Harry Potter :- Web-Quest Activity

                                        This blog is a part of  my classroom activity on Web Quest on Harry Potter series in we have to search three best online sources and give argument and illustration for given point by Dr. Dilip Barad. To know more about Web Quest task click here to read professor's blog.

Click hear to see Webquest :~

Click hear to see rubric evaluation :~



1)    Feminist reading of Harmione’s character in Harry Potter

Hermione Granger, a good, loyal friend of Harry Potter. She is a manifestation of the author herself within the text. “Hermione is me,” Rowling has said in several interviews, “A caricature of me when I was younger”. She is not only as a strong female character, an essential part of Harry's life, but also as a feminist protagonist in her own right. Hermione represents the bookish knowledge, she knows the spells very well and also knows how to apply it. In the first and second part she represents the good virtues like, friendship, loyalty. In any kind of situation she stands for Harry.
Hermione is the perfect example when examining the feminist principles in the novels. Throughout the series she has many strengths and weaknesses, but she is mostly criticized about her weaknesses as a character. At some time she becomes concious about her look, which becomes very problematic from feminine perspective. 

Other female characters like Mrs. Weasley, who represents motherhood, caring nature. Ginny, Luna, ProMcGonagall, all has significant role, though they remains shallow under the patriarchal power.

2)      Discourse on the purity of Blood and Harry Potter

In Harry Potter, J. K. Rowling includes several issues like racism discourse of blood like wizard blood, muggle blood.


1)    Muggles (non-magical persons)
2)    Muggle-borns (witches/wizards with magical abilities but non- magical parents)
3)    half-bloods (witches/wizards who are not pure-blooded, but also not Muggle-born)
4)    purebloods (those with complete magical ancestry)
5)    Squibs (a non-magical child with magical parents


In the world of wizards Hermione portrayed as marginalized, she doesn't have pure-blood, her parents are muggles. She insulted many times by Draco Malfoy on the name of muggle blood.

Harry described as half-blood, because only his father belongs to wizard world, and her mother is not. Through the aspects of blood author satires on the American society, and the raises the question of racism. Ron Weasley, a pure blood and good friend of Hermione and Harry. So, here author makes possibilities that the intellectual and ability does not dependent on the race or cast.



3)      Confronting reality by reading fantasy

Fantasy narratives are normality used to stand for a peculiar world that is present and seeable in the society. As one of the best-selling fantasy novels in history J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the philosopher's Stone introduces one of the most loved and traditional hero in the character of Harry Potter. Harry is an ordinary orphaned male child who is first unaware of the complicated hereafter that awaits him in Howgarts' school of Witchcraft and wizardry.

In the series of Harry Potter, J. k. Rowling introduces the fantasy universe of Howgarts but the novel also beyond that fantasy because Rowling gives message of real universe like good and evil, love and death and adulthood, morality, power and politics. The fiction character of harry Potter is an 11 year old orphan life with his typical tough of a cousin Dudley Dursiey together with similarity cruel aunt and uncle. Petunia and Vernon Dursley. His charming destiny begins when he is summoned to the Howgarts's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry by the school master Albus Dumbledor. As he grows up faces his journey and adventures with his friends Hermione Gramger and Ron Weasley and learnt life lesson through different circumstances and also Rowling used many real things and event in the novel so we can see reality with fantasy elements.

4)      Self-Help culture and Harry Potter

Harry Potter has given many lessons which can make these books as self help books. For instance, finding happiness in dark times, doing duty honestly even if people don’t like you, recognize friend in disguise, loyalty, sacrifice, friendship, persistency, these all are the topics which can be taken as self help. But there is something more than this which make this books different from others self help cultured books. Those books asks to find reason of failure in one’s own self. It sooths the political agenda of government, who tells people that there is something lacking in you and not in the system. Harry Potter differs from these culture. Harry Potter teach us to question the authority. It teaches to doubt power also not only own self. It also teach us to fight against the power. We can take example of Dumbledore’s army, which was trained by Harry. That army was to fight against the Ministry of Magic. So it doesn’t sooths the agenda of government. It is rather teaching that question authority is betterment for society.

5)      The discourse of Power and Politics in Harry Potter

Whole Harry Potter series has the dynamics of power politics. Questioning authority is base of good democracy, but when power is not ready for criticism or in the name of reformation when power controls and separate people then they don’t accepts questions as something good, but rather they take it as disloyalty towards the authority. This started happening in Hogwarts also when government started interfering the education. Education is base of people. They learn to ask question when they are educating themselves. But when people from Ministry of Magic has become professor in school the atmosphere has started changing. Umbridge is a member of Ministry of Magic, she came in to education. Very first thing which she did was she started giving punishment for asking questions and started separating those who asks question. When fellow teachers ask her anything she accuse them of being disloyal to the authority. She has taken all the freedom of students. There are more restriction on students in the name of discipline. Whole Hogwarts has changed because of her large list of rules and strict application of those rules. This is how they have controlled the resistance.

 After all these things Voldemort is coming in to the power because the death eaters are now becoming professor at Hogwarts. Those professors has strictly act on the idea of Voldemort. That idea was of pure blood. They have started catching those who are not belongs to pure blood. This is how they make the non pure bloods, Others. On this idea of Others they have started killing muggles and half blood people. So this is how power politics works in the Harry Potter.

6)      Children’s Literature and Harry Potter

Harry Potter is one of the classic works in children's literature. J. K. Rowling's sharp wit, humour and imagination are unrivaled in children's literature. Rowling's Harry Potter is masterpiece children literature, she used magic and fantasy because it is said that we can explore many life lesson from children literature. Rowling explored reality through fantasy. We can connect our day today experiences with the characters of the novel. How to make our own decision, how to overcome our emotional attachment and be ready to  tackle ever problem of life. So, in this way we can say that Harry Potter series is for children to old age people.

7)      Speculative literature and Harry Potter

Speculative fiction is an umbrella genre encompassing fiction with elements that do not exist in the real world, often in the context of supernatural, futuristic or other imaginative themes. This includes, but is not limited to, science fiction, fantasy, superhero fiction, science fantasy, horror, utopian and dystopian fiction, supernatural fiction as well as combinations thereof. Hence, Harry Potter series also a speculative fiction we can say because it is full of imagination and fabtasy, there are imaginative world of magic which are do not exits in the real world. There many scientific elwment like many kind of liquids are used to change look. So, we can say the novel is best example of speculative fiction.

8)    The theme of Choice and Chance

"It is our choice, that show what we truly are, for more than our abilities” says Dumbledore. By and large Harry Potter series has been worked on idea of choice or better to say it has emphasised on choice. We can see that from the very beginning, from sorting hat to the Harry going in to the forest. The choice is the one which matters. There are phases where chance work more than choice, but choice is the one who dominate the narrative.

Voldemort has believed that his downfall is because of chance every time. He believed that it was chance that Harry happens to caught him or defeat him. But in the case of Harry it mostly a choice of Harry which had lead him to do, what he has able to do in the all series. May be Rowling wants to make magical world, which is not dominated by the fate. Things happens because people choose to act on them. If we talk about prophecies, then even it is not fate driven. Prophecies becomes true because characters choose to act according the prophecies. Harry’s mother choose to sacrifice her self for her son and that is why Harry is alive. Same way at the end Harry choose to sacrifice himself to protect the Hogwarts. Harry choose to let Voldemort apply killing charm on him. Because of that killing charm one horcrux which Voldemort has unknowingly left in inside Harry and that got destructed by Voldemort himself that was a chance. At some level chance is taking over choice. As in fourth part, “Harry Potter and Goblet of Fire” here name of Harry comes as pure chance and then he don’t even have choice to withdraw it. So here it is like one has to do something compulsory. But then in last two part Harry, Hermione and Ron choose to find every horcrux and destroy it, so here choice is more powerful then chance. This is how Harry Potter has theme of choice and chance.

9)      The theme of Love and Death

Love and death are the major themes in J. k. Rowling's fantasy novel and she also said that these series all about death and love. She justifies her point by presenting the characters of Ron and Hermione who are in love from the very beginning even they are fighting with each other. Further, the love between Harry and Dumbledore, Lily's love for Harry, harry's love for his friends, etc. In the other death also a crucial element in the novel. At the very beginning of the story we heart that Harry's parents have died, and in due course both we and Harry learn that they were murdered. The Shadow of death hangs over Harry; he learns that he, too, was intended to be a victim, but spared in a way no-one can explain. He narrowly escapes death again at the close of the first two books, and third is concerned with his pursuit by an escaped murderer. At the end of the fourth book, a school friend is killed before his eyes, and he himself barely escapes again. In the fifth book he loses his newly regained godfather, and in the sixth even his great and seemingly indestructible mentor, Dumbledore. Yes, death is a constant visitor to Harry's world.

10)   Moral and Philosophical reading of Harry Potter

Harry and Voldemort, different moral values. Harry's moral values becomes the weapon to defeat the Voldemort. In his acceptance of his mortality, “the boy who lived” is able more fully and wholly to live. Voldemort in the quest to be immortal he loses his moral values. In the end of many books Dumbuldore give Harry some kind of moral lessons like about love, choices, friendship.  Throughout the Harry Potter series there are two distinct types of characters, morally good and bad. On the good side there is characters such as, Harry, Hermione, Ron, Dumbledore. While on the bad side Draco, Umbridge, Voldemort. Those who are in the favour of good moral values they gain the love of readers.



11) Christianity and Harry Potter Series

Harry Potter series directly have no relation with Christianity. Many critics say that the novel is anti-christianity because there are many thing in the fiction are ant Christian like magic. Magic js abondon in Christianity so Rowling written an anti christian work. In addition, there is not any kind of church for prayer even the good fights with powerful evil force though they do not pray to God for survival. All the characters fights and save themselves without any divinity power. But there are couple of scenes which somehow connected with Christianity like Christmas celebration and after the death of Albus Dambledor we see the view like heaven. So, at last we can say that Harry Potter is ant Christian fiction.

12) What is your opinion on this:

As per the Mitchel Foucault's theory "Power and Knowledge. J. K. Rowling similarly conveys the message that question the power because what is written is not always true in the post truth era. These lines by Rowling is also relevant in the present era, we see in many political leaders and media who keep on speaking lies for remaining in the power and also there are many speeches or write fake history. So, we have to cross check everything rather than follow blindly.

Harry Potter, the novel conveys the message which is don't like by reader and many who watched the movie. Because protagonist, the half blood wins over the pure blood, which can be not digest. And what can be assume about media and press it can not  be truth also. 

work cited :

http://chintavan.blogspot.com/2017/03/webquest-harry-potter-think-and-write.html?m=1

https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/Pure-blood

carolyn. Analysis of sexism in harry Potter. 21 October 2017. 14 March 2019 <https://ahundredthousandstories.wordpress.com/2017/10/21/an-analysis-sexism-in-harry-potter/>.

Dewan, Pauline. Harry Potter and the . 14 March 2019 <https://childliterature.net/childlit/fantasy/harry.html>.

Fassler, Joe. Confronting Reality by Reading Fantasy. 5 August 2014. 14 March 2019 <https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2014/08/going-home-with-cs-lewis/375560/>.

Harry Potter Self-Help. 25 April 2015. 14 March 2019 <https://psychobabblechat.com/2015/04/25/harry-potter-self-help/>.

Love, Samantha. The Politics of Harry Potter: Corrupt Law and Totalitarian Government. 23 May 2014. 14 March 2019 <https://www.oxford-royale.co.uk/articles/harry-potter-law.html>.

Mahoney, Kelli. Should Christians Be Reading "Harry Potter?". 5 March 2019. 14 march 2019 <https://www.thoughtco.com/should-christians-be-reading-harry-potter-712316>.

Paul, Megan. Blood purity in Harry Potter. 22 december 2018. 14 March 2019 <https://geeks.media/blood-purity-in-harry-potter>.

RAGSDALE, MELISSA. 6 Meaningful Lessons Hidden In Harry Potter. 6 January 2016. 14 March 2019 <https://www.bustle.com/articles/132784-6-meaningful-lessons-hidden-in-harry-potter>.

Sipal, S. P. beast chaser forum. 22 July 2011. 14 March 2019 <http://harrypotterforwriters.blogspot.com/2011/07/circling-home-to-theme.html>.

Spilsbury, Paul. Love and death in Harry Potter. 3 April 2006. 14 March 2019 <https://www.hp-lexicon.org/2006/04/03/love-and-death-in-harry-potter/>.

Talk with Dr. JAY MEHTA on journalism...

on 15th January ,2019 a surprise session because we have earlier also taken session by sir on previous sem. On poe’s short-stories but it is also something different than the previous .

In the session of mass media & communication , he delivered some basic knowledge about media, its development from the ancient time & now present situation.
Before starting the session sir says that ,
“Patrkaratva e utavle sarjatu sahitya che”
There are total 6 sources of mass media :-
I.            Radio
II.            Television
III.            Cinema
IV.            Advertisement
V.            Newspaper
VI.            Digital media

§  You know what in this all 6 media’s the oldest   one or we can says print media . there are 3 pillars ..
§   judiciary ,
§   parliament
§  , army , and
§    last 4th is media

THERE IS ONE FAMOUS POEM BY DUSHYANTKUMAR –
HO RHI HAI PIR PARVAT SI PIGHALNI CHAHIE ,
IS HIMALAYA SE KOI GANGA NIKALNI CHAHIYE – YUGANTAR

Dimensions are changed from ancient – modern. In earlier time tere were only one tv channel ‘ durdarshan’  theire is one barrier , if we want to watch you have to wait for the broadcasting of series whole day and  there are some specific time during night the final red , yellow strips began than programme came. Now, the things have move forward, because of modernization .now we don’t have to wait for  signals . there are numbers of channels . we can choose whatever want to watch.  But from some years, we can see that in tis time there are many applications in mobiles we find that replaced TV and so, for that much peoples are prefer to use other devices , like in tablets , mobile and i-pad rather to watch in TV because in this time peoples are busy with hustle –bustle of schedule of life . so, that whenever they are  free or get chance to , want entertainment , they can operate in their mobile devices and there is many options , we can download and see afterwards , we can also see previous episodes, shaws,etc . that was te beneficial part of this new technology .
KEVALKUMAR(LIG)-
LIBRALIZATION , TECHNOLOGY, GLOBLIZATION
Religion is opium –Karl Marx
FILM – RAN is satire of media & globalization

Radio ….
            First ‘hem radio’ – natural calamities (sos) messages gave
Next ‘vividh-bahrti’ , all India ,BBC- BRITISH BROADCASTING CHANNEL
THIS Above mentioned are older factors of radio platform but now in today’s world the new dimensions emerged. Earlier there were akaswani station were so many programs come but now , we can find that peoples move towards radio because there are more new platforms like , radio-mirchi, and applications  for songs and this is now not only for the songs and all old type where only news and songs come. But also there are interviews and promotions of new upcoming movies also held . interviews , etc. the more famous in this area  RJ DEVKI, RJ AKASH, RJ DHVANIT , They also interact with the youth and they get to know that what new youth want and they also did their best .

Next,   Advertising And Management
This is play of words
Teaching ,content writing , media writing , anchoring ,event manager
For ex.  Madhur bhandarkar’s film ‘CORPORATE” BASED ON ‘ Coca-cola ‘  NEXT example prasun joshi also made advertisements .


Cinema plays a vital role in communication. In ancient time it’s  mainly focused upon entertainment . first silent film “ Alam Ara”  opens door of theaters . after this one kind of revolution happen , from that there is shift from silent to audio visual , black & white to colorful films. Earlier womens not allowed to tack play roles in films because it is consider as something low level . but films are not only for entertainment . it carries serious social issues, which focusing on the gap between rich-poor class .in new era , modern time , there is much focus on the middle class.

So, this are something which deal with sir in interactive session held . it also pleasure to attain lectures bye sir because he creates aura which has strong power which attracts me not move anywhere .
At the end I would like to thanks #Dr. jay Mehta sir for giving us precious time and this *knowledge and # Dr. dilipbarad sir who time and again call this such scholars which  make us more energetic and put more enthusiasm ……

Talk with an author Dr. Vishal Bhadani

On January 1, 2019, Dilip sir, organized the guest Lacture of Vishal Bhadani. He talked about the short stories 'Fictional' and its importance in the lives of its ordinary people. Vishal Sir read his two stories and also gave tips for writing short stories or any work.

I had read three short stories of 'Fictional' which is Mara Hath ni Vat nathi. This storie is relate to middle class people.

(1)Mara Hath ni wat nathi :-

The writer covers all the basics in this story, but the title itself is challenging. The writer connects the problems of society with different parts of the hand. Plate, Finger, Thumb etc. It connects various parts of the hand with various items, Buddha, Lord Vishnu, Devi Lakshmi, Vasco da Gama etc. In this way the author uses a lot of symbols in his work.

Translation: -

After a short story session, there is a translation session in which Vishal Sir spoke about job opportunities in the translation sector. Translation is very hard and great work as well. We have done one of the translations of the phrase.

In this way, we get knowledge about writing short stories and getting translations.

Net ~ Set class by Vedant sir..

On 23rd January ,2019 in Department of English MKBU we have NET class by Vedant pandya sir. He introduce us to paper 1 of NET. The syllabus is changed now and he explained about 10 unit of paper.

He gives some clue for getting good job as below:-

A) logic is needed for getting good job.
B) Use data -Tale it differently and conclude it with difference.
C) There is certain leadership capacity is required

Then he explained about education system and the structure of institute. Higher education system follow this type of institution structure.
Self finance college, Grant in at college, Government college, Constituents, State and public University.


He also  explained about the transfer system and salary of above institution structure.
There is some tradisional and specialized university also. Shri Govind Guru University, Godhra and Bhakt kavi Narsinh  Mehta University, Junagadh are the traditional universities.
Then he gave information about some other university like Teaching and research sector-Children University, Police defence University, some Sports University and about some private Universities also.

 These all information is very helpful for us. This is a very helpful section for NET preparation.

Interaction with France Professors..

Friday, 8 February 2019

Today I can say about our department. Many national and international professors are visiting our department and it's all about possible because of our professor and head of department respected barad sir.                      

First the both professors were came from university of Lorraine, France.. They talking about many current issues in the world and also observed the male female graduation ratio.some students were asked many questions and they both were given answers very patiently. Here I observed one thing that they both were not well in speaking English language but they tried hard and after all Englsh language is became a bridge between they and our.

 In the end I say that the session was very inresting and very fruitful...We all thanks for this department which gives many opportunities to meet many known and unknown things and many activities are done by us.......                              

Thinking activity - ON@CC

Thinking activity - ON@CC

***What do you understand by Self-help book ? Is On@cc is self-help book ? Illustrate.

~Self - Help means self - guided improvement - economically , intellectually or emotionally, often with a substantial psychological basis. A self - help book is one that is written with the intention to instruct its readers on solving personal problems.

In starting of the book questions like..
# One thing I fear ,
# One thing that makes me angry ,

God or Inner call that about intelligence to show self - confidence or failure in life. Remember the 'Reverse Gear' and friendship with adversity.

We have to finds solution for problem. In the novel characters finds solutions for thier problems. Thus it is self-help book.

***Comment on Narrative structure of the Novel. Compare it with that of Life of Pi.

~One night@ call center was taken place when author on a train journey from Kanpur to Delhi at that time he meets one beautiful girl. After some conversation she tells the story to the author. She also make a condition that he will write it.

When author makes a story he puts shyam mehra as the narrator and protagonist. In story representation of God  to direct all the characters. So, it can be said that entire story is dream sequence of author like God or beautiful lady.

Yan Martel' s ' Life of Pi ' have same narrative like on@cc . Same beginning like story from the person who is also character in the story. First person narration in both the novel. Narration of God and experience with God of characters that all are similar narratives.

***Does the novel have social realism ?

~In the Novel , Human relations, love, sex, marriage and sociable characters all represent reality of society. Anxiety and reflection of rising Indian middle class , question about career , marriage , family conflicts and relationships aspirations and problem of young generation all represents social reality.

***How far can this novel be categorised as Cyberpunk ?

~Cyberpunk is a literary genre.It is subgenre of science fiction. Information technology, such programs like Microsoft office. We can find some aspects of cyberpunk in the novel. People are working in call centre, which is related with cyber technology. In Microsoft word there is a bug which is a strategy to blackmail the Americans, operation Yankee fear.

***What is popular Literature ? Is On@cc is popular Literature ? Illustrare.

~Popular Literature not deals with abstract problem. It takes moral principles as the given accepting certain generalized ideas and values as it's base. It represents common - sense values , does not raise or answer abstract questions. They represent on the whole, an instinctive or traditional, rather than a highly reflective, philosophy of life.

Presentation Paper no 10 : American Literature

Old man and_the_sea_reflection_in_bollywood_movies_[1] from Vijay Makwana