It’s something we always knew deep down.
Growing up with Harry Potter is something so many of us did. And, as it happens, it turns out that the reading of such a historic collection of books actually made us better people.
According to a study published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology, those who read JK Rowling’s most famous series are less likely to be prejudiced against minority groups.
This is due to a lot of different groups being present in the books, combined with the over-arching theme of being kind to others, regardless of how different they are. And in case that wasn’t enough, there’s also an emphasis on prejudice being associated with evil.
The series’ main antagonist, Voldemort, is obsessed with the idea of wizards being “pure-bloods,” meaning they come from wizarding families. “Mudbloods” are the offspring of magicless, or “muggle”, parents. The study revealed that exposure to these different types of groups from a young age seemingly allocates for children to be more sympathetic to others who were different from themselves.
Throughout the famous series, the books’ main characters all experience the difficulties of being different: such as Harry with his scar, Ron with his hand-me-down clothes, and Hermione with her muggle parents. However, there is never any question of why the three are friends with each other, or if their differences even matter.
Another world issue solved by Harry Potter. Can’t say that we’re surprised.
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