“The purpose of reading, once you get the hang of it, is not merely to follow the action of a plot, but to learn about the characters, explore different ideas and enter other minds. ” (Besotted with Potter, pg. 1) For many parents, witchcraft is dangerous and demonic. There is Good and Evil in the world. Times are changing and some believe children are now more vulnerable to deception than children of earlier times. This is clearly due to different times and culture, such as social activities influencing outcomes of many issues.
Secondly, different types of fantasy, computer games, television and the media, movies and Books are all the birth of different imagination. Depending on the source of the child’s imagination, specific bias, morals and values are reflected upon the child’s feelings and imagery. Thirdly, different kind of classroom and education system where multicultural education and the global community ‘call for a common set of values’ disclosing traditional beliefs and narrow minded opinions. There is much good in children’s books, capturing a world where strength, courage, hope, wisdom, and love strongly exist.
Children seek affirmation of the goodness of life through the books they read. Children are simply different in their exploration for they lack experience and they carry a high overwhelming self-interest. Their basic ability to logic assumes the child must ultimately rely on his own understanding of this world. Fear of failure in certain circumstances may arise and thus he makes the story’s action crucially important. Fiction, particularly fantasy creates these circumstances for his consideration. In a society adults and children must work together for the safety and self-realization of all.
No individual can find self-realization at a cost of others, or a hierarchical system for society will fail. This is where realistic fiction differs from fantasy fiction; realistic fiction promises child self-realization within boundaries; whereas fantasy creates limitless possibilities for adventure and creativity. Books have magic in them, whether its magic of Shakespeare and Coelho or Lewis Carroll and Harry Potter. Whether it’s the bible or the Quraan, one may find magic in his own way of life through fantasy or realism. Show preview only
