Letters to Bloggers Outside My World

Dear Amy Blum, 
Your blog post "Making a Difference" is a clear-cut read; it gives the reader an honest, simple look at the issues faced by the Harry Potter books in PotterWorld.

I agree with your claim that the book series is filled with real-life lessons! The books were about a world we Muggles knew nothing of, and they still were so relatable. The characters are inspiring, and they fulfill roles that correspond to higher ideals. Love, compassion, trust, hope and peace.

"Well, if Harry Potter condoned anything, it was the idea that you can make a difference regardless of age, gender, or size."
--Amy Blum.
^Best line ever. 
The Dumbledore's Army and its predecessor, The Order of The Phoenix were remarkable justice-seeking, evil-fighting organizations. When you compare the OoP and the DA to the Death Eaters, you can see the contrast between doing the right thing for the 'Greater Good' and striving to gain control 'for the Greater Good'.
Nope, that was Grindelwald, my bad. Lord Voldemort did not really care about the 'Greater Good', did he? And all his Death Eaters cared about was power and morsels of appreciation from their Dark Lord. Grindelwald is an interesting piece of study: he is undeniably evil yet he wanted power "to do good". Power and greed blinded him, and were eventually the cause of his downfall.

And then, we have Dumbledore. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore fought his greed, and he won. (Forgive the vagueness, I'm trying to preserve the story for people who haven't read the books yet.)

Yes, Harry Potter is all about power struggles within and without; it is the classic tale of "making a difference" within and without. Good over evil.


You are Dumbledore's man through and through, aren't you? :)

Love, and Luna-hugs,
V.

p.s. Here is a picture I found on viria13's deviantArt page:

Dumbledore's Army

Letters to Bloggers Outside My World

In Response to His Greatness Himself

Oliver Watson is a man of...erm, great opinion. I absolutely admire his strength in thinking (though not so much his strain of thought) and how he valiantly stands tall and broad for his views and beliefs. He is the king (no, scratch that: The Mega-Emperor) of the world (at least, his world) when it comes to finding love and living a extravagant happy life. From the looks of it, I bet he has had fewer slipper-slaps and verbal-turned-physical rejections than most men in his days. Yeah, men then were such rogues. Sir Oliver Watson was just a super-rogue, in fact, the best in his time!

Oh, and he dispenses his special secrets of success in women, booze and the Regency-era (and the remaining 19th century) fast life through his wonderfully-worded blog, "Oliver Watson's Advice to Men".
He writes to men of all ages, all races, all walks of life. Simply put, he writes for the traditional white English nobleman and his kin. His writings mostly focus on wooing women, and they attempt to showcase his honest and all-knowing voice. For a man of such ancient times, no, excuse me, the 19th century, Oliver Watson is astonishingly insightful and amusingly modern. He blogs, for Lord's sake! He is extremely well-read; he reads the likes of James Fordyce, Hester Chapone and John Gregory, all well-known writers in their time.
Also, he appreciates Snooki, and calls her an example of the right kind of woman, by which he means "the wrong kind of woman". A lady just will not do; men need a real woman. Oliver respects the need for a bounteous sex life, and he makes it clear in his writings that sex was more important than most things in life. Men get it, old man Watson. Men must win the heart of a woman who can bring him the greatest pleasure. 

Oliver Watson with his wildly good looks and his undeniable charm, is the very epitome of manliness. He inspires and raises the spirits of men all over the world. He assures them of success unforgettable, and a life well-lived. He is an inspiration. He is the reason we need feminism in the world. Oliver Watson, you helped bring about the birth of egalitarianism and freedom movements. We owe everything we have, the world we live in to great men like you, Sir Watson. (You are a Knight, are you not? You totally deserve it!)

With gratitude, 
V.

p.s. In this letter, I send you a link to some music you would most definitely like. I would be eternally grateful if you chose to appreciate my taste in music.

------
Credits:
"Nigel's Song/Pretty Bird", Rio OST. Uploaded from YouTube.

"Oliver Watson's Advice to Men". Written, updated and fed by blogger Oliver Watson.

Harry Potter: Choices, not your gender-ed qualities

Harry Potter is NOT a hermaphrodite.
No, oh no, he clearly is not.
A little androgynous? Perhaps.
The poster-child for genderlessness?
Okay, maybe that is a little too exaggerated to be right.
Anyway, back to what I was beginning to tell you about,
before my time here elapses,
Harry Potter is a feminist...yes, in all his manness.

Not just him. Him and all the other good J.K. Rowling characters, yes,
the books are filled with feminist symbolism!
Subtle, yes...but powerful, moving images of feminism and bigger-world-equality!
From Neville and his passion for Herbology, to Ginny and her Bat-Bogey Hex.
From Molly Weasley and her kickass feminism,
(She owned everybody else at the Battle of Hogwarts, with her ferocity!)
to Luna Lovegood and...just everything about her!
And then, there is Tonks,
And the Greatest Witch of All Time, Hermione,
And the Greatest Wizard of All Time, Albus Dumbledore!
Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick.
You see it, don't you?

There. Now that I have satiated my poetic whim, let us take a look into my Pensieve tonight.

Yep, that would be my night-beard. It's a rare medical condition.

I remember how a slip of the tongue in a particular class may have brought Harry's gender into new light. (I bet you do, too. Sleep-deprivation makes people say the darnedest things.)  The Harry Potter heptology is a wondrous subject of subtle yet moving and powerful feminism. The books authored by J.K. Rowling are extremely endearing and the characters, even more so. The wide range of female characters who all seem different, distinct and diverse is a showcase of the new focus of feminism: diversity. In her amazing books, the image of the feminist stereotype (who is, by the way, portrayed as a mean, old man-hating spinster who lifts weights...or something like that) is shattered into a gazillion little fragments and shards, just like each of Voldemort's seven Horcruxes. At least, that is what I imagine that goes on in another dimension (you know, a world where all the shards of evil people's souls reside and cohabit) when each Horcrux is destroyed. Digressions!

The Harry Potter book series, with its wide array of female characters and its many feminized and feminist male characters, authored by a feminist herself, J.K. Rowling, is clearly in its own right, feminist. There is currently a large debate on whether or not the books are indeed feminist, with the winning side being the side of the Potterheads who think the books were subtly yet radically feminist. From Hermione Granger to Luna Lovegood, to warrior woman Molly Weasley, to Neville Longbottom, to Mrs. Norris, the cat, the books exude feminism.

Through the story, The Boy Who Lived undergoes transformations and life lessons, and develops into the more mature The Chosen One. He is constantly put at a crossroads, throughout his journey, where he must choose between great power and dark magic, and love and doing the right thing. Through the story, Harry is seen choosing the more traditionally feminine over masculinity, power and greed, and is rewarded richly in the end with the only things that matter in life: a couple of best friends, love and pure bliss. Oh, and the saving of the entire wizarding community from the evil, evil hands and snakelike nose of Lord Voldemort. Point in case: Have you ever seen Harry use a Killing Curse? Harry Potter is all about love and tolerance, both very traditional feminine qualities. He is neither power-hungry nor ambitious like Voldemort or the Malfoys or the Lestranges.

But let me bring your attention to a very important aspect of the Harry Potter series: the characters, both male and female and just the good Order of the Phoenix sort (because Death Eaters are not very human), step out of their sexed (cis) gender roles and accomplish things as human beings. In addition, they step into the opposite gender and accept their other trans-gendered side.

You've got to admit: Tonks is AWESOME!

For instance, Harry never once disowns his own gender, but instead accepts his femininity through the story. As does Neville Longbottom who discovers Herbology, a traditionally feminine subject. Ginny Weasley unlocks her assertive side and develops into a mature character at the end of the series. There seems to be quite a lot of blending of the feminine and masculine characteristics! No more is one better than the other. As the story progresses, we begin to see the tradtionally feminine mingling with the traditionally masculine to produce a wholesome, healthy human being.


This brings in the concept of yin and yang into the story. The feminism in the story allows for a sort of balance between the feminine and masculine. Tolerance, respect, assertiveness, love, higher ambitions become genderless qualities. If a balance can be attained between our masculine and feminine sides and sort of gender equilibrium can be established within each of us, gender disparities would not be so much of a problem as they are now.

So, there ends my train of thoughts.
Do tell me how feel about my poetic gesture! :)

Feminism: The Strong, Unwavering Voice Inside

In a dark abyss where the only ray of light springs from the almost-silently thumping heart, the new One lies in peaceful contemplation of an afterlife: one she knows nothing about; one she can only dream of in dancing hues and colorless shadows. Encoded somewhere in her intrinsic gene sequence is the key to her somewhat predetermined fate. A smaller sex chromosome with its misshapen shape can, with all its wonderful might and brawn, kick open the double-doors of opportunity and lead her new male-gender-ed self into a life where her actions would be accompanied with less fear, less repercussions, less expectations and less stigma associated with her sex.  He is brave, he is strong, and he is a man. His life has, is, and will always be one that conquers challenges head-on, and that marks differences between his strength and the surrounding weakness that stands in dour contrast with his manliness. A longer double-stranded X chromosome will, on the other hand, lead our heroine into a life that is just as challenge-filled, if not more so. And she will walk tall; she will hold her ground; she will be a woman. She is just as strong, just as fair, and just as human as her male counterpart. 

The trees sway with the silent yet resounding scream resonating from the collective voice of the inhabitants of a world where their lives are led, if not dictated, by their births. 

First-Wave Feminism: A reminder that equality is just 'round the corner

There…you are frowning. Let me lighten things a bit. I do not mean to scare you off; feminism does not mean to as well. We are only trying to coax you into the peaceful embrace of equality for all. No, our world is not post-feminist. Two centuries ago, we asked to be educated. We asked for common genderless rights, and we asked for our soft feminine voices to be heard.

Our voices have evolved into a million, no, seven billion different, distinct, diverse voices. The One in her cocoon now knows nothing of a predetermined gender: she questions. Feminism is not dead...not even close.

We can identify ourselves as a gender other than our "natural" gender; we seek ways to break gender stereotypes; we live together in non-traditional family units. Our voices have evolved. And so has our definition for equality:equality does not come for one, one sect, one sex, one family, one land. Equality comes for all. And with it, tolerance, respect and love. But I digress. Also, while I stroll back from my digression, tell me, tell me what you think about this little cartoon segment. 

I am a feminist. I am no Goddess, no sex kitten, no tomboy. I am .

What makes up a feminist? A woman? An egalitarian?
You?
Me?
All of us, really.
We fight together...for a higher purpose: equality, love and everything that is good and true.
Feminism is bigger than we think it is. It encompasses the world like a mother would her child; feminism is about everyone receiving their share of love, respect and planet Earth.
A radical feminist. A liberal feminist. A socialist feminist. A quiet, dreamy-eyed little girl. A beautiful woman in a remote village in the backwaters of a developing country, fighting her extremely patriarchal  society. She sits there in an almost-bare room with a thin bed, a ceiling fan, a mirror on a desk and her only cosmetic: a fairness face cream. One that will "magically lighten" her beautiful olive skin...one she was born with. Beauty is a luxury. Women fight everyday. To fit in, to voice out, to stand our ground. We have far higher expectations to fulfill, and far heavier repercussions.

"We really appreciate our men, we do. But it's what God wanted, so."

You can't kill reason. You can blind it...temporarily. Much like the truth

For a species so concerned with doing the right thing, we are failing.

We are molded into what we are by the world we live in. A world unbalanced by gender and gender-related disparities. We slut-shame and put down anything that is not "normal", "decent" or "accepted" as per societal norms. And in that instant, we forget about the importance of acceptance and tolerance on our own side. More often than not, we place the blame of a sex crime and/or rape on the victim, especially if she happens to be "asking for it". Sometimes, we accept that freedom is something that comes to women...at a price. The world is turning into homosexuals! If we allow marriage equality, everyone will want to be gay! A man does not shed tears! A man feels no pain. He pays. He works. "Personally, if you asked me, I would never date a transgendered human being...it isn't that they are undeserving of love, it's...just me, I guess." "We rule the world." "No, we do." "No, WE do." Feminists nowadays only want control, not freedom.

And in the midst of all these voices, we fail to hear the one that resonates with the truth, with love and with tolerance. If we all just paused to take a deep breath, and focus on the greater inequalities in our world, we would see that the key is in 'live, and let live'. If we could stop and hear exactly where the other person is coming from, we would not be so mad, so seething, so hurting...so wrong. If we could stop fighting over differences in opinions, views and religions and all the other million possible things you could fight over, and fought instead for equality for everyone...for unity and as a collective human race, the One in her little cocoon would feel the love emanating from outside.
And maybe then, she would sleep with little to fear, basking in the warmth of the world outside.

I am a woman. I am a feminist. I am also one among many who do not fully understand or feel the weight of inequality we live under.