Tuesday, July 12, 2011

R.H. Bill in the Wizard World

            For humour, I will try to associate the concept of Reproductive Health Bill J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter. Actually, because of the hypnotic plot the Harry Potter series provides, readers would often miss several issues of family planning inside the book. In my opinion, the R.H. Bill should be passed not only in the muggle world but also in the wizard world. I believe that the wizard world in the Harry Potter Novel also needs the R.H. Bill because, just like us muggles, the wizard world also lacks the concept of family planning.

            The Harry Potter saga actually provides its viewers with an in-depth view of society and its problems. One of its main focuses is the obvious gap in the social hierarchy between the rich and the poor. J.K. Rowling made this distinction between social classes obvious in two wizard families namely the Weasleys and the Malfoys. The Weasleys and the Malfoys are actually a clichéd description of how families in the elite social class and families in the lower social class act based on their lifestyle and personalities.

            Think about it: the Weasleys are a family living on a minimum wage salary brought home by the father (Arthur Weasley) who works in the Ministry of Magic under the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office. The Mususe of Muggle Artefacts Office was not held in high regard, it was considered by Ron to be the most boring job at the Ministry. It was located in a tiny office, apparently only staffed by Arthur Weasley and his assistant, Perkins. Percy Weasley also claimed that his father had a poor reputation because he lacked ambition and did not receive a large salary, implying that his position as head of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office was neither well-respected nor well-paid. Combining this to the number of children they have (7), it’s no surprise that they struggle every year in sending their sons and daughter to school. It’s also no surprise that the best school supplies they could give their children were hand-me-down robes and second-hand books. It was even said indicated in the second book (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) that they could hardly afford the expensive books required for Defence Against the Dark Arts because the author was Gilderoy Lockheart.

            Now look at the Malfoys: They hold a elite position society where Lucius Malfoy holds a respectable position in the Ministry of Magic. He also has several allies above the social class (though it was obtained through deceit and trickery). They have only one son and can afford to give him the best luxuries in life. They also have a big-ass mansion and house elves as servants.

            If you compare the two families, there is an obvious difference between the Malfoys and the Weasleys. Even though the reason why the Weasleys had so many kids was because they wanted a daughter, it still indicated a lack of family planning on their part and that was why they were struggling financially. Obviously, the R.H. Bill is also an issue in the Wizard Community because there are families in that world who lack the proper education for family planning. :P

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