Andrew is from Naas in Co. Kildare. Before coming to Limerick to pursue an MA in History he graduated from NUI Maynooth with a BA in English and History. Andrew is a keen reader of almost every genre.
Magical Spaces and authority in fantasy literature.
In the following work I wish to discuss how certain spaces in fantasy literature allow for a rethinking of conventional social structures and power relations. The texts that I wish to look at are the ever more popular Northern Lights, by Phil Pullman and Rowling's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. In looking at these special ‘spaces’ I am addressing the theoretical idea of the heterotopia, defined by French philosopher Michel Foucault in 1967, well before Pullman and Rowling’s novels were conceived. These unique spaces of Foucault's allow for traditional notions of power to be changed, in this essay various spaces within the texts where the power structure is being significantly changed will be examined. For example I will discuss spaces where power structures become altered, to be put in favour of the teenage protagonists instead of the adult caregivers or mentors. Furthermore I hope to examine how these heterotopic spaces have developed their own set of signs, symbols and rules which allow them to function separately from rest of the locations in the novels. For example, both Hogwarts and Oxford act as a certain type of heterotopia, each are educational institutions with clearly defined rules and power structures that differ from the rest of the world, more importantly I will discuss how the protagonists manage to defy these rules by making the space theirs – for example Lyra is able to traverse the rooftops and crypts of Oxford while Harry gains knowledge of the castes secret passages with the Marauder's Map. Overall what I am aiming to prove is that that while Heterotopias do exist in these novels, their existence is not alone sufficient to reshape social order, rather it is the protagonist that learns the 'rules' of a certain space to attain power.
Heterotopic spaces are a conceptual place that are neither here nor there, essentially that are separate from our world yet directly connected to it. These spaces come in many various forms and institutions such as hospitals, schools and prisons. These spaces exist outside of all other spaces as they have a unique function; the rules of ordinary society are suspended within their walls. In place of the laws of society Heterotopias’ are governed by their own rules, permissions, passwords and gestures, for example a school or a prison is not governed by the laws of modern democracy. Thinking about these facts in relation to our texts, both Harry Potter and Northern Lights make extensive use of these unique spaces. For instance readers have Azkaban and Svalbard, Hogwarts and Jordan College, St. Mungo's and Bolvangar. Hogwarts and Jordan College are both educational institutions that could be labelled as a heterotopic space. The specific function as a school mean that essentially a unique power structure or hierarchy of authority is necessary; from headmaster, teachers, scholars, students and finally servants. This power structure is clearly evident in both books. Meanwhile students are split up further in houses. The Gryffindor Common Room is only accessed by giving a secret password while areas of Jordan College are off limits to everyone but a select group, e.g. Scholars in the Retiring Room. In order to navigate the school, students must become aware of the unique rules, the signs and symbols that regulate life. I would put forward the argument that by gaining knowledge of these signs and symbols the young protagonists are able to redraw the typical hierarchical power structure by making the heterotopic space an area of personal conquest. Essentially it is the students who become masters of communication and navigation in the heterotopia. I would now like to develop this idea into a more detailed argument.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is the primary setting of the Harry Potter series. However it remains a strict institution of education despite the presence of magic. As a school Hogwarts teaches conformity, students study specific subjects such as potions and charms, are given homework and take exams. Furthermore discipline is evidently regulated with house points and detentions. For all intents and purposes Hogwarts operates as a system of punishments and rewards designed to keep students in line. The presence of magic alone is thus not enough to provide a model of resistance to authority within the school space.. However, Hogwarts also functions as a magical space in which even those in positions of authority cannot fully understand or appreciate its secrets. As Dumbledore, the headmaster admits in the fourth book “Oh, I would never dream of assuming I know all Hogwarts' secrets” Thus for students who wish to subvert authority, knowledge of the castles secret passages and enchantments act as the key to redrawing the ideas of conventional power structures. This comes in the form of the Weasley twins, who entrust Harry with the enchanted 'Marauders Map' which “was a map showing every detail of the Hogwarts castle and grounds”. It illustrated every detail of the castle, its inhabitants and “a set of passages he had never entered”. Thus with the aid of the map and his invisibility cloak Harry becomes the master of Hogwarts secrets.
The key scenes where the traditional power structures are altered take place in the latter part of the novel, the climactic scene in the shrieking shack between the students Harry, Ron and Hermonie and the teachers Snape, Lupin and Sirius Black the convict. Although the setting is located outside of Hogwarts grounds it is an extension of the castle, reached by a secret passage. It is this setting in which Harry finally takes control of the tense situation by using magic on a staff member. It is the exact location in the novel where the schools rules cease to function while simultaneously Harry becomes the dominant authority, literally overpowering the adults, evident with Harry's rejection of Snape as an authority figure. “Expelliarmus!... Snape was lifted off his feel and slammed into the wall”. Prompted by a sense of greater importance and desire to know the truth about his parent’s death Harry acts without regard for other forms of higher authority. It is evident that by this point in the narrative Harry has become master of Hogwarts, by learning its secrets he is able to track down Sirius in Hogsmeade while the Ministry of Magic and the Dementors are unable. He becomes not only the one who controls the scene but the discussion of Peter Pettigrew's fate is also placed in Harry's hands, “We’ll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the Dementors. He can go to Azkaban”. The adults in the scene similarly recognise that they are now in a minor position compared to Harry with Sirius declaring “You're the only person who has the right to decide”.
Northern Lights is also a text which makes use of Foucault's heterotopia. The universe of the novel is indeed one of many in the entire series, as the Master of Jordan College declares of the alternative worlds “they are there, close by, but invisible and unreachable”. It could be argued Lyra’s Oxford, specifically Jordan College functions as a heterotopia just as Hogwarts does. In a similar fashion to Harry, Lyra too becomes the figure who is able to redraws the conventional social power structures. While Harry is equipped with an invisibility cloak and a map that reveals the secrets of Hogwarts, Lyra must learn how the college works unaided. Jordan College functions with a specific set of rules, just as Hogwarts does. Bells signal the entrance of scholars and daily routines are timed. Lyra is able to gain access to hidden and forbidden spaces by learning these times and signals of the college. She is able to enter the retiring room unhindered by knowing “the steward doesn’t come in till the first bell”. Just as Harry has access to the secret passages of Hogwarts, Lyra “clambers over college roofs” and through the underground crypts, spaces where adults would not enter to manoeuvre unnoticed.
When Lyra decides to hide in the retiring room in the opening pages of the novel, readers are presented with a character that has already mastered and understands the inner workings and sets of signals of Jordan College. By hiding in the Retiring Room she is able to spot the poisoned wine and more significantly become the one to save Asriel, proudly and boldly declaring “I've just saved your life”. Instantly in this key scene Lyra gains the position of control over the adult figures of authority. Not only does she save the life of Lord Asriel but is able to undermine the authority of the Master by effectively becoming a spy for Asriel, her Father. However the novel hints that the redrawing of power structures come with a cost, effectively cutting Lyra off from adults and children alike. For the rest of the novel she essentially becomes a child living among adults, while she is never able to regain her relationship with Roger, the figure of childhood at Oxford. As Asriel surmises “ … I won't help you. You're on your own”. For the rest of the novel Lyra acts independently of adults and children alike, never fully trusting anybody but an armoured bear, a mentality that stems from the events in the Retiring Room. It suggests that once a character has attempted to redraw the power structure in their heterotopic space, they cannot undo this action. Ultimately in both novels the space in which they have been dominant becomes too restrictive and must seek out new spaces, Lyra leaves Jordan College in the early part of Northern Lights while the final Harry Potter novel is set in various locations, aside from Hogwarts. In a sense the characters become too ‘big’ for their restrictive spaces.
Thus it could be argued that while both Hogwarts and Jordan College are by Foucault's simple definition Heterotopia's, existence alone is not sufficient to provide a rethinking of typical power structures. Inside these spaces power is far more strictly controlled than in the outside world, as we have seen, Hogwarts has its own system of reward and punishment while Jordan College has a class and rank based form of segregation. Many ideal students of these institutions do not desire to subvert authority. Harry and Lyra come to see these institutions as a space for resistance, not because their intrinsic nature is that of rule breakers who need to defy authority, rather because their position in society requires it. The protagonists in these narratives come from unconventional family structures and are essentially immersed into a world with is unfamiliar and sometimes difficult to comprehend. As a result of this, both Lyra and Harry subvert authority in order to find truths about themselves and the world into which they have been subjected to. As result of this redrawing of power structure comes in the ultimate rejection of their childhood/teenage years in place of adult responsibilities. Interestingly the most important lessons both protagonists learn take place outside of the educational heterotopia, which in the end they must leave, a realisation that they have grown too powerful to remain confined in one space.
Bibliography
Foucault, Michel. Of Other Spaces. 1967. Web. Cantell, Sarah K. 'I Solemnly Swear I'm up to no Good. Foucault's Heterotopias and Deleuze’s Any-Spaces-Whatever in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter Series'. Children’s Literature: Annual of The Modern Language Association Division on Children’s Literature and The Children’s Literature Association. 2011. Web. Cockrell, Amanda. 'Harry Potter and the Secret Password'. Harry Potter and the Ivory Tower. Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon. ed. Whited, Lana A. University of Missouri Press. 2003. Web. Pullman, Philip. Northern Lights. Scholastic. 1995. Web. Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Bloomsbury. 1999. Print. Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Bloomsbury. 2000. Print.