In J K Rowling's books, a boggart is a creature that is pretty harmless compared to certain more dangerous and vile mystical creatures. It affects a person by taking on the form of his worst fear!
The way to defeat a Boggart in the books is to think of something funny and use the Riddikulus charm that converts it into something really comical. There is a scene where poor Neville sees Professor Snape when he confronts a boggart and the professor's form ends up in women's clothes on using the counter charm.
In a way this whole concept is analogous to many of the fears we all have in real life. Every human is fearful of something and no one is an exception though what each one of us fears is different.
Fears are sometimes figments of our imagination in a negative direction which are triggered by external circumstances and internal factors like past traumatic experiences or a combination of both. It is often a bad feeling about what may happen or a reminder of an unpleasant past experience.
When someone is scared of the dark it usually is the wild imagination in progress about what may be lurking in the corners. I remember looking at the red burning tip of a mosquito coil when I was a little girl and imagining it to be an alien that had come to abduct me.
Even in horror movies, it is those scenes that move slowly in darkness where they show mundane details in an eerie silent mode that are more terrifying than the actual portions wherea ghostly face or a zombie pops up on screen.
Sometimes what is described as fear is actually disgust like what some feel towards rats or cockroaches or lizards!
Like the Riddikulus charm, making a caricature of our fears may be a good tactic to deal with them. In fact thinking of something funny puts us in a more relaxed state and we tend to feel better I suppose!
This post is a part of Blogging From A to Z April Challenge 2021
That's a lovely concept. Wouldn't be as easy to implement it in real life always, but it sure will help have better control over our thoughts and actions.
ReplyDeleteYes real life fears are sometimes at a totally higher level.
DeleteI am a non-literate as far as Potter and his world are concerned, all the best for atoz.
ReplyDeleteThanks Pooja. The books are more joy than the movies in my humble opinion.
DeleteI enjoyed those boggart scenes in HP & The Prisoner of Azkaban. Lovely post.
ReplyDeleteThanks Purba.
DeleteI once heard the following advice on how not to be intimidated by a very authoritative man who's scolding you: picture him wearing a tutu and ballerina dancing shoes. Bonus points for keeping a straight face. I guess that qualifies as a Riddikulus charm ;-)
ReplyDeleteI think it does. I remember laughing at a teachers face when she was scolding me and the rest as they say is history ;)
DeleteLovely post and nice theme. I love the Harry Potter series and have read the books many a time. Can't wait to read more.
ReplyDeleteThanks Padmini. I love the series too.
DeleteHP boggarts really say something about the people who see them. For example, Molly, the ultimate mother, sees one as the dead body of one of her children. She can’t even do a Riddikulus spell because there just isn’t anything she can think of to make it funny.
ReplyDeleteMy A To Z 2021: Greek Myths
https://suebursztynski.blogspot.com/2021/04/a-to-z-blogging-challenge-c-is-for-circe.html
HP boggarts really say something about the people who see them. For example, Molly, the ultimate mother, sees one as the dead body of one of her children. She can’t even do a Riddikulus spell because there just isn’t anything she can think of to make it funny.
ReplyDeleteMy A To Z 2021: Greek Myths
https://suebursztynski.blogspot.com/2021/04/a-to-z-blogging-challenge-c-is-for-circe.html
HP boggarts really say something about the people who see them. For example, Molly, the ultimate mother, sees one as the dead body of one of her children. She can’t even do a Riddikulus spell because there just isn’t anything she can think of to make it funny.
ReplyDeleteMy A To Z 2021: Greek Myths
https://suebursztynski.blogspot.com/2021/04/a-to-z-blogging-challenge-c-is-for-circe.html
HP boggarts really say something about the people who see them. For example, Molly, the ultimate mother, sees one as the dead body of one of her children. She can’t even do a Riddikulus spell because there just isn’t anything she can think of to make it funny.
ReplyDeleteMy A To Z 2021: Greek Myths
https://suebursztynski.blogspot.com/2021/04/a-to-z-blogging-challenge-c-is-for-circe.html
I remember that chapter in the book....In fact the dead body keeps changing to different members of her family .... I think you had to attempt posting your comments more than once.... I had to set approval on to avoid spamming...sorry about that...
DeleteThanks, Jayashree, I have approval on myself, but I didn’t notice the advice that this will be posted with blog owner approval, sorry! Now I know.
DeleteI thought this thing with the charm was one of JK Rowling's better inventions, because it is symbolic to how we deal with our fears :)
ReplyDeleteThe Multicolored Diary
A lovely one on fear. I know why I am scared of cockroaches! I think it began when as a child I put on a shoe with a cockroach inside!
ReplyDeleteI have tried my best to come out of the fear, but to some extent.
Hi Jayashree,
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting my blog.
I enjoyed your post today-- brought back memories of reading the series:) And so true about fears. As a child, I was haunted by an image I'd seen on TV and was scared of the dark for a long time afterwards.
The Dark by Lemony Snicket compliments your post perfectly.
Sharing a link of the book here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15790852-the-dark
I am a HUGE potterhead! I just came across your post today. Is your A2Z on HP?
ReplyDeleteThe topic of the post I pick from HP Meena....Thanks for visiting ...I love HP too
DeleteSo pleased to see you select this subject - such an important one. Making fun of your fear is part of the methodology in the NLP phobia cure too. I'm an NLP Practitioner and during my training this cure dealt with my fear of rodents. I still don't like them, but I'm no longer frozen with terror.
ReplyDeleteA-Zing from Fiction Can Be Fun
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