On Wizards, Witches, and a Better Way.

Early in the Harry Potter story Hagrid tells Harry ‘You’re a wizard, Harry,’ and this simple statement establishes the young protagonist’s place in the scheme of things. He is a superior being and all set up to be recognised as the Chosen One. But imagine if Hagrid had turned up at the Granger’s residence with the message ‘You’re a witch, Hermione.’ I suspect the reaction would have been quite different, and that isn’t fair.

 Reassuring

Menacing

 

Western culture – for which read Christian culture – has always not only tolerated the wizard, but honoured him as a wise and mysterious older man fit to move in the most exalted of circles. This is nothing new; the basis of what became the current Arthurian myth goes back at least as far as the 12^th century when Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote The History of the Kings of Britain. Merlin might sometimes be a mysterious and reclusive character, but he is also the trusted advisor to the king, the one who engineers the quantum shift from dark to light.

So what of his female counterpart, the witch? She has never been tolerated in Christian culture, never been trusted or afforded the right to belong. She, too, is mysterious and reclusive, but there the similarity with her male equivalent ends. She is dark, evil, reviled and hunted down. While Merlin is allowed to be a pillar of the Establishment, Morgan le Fey is the bad girl of the story who will stop at nothing to destroy the rightful king and return the dark times.

There is nothing new in my saying this, either. It’s just that I think certain worthy causes need reviving now and then.

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And since I started with Harry Potter, I might go on to mention that I’m beginning to wonder whether the whole concept can be viewed as an allegory. It’s just that Lord Voldermort strikes me as the epitome of those who have largely run the world over the past few thousand years – and most of them have been men. Maybe we should be considering that the world would be a much better place if it were run by a committee of Harry, Ron, Hermione, Luna, Ginny and Neville Longbottom.

And how satisfying that there should be three men and three women. I do so like equality of respect and opportunity. A battery does, after all, require opposite poles if it is to function properly.