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The Allure of Alcohol in the Newest Harry Potter Flick

The New York Times' Tara Parker-Pope discusses the flood of alcohol in the newest Harry Potter movie.

Previous Harry Potter movies have shown drinking, but this one takes it to a new level. In one scene, Harry, Ron and Hermione order butterbeers at the pub, and Hermione ends up with a frothy mustache. While it?s never been entirely clear whether butterbeer is alcoholic, it seems to have an effect on the normally uptight Hermione, who acts tipsy walking home as she throws her arms around the boys. As the mother of a 10-year-old Harry Potter fan, I was taken aback by the reaction of the young people in the theater. They snickered at Hermione?s goofy grin and, later, guffawed when an inebriated Hagrid passed out. While I don?t think my daughter fully understood what was going on, I wondered how other parents, educators and addiction experts would react.

Read the rest of her article here.

Does the image of teens quaffing booze present a teachable moment? Only, I'd suggest, if parents and guardians know about the moment to begin with. A good reason for them to go to movies with their children, and to interest themselves in their children's reading, movie-watching, videogame playing and other hobbies. But not too much. Nothing so uncool as an adult who's trying too hard. Remember your own tween and teen years. Heed the cardinal rule: Embarrass Them Not!

Full post as published by Law & Humanities Blog on July 28, 2009 (boomark / email).