Author's Note: Spoiler warning for anyone who hasn't read the Harry Potter series. Continue reading at your own risk.
In the news last week, a physiologist said that Harry Potter is as addictive as alcohol, and that, after the seventh book came out, some Potter fans around the world had withdrawal symptoms, much like they would if they stopped taking a drug cold turkey. A psychologist, Rudski, said, "An addiction is an addiction is an addiction. An addiction to a drug is no different than an addiction to Harry Potter or the Internet or pornography. Although it's not always a bad thing. There's a community that you get with Harry Potter that you don't get with heroin." This led me to recall my own experience after completing the seventh book, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" . . .
Anticipating, theorizing, and hoping consumed my life for the months upcoming the release of the final Harry Potter book. I would go on Harry Potter sites every day, read, and re-read the books countless amount of times, and studied the words relentlessly. Theory after theory ran through my head. Part of me wishing that Harry and Hermione would get together, and Ron would miraculously fall in love with Luna, but another part of me knowing that I was fighting a lost cause, for all of the evidence leaning towards Hermione and Ron was prominent. But still, I could hope. About Snape . . . and the seeming never-ending question of whether he was good or evil, but I, always knowing in my heart that he was good, and coming up with reason after reason for why I thought so. And let's not forget discovering all of the Horcuxes. I would find myself scanning the pages of the books for any clue, or hint, that I might have missed. Whether Harry would live or die . . . who R.A.B was . . . and the list goes on and on.
When I recollect the time I had spent on my post-Deathly Hallows craze, I find my heart aching. I believe that it is because I know that there will never be another time like that again. Ever. Yes, we still have two movies, a theme park, and a 'hinted' encyclopedia, but there will never be that time where you were in the unknown. Because now, us Harry Potter fans know pretty much all that there is to know. Any time I read the books, it will bring me back to a time where I was so absorbed with finding a hint . . . a faint suggestion, that one of my countless theories was correct. There will never be another time that I would wait and wait for what seemed like an eternity for another Harry Potter book to be released, and stay up the entire night reading it over and over again.
And let's not forget the deaths. Oh yes, the brave souls that lost their life in the fight for what was good and just. I can shamelessly admit that I have fallen in love with every single one of the characters (except the bad guys, of course, but I still could sympathize with them to some extent). Every death was like a knife that had pierced my heart and something had clawed it out. Every time a character died, I cried. I cried to my mom, though she knew nothing about Harry Potter. I cried to my friends, but they didn't care. So I cried to myself, mainly. Book held to my chest, knowing that I would never see their line of dialogue in any other book. They were . . . dead. Plain and simple. I couldn't grasp that for days, weeks, even. (And in some cases, I still haven't grasped that). I couldn't think of them, I couldn't see their name without turning away, and every song reminded me of them and the tears came back fresh again. It was like they were a part of my family, or a best friend, but closer. Since I was five and my mother first read to me "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," the characters were my best friends. When I had no friends and was made fun of, I could always return to them. They didn't make fun of me for having a 'big forehead' or being 'a nerd', they didn't judge, they just sat there, on the pages, oblivious that I was even reading them.
Go ahead, admit it. I'm a freak. But I don't care.
In fact, when I first heard that psychologist's tests showed that some Harry Potter fans went into withdrawal after the series ended, I immediately remembered my reaction when the fifth book came out, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". It was the longest book, and it was such an accomplishment to finish it, but it also brought upon me great pain and depression. The reason was simple. The reason was a character. The reason was Sirius Black.
Let me reintroduce you to the character Sirius Black. For people who don't read Harry Potter, the best comparison I have is Edward Cullen. He was handsome (even in his older age), charismatic, smooth, and? stunning, in my opinion. Ever since the third book, which was when he was first introduced to the Potter fans, I was enthralled. When reading over my past diary entries, I found one referring to him that said, "I think I'm in love!" So, you can well imagine, when he died in the fifth book, I went into shock. I couldn't immediately finish the book, I could feel the color draining from my face, and I couldn't think of anything else but 'why?' Why Sirius? What was the motive? Was there any reason at all? Why, why, WHY? With my fabulous luck, the next day was Monday, a school day. The next few days of school, I couldn't pay attention at all. I just couldn't. I even got a comment on why my face was so pale, and they asked if I was sick. I was . . . but I didn't have the flu, or the common cold. I was love sick.
Still think I've lost my marbles? I'd think you're right.
I got over it . . . somewhat. I had gotten to my senses, at least, but whenever I reread "The Order of the Phoenix," I tend to find myself dreading coming to the death scene, and winching at his final words. Just think, you Twilight-crazed fans, what would you feel like if Edward Cullen died? What if, let's say, "Twilight" books were all you had in your pit of loneliness and you had come to think of Edward as almost real, and then he was torn away from you? That was what I felt like, but worse.
Then, the saga continued.
I had then redeveloped a love for writing, and, of course, I had gotten into 'fan fiction.' Basically, fan fiction is where you take the story line, twist it around, throw in a new character here and there, and almost create your own story, except the real author comes up with it first and you cannot take any credit at all. One psychologist said that those fans who had gotten into fan fiction, fan art, ect., had less a chance of getting withdrawal symptoms when the Harry Potter series ended. I think he was right.
The final, the last installment of the boy-wizard story arrived in July of 2007. I got it, a few days late, much to my protests of going to a bookstore the day of, but that never stopped me from taking a break. From the time I came home from the book store to the time I finished, the only time I took my eyes away from the pages was to wipe my eyes, go to the washroom, or please my growling stomach. At the crack of dawn the next day, I had finished. I had finished the last page and was actually, surprisingly, calmer than I expected. I was sad about the deaths, and about the fact that the series ended, and I cried many hours, but I was far better off than I was after the fifth book. And after the remorse had subsided a bit, I continued my fan fics, with the new plot twists in mind, trying to be as accurate as possible.
Blame it on my growing up, blame it on my new fan fic obsession, or blame it on I hadn't fallen for any character quite as hard as I had for Sirius, but I was much better off than I was after "The Order of the Phoenix" came out.
The technical definition of addiction is
Addiction: (N)
The condition of being habitually or compulsively occupied with or involved in something.
If that is the definition of an addiction, then I am an addict. Addicted to a story of a boy wizard and his journey and trials through an unknown world. Addicted to the wild adventures he always gets in. Addicted to the suspense, the thrill, and the exhilaration of the books. Yes, I am addicted. And though some addictions can be bad, such as drugs or alcohol, I believe that this addiction is good. This addiction brought on a new love for writing and reading into my life, and I am forever grateful for that.
Are you addicted?
Nerdishh; going to read . . . "Twilight"
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Haha, what did you think I would read? (;
*click*
Author's Note: Sources:
http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1582149/20080222/story.jhtml?rsspartner=rssYahooNewscrawler
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/addiction
