Help?

I'm doing a project for school about how the Harry Potter series has affected my generation compared to other generations, as well as people of my nationality compared to people of other nationalities. So, you lucky YWS member that has decided to click on this topic, fill out a quick survey?

Age:
Nationality:
Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books?
Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies?
How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc)
How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)?
How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation?
Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?

Thanks so much!

Age: 13
Nationality: South American, Irish. (Yes, I'm a hybrid, deal with it!)
Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? 1-6, I didn't read 7 'cause I didn't want to force myself through it. Don't judge me.
Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? 1-6. Seeing 7 against my will.
How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc) Slightly interested.
How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? They made me realize how much people like wizards. I felt like an outcast.
How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? It made everyone use phrases such as "Blimey!" and "EXPECTO PATRONUS!"
Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon? IDK? People are just strange like that.

Age: 14

Nationality: American

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? I have read all 7 books.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? I have seen all of the movies.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? I am a very strong fan of the books and movies, and think the ideas are brilliant. However, I wouldn't consider myself to be obsessed at all.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? I read the first book when I was five years old, and to me, they were wonderful. They were exciting and they were beyond the level that most kids my age could read, which made me feel special. The creativity and the wonder just astounded me, and that got me thinking more about the stories I was writing and helped me foster more of a creative mind.

As I grew older, I was able to connect more with the characters and the story and the themes. The idea that a boy about my age could accomplish so much excited me and drove me to the best I could be.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? It's given us something to watch and pay attention to. We can relate to the characters and understand what they're going through. The wonder of the world has excited us because our lives are dull, and even though we know it's not real, we think of what it might be like to exist in a world where magic is possible. As a result, our minds have loosened a bit, and even though we're not little kids any more, we can still appreciate fantasy.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon? I believe that it is a combination of the fantastical and the reality. On one hand, we have the fantasy aspect (and I mentioned this a bit earlier). It's so unique and original, and has completely changed our perception of the wizard. Despite this, it feels familiar because of the themes that are present. It's such a simple idea that is so creative.

On another hand, strip all of the magic and the fantasy away and you have the simple story of three teenagers trying to grow up in a harsh world. Even though they've done great things and saved the day and one is famous within the wizarding world, they're normal in so many ways. They have their first kisses and experience shaky ground in their friendships, but they stick together because they are close and fighting for a common cause. Overall, the story shows why friendship and love are important, and that, I think, is something we can all relate to.

--
Hope this helps!

Age: 16

Nationality: South Korean

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? I've read all of them.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? I've seen all of them that have come out thus far.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc) I was entertained.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? They...didn't really. It was really just another series that I read for entertainment, nothing too special.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? It's made a big impression on kids and adults of all ages. And of course it's gotten young people into reading more than ever before, so kudos to Rowling for that.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon? I can't really answer that, sorry; it's actually the question I ask myself about it. Maybe it's the fantasy of magic being so easily accessible; maybe it's that kids feel like they can relate to the characters really well. Maybe Rowling just had a heck of a good agent that got her connected with the right people.

Hallo! I'll do as well as I can now - I'll be back to make it better later if I have time and brainpower left!

Age: 21

Nationality: American

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? All of 'em.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? Seen all but 7. And am waiting until break to go with friends, since I don't particularly want to see it with mom, who's been nagging at me to go with her (she'll ask me what's going on every ten seconds or so, see).

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc): Uh... somewhere between interested and obsessed. I didn't wait until midnight to get the last couple of books like several friends of mine did, but I also got them as soon as I possibly could - at least after book 4, which I devoured while on a cruise. Hey, I was 11 and didn't expect to get it (my aunt gave it to me as a surprise in the airport) and I was mad mom wouldn't let me get it before we left.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? Uh... Harry Potter Fanfic. Does that sum it up? No, really, it wasn't that huge, I don't think (well, aside from the small fact I wouldn't be a HP freak). I inhaled books before I got my hands on them, and I still inhale books now. I loved fantasy before, I still love it (though not as much) now.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? Oh lordy. We like to dress up more. One of the valedictorian speeches at my high school graduation mentioned the fact we're the generation that literally grew up with Harry, and we "graduated" with him, so to speak. It very much binds together parts of my generation. When the 7th movie came out, my entire newsfeed was filled with people complaining about the length of the lines at the theatres and now how many times someone's seen the movie, complete with reviews. I'm sad I haven't seen it yet, or been able to see it with anyone yet.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?
I've no idea. Possibly due to the simply complexity of the entire series. If you just wanted to just enjoy the books, you could. If you wanted to analyze the living hell out of them, you could too. Heck, there's entire networks of sites dedicated to that very thing. Not that I at one point stalked those websites, or like, anything. If you wanted to take Quidditch and attempt to actually play the game, there's now a collegiate league. Yeah. Accessibility, too, does wonders. I don't recall ever seeing an advertisement for the books, either, just the movies - and that blows me away. Somehow, word of mouth got these books to my entire generation, not just the ones who haunted bookstores/libraries (or whose parents did). That's incredible, though I'm not sure how, but I think the why lies entirely in two elements: the accessibility of the books, and the fact the series grew up with my generation. As we hit 15, so did Harry. Violently. IN ALL CAPS. Well, that and how she explored all sorts of fun with the whole good vs. evil bit. All sorts of good and evil. That was fun. Or maybe that's just in my twisted head, but I really, really enjoyed the variety of characters and their motivations and stories and how much depth the entire world held.

Age: 15
Nationality: Canadian (African Canadian)
Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? All of them.
Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? 1,2, 3, 4, 5, 7 pt1
How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc) I was so obsessed. it was crazy, i'd read them every summer and every winter.
How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? It;s a fond childhood memory. I was six when my dad discovered them, so he read me and my sister every book, even the last. So, with the last movie coming out, it's like my childhood is leaving me.
How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? I think that a good chunk of my generation is Harry Potter obsessed. this is because, at least, where I'm from, we consider Harry POtter a quotable, debatable subject that we spend everyday just talking about.
Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?
Well, Harry Potter was written very well. JK wasn't afraid to kill the good guys off, make a little drama and sprinkle some romance on top. Jk made an amazing plot, with funny, actually believable characters

I hope that helped. it's late here

Age: 21

Nationality: British

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? All but the last book

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? I haven't seen Pt 1 and I'm not really interested. My Dad might take us to see it at Christmas though.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc) I was interested, but never too much. I mean, I really liked it but I think there were other things that entertained me far more. I never played Harry Potter with my sisters, but we did play Star Wars a lot (I always had to be Luke :¬l) and pokémon too. My Dad would always get a couple of copies of the book when it came out.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? One of my neighbours tried to wind me up by writing me a Howgarts invite and putting it through the letter box. It didn't work, I was too old to be invited XD

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? I don't know, some of my friends are psyching themselves us for seeing the new film by watching all of the others, while I know one of mine is grumpy because she has to go to the cinema with her flatmates to see it when she really doesn't care. Some people are shocked when I tell them I never read the last book, others don't care or think it's funny just to see other people's reactions. My least interested friends are also the ones who read the most, I think we just grew out of Harry Potter and had different tastes by the time the series finished.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon? Easy to read books with characters that you could actually relate to. As a kid it was great because you could really immerse yourself in the world and looked forwards to all the little new bits that you'd discover.

Age: 18 (almost 19)

Nationality: Indian

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books?
All.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies?
Until 6 so far. Will see the seventh in a week or so. (so, yeah, all. ^^)

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc)
Extremely obsessed. It was one of the major books that were a part of my transition from Enid Blyton and Judy Blume for kids.
I still am. I've been planning to re-read all of them these Dec hols.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)?
For me, it opened up a whole new world of books. I was a little sceptical of reading it and I did start it pretty late (around 10-11 .) The main reason was that people were discussing it too much. But this friend of mine, compelled me to and I'm forever thankful to her.
And I enjoyed the fantasy, the believabilty (I mean not literally, but yes, y'know.) My friends and I used to discus this a lot and we had HP-pretend games and stuff.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation?
It's one of those books that become defined of a particular period. And, I'm proud to belong to that. Quoting HP is the best. And in school, we had HP quizzes about the littlest detail possible, there were character collections where we maintained a list of every single charcater who has appeared in the books so far. And spell lists.
As affecting, it's made a lot of people read these books. Maybe they didn't enjoy it as much, but they did read. And even if they didn't, they watch the movies, because that's a part of the 'in' crowd. Everyone knows HP.
It's become such a huge phenomenon that HP is dubbed into Tamil and a bunch of regional languages and screened for those in regional-language schools.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?
She has created a world that all of us would love to go to. It's a very complex, beuatiful world, that so seamlessly merges with ours and yet manages to be simple and very welcoming. Take Alagaesia, a non-reader will never appreciate it, while everyone enjoys the Potter world.
The characters were relatable, and she developed them brillaintly. I mean, she knew when toplay on the hormonal kid, when to make them serious, how to mess with their heads. That's brillaint work. And we grew up with these.

Age: 15

Nationality: British

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? All.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? All.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc)
I was/am pretty obsessed.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)?
The Harry Potter have been around since I was two years old, so I've really grown up with them. They've been my favourite books since I first read them, and were a big milestone on my road to constant reading. As a young child, I think they were the bridge between the books my teacher gave me to read and me beginning to read for myself. I'm a very bookish person, and I think Harry Potter was one of the series that helped me to develop a love of books and reading. It's also cool because I live near some of the places used in the films, so when I was 9 or so a teacher took us all on a class trip to see the wall of the Chamber of Secrets.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation?
As many people will say, Harry Potter meant that many children of our generation read more - it was popular, enjoyable fiction and yet it was also a bit of a challenge for younger readers. It's become something of a national icon for us - you think of Britain you think of the Queen, Shakespeare and Harry Potter! It's probably the most memorable young adult/child fiction series of its time (if not one of the most popular and memorable novels, full stop). Around me, everyone knows Harry Potter; when someone says 'Yeah, I haven't read the books' then people genuinely look shocked. For people my age, Harry Potter has existed since we were toddlers, and the last film will come out when we're in our late teens - it's been an essential part of many people's childhood, and I think loads of us will miss it when it's gone.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?
So many reasons! Firstly, I think it's very accessible fiction for both younger and older readers. It is easily read, which means that young children enjoy it, yes also very interesting and developed which means it reaches out to the older generations as well. For younger people as well there is this feeling of growing up alongside the characters in the novel, and the way that Rowling writes and develops the characters means that it also feels like you're reading about lovable friends that you know very well.
The books also manage to appeal to the optimistic and childish side of people's nature - in the books the good guys are good, the bad guys are bad and you know that, in the end, Harry Potter is going to save the day. There's something quite indulgent about the books as they give the readers what they want in terms of happy endings. Yet, they also run deeper and I think it's this that gives the books their edge: Rowling twists things around so that the guy we thought was a betrayer wasn't, and although we do get a happy ending, so many wonderful characters die.
In addition, the fantastical element of the books is a real turn on, and yet it's balanced wonderfully by the very real portrayal of a group of adolescents growing up and coming to terms with themselves and each other. Harry Potter offers readers a chance to step into another world, but to step into it with very realistic and well portrayed characters.

Sorry if I've rambled, or anything. I thought I'd better stop before this became an essay.

Thanks so much![/quote]

Age: 14

Nationality: British Nigerian.

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books?

I read all of them.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies?

I've watched all of them except the 7th; I haven't gotten around to it yet.

How into the Harry Potter world were you?

I was fairly interested as a young child. It was only after I was interviewed about the fifth book that I really got very interested in it, bordering on obsession.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)?

Well, it was something I talked about with my friends in primary school. I suppose it was pretty cool back then, like Pokemon. Me and my friends pretended to be the characters every now and then, and when I got a scar on my forehead they'd call my Harriet. So did my family, actually. And I'd boast about the interview to pretty much anyone who'd listen.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation?

It's become a must-read children's book for this generation, just like the Famous Five used to be. As young children we read it and loved it, as teenagers, we won't get as excited as when we were younger but we'll still go and watch the movies. And as adults will still always remember it and read it to our children. It's a part of our lives now.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?

I think it's because, as the new generation, although our parents might have told us about and made us read stuff by authors such as Enid Blyton, we couldn't connect with them what with the old style of writing, and so many other things. But Harry Potter is new and fresh and different, something we can connect with and even better, it provides an escape from our lives; we can imagine another world that we'll never see but can always dream about...am I still making sense? Probably not.

Hope this helped!

Age: 19

Nationality: American

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books?
All of them! And, excluding the last one, several times over.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies?
I've seen all of them. I'm not a big fan of them, although I did see the midnight premier of the last one.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc)
I'm a huge fan of the books. Excluding the 7th. Not obsessed to the go-dressed-up-to-huge-batches-throw-my-life-away-waiting-for-owl-mail, but I was furious when we got to Costco at 10:03 instead of 10:00 for books 5 and 6, and I did wander around Costco reading while my mom shopped, and if I remember correctly I forwent meals and finished 5 and 6 the days I got them.

I did get the 7th at the midnight release. I read in the car on the way home, a few words every time we went under a streetlight, and read straight through the morning.

...It's important to note, probably, that I do the stay-up-and-read-through-dawn thing quite frequently in proportion to how many books I read.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)?
I consider myself Harry Potter Generation. I was 16 when the 7th's book came out. I grew up with Harry and Ron and Hermione.

I'd always enjoyed reading when I was a kid, but Harry Potter introduced me to fantasy and got me hooked. Harry Potter ensnared me into the world of magic and creativity. It's probably a hefty influence on me deciding I wanted to be a writer.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation?
Harry Potter got kids to read. It gave something for many kids to talk to their parents about--because parents liked it too. But mainly, reading became cool again because of Harry Potter. People who haven't read it get the odd stares, and then they're the ones defending themselves: "Well, it just wasn't for me..."

That's probably the biggest impact on the generation itself, the getting kids to reader. It's a unifying thing among my generation, too--we the ones who really grew up with it. So many people have read it in college that it's a way to get to know someone. Ask them what house they belong too, etc.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?

It was something fresh, different, new. Before Harry Potter, the fascination was the paranormal, and sci-fi ish stuff. Harry Potter dove into fantasy. It was creative, and funny, and so full of things to love. Characters that were fun to get to know. But not shallow, either. It wasn't wimpy. But mainly... it was something new, written for us.

Age: 19

Nationality: USian

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? All!

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? Haven't seen the seventh one yet. But I've seen the previous six!

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc) I don't think I was obsessed, but I did fantasize my own character. Daydreams were a usual activity in the classroom as my character interacted with the HP characters and what happened in the book.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? They're what got me into writing. And reading. Before the HP books, I hated reading and writing. My mom was worried because I couldn't ever find a book interesting enough to read/I lacked the desire to read.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? I think Harry Potter was a very unique fantasy that interested a lot of people into reading and discussing. It's like watching a TV show and discussing it with your friends later, only Harry Potter seemed more original. It sparked a lot of creative juices too, I think. Definitely, Harry Potter has encouraged young people to read again as well as use any other creative talents to mimic Harry Potter: writing, music, art, etc.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon? Again, because it's unique! It's not the usual fantasy like Dragonlance or other RPG games, where you grab a sword and horse then go on this long journey to slay a dragon and save the princess. It was a fantasy world that could easily be as real as the laptop I'm typing on. I think kids nowadays like to pretend fantasies are real. They like to believe the world is so realistic that you could walk around the city, imagining the world around you was Harry Potter. It's continual entertainment, even after the end of the book series. I guess the previous generations were all about the knights, dragons, etc. set in medieval-like worlds. This generation is all about modern fantasy. Harry Potter has definitely left its mark in the literary world, I think.

Age:
17 (err... 18 this Sunday?)

Nationality:
Finnish

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books?
I've read them all several times in both Finnish and English.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies?
I've seen them all, movies 1-3 several times, 4-5 a couple of times and 6 and 7.1 both once.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc)
I was interested and entertained by the books and the movies.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)?
Well, I would always gladly pick up one of the books and I always looked forward to the newest one, and I remember one of my classmates had a Harry Potter themed birthday party once, heh. All the girls were Hermione of course.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation?
I'm pretty sure everyone has heard the words "Harry Potter", and most have surely read at least one book or seen at least one film. Many of us will probably introduce the books to their future kids. Maybe Harry Potter has made some young people read more, which is always good.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon?
Personally, I admire all the planning Rowling has done, and how she has truly created a world. I mean, all writers create a world, but not everyone does it as meticulously. The amount of detail in Harry Potter and how everything affects everything never ceases to amaze me. I've read a Rowling's biography and seen some documentaries and everytime I feel so inspired afterwards. In general, a lot of people like fantasy and characters who are easy to relate to, plus Rowling's writing is witty and humourous, which pleases me a lot.

Thanks so much![/quote]

Age: 17

Nationality: Irish

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? All several times in Irish, the first one in Irish and the second one in French, as well as The Tales of Beedle the Bard, Quidditch through the Ages and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? All, have 4 and up on DVD.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc) Pretty darn obsessed. I got into fanfiction just about when the seventh book came out, I will admit, but I kicked the habit since having characters already written for you really affects your creativity. But I read the books over and over, knew (and still know) every single detail of the plot, like the fact that Dean Thomas was handy with a pen and that at the zoo Harry got a cheap lemon ice-lolly.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? My teenagerhood, more like, I think, though I first really got into the books the year the fourth one came out- I was eight. My brother and a girl we went on holiday with were talking about it and I got so jealous because I had only read the first one that we got home and I picked the second one up. I remember having a friend at my house and wanting her to leave so I could read the third one so I hid in the wardrobe with it. Another friend and I had competitions on who could read it quicker. I knew everything about those books. I queued for a few. I read them in less than a day. I even convinced my dad that maybe JK Rowling was a genius.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? Lots. We did grow up with Harry, and he's more than popular culture to us, I think. Everybody knows about it at least in part, you can make a reference at any time and everyone'll know what you're talking about. It's just another fact in our lives, and everybody gets excited about it.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon? Because they're so fresh and so clever, and because they snowballed. They'd still be brilliant even if they weren't so popular, but there you are.


Thanks so much![/quote]

Age: 26

Nationality: Canadian, eh? (:D)

Did you read all/some/none of the Harry Potter books? Devoured - Er, I mean, read them all.

Did you watch all/some/none of the Harry Potter movies? I watched them up to the fifth. I have the sixth here but I really have no interest. They are good, really good, but they aren't the books.

How into the Harry Potter world were you? (Were you obsessed, interested, disinterested, etc) Obsessed, I'd have to say.

How did the Harry Potter books affect your childhood (if you read any of them)? I read them during my adolescence. I devoured them. My mother ripped them our of my hands the second I was through. And I got so into the books, that I'd be gazing into space, wondering what Harry and Hermione and Ron were doing. What new information Hermione had learned over the summer. What they were doing. Then realised I was thinking about a book. Fiction. But...It's as if my brain couldn't process that. They were as much a part of me as my family and friends.

How do you think Harry Potter has affected your generation? It has made writers of the future hopefull. It has made writing less dauting that comparing our work to Tolkien, for example. It has opened the eyes of children to fantasy and magic.

Why do you think Harry Potter has become such a worldwide phenomenon? It's a brilliant piece of work, as far as I'm concerned. She created a world of her one, and she made us fall in love with magic, all over again. Every one of us could relate to something in the story. A child, unloved, misunderstood. Finding yourself. Learning new things. Starting high school, and so on.

Hope this helped, Lauren!