English 1B - Seminar 5

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and Bruno Bettelheim

Instructions:
1. Read the article The Child's Need for Magic by Bruno Bettelheim, handed out in class.

2.  Write a brief (1-2 paragraph) summary of Bettelheim's main ideas.

3.  Answer the following questions with 1-2 sentence per response:

  • How do Bettelheim's ideas apply to Harry Potter? How do Bettelheim's ideas apply to Harry Potter? Would this book be an example of the kind of fairy tale that Bettelheim thinks children need? Why or why not?
  • What do you think Bettelheim would say if asked what children (or even adults) are getting out of reading this book? 
  • What is your response to Bettelheim's ideas?  Do they make sense to you? Why or why not?

 

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