Rereading the Young Wizards series and thinking about sorting fictional magic systems by how left hemisphere / right hemisphere they are. LH: explicit laws, fixed effects, magic a kind of physics / engineering. RH: implicit, unpredictable, magic an art, a living thing.
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In Young Wizards things often happen because 1) magic wants them to, and/or 2) someone made a promise which is being fulfilled. The heroes are not in control, nor are they trying to be (RH). Meanwhile in HPMoR Harry is trying to control everything (LH).
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Books with RH magic are crypto-spiritual guides. Narnia is maybe the most explicit example of this. In Young Wizards, magic involves open awareness (RH) - the heroes often make progress by noticing e.g. subtle hints about others' emotional states. Also they fight the Devil!
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RH magic captures something vital that spiritually starved modern people badly want - the feeling of being able to trust and take refuge in something bigger than themselves. Meanwhile LH magic is science fiction with a sparkly coat of paint.
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Been increasingly feeling this fantasy-as-crypto-spirituality thing lately. It feels like some authors only express their full spirituality through their fiction. I mostly didn't pick up on this before but it's getting clearer now.
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For more context,
@Malcolm_Ocean's thread of threads about hemisphere stuff:https://twitter.com/Malcolm_Ocean/status/1128389775134687234 …
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Also
@mykola's thread about magic and stories:https://twitter.com/mykola/status/1102009585328631808 …Show this thread
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