Myth or Reason: Harry Potter the New King Arthur?

With the world caught up in the Harry Potter mania that's swept through it the last few years, I couldn't help but be swept up in it as well. One day I sat down and began to read a novel about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table when the similarities between them struck me. Both take place in a world filled with magic, heroism, chivalry, betrayal, and love but there's more to the folklore of both characters than plot ideas. Each one delves into the inner workings of people's minds and the circle of friends they keep. As their respective stories unfold before them each character faces their own trials and choices that bring them closer to their own destiny.

Through adversity and calm times even the greatest of legends needed someone to be their emotional anchor or rudder as they navigated their way through life. This has always been a thankless job and for the most part will always remain so but these two shared in that experience as they guided their respective heros not through force of arms or great knowledge but by their quiet loyalty and strength. Throughout literature every hero surrounded themselves with confidants and champions as they struggled to find their way through life. From the time they first met, Ron Weasley became Harry's best friend and his most trusted confidant, often times risking his own life in the hope of helping Harry. Because he was not extrememly gifted in the use of magic, Ron relied more on his loyalty, heart and skill at chess to aide Harry.

Arthur wasn't yet a king when he met his first true ally in his future queen Guenevere. To most, she's looked on as the tool that drove a wedge between Arthur and his most trusted knight, Lancelot, but she was more than that in many ways. Even while in the midst of her affair, her love and loyalty never wavered as she stood beside her king through much of their lives. Even after she had left to live the remainder of her life in a convent her heart still belonged to Arthur as evidenced by the fact that in some legends she gave him back excalibur before his final battle with Mordred.