Harry Potter and Zones of Shade: Using Contemporary Literature to Examine the Impacts of Social Control

• In Event: Criminal Justice Policy

Abstract

This presentation employs the story of childhood wizard Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling to examine how “zones of shade” (any social mechanism by which an individual can be hidden from authoritarian observation) impact anti-social and criminal behavior in American society. This examination is conducted through the eyes of political theorist Michelle Foucault. The genesis of the type of analysis presented in this paper is a very unique graduate course taught by Dr. Jamie Warner at Marshall University (WV). Numerous examples from the Harry Potter series will be presented and examined to explain many current social ills in America. Special interest will be given to connections with political and social rhetoric about crime and justice.

Authors

• Garrison Allen Crews, Marshall University

• Gordon Arthur Crews, Marshall University