Father Falls

Mythological sagas usually include the son somehow besting the father. And so it is likely to be as the new Harry Potter title arrives on shelves July 21.

James Potter, Harry's father, perishes at the hands of essence-of-evil Voldemort, it seems pretty much a given that the son will triumph in what seems likely to be the final battle. Each of the previous six books end with the good vs. evil showdown and each time the overwhelmed in force but pure-in-heart Harry defeats the darkest lord. Even as a baby (and before the book begins), the young Potter survived the clash that killed his parents with just a jagged scar on his forehead to physically mark the occasion — though if he were not touched emotionally the seven book series would lose a great deal of its depth.

Passages of Harry's unbridled pride in his father mingle with scenes of despair at his failings. Mythmaking by the numbers; at least Harry doesn't have to kill his dad and stab his own eyes to become a star. Not that following a formula (admittedly well) has kept J.K. Rowling from becoming the first person to top $1 billion in earnings from her fiction.

** While it is undeniably a grand theme of literature that the son must battle and surpass the person or image of the father, it is not is it true in most family's lives? **