Why did JK Rowling out Dumbledore?

Question

Two reasons. First, she didn't write it into the story which suggests that she didn't think it was good for sales. Why? Because many people don't think gay characters in kids stories is "ok." I agree with that assessment.
Second, she's just told the world she has an agenda. Now that we know she does, we can ignore everything she has to say.
Personally, if she's not willing to write it into the story that Dumbledore is gay, I'm unwilling to believe it (and wont until she writes it into a book). So I challenge her, in any upcoming books, the level with the public and write it into the books, that he is in fact gay.

Why isn't she "man" enough to write it into the books??? It won't happen, because Scholastic wouldn't let it happen. Prove me wrong Ms Rowling. I want YOU to write it into the book. Show the world what you're really about.

Reni Witch Baby
"your question isn't making sense. Dumbledore the character never came out (unless that's something written in invisible ink that i couldn't see), and i'm honestly not quite clear where you got that thought..."

You're exactly right...my point is the same. He never came out in the book. Therefore he's not gay.

My point is that it IS a publicity stunt. And because the book is fictional and is a conjecture of her imagination, what is her point in outting him????? What is she trying to accomplish?????

I'm seriously trying to avoid assassinating her image, but she just did it to herself. I mean, I had a lot of respect for this lady being able to write in such a way to endear her readers to the books and the characters. All is lost though. She had nothing moral to gain by outting a fictional character other than her own belief that being gay is somehow ok.

Dave A,
"Frankly, in this day and age, you shouldn't be so narrow-minded."

Has it ever occurred to YOU Dave, that YOU are being narrow minded. People talk about gay prejudice as if it's the end of the world? Has it ever occurred to YOU that YOU have as much prejudice against my values, values that are at the heart of Christianity. Don't commit adultery, "or anything like unto it." There is a higher law, and when you choose to not follow it, there are consequences. Being gay is a choice to limit yourself to you and your partner. Children are part of the plan of happiness. Someday you'll not even learn this to be true, you'll agree with me.

Outting dumbledore as a gay person is probably the dumbest, no less, one of the least wholesome thing you could do to a series of books that were family friendly, kid-friendly, and extremely well-written books.

Answer 1

Publicity stunt. With the end of the novel she has nothing to look foward too. She needs the attention.

Answer 2

She Outed a fictional character in a series that she says she's finished writing. Other than the fact she must be feeling the lack of a spotlight, there can be no reason for doing such. Does she think now her books will be infamous because she wrote a gay character like just an other character?

Andif she had intended for the character to be gay, ya think it might have had some mention in the 7 books, almost 1/2 a million pages of text. What was she hiding?

Cheap publicity trick, proving of no use to anyone. It won't endear her the the Christian Right who dislike her book already because of the witchcraft and I can't see her being touted by the gay community since she "hid" his identity for the entire series - isn't what they are fighting against? The secrecy?

Besides -it's FICTION ! She can say anything she wants about the characters she created... Who to say she's wrong?

Answer 3

Rowling didn't include any sexual material in the books. Why would she make an exception in this case?

A lot of authors have extensive character profiles for most or all of their characters, and I've gotten the impression that Rowling is one of these authors. For her as an author, Dumbledore's crush/infatuation/obsession with Grindelwald was his motivation for doing something against his character. Authors know a lot more about their characters than ever turns up in the book.

She only mentioned it because someone asked. Was she supposed to lie?

Answer 4

The Harry Potter books dealt with a great many controversial issues in a fairly benign way. Rowling wrote about witches and wizards, upper and lower class, rich and poor, pure blood and mixed blood, good vs evil and on and on. Her works of fiction aren't that different from the fairy tales many people grew up with, myself included. However, it's important to remember that there are a great many different beliefs, values, and lifestyles in this world, we don't have to agree with them, only their right to exist. Perhaps she kept this particular piece of information quite until the series was finished to prevent people from having yet another bit of ammunition with which to encourage book banning and book burning. Her plots twisted and turned, she gave us just enough information to hate Snape, then in the end we discover he was a true friend and kept his word. We as readers though, had formed the opinion that he was evil from the middle of book one. I think Rowling is asking us to look deeper, not assume, and be just a little less judgemental of what we don't fully understand.
Maybe that's why she outed Dumbledore and not Professor McGonagall, because he was one of the most beloved characters in the books. He was kind and caring, brave and intelligent, and a very good mentor to Harry without inflicting his lifestyle on him. Maybe it's her way of saying, "You love this guy don't you, oh, by the way, he's gay." I'm not promoting one lifestyle over another, I don't have to agree or disagree with what she's written, my right is to either love her stories and continue to read them or never buy another thing she writes.

Kim F

Answer 5

It shouldn't matter whether he is gay or not. He's just a character in a book. That's like telling us that Harry is a vegetarian. Who cares? The book is about wizards at a school. I'm sure Dumbledore's mate isn't coming to spend the night. Her mentioning his sexuality is of no essence to the plot.

Answer 6

I don't think that JKR has an agenda, or is seeking more publicity. According to the story I read, she had told the writer of the screenplay for HBP that Dumbledore was gay because there was mention of a female love interest in the screenplay and she had to set them right. Having done that, she might as well have made it public, since it would have eventually come out anyway--she could control when and how it was done. and in any case, this story came out because she was directly asked if Dumbledore loved anyone.

Throughout the series, we know Dumbledore as a tireless and seemingly single-minded fighter against Dark Wizards (at least from Harry's perspective; we do have to remember that Albus is also a great teacher, an alchemist, and important theoretical Wizard--remember the tools and instruments he made himself). But how did Albus become that way?

We learn much about this in DH, with Arianna's story, Aberforth's story and the story of the friendship between Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald. In reading DH, it was clear that Grindelwald seduced Dumbledore on a number of levels; intellectually, ideologically, and, by JKR's new revelation, emotionally. We don't know if that seduction was sexual as well, and I'm not sure it is important for us to know.

The revelation completes the picture for us of a man who felt betrayed, injured by one he loved, ashamed at how far he went from rational thought and behavior, how far he really was from what he thought he was.

The up shot is that we now know more completely Dumbledore's motivations for fighting Dark Wizards--his shame at his own tangential contribution to Grindelwald's career, his reluctance to fight him, and, when Voldemort rose, his determination to not to repeat his prior mistake of inaction and to fight Voldemort from the start.

So in summery, It was part of the way JKR viewed Dumbledore and understood him. I don't think it was something that would have come out voluntarily--more likely something that would have made a scholarly article 50 or 60 years from now after she was gone and literary scholars had access to her full notes (assuming she left them to be investigated).

BTW, there is some inkling of this in DH, where Rita Skeeter talks about devoting a chapter in her book about Dumbledore to the Dumbledore/Harry relationship. This is not to say that there was anything improper--but that JKR did put out a hint.

wl

Answer 7

Accepting JK Rowling's statement that Dumbledore is gay flies in the face of most critical theory since the introduction of "New Criticism." If we are going to believe it, it must be in the text. Hemingway can say that Jake Barnes lost his penis and not his testicles, but, if he didn't support that in the text, we are free to believe as we wish. Similarly, if the Harry Potter books don't portray Dumbledore as gay then how can we just take Rowling's word for it? We can't.

Answer 8

your question isn't making sense. Dumbledore the character never came out (unless that's something written in invisible ink that i couldn't see), and i'm honestly not quite clear where you got that thought...

there are quite a few prominent gay actors, but i'm not sure any of them have portrayed Dumbledore. are you possibly confusing Dumbledore with Gandalf (portrayed by Sir Ian McKellan)?

Answer 9

I think she is setting up a line of books and movies that she is planning to write about the Potters before Harry was born. One of these such books would focus on Dumbledorf and his personal life.

Answer 10

i agree that she wasn't going to write it in the book Because many people don't think gay characters in kids stories.
there is speculations that Dumbledore fell in love with Grindelwald there isn't clear evidence in the book of that

Answer 11

You can't ask a question and then answer it with prejudices, leaving no question to be answered... Don't you know the format in Yahoo? If you want to proselytize your homophobic values, then go to church. Frankly, in this day and age, you shouldn't be so narrow-minded.