Re: Why is it important not to call pureblood prejudice racism?
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The treatment of Muggles is important to me because I am a Muggle and I am reading the books from a Muggle POV.
O_o But- but…Potterverse wizards aren’t real! We aren’t really Muggles because Muggle is term applied to non-magical humans based on the in-Potterverse fact that there are magical humans. If we could somehow climb into the books and literally go into the world of HP, then we would be Muggles. But we can’t, so we aren’t really. It’s being cute to say we are Muggles (and I know JKR talks about being a Muggle)…but that’s just for fun. Er, well it’s meant to be, anyway.
The treatment of Muggles is important (although, much of the books take place in the wizard world, so the issue doesn’t get explored as much as wizard on wizard racism), and I’m sure we are meant to see racist treatment of Muggles as racist (and hypocritical with regards to anti-purist characters). I think JKR gave her readers enough credit to know that and gave enough indications that a good percentage of her readership got that (at least by the end). Perhaps you would have preferred more Anvillicousness and/or more exploration of anti-Muggleism? I can understand being disappointed and I can understand feeling like JKR botched her handling of blood prejudice type racism, but that doesn’t make the analogy of blood prejudice = racism any less true. Like I said to mary j, I guess you can just lump me in with JKR, because I agree with her reasoning for making the blood prejudice = racism parallel.
…and what I want for the story is neither Voldemort's nor Harry's victory but just to have that world implode, or at least keep itself contained so its internal issues don't spill into mine.
O_o But- but it’s fiction! The world of HP can’t really spill into ours because it’s not real. I guess some crazy person could declare themselves a pure-blood supremacist or a Death Eater and declare you a Muggle and then go after you…but that kind of thing could happen with any book because crazy people will do crazy stuff.
Also, if you are going to be rooting for the destruction of the Potterverse world, then rooting for Voldemort would be the way to go. If Voldy wins, then that increases the chances of a war with the Muggle world, and that would increase the chance of nukes being brought in, and that would increase the chance of Mutually Assured Destruction.
Regarding Harry and xenophobia:
Therefore he cannot be used as an example that wizarding prejudice is based on race rather than on culture, or that it is based purely on ancestry in itself rather than on ancestry as an indication for culture and cultural knowledge.
What part of “anti-Muggle-born prejudice contains elements of both racism and xenophobia” do you not understand?
Also, using ancestry as “an indication for culture and cultural knowledge” (which is stereotyping and not good) and then having prejudice against that group based on their supposed or actual cultural heritage, is racist as well as being ethnic discrimination.
Regarding Hermione’s situation vs. Viktor’s:
And on top of that a student who has Muggle relatives is a security risk for the wizarding world - an issue that has been relevant long before the formal Statute of Secrecy, in fact since the founding of Hogwarts - something that is not an issue with foreign-born wizards with no such relatives.
This doesn’t take away from the blood based prejudice inherent in anti-Muggle-born prejudice (which I’ve already gone over arguments for), nor does it excuse that form of racism or make it any less racist. Genuine issues and problems are not an excuse for racism. They may explain it, partially, but they do not excuse it.
(cont.)
O_o But- but…Potterverse wizards aren’t real! We aren’t really Muggles because Muggle is term applied to non-magical humans based on the in-Potterverse fact that there are magical humans. If we could somehow climb into the books and literally go into the world of HP, then we would be Muggles. But we can’t, so we aren’t really. It’s being cute to say we are Muggles (and I know JKR talks about being a Muggle)…but that’s just for fun. Er, well it’s meant to be, anyway.
The treatment of Muggles is important (although, much of the books take place in the wizard world, so the issue doesn’t get explored as much as wizard on wizard racism), and I’m sure we are meant to see racist treatment of Muggles as racist (and hypocritical with regards to anti-purist characters). I think JKR gave her readers enough credit to know that and gave enough indications that a good percentage of her readership got that (at least by the end). Perhaps you would have preferred more Anvillicousness and/or more exploration of anti-Muggleism? I can understand being disappointed and I can understand feeling like JKR botched her handling of blood prejudice type racism, but that doesn’t make the analogy of blood prejudice = racism any less true. Like I said to mary j, I guess you can just lump me in with JKR, because I agree with her reasoning for making the blood prejudice = racism parallel.
…and what I want for the story is neither Voldemort's nor Harry's victory but just to have that world implode, or at least keep itself contained so its internal issues don't spill into mine.
O_o But- but it’s fiction! The world of HP can’t really spill into ours because it’s not real. I guess some crazy person could declare themselves a pure-blood supremacist or a Death Eater and declare you a Muggle and then go after you…but that kind of thing could happen with any book because crazy people will do crazy stuff.
Also, if you are going to be rooting for the destruction of the Potterverse world, then rooting for Voldemort would be the way to go. If Voldy wins, then that increases the chances of a war with the Muggle world, and that would increase the chance of nukes being brought in, and that would increase the chance of Mutually Assured Destruction.
Regarding Harry and xenophobia:
Therefore he cannot be used as an example that wizarding prejudice is based on race rather than on culture, or that it is based purely on ancestry in itself rather than on ancestry as an indication for culture and cultural knowledge.
What part of “anti-Muggle-born prejudice contains elements of both racism and xenophobia” do you not understand?
Also, using ancestry as “an indication for culture and cultural knowledge” (which is stereotyping and not good) and then having prejudice against that group based on their supposed or actual cultural heritage, is racist as well as being ethnic discrimination.
Regarding Hermione’s situation vs. Viktor’s:
And on top of that a student who has Muggle relatives is a security risk for the wizarding world - an issue that has been relevant long before the formal Statute of Secrecy, in fact since the founding of Hogwarts - something that is not an issue with foreign-born wizards with no such relatives.
This doesn’t take away from the blood based prejudice inherent in anti-Muggle-born prejudice (which I’ve already gone over arguments for), nor does it excuse that form of racism or make it any less racist. Genuine issues and problems are not an excuse for racism. They may explain it, partially, but they do not excuse it.
(cont.)