“The Fringe Benefits of
Failure, and the Importance of Imagination” by J.K. Rowling
In June of 2008, the
creator of the beloved book and movie series starring Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling delivered a commencement speech for
Harvard graduates. Famous for her vivid description and unending imagination, Rowling
captivated readers and watchers worldwide with her stories, and continues to do
so with more current additions to the image of the wizarding world. In order to
unconventionally share advice with a graduating class, Rowling utilizes
allusions and anecdotes to connect to her audience and prove the importance of
imagination. Her speech begins with Rowling acknowledging the honor in her
position, and points out her nervousness. Upon doing so, she mentions
Gryffindor, a “house” at the wizarding school, Hogwarts, that is the main
setting of her popular books. Being that the Harry Potter series was released in
the 1990s, a majority of the graduating class of 2008 would have read and loved
the books during their childhood; therefore, this allusion would remind them of
their younger days at a time when it seems they would be over. Rowling also
mentions the “real world”, the place humans are sent following college
graduation. In referencing her own books, this childhood memory helps aid her
purpose of the importance of imagination. Believing in an entire world created
by one person’s mind takes an outstanding amount of imagination—without this, Harry Potter wouldn’t have sold so many copies,
made so many movies, and touched so many people. With this in mind, the
audience is hooked into the speech and ready to remain open to the text.
Additionally, Rowling uses personal anecdotes to appeal to her audience. One of
the most difficult parts of growing up is deciding a college major and an
occupation. On top of that, the stress of parental expectations and passion
versus money creates a horrific nightmare of seemingly never-ending decisions. Rowling
is aware of this, and tells the audience about how her parents did not think
her imagination would help her in the long run. The author then goes on to talk
about the benefits of failure and the necessity that imagination is. Letting
her listeners know that she has been in their position and knows what they are
going through not only keeps the attention of the audience, but truly makes
them listen and take her words to heart. Therefore, author J.K. Rowling’s
Harvard commencement speech included allusions and anecdotes with the purpose
of describing the importance of imagination to all.
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