Females and Harry Potter - (Reverberations: Contemporary Curriculum and Pedagogy) by Ruthann Mayes-Elma (Paperback)

About the Book

This book explores the sexism inherent in the Harry Potter series, books in which a hero and his male friends are the focus and center of activity and the female characters are passive enablers-at best. Using critical discourse analysis and focusing on five themes (rule follow...

Book Synopsis

This book explores the sexism inherent in the Harry Potter series, books in which a hero and his male friends are the focus and center of activity and the female characters are passive enablers-at best. Using critical discourse analysis and focusing on five themes (rule following/breaking, intelligence, validating/enabling, mothering, and resistance), the author explores the construction of traditional gender roles throughout the books. She concludes with a discussion of the implications for development of school curricula that enable students to critically deconstruct these texts.

Review Quotes

This book is an interesting and thorough analysis for academic and feminist collections.

This is a long-awaited volume which weaves feminist theory with the importance of the Harry Potter books. Mayes-Elma has created a new genre in which to explore both the teaching of literature and social theory. Following Rowling's females and their actions, this book has established a new way to view character roles within literature.

About the Author

Ruthann Mayes-Elma is a writer, researcher, and educator whose research centers on the intersections of children's literature, social justice, and media literacy. She has contributed chapters to various published and upcoming books, as well as a a book of her own: Readings in Sociocultural Studies in Education (2002). She has presented at various national and international conferences and has held the office of delegate to Ohio Education Association (OEA).