Whether Diane Can Read Harry Potter or Not

[Evangelion999]

The Lone Power hot? Well he is modeled seeming after Lucifer, in the Christian equivilants, who was the most beautiful angel. As was brought up before, HP and YW really are two majorly different reads that I don't really think should be compared in the first place.

[eveningstar]

I think that YW and HP aren't alike because the reason to have wizards are different. In YW, They need wizards to keep the world from dying. In HP, they don't really need them. But Diane really should be able to read what she wants to.

[Rysade]

Hmm. I thing HP is good, but I like it more when I'm reading it. JK has things there that make my hair stand on end, and you know that'd be hard to do! DD, though... Her books are like eating candy on the porch in a nice summer day. Naturally, parts still make my hair stand on end. But the tone is smooth. JK's humour is somewhat childish, whereas DD's is... Quirky? It's original, that's for sure.

Ah, what I was getting at: HP is fantasy of the highest order. YW transcends the borders of fantasy and science fiction, while still being awesome.

[Gryphon]

Oooo, I'm mad at you BeleiverinWizardry. Yep.

I feel angry when this subjuct comes up. The ONLY thing they have in common is the fact that they are about wizards! YW is also more complex and it's actually believeable. The detail in YW is 999 nintillon 999 octillion 999 septillion 999 hextillion 999 pentillion 999 quadrillion 999 trillion 999 billion 999 million 999 thousand and 99 hundred times better than hp
-BeleiverInWizardry

Ooooh! You did not just say that. No, no, no, no... ==Gryphon is about to explode==

Okay. Okay. I will not explode, I will not explode, I will not...

YOU BUTTHEAD!!!!!!

Have you even read Harry Potter to the end of book five? Have you!?!? Don't compare them like that! Through the Harry Potter series, you can see how JK progresses in writing, how she gets to be a better author and her books deeper. Yes, beleive it or not, there is some depth to her books, even if blind people (AHEM) have to look for it. They're entirely different, I'll say that. The detail? Rah! Sure, sure. Young Wizards is more complex in a lot of ways. But you picked a really big number and I feel defensive. And whadaya mean by 'detail'???

[semiramis]

Actually, I think most of the discrepencies are more because of the originally intended age groups. Both serieses were originally aimed for a certain age group--YW's "target" a bit older than HP's, I beleive--but attracted readers of a far wider range than originally intended. I think YW is actually more of a mid- to late-teen series, while HP is more pre- to mid-teen... which is why the language and character interaction and suchlike in HP seems less "serious" than YW, and why YW has far more advanced science and heavy morality and suchlike.... Yes, the two age groups have overlap, but the difference of a few years is a lot, esp. when you take into account that the "target age" is a range because the "target" isn't really age--it's maturity and the capacity to handle its themes, concepts, and information. Which is why you've got people as young as ten and eleven reading YW, but also, conversely, people as old as fifteen or sixteen who can't handle it (some of my own friends, even...). Really, making comparisons like this--trying to say which is better--is rarely easy; it's like trying to rate Shakespeare against The Matrix. There's just far too little to go with, when you think about who it's written for, and why.

[Rysade]

When we're talking about 'target audience,' I think that HP is designed for your average teen, boy or girl, and YW is targeted for your nerdy, booky, social outcast type. The interesting thing is that HP takes the norm and moves it into a realm that is not normal: Fantasy. YW, on the other hand, takes the target audience and shapes the story around the practical application of everything you've been dreaming of (physics, magic, astronomy, etc) and gives it a practical application in helping other people. Helping others is not really on the adgenda of most nerds. The two are opposite in their audiences and the paths they lead them on are converging.

[Onua Wingstar]

I like to think that YW is geared more at anyone with an open mind.

Another thing I noticed when comparing the two books to myself is that JK's wizarding world seems to be a bit fantastical, a bit romanticized. She does witches and wizards (also note the gender-specific titles, which are not applicable in DD's world) the old-fashioned way; long cloaks, beards, and the lot. I think DD's world is a better representation of the true quirkiness of the universe. (Does anyone else know anything about quantum physics? Now there's a headache for you!)

[philosopherkat]

When we're talking about 'target audience,' I think that HP is designed for your average teen, boy or girl, and YW is targeted for your nerdy, booky, social outcast type.

You hit the nail exactly on the head there, Rysade. HP's appeal is really wide, and I think JK tries to keep that up as the series continues, so as not to alienate anyone. Nerdy, booky, social outcast types can be included in the HP audience, but most of the average HP audience besides a few with exceedingly DD-ish taste will think YW is wierd. I've found this with my friends, at least.

Skitty: Take deep cleansing breaths, ok? Do try not to explode. I don't think you can post from Timeheart. Or can you?

Dai stiho,
~philosopherkat

You can like the life you're livin'/ you can live the life you like/ you can even marry Harry/ but mess around with Ike/ and that's good, isn't it, grand, isn't it, great, isn't it, swell, isn't it, fun, isn't it - but nothin' stays... / in 50 years or so/ it's gonna change, you know / but oh it's heaven, nowadays
-"Nowadays", from "Chicago"

[Gryphon]

Yes, yes, yes...



I will not explode. I'M GRYPHON!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway. Yeah, I agree with Rysade there. You just can't compare the two.

Originally posted by Onua Wingstar:
I like to think that YW is geared more at anyone with an open mind.

Another thing I noticed when comparing the two books to myself is that JK's wizarding world seems to be a bit fantastical, a bit romanticized. She does witches and wizards (also note the gender-specific titles, which are not applicable in DD's world) the old-fashioned way; long cloaks, beards, and the lot. I think DD's world is a better representation of the true quirkiness of the universe. (Does anyone else know anything about quantum physics? Now _there's_ a headache for you!)

I've noticed this myself. Actually, I find this gives YW a much better feel. A person in robes and a pointy hat conjuring up a fireball is one thing, but someone doing it in jeans and a sweatshirt walking down the hall at school... For me, at least, that hits a lot closer to home.

[drea]

I think that the idea of good vs. evil is required in any good story that uses wizardry. And any fiction story involving magic has also been influenced by LOTR. It has to have been.

Besides, HP is way different than YW. The whole world base is different.

[Chani]

Comparing authors, books, series of books, worlds is like comparing fruit. I really like most fruit, but there are days when a banana won't cut it, my taste buds have 'eyes' only for strawberries.

LOTR, JKR and DD all have their appeal on some level. I have read each at certain stages of life and some stick with you more than most. LOTR is a difficult book to read for long periods of time. It is full of fantastic words and images. It is like broccoli for the brain. DD is fairly complicated math and physics wise. She makes you think and yet isn't as difficult to grasp as LOTR. Now JKR writes books that you can sit down and pour through. They are easy to read and have a certain entertainment power. If I want to spend all day, I don't get a headache from reading such difficult material.

OKay... don't take what I said as the end all be all of this. I am only stating what I have found to be true for me. In everything there is always your own truth, even if it is different from some one elses, it is still truth nonetheless.

[Pop Tart Kitten]

ACK!NO NO NO!DONT SAY THOSE WORDS EVER EVER EVER EVER!!!!!

[Fox]

Chani I agree with you whole heartedly (I know thats spely worng!!!). I feel the same!! And LOTR took me a week to read cause I had to keep back tracking!!
But Pop Tart Kitten whats with the

ACK!NO NO NO!DONT SAY THOSE WORDS EVER EVER EVER EVER!!!!!

What part of Chani post did you not like????
Fox

[Countryfan1394]

Die I mean Dai cousins,

Ok in magic there are not prices but higher dangers and I can tell the simalretity and the differences. But in Wizardry the prices and dangers are not as high. So most people think that people who write nolves about wizardry/magic still are counted out as sinner. But still the similartiry are quite the same.

Dia stiho