Keywords
cultural identity, student belonging, Harry Potter
Abstract
Despite his celebrity status in the wizard community, Harry’s lack of familiarity with its culture, language, social structures, and institutions constantly causes him to question his competence and magical potential. Although most muggle teens will never deal with the challenges Harry confronts as he tries to sort out Quidditch from Slytherin and Hufflepuff on his first visit to Diagon Alley, they can empathize with Harry’s attempts to acculturate into the social, academic, and political norms of a very unfamiliar world. Many students in secondary schools exist on the margins because of disconnects between their own cultures, languages, and social practices and those valued in schools. And, like Hagrid in the excerpt above, the teachers who serve these students may often feel ill-equipped to offer the needed support.
Original Publication Citation
“Seeing Harry Potter as an At-Risk Student: Critical Literacy, Cultural Capital, and the Wizarding World.” Fantasy Literature: Challenging Genres. Ed. Mark Fabrizi, Sense Publishers, 2016: 173-187. (with Jon Ostenson and Whitney Sommerville)
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Coombs, Dawan; Ostenson, Jon; and Sommerville, Whitney, "Seeing Harry Potter as an At-Risk Student: Critical Literacy, Cultural Capital, and the Wizarding World" (2016). Faculty Publications. 9604.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/9604
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
2016
Publisher
Fantasy Literature: Challenging Genres
Language
English
College
Humanities
Department
English
Copyright Use Information
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