Lately, I’ve been reading aloud Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone to my 10-year-old son, Adam, before bedtime. For years, the Potter series—the movies as well as the books—were a reservoir of joy and enchantment and bonding for my daughter and I, and I’ve been hoping for a repeat experience with my son. But the Potter magic never quite took hold of him. And even though he’s now reading it on his own as well, I’m not sure he’s pining for a Hogwarts admissions letter. My daughter, in contrast, sent herself one.
It doesn’t take a literary critic to see that J.K. Rowling’s juggernaut was every bit as popular with girls as boys because it had a female heroine in Hermione, who was just as compelling as Harry. I’m equally a fan of Emma Watson, the actress who embodied Hermione in the Harry Potter movies. In her capacity as a UN Goodwill Ambassador, Watson gave a really good and quite personal speech at the UN in late September, advocating for the HeForShe Campaign—a solidarity movement which hopes to inspire a billion men and boys to embrace equality of all kinds—professional and personal—for women and girls. You can read more about the effort at heforshe.org, though if you’re looking for a way to engage the topic with your children, I suggest starting with her speech.
I’ve been married now for 16 years. I feel like I’ve had a front row seat on the challenges of being a woman at work and at home. And when I think of my mom’s life and my wife’s life, between them I feel like I’ve seen—in the most personal, glorious, and disturbing ways—how our society has been re-invented and deeply elevated by feminist ideals, and yet how there’s still much ingrained unfairness in how we live and work, and in what we see and do. I’m no saint, but I hope I’ve done and am doing my share to be a fair and generous partner at home and colleague at work.
I accepted Watson’s challenge long before she presented it—on the days my children were born. We’ll see what happens.
Have a happy November,
Eric Messinger
Editor, [email protected]
