Children's Literature: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Reynolds Kimberley

Author:Reynolds, Kimberley [Reynolds, Kimberley]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2011-10-05T16:00:00+00:00

In converged readings, stories become multisensory combinations of all available media: they are read, played, watched, and heard. What is particularly interesting about Harry Potter is that it began with a traditional fixed-print children’s book, but over the time Rowling was writing the series, it was reconceived as a transmedia network. The master Harry Potter network consists of books, audio recordings, films, online and computer games, fan fiction, websites, and blogs (there are many other Potter-inspired products and events which interact with the network but do not develop the narrative and so are beyond the scope of this discussion). As the network has grown, each added version has created new opportunities to explore the world of Harry Potter, filling in gaps in the books and offering different points of view. There is also evidence that later books in the series show Rowling’s plots and style being affected by her awareness of the other versions of and adjuncts to her books that committed fans were consuming, leading to set pieces and plot devices such as the Marauders’ Map that readily transfer to transmedia versions of the books.

Analyses of this phenomenon tend to assume that the books are the original or source texts and that all other ways of encountering the evolving story of the boy wizard and his quest to defeat evil in the form of Voldemort are limited to retelling the story in reduced versions. This is the case made by Andrew Burn (2004, 2006) in comparisons of the same scene from three versions of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Burn demonstrates that in the transition from book (Rowling 1998) to film (Columbus 2002) to computer game (Electronic Arts 2002) there is not only considerable loss of detail, but also that the character of Harry becomes more action-centred and heroic and less interestingly conflicted, while his companions become less important to his success, wellbeing, and personal development. While the facts are as Burn presents them, his analyses are comparative, focusing on responses to each version individually, so they do not take account of the relationship between parts and the whole in a transmedia network or the collaborative style of reading that it seeks to provoke. As Jenkins explains:

To fully experience any fictional [transmedia] world, consumers must assume the role of hunters and gatherers, chasing down bits of the story across media channels, comparing notes with each other via online discussion groups, and collaborating to ensure that everyone who invests time and effort will come away with a richer entertainment experience.

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