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The aim is to evaluate Rowling’s world of fairy tales and its adherence to the criteria of a fantasy secondary world according to the frameworks proposed by T. Todorov (1973), R. Jackson (1981), and F. Mendlesohn (2008). The secondary world in the Harry Potter series, the wizarding world, is open to the real world and shares its geography, yet hidden from non-magical people. It is consistently described with its own culture, customs, traditions, and social norms. The central conflict is between Good and Evil for domination, with Evil aiming to extend its power to both the magic world and the real world. The fantasy world is relatable to readers due to its handling of universal themes and issues relevant to their lives, transferring characters into new life conditions. Research methods include content analysis, psychological research, and comparative analysis. Keywords: fantasy; secondary world; psychological accuracy; determinacy; dichotomous time.

En 2001 Chris Columbus adaptó Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal, la opera prima de Joanne Kathleen Rowling para convertirla en la primera película de la saga Harry Potter. Nuestro artículo ofrece un análisis de algunas de las decisiones que se tomaron respecto de la novela para hacer la película, en específico de cómo se trabajó con la trama y con el mundo mágico. Para ello se pone primero en contexto la película y se revisa el concepto de adaptación, de manera que después puede explicarse por qué es importante que Columbus escogiera filtrar unos elementos y mostrar otros, algo que se ejemplifica mediante dos escenas del filme., In 2001 Chris Columbus adapted Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Joanne Kathleen Rowling's opera prima to make it the first film in the Harry Potter saga. Our article provides an analysis of some of the decisions made by Columbus regarding the original novel to make his film, especially focused on how the plot and the Wizarding World were treated. To do so, the film is in first place put into context and the concept of adaptation is reviewed, so that later it can be explained why it is important that Columbus chose to filter some elements and show others, something that is exemplified by two scenes from the film.

In addition to being interesting and educational, Children's and Young Adult literature frequently also has a psychological and emotional role for their readers. When having problems or doubts in life, (young) people tend to escape their world by reading books and imagining themselves in another universe. In their novels, J. K. Rowling and Veronica Roth made up two fantasy worlds for the readers to escape to: the Harry Potter universe and the imaginary, dystopian post-war Chicago respectively. In both, the characters are divided into several groups according to their ambitions and personality traits. In the center of J. K. Rowling’s work, is a young orphan wizard, Harry Potter, who enters the magical world thanks to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and makes lifelong friendships within his House. On the other hand, Veronica Roth depicts Tris (Beatrice), who has trouble fitting in in an imposed faction system. Having been assigned into specific circles or schools, the protagonists are set to behave and mature in a certain way. This paper will explore how the categorization of the characters influences the molding of their identities in order to show that being assigned to a specific group largely determines the path by which one’s identity will formed.

Submitted by Naiana Ghilardi (naiana.ghilardi@unesp.br) on 2021-03-30T21:37:59Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação de Mestrado - Naiana Ghilardi.pdf: 1745077 bytes, checksum: 5840f277725165948167ca5da90d976f (MD5) Rejected by Maria Luiza Carpi Semeghini (luiza@assis.unesp.br), reason: Prezada Naiana, Por gentileza, realize a seguinte alteração: - Corrigir Sumário de acordo com a paginação do trabalho. Agradecemos a compreensão. Atenciosamente, Equipe do Repositório Unesp. on 2021-03-31T13:43:13Z (GMT) Submitted by Naiana Ghilardi (naiana.ghilardi@unesp.br) on 2021-04-16T21:47:20Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação de Mestrado- Naiana Ghilardi.pdf: 1287550 bytes, checksum: fd9914ccd4656a114cfc10c59e5e0290 (MD5) Approved for entry into archive by Maria Luiza Carpi Semeghini (luiza@assis.unesp.br) on 2021-04-22T17:03:35Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 ghilardi_n_me_assis.pdf: 1287550 bytes, checksum: fd9914ccd4656a114cfc10c59e5e0290 (MD5) Made available in DSpace on 2021-04-22T17:03:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ghilardi_n_me_assis.pdf: 1287550 bytes, checksum: fd9914ccd4656a114cfc10c59e5e0290 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2021-02-03 Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) A proposição desta dissertação fundamenta-se na pesquisa e evidenciação do arquétipo feminista da personagem Hermione Granger presente na série de livros Harry Potter, da autora inglesa J. K. Rowling. Para a análise proposta, este estudo foi dividido em três partes: primeiro foi discutido a vida e obra da autora, o fenômeno de Harry Potter e sua relação com a literatura juvenil e a sociedade pós-moderna. Em seguida, foi elaborado um breve panorama sobre a história do feminismo, questões de classe, raça, gênero e sobre a crítica feminista e literatura de autoria feminina. Elaine Showalter, Vigínia Woolf, Kate Millet, Lúcia Osana Zolin e Angela Davis são alguns dos referenciais teóricos utilizados neste trabalho. E por fim, a ênfase do estudo se encontrou na análise da trajetória da personagem nos sete livros da série com o intuito de denunciar as práticas patriarcais presentes na narrativa. The proposition of this dissertation is based on the research and evidence of feminist archetype of the character Hermione Granger present in Harry Potter’s book series by the English author J.K.Rowling. For the proposed analysis this study was divided into three parts: first, the author's life and work, the Harry Potter phenomenon and its relationship with young literature and postmodern society were discussed. Then, a brief overview of the history of feminism, issues of class, race, gender and of feminist criticism and female-authored literature was elaborated. Elaine Showalter, Vigínia Woolf, Kate Millet, Lúcia Osana Zolin and Angela Davis are some of the theoretical referentials used in this analysis. And finally, the emphasis of the study was found in the analysis of the character's trajectory in the seven books of the series in order to denounce the patriarchal practices present in the narrative. CAPES: 88882.432669/2019-01

No presente artigo, são comparados dois contos de fadas de nacionalidades distintas: “A mesa, o burro e o porrete”, dos irmãos alemães Jacob e Wilhelm Grimm, e “O conto dos três irmãos”, de J. K. Rowling, com o objetivo de evidenciar que o texto de Rowling muito se assemelha ao dos Grimm. Além de verificar as relações intertextuais existentes, busca-se demonstrar que há um elemento unificador entre eles: o número três. Recorrendo a estudos que conferem o significado simbólico do número três, são analisados os dois contos e é demonstrada a recorrência do denominador comum, como na oferta de três objetos mágicos, que têm papel decisivo para o desenvolvimento da narrativa.

This paper analyses J. K. Rowling's The Tales of Beedle the Bard as an example of children’s literature that incorporates elements of magical realism. Rowling, a British author, is most prominent for the coming-of-age Harry Potter series of seven novels, which began in 1997 with the publication of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, her debut novel, lasted throughout the 2000s, and continues today with related works. After the release of the final book in 2007, Rowling released The Tales of Beedle the Bard in 2008 as a supplement to the series. This collection of tales was first mentioned in the last instalment of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, when it was presented to Hermione Granger as a part of Dumbledore’s will. The Tales of Beedle the Bard are envisioned as fairy tales, and consist of five tales for witches and wizards’ children, each of them centred around magic, but with a didactic purpose which is beyond the magic itself. Therefore, this paper aims to identify the characteristics of fairy tales and magical realism in each of the tales from The Tales of Beedle the Bard, and their joint contribution to the creation of their didactic purpose. The analysis shows that each of the tales carries a didactic purpose as a result of the above-mentioned characteristics.

The archetypes are characters and plots that reappear in literature throughout history in different cultures and narrative genres. Archetypal literary criticism analyses a literary work through its archetypes, which puts focus on the roles of the characters in the story and the narrative structure. J. K. Rowling uses archetypal characters in the Harry Potter series and this allows the readers to identify themselves with her unique characters because they are already familiar to them even though they are new. She casts Harry Potter as the hero, Lord Voldemort as the villain, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger as the hero’s sidekicks, Albus Dumbledore as the mentor, and Fred and George Weasley as the tricksters for an element of comedy. Rowling also applies Campbell’s archetypal plot pattern Hero’s Journey to the series. She uses the Separation, Initiation and Return model to create a cycle in which Harry leaves the Dursleys and goes to Hogwarts each September, works on stopping Voldemort until he ultimately does, and returns back to the ordinary world. This cycle can be observed in Harry’s main quest, but it can also be noticed in each of the seven novels as secondary quests.

Made available in DSpace on 2021-06-25T11:45:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2020-01-01 This paper compares two fairy tales of different nationalities: The Wishing-Table, the Gold-Ass, and the Cudgel in the Sack, by the German brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, and The tale of the three brothers, by J. K. Rowling, with the aim of highlighting that Rowling's text very much resembles the Grimm's narrative. In addition to verifying the intertextual relations between both texts, it is sought to demonstrate that there is a unifying element between them: the number three. The two stories are analyzed through studies on the symbology of number three, and the recurrence of the common denominator is demonstrated, as in the supply of three magical objects, which have a decisive role in the development of the narrative of both stories. Univ Estadual Paulista, Letras, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil Univ Estadual Paulista, Letras, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil

This essay explores how in the Harry Potter series, J. K. Rowling's magical heroes function asparadigms whose roles reflect on issues of race, prejudice and racism. Those issues include goodand evil, socialism and aristocracy, purity and impurity, freedom and indebtedness. This essayfocuses on showing how those themes are reflected and confronted in the dipole between HarryPotter and Draco Malfoy. Additionally, the Critical Race Theory, a theory that examines howculture uses and assorts power and race in society, is implemented to show how race andprejudice are reflected in the magical world. By further analyzing Harry and Draco's upbringingand social milieus in relation to the theme of good vs. evil, the development of these characters ispresented in response to their contrasting surroundings. The paper concludes that thesecharacters evolve in the final novels and make conscious choices to achieve the common causeof defying evil, despite their opposing backgrounds. Denna uppsats utforskar hur J. K. Rowlings magiska hjältar, i Harry Potter-serien, fungerar somen paradigm vars roller reflekterar frågor kring ras, fördomar och rasism. Dessa frågor inkluderargott och ont, socialism och aristokrati, renhet och orenhet, frihet och skuldsättning. Dennauppsats fokuserar på att visa hur dessa teman reflekteras och konfronteras i dipolen mellan HarryPotter och Draco Malfoy. Dessutom implementeras Critical Race Theory, en teori somundersöker hur kultur använder och sorterar makt och ras i samhället, för att visa hur ras ochfördomar återspeglas i den magiska världen. Genom att ytterligare analysera Harry och Dracosuppväxt och sociala miljöer i förhållande till temat ’gott mot ont’, presenteras dessa karaktärersutveckling som ett resultat av kontrasterande omgivning. Uppsatsen drar slutsatsen att dessakaraktärer utvecklas i de sista romanerna och gör medvetna val för att uppnå det gemensammamålet till att bekämpa det onda, trots deras motsatta bakgrunder.

Se estudia la importancia de la imagen de marca de un autor, y la importancia que tiene para su visibilidad. Se analiza del caso de J.K Rowling como ejemplo de migración desde su nicho original, la literatura infantil y juvenil, a la literatura de adultos, estudiando los indicadores de visibilidad como ediciones de su obra, presencia en las listas de más vendidos, presencia web, y aparición en bases de datos nacionales e internacionales. Se discute la viabilidad de salir del nicho de mercado amparado por estructuras editoriales y comunicativas consolidadas, empleando además el expediente del anonimato.

The article deals with the issue of intralinguistic translation. This phenomenon is a unique type of translation that is conducted between two variants of the same language. The material is British to American English translation of six “Harry Potter” novels by J. K. Rowling. The substitutions are divided into types according to the degree of their reasonability. Pairs of concordances not recorded in dictionaries are examined. Статья освещает проблему обоснованности межвариантного перевода. Данный феномен является особым видом перевода, производимым с одного варианта языка на другой вариант того же языка. Материалом для исследования послужил перевод текстов шести романов серии книг о Гарри Поттере Дж. Роулинг с британского варианта английского языка на американский. Осуществленные в тексте замены подразделяются на группы в соответствии со степенью их целесообразности. Выделяются незафиксированные контекстные соответствия.

Universidad de Sevilla. Grado en Comunicación Audiovisual

Title: From Romance to Norm-Criticism. Visual Communication in Digital Fan Communities Fans and fan communities play an important part in today’s participatory culture. A central aspect of fans engagement in fictional worlds are the fan made artworks, for example fan fiction, fan art or fan vids, inspired by the original story and shared within the community. The article examines fan art related to the fictional worlds of the Engelsfors trilogy (2011–2013) by Sara Bergmark Elfgren and Mats Strandberg, and J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series (1997–2007). The analysis comprises two different motifs, both related to common repertoires for fan interpretation. “Shipping” is the term for fan’s engagement in a specific romantic relationship. In this article, I discuss the romance between Linnéa and Vanessa (the Engelsfors trilogy). The other motif, “racebending”, refers to artworks where fans change the race or ethnicity of one or more character. I analyse fan art were Hermione (Harry Potter) is depicted as black. Fans publish their artworks within the communities where the participants share knowledge, experiences, and emotions connected to the fictional world. My discussion focuses on how fan art functions as visual communication within these specific contexts. While fan fiction is usually described as adding to or transforming the fictional universe, fan art can also be said to highlight or underline specific aspects of the story or the reading experience by giving them visual representation.

O projecto Contos Ilustrados a partir de J.K. Rowling propôs-se desenvolver um livro infanto-juvenil ilustrado a partir da obra Os Contos de Beedle, o Bardo, realizando tanto as ilustrações como todo o design editorial do livro. O projecto foi repartido em dois: a parte teórica e a parte prática. Na parte teórica abordei vários temas relacionados com a ilustração infanto-juvenil, como a sua história, história da literatura infanto-juvenil, o estudo de artistas conceituados e respectivas técnicas e metodologias de trabalho. Sendo as crianças o público alvo a quem se dirige o objecto de estudo do meu projecto, pesquisei a importância dos livros infantis no seu desenvolvimento, assim como o desenvolvimento da percepção visual, para me instruir no sentido de criar um produto que se adequasse a esta faixa etária. Relativamente à parte prática, foram aplicados os conhecimentos adquiridos na parte teórica do projecto, o que possibilitou a experimentação de diversas metodologias, e a exploração e desenvolvimento de competências técnicas no campo da ilustração. Foi trabalhada a relação entre texto e imagem, a qual se traduziu em layouts variados e em tipos de letra legíveis que abraçam o grafismo das ilustrações e a temática dos contos, com o intuito de obter um livro com uma linguagem gráfica consistente, que se evidenciasse como um todo. A realização do projecto permitiu perceber o quão moroso e experimental é o processo de desenvolver um livro infanto-juvenil. Os conhecimentos adquiridos desenvolveram as minhas apetências para os relacionamentos dos elementos textuais com os ilustrativos. The project Contos Ilustrados a partir de J.K. Rowling set out to develop an illustrated children’s book from the book The Tales of Beedle the Bard, creating both the illustrations and the entire visual design of the book. The project was divided into two parts: a theoretical part and a practical part. In the theoretical part, I dealt with several topics related to children’s illustration, such as their history, children’s literature history, the study of renowned artists and their work techniques and methodologies. As children are the target audience for the study object of my project, I researched the importance of children’s books in their development, as well as the development of visual perception so as to help me create a product that suits this age group. In the practical part, I applied the knowledge researched and acquired in the theoretical part of the project, which allowed me to experiment with several methodologies, and explore and develop technical skills in the field of illustration. One of the focuses of my project was to analyze and work on the relationship between text and image with the intention of obtaining a book having a consistent graphic language that speaks for itself. This resulted in various layouts and readable types of letter that embrace the graphics of the illustrations and the theme of the short stories. The realization of this project demonstrated clearly how time-consuming and experimental the process of developing a children’s book is. The acquired knowledge developed my understanding of the relationships between textual and illustrative elements.

En este artículo se aborda la novela policial El canto del cuco (2013), de Robert Galbraith/J. K. Rowling. La novela se muestra atravesada por discusiones en torno a la escritura femenina, la autoría y la tematización de los roles de la mujer. Abordamos tanto la construcción de la imagen de autor como la intertextualidad donde observamos la recurrencia del motivo del disfraz. Fil: Gagliardi, Lucas. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación. Instituto de Investigaciones en Humanidades y Ciencias Sociales (UNLP-CONICET); Argentina.

Este trabajo analiza la hibridez del género fantástico que se observa en obras contemporáneas a partir del caso particular de J. K. Rowling y sus novelas. La serie Harry Potter posee un entramado genérico marcado por la hibridez: se solapan elementos fantásticos, épicos, satíricos, costumbristas y policíacos y se construye un verosímil literario. De este modo, se sustrae al relato de las construcciones más clásicas de la tradición fantástica. La obra de Rowling incorpora con especial fuerza elementos de la tradición mimético-realista, los cuales se entretejen con otras series de ingredientes de un modo que sitúa a Harry Potter en relación dialógica (y hasta polémica en términos bajtinianos) con otras obras literarias fantásticas., Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación

En este artículo estudiamos una serie de prácticas de lectura y escritura llevadas a cabo por lectores de Harry Potter en la web. Sostenemos que los lectores en los espacios analizados despliegan modos de leer la obra literaria de acuerdo con políticas de lectura y escritura que se configuran de formas diferentes en cada sitio a partir la vinculación de aspectos tecnológicos, ideológicos y estéticos. A través de este estudio observamos una diversidad de prácticas por medio de las cuales los lectores despliegan sus interpretaciones y contribuyen al universo creado por J. K. Rowling en el marco de la "cultura participativa"., In this article we study the on line practice of writing and reading by readers of Harry Potter. We argue that the readers, within the analyzed sites, exercise different reading modes to approach the literary series; reading modes are related to the politics of reading and writing which get configurated differently in each site on the basis of ideological, aesthetic and technological aspects. We observe a diversity of practices where readers display their interpretations and, by means of them, they make contributions to the universe created by J. K. Rowling, Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación

The article deals with the issue of intralinguistic translation with reference to J. K. Rowling’s «Harry Potter» novels’ translation from the British to the American variant. The reconstruction of possible reasons for the alterations is conducted. Their influence on the novels’ perception by an American reader is analysed.

Although several academic studies have extensively analyzed J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, there might not be many studies examining the traits of the classical hero’s journey in this specific novel. Hence, the aim of this essay is to identify the recurrent stages of a classical hero’s journey in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. In order to accomplish this, this paper will first introduce some basic biographical information about J. K. Rowling as well as a section devoted to the characterization of Fantasy literature. Then, following a psychoanalytic approach, the paper will analyze the main stages that recurrently can be identified in the journey of a classical hero presented in Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces, and subsequently, it will establish a correlation between such stages and J.K. Rowling’s first published novel. Lastly, a conclusion will be presented enclosing all the information presented above and summarizing the key ideas defended throughout this essay.

En este artículo se analizan las tradiciones textuales presentes en el libro Animales fantásticos y dónde encontrarlos (2001), de J.K. Rowling, texto que junto con Quidditch a través de los tiempos (2001), Los cuentos de Beedle el bardo (2008) y el portal Pottermore participan de la expansión del mundo ficcional de la autora. En el caso particular de este libro, se recurre a una serie de operaciones textuales que dialogan con la tradición del bestiario, género que proviene de la Edad Media, y con el manual escolar. Se revisará el uso de la parodia, la polémica y el modo en que Animales fantásticos interviene en la conformación del verosímil del mundo ideado por Rowling, This article analyzes the textual traditions present within Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2001), by J. K. Rowling, a text which joins Quidditch Through the Times (2001), The Tales of Beedle the Bard (2008) and the web site Pottermore participates in the expansion of the author's fictional world. In the particular case of this book, a series of textual operations in used to establish a dialogue with the tradition of bestiaries, a medieval genre, and with text books. We will discuss the use of parody, polemic discourse and the way in which Fantastic Beasts is used to shape out the verisimilitude of the fictional world of Harry Potter, Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación

En Animales fantásticos y dónde encontrarlos, la escritora J. K. Rowling debuta como guionista: refunde un texto literario publicado en 2001 para crear una precuela de la serie de Harry Potter y traslada la acción a Nueva York de la década de 1920. En ese desplazamiento geográfico y temporal, la película desarrolla una trama que retoma y desarticula el mito del american dream en sus diferentes inflexiones. En este artículo analizamos cómo se lleva a cabo dicha descomposición teniendo en cuenta el largometraje y su guion, así como otros escritos de la autora que participan de esta expansión del mundo mágico que se inició en 1997 con la publicación de Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal, In the work Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, writer J. K. Rowling debuts as a Scriptwriter: she recasts a literary text published in 2001 to create a Harry Potter series' prequel, transferring the action to New York in the 1920's decade. In that geographical and temporal displacement, the movie develops a plot that takes back and dismantles the myth of the American dream in its different inflections. In this paper we analyze how this decomposition is carried out, taking into consideration the movie itself and its screenplay, as well as other works from the author that participate in the expansion of this magical world that began in 1997 with Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación

Reseña sobre la trasposición cinematográfica del libro de J. K. Rowling., Review on the film adaptation of J. K. Rowling's book., Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educación

Treball de Final de Grau en Traducció i Interpretació. Codi: TI0983. Curs acadèmic 2015-2016 La fraseologia sempre ha estat una feina molt complicada per als traductors. El present Treball de Final de Grau consisteix en l’anàlisi de la traducció de la fraseologia en dos dels llibres de la saga Harry Potter (Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone i Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets): L’objectiu és observar com s’ha traduït la fraseologia en les traduccions al castellà i al català, a partir de l’estudi de les tècniques de traducció emprades. L’anàlisi estarà acompanyada d’una breu explicació teòrica sobre la traducció de la fraseologia i sobre la traducció de literatura infantil i juvenil

Os livros da série Harry Potter tiveram seu primeiro volume publicado em 1997 e o último em 2007. Desde o princípio, a série passou a exercer um forte apelo sobre leitores de todas as idades e de todos os lugares. O objetivo desta dissertação é investigar esse fenômeno, a fim de identificar os motivos pelos quais a resposta às obras provou ser tão intensa. O corpus de investigação compreende os sete livros que formam a saga: Harry Potter e a Pedra Filosofal, Harry Potter e a Câmara Secreta, Harry Potter e o Prisioneiro de Azkaban, Harry Potter e o Cálice de Fogo, Harry Potter e a Ordem da Fênix, Harry Potter e o Enigma do Príncipe, e Harry Potter e as Relíquias da Morte. Os focos da análise se concentram em três aspectos: a jornada do herói; as diferentes formas de apresentação da ideia de morte; e o tratamento das dicotomias. Como suporte teórico, recorro a estudos sobre mitologia e imaginário, conforme tratados por Joseph Campbell; às considerações morais e estéticas de Umberto Eco sobre conexões entre os reinos vizinhos da Vida e da Literatura; e à abordagem filosófica de Zygmunt Bauman sobre nossos tempos líquidos contemporâneos. O trabalho está estruturado em duas partes. A primeira apresenta algumas hipóteses sobre a pronta aceitação da obra por parte do público leitor e expõe a base teórica sobre a qual se apoiam os arrazoados do trabalho, estabelecendo as conexões necessárias com os pontos investigados. A segunda parte contém minha leitura da série Harry Potter, centrada nos três itens propostos para análise. Ao final da dissertação, espero que minha análise possa contribuir para a discussão sobre o papel que a série Harry Potter desempenha no contexto contemporâneo e também sobre quais paradigmas atuais ela ratifica, questiona ou refuta. The Harry Potter Books had their first instalment published in 1997 and the last in 2007. From the beginning, the series exerted a very strong appeal upon readers of all ages, and from all places. The aim of the present thesis is to investigate this phenomenon so as to identify some reasons why the response to the works has proved so intense. The corpus of investigation comprises the seven books that form the saga: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The focus of the analysis closes upon three aspects, the journey of the hero, the different approaches to death, and the treatment of dichotomies. As for critical and theoretical support I rely on studies about mythology and the imaginary, especially as presented by Joseph Campbell, on Umberto Eco‟s moral and aesthetic considerations about the connections between the neighbouring realms of Life and Literature, and on Zygmunt Bauman's philosophical approach to our liquid contemporary times. The work is divided into two parts. The first presents the necessary contextualization, poses some hypotheses about the prompt acceptance on the part of the reading public, and exposes the theoretic background on which this thesis is grounded, and establishes the necessary connections with the points investigated. The second part contains my reading of the Harry Potter Books, closing on the three items to be analysed. At the end of this argumentative thesis I hope my analysis may contribute to the discussion about the role the Harry Potter Books play in their contemporary context, and about which of the current paradigms they ratify, question or deny.