Harry Potter: contagious media virus explores identity

I interrogate J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter novels as a media virus, contending that while the novels focus on magic appeared to spur the public's interest, the novels actually disseminate ideas of how individuals in society negotiate identity. In the first section, I make the case for how Harry Potter is a media virus, drawing on Douglass Rushkoffs work in Media Virus!. In the second section, I explore the seven novels through the lens of embodiment studies. I apply Erving Goffman's theory of stigma and David T. Mitchell and Sharon Snyder's concept of narrative prosthesis to show how the character of Harry Potter negotiates his identity within the communities he inhabits. In the final section, I challenge feminist readings of the character of Hermione Granger, based on the idea that Hermione must learn to become a strong woman as she grows from childhood into womanhood. Finally, I reassert my argument that Harry Potter is a media virus in which themes of self-identification are a message delivered and spread through a vehicle of magic. Key Words: media virus, identity, embodiment studies, stigma, narrative prosthesis, feminis