Holy crap! Dumbledore is gay?! That's it! I am going to throw away all of my Harry Potter books because my pristine pretend magical world has been sullied by the knowledge that the beloved Dumbledore is a pansy. Begin the book burning!
Give me a break. Who cares if the made-up headmaster (a title that has all new meaning for me now that I know about Dumbledore's proclivities) of a fictional school for wizards is gay? Hello!!! It's a book! Besides the fact that JK Rowling can think and say anything about Dumbledore (or Harry or Hermione or Ron, etc.) that she wants--she invented them! To suggest that she said Dumbledore was a gay man to sell more books (because that really seems to be a problem for the Potter series...dismal sales) or to stick it to the religious right is retarded. In the throes of creating such a rich and faceted fantasy world it is naive to think that JK didn't imagine lives outside the pages for all of her characters. C'mon! He's here! He's queer! Get used to it! If you're pissed off that JK "outed" Dumbledore (a fictional character, I remind you) then be comforted by the fact that HE DIES! Guess she showed that queer who's boss!
And, as far as pissing off the religious right goes...why would she even care? It's not like all their bitching and pulling of Harry Potter novels off library shelves hurt the sales of her book any. Is she, perhaps, dismayed (as an artist) at being so misunderstood? I doubt it, but I could be wrong. (It reminds me of a class I took in college called "In Print, In Person" in which we-the class- read a book and then the actual author came in and told us what he really meant. Well, we spent the better part of a semester reading "Slaughterhouse 5" by Kurt Vonnegut and trying to decide what imagery he was using and what various symbols in the book stood for, only to have Kurt come in and say, "For Christ's sake! I made it up. It doesn't mean anything!")
Besides, has it occurred to anyone that she has finished the Harry Potter series? I mean, it's not like this huge revelation is going to affect the next book (Dumbledore gets his freak on with the headmaster of Durmstrang, saves the memory in the Penseive and Harry stumbles across it like a boy finding his dad's Playboy mags under the marital bed...) because she finished the series, kids!! Anything that Dumbledore has done can only be conjured up in your filthy little minds! Besides, if JK were to continue writing and cover the years after the big battle at the end of Book 7 and the (lame-ass) epilogue who knows what would have happened? Harry would have been screwing groupies like a crazed Steven Tyler in the 70's driving poor Ginny to drink herself into a series of rehabs. Ron would have gotten hopped up on some super magical steroids so he could play Quidditch professionally and then he would have gone into some sort of 'roid rage and beat the shit out of Hermione one night when she was getting all pious on his ass. Luna Lovegood would become a stripper (with a name like that what else could she become?). Yikes! I would rather have some tender man-on-man action starring Dumbledore than all that crap.
Give me a break. Who cares if the made-up headmaster (a title that has all new meaning for me now that I know about Dumbledore's proclivities) of a fictional school for wizards is gay? Hello!!! It's a book! Besides the fact that JK Rowling can think and say anything about Dumbledore (or Harry or Hermione or Ron, etc.) that she wants--she invented them! To suggest that she said Dumbledore was a gay man to sell more books (because that really seems to be a problem for the Potter series...dismal sales) or to stick it to the religious right is retarded. In the throes of creating such a rich and faceted fantasy world it is naive to think that JK didn't imagine lives outside the pages for all of her characters. C'mon! He's here! He's queer! Get used to it! If you're pissed off that JK "outed" Dumbledore (a fictional character, I remind you) then be comforted by the fact that HE DIES! Guess she showed that queer who's boss!
And, as far as pissing off the religious right goes...why would she even care? It's not like all their bitching and pulling of Harry Potter novels off library shelves hurt the sales of her book any. Is she, perhaps, dismayed (as an artist) at being so misunderstood? I doubt it, but I could be wrong. (It reminds me of a class I took in college called "In Print, In Person" in which we-the class- read a book and then the actual author came in and told us what he really meant. Well, we spent the better part of a semester reading "Slaughterhouse 5" by Kurt Vonnegut and trying to decide what imagery he was using and what various symbols in the book stood for, only to have Kurt come in and say, "For Christ's sake! I made it up. It doesn't mean anything!")
Besides, has it occurred to anyone that she has finished the Harry Potter series? I mean, it's not like this huge revelation is going to affect the next book (Dumbledore gets his freak on with the headmaster of Durmstrang, saves the memory in the Penseive and Harry stumbles across it like a boy finding his dad's Playboy mags under the marital bed...) because she finished the series, kids!! Anything that Dumbledore has done can only be conjured up in your filthy little minds! Besides, if JK were to continue writing and cover the years after the big battle at the end of Book 7 and the (lame-ass) epilogue who knows what would have happened? Harry would have been screwing groupies like a crazed Steven Tyler in the 70's driving poor Ginny to drink herself into a series of rehabs. Ron would have gotten hopped up on some super magical steroids so he could play Quidditch professionally and then he would have gone into some sort of 'roid rage and beat the shit out of Hermione one night when she was getting all pious on his ass. Luna Lovegood would become a stripper (with a name like that what else could she become?). Yikes! I would rather have some tender man-on-man action starring Dumbledore than all that crap.Bottom line is...the fact that Dumbledore is gay was just an incidental part of his character which is why JK didn't include it in the books. Doesn't change my opinion of him at all, but it does explain his incredible flair! Plus, the fact that he was so in touch with his feminine side was what made him so tender towards Harry, if you ask me. (Now don't go turning that into some sick-o pedophile reference. His tenderness towards Harry was loving and motherly, not sexual. That's why Harry adored him.) Besides, why am I talking about a fictional character like he is a real person? Unless he "got gay" on the pages of one of the seven books then this information is superfluous and just something that JK used to create a wonderful character. For all those idiots who are going to pitch a fit and not let their kids read HP because JK said Dumbledore is gay (which is never even implied in the books) then they are only teaching their children bigotry and intolerance. I don't even have the time to address how stupid those people are. Maybe Dumbledore can help us out here....
In other news, did you know that JK Rowling is a huge Morrissey fan?
5 comments:
When do we get the parody gay porn movie titles like:
Harry's Pooper and the Order of the Penis
Ahh, the wonderful memories of "In print,in person" I too had the pleasure of having Kurt Vonnegut and John Irving along with a couple of people I had never heard of, or since. I am embarrased to say that I am not current on Harry Potter- I kind of lost track after the first book. I guess I am kind of behind, can I get a cliff notes version?
I always figured Gandalf was gay, too. But you don't ask a wizard their personal business so I never inquired. What they do with the other wizards behind closed doors is none of my business. ;-)
I think that this was (perhaps unintentionally) a brilliant marketing scheme to drive the series back into the limelight after it has faded from the public's attention having finished and all. Maybe I'm a little cynical...
(moving rock off from on top of myself) WHAT? Dumbeldore is GAY!?!
See what happens when you leave town for weekend?
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