Ready for Question #3 Twi-hards and Potter heads? (If you missed the first two, catch up here: Responses to Question #1, Responses to Question #2.)
Question #3: What lessons does your favorite of the two sets teach to young readers and how do those compare to the lessons taught by the other series?
What say you, Team Twilight?
Ms. Taelor Ball: Even if vampires don’t exist, neither do wizards and witches. You can relate better to Twilight because the main character is an average girl who falls in love with a guy that she can’t have. That has happened to me more than once. I think Twilight can teach young readers to never give up and always follow your dreams, even if you dream about your boyfriend who is also a vampire.
Ms. Caroline Suh: If Harry Potter has taught me anything, it's that if you don't get killed by a looming evil in your first year of school, then do something even more ballsy in your second year to get it done. For a boy who grew up with no proper parenting figure throughout a portion of his year where one is most necessary, he is able to show minimum disregard to warnings and school authority and go breaking the rules. Rather than being even mildly punished for his actions, he is greatly celebrated by his whole school. Sure, Harry Potter's hard work and determination helped him "triumph over evil" but so did his sheer luck. Yes, he is not the brightest wizard at school or the most athletic, that's why he has smart and athletic friends to help get the job done for him. So lesson is: if you know you can't beat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named on your own, make friends with people that have talents that you lack and have them risk their lives with you. The Twilight series on the other hand teaches lesson of patience, self-control, sacrifice, responsibility. Bella and Edward make chastity a virtue again by waiting to take their relationship to the next physical level until they're married. From Bella alone, we learn to appreciate valuable human experiences in life and how it is important not to rush them as they happen. Before making choices, we have to realize the full potential of the aftermath, which is something Bella learns about her decision of wanting to become a vampire once she meets Brie in Eclipse. From Edward, everyone should not expect someone with perfection to his extent, but we can learn to have some expectations from people of what it truly means to make sacrifices for loved ones, practice self-control, and open the car door for others once in a while.
Ms. Laura Nelson: Twilight certainly taught readers to fight with all that they have, for whatever they believe in. In Twilight’s case, this included eternal love, family values and devotion, parental love (in Breaking Dawn, when many risked their lives for Renesmee’s), friendship, and righteousness (Edward always wanted to do right for Bella, no matter the sacrifice to him). Twilight also shows readers to love with their whole selves and nothing less. There are also lessons to be learned from Twilight about empathy and sympathy in how one’s choices affects others, and also to think through every decision one makes, because some decisions are irreversible. Harry Potter also teaches readers to fight for what they believe in, a good example would be when Harry formed “Dumbledore’s Army,” a group to fight against Dark Magic. This was not an easy feat for Harry because at this time during his education at Hogwarts it was against the rules to gather in groups, for any reason. Twilight’s lessons mainly centered around protecting those you love no matter what, while Harry Potter’s lessons contained messages of doing right for all and protecting the greater good. Harry was a very noble wizard. I think that both books offer superior messages to their young readers, although I do argue that the messages in Twilight where more easily revealed, and less hidden in confusing plot lines.
Ms. Caroline Gates: Wow, this is a difficult question to answer. For me personally, I think Twilight taught a few lessons for young readers. In Twilight, the big lesson was choices. You always have a choice in life and its up to you what you decide. Edward could have left Carlisle and become a "monster" as he put it, but didn't want to become that. Edward had another choice to kill Bella, but he didn't. Bella could have listened to Edward and not gone after James, but she did anyways. I don't think they could have killed James if Bella didn't do what she did. Its up to you to make the right choice for you. In Harry Potter, I guess the big lesson was to never give up. Even though Voldemort was hunting Harry down, Harry never ran away with his tail between his legs. He stood up to him and defeated him. However, I think Twilight taught the better lessons though. Along with the choice, Twilight was filled with morals. You never EVER see that in a vampire book. Most vampire books are filled with blood and sex. Twilight didn't have that much blood, and the sex came only after Bella and Edward got married. Its hard to teach young people about morals, but I think Twilight did a good job of showing that.
Team Potter's response:
Ms. Molly Gerber: This question marks the center of my disdain towards Twilight, so I apologize if this gets long. Twilight readers argue that the series teaches lessons of the power of love, friendship, loyalty, and even abstinence. It is great that readers find these lessons within the series. However, these books weren't meant to teach lessons. You may think I'm being biased and unfair, but believe it or not, I'm getting that information straight from the author's mouth. In episode 156 of MuggleCast (a Harry Potter podcast, in which many of the hosts are big Twilight fans), Stephanie Meyer was interviewed. The MuggleCasters asked her what message is in the Twilight books, and she responds, "there is no moral of the story, the point is to have a good time." She went on to say that it is about "having fun and entertainment, and nothing beyond that was intentional." There is absolutely nothing wrong with having a book merely for entertainment purposes, I am not criticizing her for that. That is what a book should first and foremost be. However, this fact makes comparing it to the Harry Potter books a ridiculous notion.
Harry Potter's lessons are immense. Obviously, first and foremost, the books as a whole are a lesson that love conquers all. Anyone who has read and truly understands the meaning of Harry Potter can't argue the fact that love underlies each aspect of the plot. It isn't as clear-as-day as it is in Twilight, but I believe it shapes the characters in Harry Potter even more than it shapes those in Twilight. Sure, Bella and Edward are in love. But Lily died for her son Harry, saving his life. Dumbledore completely changed his ways after the accidental murder of his sister, whom he loved above all others. Snape completely changed his alliance, risked his life, protected Harry, and eventually died all because of his love for Lily. Aurthur and Molly Weasley love their children so much that they risked their lives to fight Death Eaters to keep them safe. I could go on and on about examples of the true power, strength, and meaning of love in the Harry Potter books, but there are more lessons to touch on.
Ms. Juliana Gomes: Both of the books, in my opinion, teach a lot about all kinds of love, and what we’re willing to do to protect the ones we care about. One of the reasons why I think the Harry Potter series are a bit richer, though, it’s because of that – J.K. Rowling doesn’t only send us this message about desperate love and what we’d do to keep the people we love next to us, like Stephanie does. Rowling takes it a bit further. Harry lost his real family, whereas Bella’s got two families to rely on (Charlie and Renée and then the Cullen family, including her own daughter). What Harry does to save the only family he’s got left – his friends, since he lost his real family –, to me, at least, is much more than Bella has to do to keep Edward. And this kind of love between them (Bella and Edward) is not something everyone can relate to, especially if the people reading the books are only kids. Harry Potter teaches lessons to ten-year-olds as much as it does to sixty-year-olds – losing people we care about to valuing true friendship.
Ms. Victoria Landaker: I’m sure that everyone has a different way of looking at the lessons taught by the Potter books, but in my opinion they are classic good vs. evil stories. The Potter books teach younger readers the meaning of self-sacrifice for others, which is a theme that plays constantly through all seven of the books. From Lily’s self-sacrifice for her son in the beginning of the series, to what Harry thought his self-sacrifice would be at the ending of Deathly Hallows, these books teach younger readers the importance of fighting for a cause greater than yourself.
Ms. Annalisa Freeman: As both series fall in the young adult genre, I believe the question of what lessons we learn from the series is a viable and important one. You can't excuse away the messages innate in these stories by claiming its just fantasy and kids know the difference. Particularly with the mass followings these series procure, parents should be wondering what exactly their children are gaining from the books they love.
In Twilight, we learn that true love comes hard, fast, is all encompassing, and most importantly trumps all else in our lives. Life ends when you get a boyfriend. In some cases (as with imprinting) love is out of our control and excuses the type and form of our love and even our behavior because love at first sight takes our ability to think and choose for ourselves hostage. According to Twilight, love makes it reasonable for you to sneak a boy into your room and lie about it to your parents. A relationship that goes from intriguing to intense in nothing flat becomes the center of your universe and the only relationship that truly matters. In fact, everyone else in your life may as well disapparate because they become meaningless. It did not appear that Bella ever once thought of her high school friends past the meadow scene or mourned the fact that she would never see them again once she became a vampire, friends that were rather prominent in Twilight but slowly became less of a backdrop until they were completely absent in Breaking Dawn.
Comments
I loved all of Team Potter's points. Especially Molly's! You've summed up what my anwser to this question would have been perfectly!
This is the fort of Harry Potter Series, there are more than a couple of lessons... where do I start? First, friendship, and how it would make you happy and a good person, because, as the book literally says: "Better die before betray your friends". Second, and not for that less important, Love, the powerful thing on earth, even more powerful than magic. Third, and my personal favorite: not be afraid to death. "There are some things that are worth dying" and of course, the "better" place after the pain... it shows that there are some things that are worst than death, even when this one is comming no matter what, and of course, that you can face it and that you don't have to hide from it, because is not bad at all. Fourth, discrimination, and how to react to that. How the pure-bloods behave and the way they hate the mudd-bloods... is so interesting, this is one of the strong points of the series, because this subject is all around Voldemort, and how he wanted to be especial, and different, even better, unic. The fifth, is that there are a lot of good and bad things out side, and you are going to face both, but of course, you can make a choice about which side you want to belong to. This is a general point of view, we can talk about the importance of family, as the Weasley's shows (or even the Malfoys), or the power of feelings, even jealousy. The way that team work make things easier or nicer and how Hermione behavior sometimes shows craving and insecurity and how be famous is not good at all. There a bunches of things. Like there are more important things than money, or than everybody have a good thing, like Neville, or the sacrifices we have to do for a common good. Harry Potter is had been made just to teach to kids and young adult, (even to some adults, quite old indeed)than life is even more magical than we think.
First off, Harry Potter teaches kids LOADS more life lessons than Twilight.
In Harry Potter, we learn the true value of friendship, love, and the ability to believe in your views no matter how many people disregard them as a hallucination. (aka Chamber of Secrets and Order of the Phoenix)
In Twilight, the only thing I've learned was that true love could be around the corner. I seriously have learned nothing from Twilight. This is in the point of view of an ordinary, teenage girl and her love life.
Therefore, Harry Potter easily teaches more lessons than Twilight. (I could go on with more, but I'll stop right here for today.)
Okay, first off Harry Potter and Twilight are so incredibly diffrent that it is almost impossible to compare them, but I'm going to give it my best shot... and I am very, very sorry if I offend anyone. Just know it's not done on purpose. Twilight has good morals for a teenage girl who is getting her her first boyfriend in some ways. It teaches her that true, undieing love is still possible in todays world and that you should always wait for the right person to catch your eye however, it also teaches that you if you really trust a guy with all your heart that he won't betray you of use you which isnt true in todays world. Many guys out there are going to tell a girl anyhting she wants to hear if they think they can get somthing out of it and thats wrong but true, also it dosen't teach good morals to all ages or both genders. It has good and bad in it verses just good, but SM didn't write the series to be a bible, people. She wrote the series to be a good read and be enjoyable. Which it is! She has morals in her book but they are not in there purposly. That'sjust the way it ended up on paper. Harry Potter on the other hand teaches mosttly good morals, I'm not saying its perfect but their isn't any major flaws with the immediate story plot. All the morals are about never giving up and standing up for what you believe in. They all have a central force on love. It's not the kind of love in Twilight, but it is love all the same. It teaches that discrimination is horrible and that it gets you nowhere in life, and ultimitly destroys you. And also it teaches that you shuyldn't strive for immortalitly, that it's not how we where created and that it will only cause you to lose your humanity.Oh, and did I menton friendship? well here goes, Friendship, friendship, friendship!!! This has to be the most important moral in all the books! The way hat they risk there lives for each other. It's not the same kind of love like Bella and Edward, but it's just as strong in it's own way. These are only some of the many life lessons for all ages that are in the Potter series, but these are some of the most important ones. My personal opinion on the question is that they HP book have better morals for all ages and both genders. It's clean and deep and old and yopung all in it's own way. The Harry Potter series has nothing like it on the planet, and no one should even try to write a book that tops it becaue it won't happen. Stephanie Meyer got close but she didn't make it, and she got there not because she set out saying" I'm going to top the HP series" she just wrote because she wanted to and so did JKR and they are both amazing people, but they are nothing alike and peple should stop trying to compare them because it's only degreding to SM and JKR along with the peple coparing them. There is NO comparison. End of story.
OK,First I find it absolutly asinine to compare the two franchises. I personally enjoy both. Harry Potter however will always rank way above The Twilight Saga for me. I just think comparing them is like comparing yogurt and chocolate. Twlight is the chocolate. Really sweet, enjoyable and simple. Harry Potter; yogurt. Still sweet but also mixed with things that are valuable. I just think that case and point; Twilight is way more infantile than HP.
I think Twilight teaches more about valuing family and love and humanan qualities while Harry Potter focuses more on what is good and what is wrong and I think they are both valuable lessons, though I would lean towards love, life and family a bit more as they are more helpful in real life.
Twilight is more one-sided compared to Harry Potter.
The Twilight series is mostly aimed at girls and mostly applicable to girls as well.
Harry Potter on the other hand, the lessons learned can be appreciated by both genders.
I think it's hilarious that Team Twilight resorted to bashing Harry Potter's morals and basically calling them useless to stick up for their own series.
Team Potter was way more mature in pointing out the morals of both stories but saying that HP's were better WITHOUT bashing Twilight. It just shows the maturity level HP fans have over Twilight. :)
All of the team harry potter's gave far more excellent points then the Team twilight. I love Harry Potter. I also love twilight, but twilight really has no morals. unless you count ignoring your friends and staying with a guy and wanting to have sex with him as morals
why are we even comparing the two the are both different types of books both wrote by different authors but my opion never read a harry potter i think i read the frist chapter of the frist book when i was i freshman in high school cuz i friend was reading and teacher said find something to read so i did to me it was boring so i never read it again i watched the movies thou, they were good, but twilight hmmm... i read the frist book i couldnt but it down had it read in day and half then i went out and bought new moon elispe and breaking drawn i believe everyone has there own opion on books what they believe is good so that why we have a freedom of speech all i have to say
I think that if Twilight came out first it would be really popular and everything and then Harry Potter came out second then it would over taken Twilight just as Twilght did to Harry. So they are both equally popoular in a way. But now most people are saying Twilights better but that's only becuase everyone thinks Harry's old and a has-been. But Twilight would have been like that if Harry Potter had come out after it. What i am trying to say is that they a both excellent and equally popular books.
I think that they shouldn't be comparing the two series, different series' appeal to different people, they are written by two completely different authors and they are based on completely different things. Different genres, different authors, different plots. It was stupid to even try and compare them in the first place. I like both series...
Oh wow, Taelor Ball. 'Twilight teaches to continue your dream of having a vampire boyfriend.' I once read a book about a serial killer who continued killing when he was the most wanted man in the country. He was following his dreams. Thus, he sends a great message that grows even better the more he kills.
In other words, twilight doesn't send any positive messages. When Edward tells Bella he wanted to suck her blood more than anyone else, her response is that she loves him.
Oka well, I find Harry Potter better than Twilight, I still Like Twilight, but I found it slow and it didn't catch me attention like Harry Potter did. You lean more from Harry Potte than Twilight.
I think the fundamental difference between the messages of Harry Potter and Twilight is that Harry fights to save his friends and the people he loves and the entire wizarding world, constantly risking his own life in the process and then sacrificing it willingly at the end, while Bella only fights for herself - she fights so she can have Edward, not for Edward's life.
Harry Potter is selfless while Twilight is selfish.
Aoife
Fabulous point.
Casey said: "I think Twilight teaches more about valuing family and love and humanan qualities while Harry Potter focuses more on what is good and what is wrong and I think they are both valuable lessons, though I would lean towards love, life and family a bit more as they are more helpful in real life."
Twilight teaches a lesson about valuing family and love and human qualities? Really? Like when Bella gives up her family so that she can become a vampire and just be with Edward? That teaches us to value family? It's basically saying that, if you love your boyfriend enough, screw your family and friends, all you need is him! Whereas Harry Potter's lesson is NOT just what is right and what is wrong. Someone else even commented about something Sirius said, something like, the world isn't divided up into good people and death eaters. And Harry fights for his family and friends. That's a huge part of his motivation. He fights to protect those he loves, AND to help the wizarding world.
"Bad Harry Potter Theme" From Twihard review.
"if you know you can't beat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named on your own, make friends with people that have talents that you lack and have them risk their lives with you."
This is a great theme; this reviewer is obviously antisocial, and has an absurd obsession with rules as well.
hp= love is an important aspect in your life and can change many people's personality
twilight= EDWARD LETS HAVE SEX
Twilight is so unrealistic...having a bf that stands by your side days n night...watching you sleeping and all..it doesn't exist in real world..the twilight Sega gives false impression on boyfriends. also, Bella who can't live 1 day without Edward! Wat is all that!!! nonsense...bella is ready to leave charlie and renee behind for Edward?!! its so immoral for young people who are reading that,they might be influenced by it and do the same in real life...book has to be realistic sometimes!!! the twilight sega doesn't fit in reality at all (the romance part i mean).
"If Harry Potter has taught me anything, it's that if you don't get killed by a looming evil in your first year of school, then do something even more ballsy in your second year to get it done"
Ms. Suh, I find that your responses get more and more aggravating each time. I really don't see how saving your best friends little sister is wrong. Are you opposed to good triumphing over evil? Would you rather Harry say "Oh well I mean I just saved the whole wizarding world when I stopped Voldemort from taking the sorcerers stone, so I don't think I'll save them again this time."
I've read both books...
but there is no question that Harry potter is better..
i think the story (HP novels) is much more complex..
seeing that twilight only exists to give people the show of true love..whereas harry potter shows all...love,friendship,loyalty,etc.
This is what twilight teaches you:
go go go! Leave your family behind for some kind nice kinda hot boy that your not even gonna merrie cause if you do he'll kill in the night cause he's a vampire. So really don't care if you die just as long as you can spend just one night with him! Go on! Go get killed!
This is what Harry Potter teaches you:
Protect your familly, friends, and loved one. Trie your best for everything! And don't give-up! Have hope! Save your friends. Always have hope.
Ms. Suh, I pity you. Have you even read the books?
All you twilighters out there, I got a question for you!
Besides self sacrifice and love (cuz Harry Potter has those messages and JKR implied those messages even better than SM could ever do) what other messages does your beloved author put in those books??
NOTHING!!!!!!!
Meanwhile, Harry Potter has great life lessons: hope, “it’s our choices that make us different from the evil”, friendship, bravery, to believe in yourself, to fight for your beliefs, not to give up, I could go on for days!!!!! Harry Potter has so much depth and mysteries. JKR has thought about this for a LONG time. One minor thing in the first book turns out to be the key to a mystery in the last book. Readers of the Harry Potter series are trying to figure out the mysteries. Because in Harry Potter, there are surprises around every corner, you can be with Harry, Ron, Hermione and figure out the mystery. How is it fun if you know that Bella’s going to turn into a vampire?
How is it fun if you know that Victoria’s GOING to come to get revenge? SM didn’t give much thought to her series. I have read both of the books and Twilight is not bad but Harry Potter outshines it any day!!!!
Hp teaches the meaning of love TRUE LOVE not the crap in twilight. i mean dying to save a best friend or family member (Harry's parents died for him.) Harry never gave up even though he was an abused child and bullied by Dudley and rumors at hogwarts. Yet Harry keeps and head high and lives though it. I can "relate" even though its fantasy and does't have to be related too. Ive been bullied but i did what Harry did and kept my head high. I really didn't see Harry complain THE ENTIRE SERIES how his life sucked and tried to commit suicide. DID BELLA DIE FOR THE SAKE OF MANKIND? NO! He loves his family and friends SO MUCH he goes into the forest where VOLDEMORT is waiting to kill him. True bravery and love! not lust like E AND B. (He doesn't die thankfully do to a mixture of luck and trickery =D) i learned more in Hp 1 than in the entire series of Twatlight (what idiot added saga at the end? its not a saga! saga means epic series which twilight *excuse me* TWATlight is)
Pottermore...!
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