When we first meet Harry Potter, we start to feel bad for him considering that he lost his parents at a really young age and then was thrown into a home with an evil aunt and uncle who really wanted nothing to do with the boy. Harry did not know what a real family was or how they were supposed to treat one another. Throughout his years at Privet Drive, he stayed humble and modest and did everything that was asked of him because he did not know any other way of living. To me, one of the most interesting things that I learned from Harry Potter would be the theme of family. He did not know he was cared for the way he had been all those years that he was at his aunt and uncle's home. When one day, he turned 12 and everybody in the world wanted to see Harry Potter and love him just the same. He found out the true meaning of family when he made friends with Ron Weasley and Hermoine Granger. They let him know what it was truly like to be loved and have that circle of connection that is a family. He felt more at home and loved while battling a man that was trying to kill him than he did in the home of his own aunt and uncle.
I love that this theme in the book shows us that family is not always blood; that no matter where you go, there are going to be people who treat you like you are family to them even though you do not have the same blood running through your veins. The theme of family is important to me because of how close I am with my family, so reading about this and catching on to the way that Harry was able to find family in his friends and their families really changed my perspective on who to consider family. This is my favorite theme throughout the book. Family is NOT always blood. Family is those who make you feel loved, continue to love you throughout the good and bad times, and make you feel like you belong. That is family.
I found you topic for this week to be spectacular. I have often felt this same way throughout my life. The true test is who the first person is you think of when something wonderful happens and you just can't wait to tell. I think this is the way Harry feels about his new found friends at Hogwart's, which include not only Hermoine and Ron but also the professors who he finds out have looked out for him his entire life and have secretly protected him from harm.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this theme for various reasons. One of them is the mere fact that our culture over emphasizes blood relation as family. Harry Potter is a perfect example of why this is not true. He found a greater family within strangers than his aunt, uncle and cousin. I think that a loving family is stronger than a dysfunctional family, regardless of blood relation. Yes, blood relational families tend to be very strong, but it isn't the biology that makes them strong; it is the commitment, respect and love for one another that makes a family.
ReplyDeleteI can really relate to your post. I don't have any biological sisters but I have two very close firends that I refer to as my sisters. My kids call them their aunts. The kids are definately closer to their "friend aunts" that their "biologic aunts".
ReplyDeleteAs I read your post I had to smile. I agree with you completely. Family is NOT always blood. I know in my own life there are some people who I don't share blood with but I consider them my family. They are the ones I know I can count on when times get tough or when I need a shoulder to cry on. Sometimes life gives us a hand that we might not like or agree with but we deal with it. Along that hard road we find people that become our family and will always be no matter how far we may travel. Sometimes the "family" bond is stronger with people who we don't share blood with than the ones we do.
ReplyDeleteI really loved your topic and I can relate to it too. My stepmom is obviously not blood but she is more of a mother to me than my biological mother will ever be. My stepmom has done everything for me and has always been there. My stepmom could've chose not to treat me as well as she does and could've been the evil stepmom from Cinderella. I also see this on campus with marching band. When I was in marching band we were definitely a family even though there was no way that almost 200 of us were remotely blood related. We felt like we could conquer anything by just performing on a field together. Thank you for your theme and keep up the good work!
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