<h3><strong>The locations for the &#8220;Harry Potter&#8221; movie are filled with famous places in England, which ranks high on Japanese people&#8217;s list of &#8220;countries they want to visit!</strong></h3>
<p><strong> I have seen &#8220;Harry Potter&#8221; at least three times. I&#8217;ve seen &#8216;Harry Potter&#8217; three times through, and some films I&#8217;ve seen more than 10 times. I have loved British fantasy literature since I was a child, such as &#8220;The Lord of the Rings&#8221; and &#8220;The Chronicles of Narnia. The United Kingdom is known for producing a great deal of excellent fantasy literature. I think &#8220;Harry Potter&#8221; expresses the charm of British fantasy to the fullest.</strong><strong> </strong><strong> The antique atmosphere of the library and principal&#8217;s office, with its many old books on magic, is very exciting. It is very exciting.</strong></p>
<p> says Dr. Dai Takeuchi, Professor of Philosophy in the Department of Literature at Rissho University. He specializes in the study of Western magic. <strong> </strong></p>
<figure id="attachment_310668" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-310668" style="width: 1701px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="f1c78bbe"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/1_main.png" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-310668" class="wp-caption-text"> Tickets for the &#8220;Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo &#8211; Making of Harry Potter,&#8221; which will open in the summer of 2011, went on sale on April 18 (from a press release by Klook Travel Technology, LLC).</figcaption></figure>
<p><strong> The film is shot on location at Annick Castle, Durham Castle, Gloucester Cathedral, and other stately and majestic Norman buildings developed in England during the Middle Ages. I think the reason for their popularity in Japan is because of the longing for such traditional British culture.</strong></p>
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<p> In fact, the United Kingdom is consistently ranked among the top 10 countries in &#8220;Countries to Visit&#8221; rankings conducted by travel agencies and other organizations for Japanese people.</p>
<figure id="attachment_310669" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-310669" style="width: 2004px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="47b1616c"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/2_aflo_21616566.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-310669" class="wp-caption-text"> The library in &#8220;Harry Potter&#8221; was filmed at the Bodleian Library of Oxford University (PHOTO::AFLO)</figcaption></figure>
<h3><strong> Real-life &#8220;Schools of Witchcraft and Wizardry&#8221; and &#8220;Magicians</strong><strong> </strong></h3>
<p> Many fantasies were born in England, and when it comes to fantasy, magic and sorcery are always associated with it. <strong> </strong></p>
<p><strong> In the 16th century, a man named John Dee, who was said to be the wisest man in the Elizabethan era, together with Edward Kelly, a medium, used a crystal ball to communicate with angels and spirits, leaving behind a vast amount of records. Incidentally, Dee&#8217;s appearance is the archetypal image of an old sage, reminiscent of Dumbledore, principal of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.</strong><strong> </strong></p>
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<p> In the 19th century, the culture of witchcraft reached its peak, and in 1801, a man named Francis Barrett published a book titled &#8220;The Magician,&#8221; in which he recruited students for the school of witchcraft he had established.</p>
<p> In other words, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry did exist! <strong> </strong></p>
<p><strong> Though it was quite small, with a capacity of 12 students.</strong></p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Is it because of witchcraft that people go crazy for idols?"></div>
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<p>Gothic literature, which originated in the 18th century, gradually spread in the 19th century, resulting in masterpieces such as Mary Shelley&#8217;s &#8220;Frankenstein&#8221; and Bram Stoker&#8217;s &#8220;Dracula&#8221;.</p>
<p> The motifs of Gothic fiction are &#8220;old castles,&#8221; &#8220;secret chambers,&#8221; &#8220;underground passages,&#8221; and &#8220;caves.&#8221; &#8230;&#8230; It&#8217;s kind of like the world of &#8220;Harry Potter. <strong> </strong></p>
<p><strong> In 1887, a secret society called the Golden Dawn was founded by three magicians, including McGregor Matthurs. Among its core members was Nobel Prize-winning author W.B. Yeats. He is also known for his significant contribution to the study of Celtic fairies.</strong><strong> </strong></p>
<p><strong> In the 20th</strong><strong> The 20th century brought the magician Aleister Crowley, also known as &#8220;the wickedest man in the world.</strong></p>
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<p><strong> He was a major influence on the later culture of practical magic and the occult.</strong></p>
<p><strong> More notably, the repeal of the Witchcraft Act in 1951 led to the emergence of the &#8220;Wicca&#8221; witchcraft movement.</strong><strong> </strong></p>
<p><strong> At any rate, I think it is clear that the traditions of Britain&#8217;s real-life witchcraft culture provided the soil for the birth of Harry Potter.</strong><strong> </strong></p>
<p> Wizards, they said, really existed. Did they fly and transform themselves?</p>
<p><strong> Of course not. But in a way it is possible. Through rituals and other means, magicians can enter a special state of consciousness and create a kind of image world. They can fly and transform themselves in this imaginary world. It is not reality, but it can be experienced quite vividly.</strong></p>
<p><strong> Today, it is possible to technically construct these image worlds as VR spaces.</strong><strong> </strong></p>
<p> Animations featuring cute witches, such as &#8220;Himitsu no Akko-chan,&#8221; &#8220;Sally the Magician,&#8221; and &#8220;Witch&#8217;s Delivery Service,&#8221; have long been popular in Japan. Perhaps they have a sense of affinity with wizards as well as admiration for them.</p>
<figure id="attachment_310670" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-310670" style="width: 4500px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="92844362"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/3_N_main.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-310670" class="wp-caption-text"> On April 24, the iconic &#8220;Great Hall&#8221; of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was unveiled (from a press release by Warner Bros. Studios Japan, LLC).</figcaption></figure>
<h3><strong> Is it witchcraft that causes people to go crazy over idols or to buy them when they see advertisements?</strong></h3>
<p> According to Professor Takeuchi, the manipulation of public image is truly magical.</p>
<p><strong> For example, a producer who produces a succession of idols who have a passionate fan base can be considered a modern-day magician, and a theme park that guides the flow of people through the layout and design of its buildings, with entertaining devices everywhere, is also magical.</strong><strong> </strong></p>
<p><strong> Political propaganda and commercial advertising strategies are also a form of witchcraft in the sense that they lead people to do what they want.</strong></p>
<p> When you put it this way, we may be unknowingly being played by the magicians of our time.</p>
<p> Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo-Making of Harry Potter&#8221; will open in June. I wonder if there are various magical tricks to enthrall us here as well.</p>
<p><strong>Dai Takeuchi</strong> Professor of Philosophy, Faculty of Letters, Rissho University. D. in Literature. Specializes in phenomenology and Western occultism. His major publications include &#8220;The Reality of Magical Phenomena: An Analysis of the Experiences of Witch Suspects&#8221; (Filkal, Mu), &#8220;The Significance of Tarot Divination in Eliphas Levi&#8221; (Eureka, Seidosha), and &#8220;The Question of Creation in John Dee&#8221; (Existential Thought, Ritsusha).</p>
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<p> &#8216;Wizarding World&#8217; and all related names, characters and indicia are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. &#8211; Wizarding World publishing rights © J.K. Rowling.</p>
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" The long-awaited world of Harry Potter"></div>
<figure id="attachment_310671" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-310671" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="9ab9a941"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/4_sub1.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-310671" class="wp-caption-text">Hogwarts Express, a train that runs between King&#8217;s Cross, 9th and 3rd/4th lines and Hogsmeade Station, London (from Klook Travel Technology LLC press release)</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_310672" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-310672" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="ffc3665e"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/5_sub2.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-310672" class="wp-caption-text"> Trolley experience (from Klook Travel Technology LLC press release)</figcaption></figure>
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<figure id="attachment_310673" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-310673" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="cc1870d8"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/6_sub3.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-310673" class="wp-caption-text"> The Great Wizarding Express (from Klook Travel Technology LLC press release)</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_310674" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-310674" style="width: 2362px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="baf51c0a"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/7_sub4.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-310674" class="wp-caption-text"> Moving Staircase (from Klook Travel Technology, LLC press release)</figcaption></figure>
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 Izumi Nakagawa

 Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo - The Making of Harry Potter" is anxiously awaited for its opening in June. Why do Japanese people love "Harry Potter" so much?　We asked a researcher of Western magic.

A magical “trick” that attracts even modern people… Why do Japanese people love “Harry Potter” so much?

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