montfort University, Leicester (UK)

• Special Event: One day conference on all things Harry Potter

• Formal Programming Deadline: No information available on registration, venue, etc.

Harry Potter Childrens Literature Conference — 23 March, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Special Event: Profs. Karin Westman and Philip Nel, Kansas State University

• Formal Programming Deadline: Open only to Pitt students (?)

A Brand of Fictional Magic: Imaginative Empathy in Harry Potter, – May 17-18, St. Andrew’s University, St. Andrew’s, Scotland

• Special Event: First International Academic Potter Conference of note, Quality of Presentations and Panels

• Formal Programming Deadline: Closed, only 30 spaces left for registrants

Expeditious 2012 — 2 June, Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, Michigan

• Special Event: John Granger

• Formal Programming Deadline: Call for Papers open until 1 May

Ascendio 2012 (HPEF) — July 12-15, Loews Portofino Hotel, Orlando Florida (Universal Studios complex)

• Special Event:  The Quill Track!

• Formal Programming Deadline Extended to 29 February

Magic is Might 2012 — 23-24 July, University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland

• Special Event: An International Academic Conference Exploring the Cultural Influence of the Harry Potter Books and Films

• Formal Programming Deadline: Closed, Registration open until 9 July

LeakyCon 3, (LeakyCauldron.com) — August 9-12, The Hilton Chicago, Chicago, Illinois

• Special Event: LeakyCon Lit Track

• Formal Programming Deadline: March 11

PotterCon 2012 (Wizarding Life Networks for Harry Potter Alliance) — 7-9 September, In Your Home, Office, or Preferred Wi-Fi Hot Spot, the first Entirely Online Potter Conference

• Special Features: Inexpensive, Accessibility, Variety of Programming, see FAQ

• Formal Programming Deadline: Proposals not currently being accepted, Registration open until August