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Rowling Studies The Hogwarts Professor Podcast

Rowling Studies The Hogwarts Professor Podcast

Auteur(s): John Granger
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 The Artistry and Meaning of J. K. Rowling and Other Greats

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  • Three Cheers for The Hallmarked Man! Thoughts After the First Reading

    Three Cheers for The Hallmarked Man! Thoughts After the First Reading
    Sep 8 2025
    Spoilers Warning! If you haven’t finished reading the 900 pages of The Hallmarked Man and don’t want to hear details from the novel, you will not enjoy this conversation about Strike8.John read the latest Strike-Ellacott novel by Thursday morning using the pre-publication head start, the Robert Glenister audiobook dropped early Tuesday morning, a bootleg epub version on his wife’s iPad, and the codex hardcover that arrived at 5:00 on the day of release. Nick didn’t finish until early Saturday but was already half-way through his second reading via audiobook by Sunday night.John didn’t especially enjoy reading the book as fast as he did; Nick was frustrated that he could not read it faster than he did. Both were delighted by Rowling’s work and are looking forward to the coming weeks of re-reading and ‘Tools, Springs, and Threads’ analysis of its artistry and meaning.In this week’s conversation, they touch on fandom disappointment with the new book before discussing how three predictions they’d made about Hallmarked Man played out, the three Real World targets of Rowling’s wrath in her current work, John’s preliminary work on the novel’s epigraphs (and the Aurora Leigh-esque forgotten tome of epic poetry that may be Strike8’s Rosmersholm or Faerie Queene), and what’s next in their reading of Cormoran Strike.As is their wont, Nick and John refer to ideas and to people that Serious Readers will want to check up on or learn more about. Here are a selection of links to many of these subjects with their apology for those they’ve missed and their invitation to share counter-sources or requests for other links.They thank everyone who listens to these Lake and Shed conversations, those who join in the discussions in the comment thread below (how was your first reading of Hallmarked Man?), and especially for our paid subscribers who were polled for their questions and concerns last week for our consideration before we put our notes together.Hogwarts Professor is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Anteros-Eros Distinction in Cormoran StrikeCormoran & Robin and Odysseus & Penelope (Joanne Gray, 2019)I found out that this is actually the statue of Anteros—not Eros as it is popularly called. Anteros is the subject of the Shaftesbury Memorial in Piccadilly Circus, London, where he symbolizes the selfless philanthropic love of the Earl of Shaftesbury for the poor. The memorial is sometimes given the name The Angel of Christian Charity and is popularly mistaken for Eros, cf., Lloyd & Mitchinson (2006) The Book of General Ignorance “Because of the bow and the nudity… everybody assumed it was Eros, the Greek god of love.”https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anteroshttps://www.theoi.com/Ouranios/ErosAnteros.htmlEros is the brother of Anteros and also pretty much the opposite of Eros.Reading Rowling at Four Levels (John Granger, 2021)Robin and Cormoran, even if you want to include Sam Barclay, are not a soul exteriorization akin to Harry, Hermione, and Ron. The psychomachia of the Strike novels is built on the Shakespearean soul-Spirit romantic model rather than the Platonic-Patristic body-mind-spirit soul triptych of ancient, Medieval, and contemporary film and written fiction. In this model, the man and woman lede players take the part of soul and spirit, Coomaraswamy’s duo sunt in homine human and divine aspects, either as fixed roles as in Othello and The Tempest or in relation to the other, each being soul and embracing the other as supra-natural as in Romeo and Juliet and Antony and Cleopatra (see Lings and Pogson for that). Rowling’s embedded models for this exteriorized drama of human sanctification are the myths of ‘Leda and the Swan‘ and ‘Psyche and Cupid‘ and the psychomachia spiritual allegories of Eros and Anteros, true and false Cupid, within Spenser’s Faerie Queen, the Redcrosse Knight and Una as well as Britomart and Artegell.On Valentine Longcaster as the Erotic Cupid (Strike being the Anterotic Cupid)Valentine Longcaster is a hilarious cryptonym for Cupid, for whom Valentine is a second name (see the post on Valentine’s Day in the Psyche and Eros post) and ‘Longcaster’ is a reference to his weapon of choice, the bow and arrow of the god of love. He pricks Strike at the direction of Venus-Charlotte, in some myths his mother, in others a lover and cousin or brother (murky waters!), and sets in motion the long-range plan of the envious ex to destroy Robin and Cormoran’s budding relationship.Add ‘Valentine Longcaster’ to the pile of evidence for this particular backdrop and let’s continue to look for parallels and links Rowling has playfully embedded in the psycho-spiritual, neo-mythological allegory of the soul’s journey to perfection, and specifically the souls of women.For much more on this Eros-Anteros distinction and its importance in grasping the allegorical ...
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    1 h et 44 min
  • How Are You Going to Read 'Hallmarked Man'?

    How Are You Going to Read 'Hallmarked Man'?
    Sep 1 2025

    What can you say about Hallmarked Man that doesn’t include anything beyond epigraph authors from the latest pre-publication drops from the leak-ing ship of Rowling, Inc.?

    Nick and John elect to discuss their respective plans for reading the latest Cormoran Strike-Robin Ellacott murder mystery cum Modern Romance. Enjoy that conversation in the hours left before the books arrive — and tune in here this time next week for our first thoughts on another epic-length novel from the world’s most popular author!



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    1 h et 22 min
  • Is Rowling a Romance Writer or What?

    Is Rowling a Romance Writer or What?
    Aug 26 2025
    We’re counting down the days until the publication of The Hallmarked Man! Nick Jeffery and John Granger take perhaps the last look at Rowling’s most recent postings before they dive into discussion about the meaning and artistry of Strike8.In today’s conversation, they review Rowling’s relationship with Stephenie Meyer, the author of the Twilight series, a New York Times feature article ‘The Wizard’s Everlasting Spell’ about the growth of Potter fan fiction with a romantic twist, and Rowling’s acerbic review of Nikola Sturgeon’s memoir Frankly. Nick and John discuss along the way the initial response of cultural gatekeepers to the quality of the writing in Harry Potter, the history of Rowling’s relationship with the writers of romantic fan fiction using her characters in light of Fifty Shades of Gray, and Hogwarts Professor’s role in making ‘Rowling Studies’ legitimate and the culture-wide acceptance of Rowling as a writer of merit “something we’ve always known” rather than a controversial assertion.And what does all that have to do with the imminent release of Hallmarked Man? Nick and John share their more-than-tentative plans for reading Strike8 and the best way — not the only way, of course, but a much better way than, say, cataloging predictions everyone will forget by mid-September — to prepare for our first reading of an epic Rowling-Galbraith title.We hope you are as excited as we are to the advent of Hallmarked Man and that you’re looking forward to exploration of its breadth and depth beneath the surface plot with us in the coming month!Links To Subjects Discussed Above:The Wizard’s Everlasting Spell Why Magic, Dragons and Explicit Sex Are in Bookstores Everywhere: Romantasy is propping up the fiction market. Thanks to a generation that grew up reading about a boy wizard. (The New York Times, 20 August 2025, Alexandra Alter)The new version of the [‘Dramione’ Potter fan fiction] story that so captivated Ms. Stallone will soon be released as “Alchemised,” and the novel’s publisher, Del Rey, is betting that the feverish devotion to its fanfiction predecessor will translate into blockbuster sales. Del Rey has ordered a first printing of 750,000 copies for the novel’s release in late September; translations are lined up in 21 languages.Besides appealing to hordes of existing fans, “Alchemised” has another advantage: It taps into the raging appetite for romantasy, a subgenre that blends fantasy elements like magic, fairies and dragons with love, yearning and explicit sex.In a way, the romantasy explosion — driven by the success of blockbuster authors like Sarah J. Maas and Rebecca Yarros, whose series have sold millions upon millions of copies — stems from the legacy of popular young adult series like “Twilight” and “Harry Potter.” Those books molded generations of young readers who have grown up but still crave big fantasy novels — now with a dose of erotica.“They grew up with the characters, and the stories ended, but there’s still such a huge appetite,” said Leah Hultenschmidt, publisher of the romance imprint Forever. “They’re still hungry for that magical world building, an epic cast of characters and heroism, and maybe they just want it a little spicier.”Publishers are frantically searching for the next breakout romantasy series. Last year, romantasy sales topped more than 32 million copies in print alone, a 47 percent jump over the previous year, according to Circana Bookscan. Five of the 10 best-selling adult fiction titles this year are romantasies. At the same time, adult fiction sales overall have stagnated.The kind of romance that’s selling like crazy now — erotically charged genre mash-ups — first took off in fanfiction before publishers recognized there was an appetite for it.“For a long time, you had to go to fanfiction to find that,” said Anne Jamison, a professor of English at the University of Utah who has studied fanfiction. “Romantasy basically is what fanfiction made.”* Alchemized Sen Lin Yu* ‘Romantasy’ Novels on Amazon, Etc.The twilight of Nicola Sturgeon: J.K. Rowling reviews FranklyI know I’m stating the obvious, and I’ll probably be one of countless reviewers making the same point, but it’s impossible to read Nicola Sturgeon’s memoir without remembering the smash hit fictional franchise, Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. For those who don’t know (ie, everyone who wasn’t a tween or teenage girl, or living with one, 2005-2015), Twilight was massively popular for roughly a decade, each new book or film being greeted adoringly by its devoted fans. [opening paragraph)Rowling and Romantasy:* ‘The Twenty Richest Authors in the World:' Rowling #2 (!), Meyer #18, Collins #20* The Sunday Times’ List of the “100 Bestselling Books of the Last Five Decades:” Rowling #23, Meyer #42, 58, 59, and 64* Twilight Book Sales * Stephen King: “Stephenie Meyer Can’t Write Worth a ...
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    1 h et 36 min
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