There really is no other title for this review that would accurately represent my thoughts about the story. Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality does so many things utterly, amazingly right, that I'm not sure where to even begin.
The absolute rejection of the "Death is fine" narrative displayed by the originals. This obviously won't be a good thing for everyone. Indeed, if you do not agree with author's philosophy on the matter, you are likely to be annoyed each time when an Author Tract occurs. But as a transhumanist, I found it incredibly refreshing to find a story that portrays death as something bad for a change. Here, death is not something we have to accept because it's inevitable. It's just another enemy for the hero to defeat. Which leads me to...
A hero who actually tries to make things better. Most heroic characters in fiction rarely, if ever, bother to do anything proactive. They will do their best to save the world, they will beat up some criminals, maybe stop some accident from happening. But they will seldom actually try to improve their society, let alone world as a whole. This version of Harry is a rare example of a hero who has a vision to carry out. It doesn't make him a Well-Intentioned Extremist or a Dark Messiah, just a person who wants to make the world a better place.
Just how great of a character Quirrell is. It's not that he is sympathetic or particulary complicated - he is revealed as a Complete Monster eventually - it's that he is a monster that thinks clearly. His views are nihlistic and his actions are immoral, but they are not illogical. The reader can easily understand him once they got all the information necessary. Thanks to this, he manages to be both empathetic and terryfying at the same time. And the only thing separating him from Harry, his fellow rationalist, is his selfishness. His lack of an impulse to care. Lack of something to protect. And it comes to bite him, not because of magical power of love or friendship, but because that attitude isn't really rational in the end. That's how you do The Power of Love folks.
A high quality of writing. Even aside from all the above-mentioned strengths, the story is written very well. There are pretty much no gramatical or spelling errors, characters are consistent and interesting, the plots are complex and have surprisingly little plot holes for that level of complexity.
I am biased, of course, but opinions are always subjective. You might not like the story for a variety of reasons - though I struggle to find one that resonates with me - but there are just so many things to like that I would suggest reading it to pretty much anyone.
I freaking love this story
There really is no other title for this review that would accurately represent my thoughts about the story. Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality does so many things utterly, amazingly right, that I'm not sure where to even begin.
- The absolute rejection of the "Death is fine" narrative displayed by the originals. This obviously won't be a good thing for everyone. Indeed, if you do not agree with author's philosophy on the matter, you are likely to be annoyed each time when an Author Tract occurs. But as a transhumanist, I found it incredibly refreshing to find a story that portrays death as something bad for a change. Here, death is not something we have to accept because it's inevitable. It's just another enemy for the hero to defeat. Which leads me to...
- A hero who actually tries to make things better. Most heroic characters in fiction rarely, if ever, bother to do anything proactive. They will do their best to save the world, they will beat up some criminals, maybe stop some accident from happening. But they will seldom actually try to improve their society, let alone world as a whole. This version of Harry is a rare example of a hero who has a vision to carry out. It doesn't make him a Well-Intentioned Extremist or a Dark Messiah, just a person who wants to make the world a better place.
- Just how great of a character Quirrell is. It's not that he is sympathetic or particulary complicated - he is revealed as a Complete Monster eventually - it's that he is a monster that thinks clearly. His views are nihlistic and his actions are immoral, but they are not illogical. The reader can easily understand him once they got all the information necessary. Thanks to this, he manages to be both empathetic and terryfying at the same time. And the only thing separating him from Harry, his fellow rationalist, is his selfishness. His lack of an impulse to care. Lack of something to protect. And it comes to bite him, not because of magical power of love or friendship, but because that attitude isn't really rational in the end. That's how you do The Power of Love folks.
- A high quality of writing. Even aside from all the above-mentioned strengths, the story is written very well. There are pretty much no gramatical or spelling errors, characters are consistent and interesting, the plots are complex and have surprisingly little plot holes for that level of complexity.
I am biased, of course, but opinions are always subjective. You might not like the story for a variety of reasons - though I struggle to find one that resonates with me - but there are just so many things to like that I would suggest reading it to pretty much anyone.