Did J.K Rowling rip off Star Wars?

Anybody else who read Harry Potter ever think J.K Rowling got the idea for Harry Potter from watching Star Wars? I dunno, This just occured to me a few minutes ago while I was re-reading The Sorcer's Stone. I notice the are a lot of similarities between many of the characters. SHE MUST HAVE RIPPED OFF GEORGE! HOW DARE SHE!?! JUST LOOK AT THE EVIDENCE:

Lord Vader: Was once a Jedi Knight named Anakin Skywalker and a good guy before he turned to the Dark Side; however, very few people know this. Has a tendency to kill his officers.

Lord Voldemort: Was once Head Boy of Hogworts, named Tom Riddle and pretended to be a good guy before he turned to Dark magic; however, very few people know this. Has a tendency to kill his followers.

Luke Skywalker: Raised an orphan by his aunt and uncle, who kept the truth about his parent's deaths and occupations a secret, until Obi-Wan reveals the truth to him. Wants to be like his dad.

Harry Potter: Raised an orphan by his aunt and uncle, who kept the truth about his parent's deaths and occupations a secret, until Hagrid reveals the truth to him. Wants to be like his dad.

Han and Leia: Luke's best friends. Leia, like Luke, is strong in the Force. Han just makes witty comments.

Ron and Hermione: Harry's best friends. Hermione, like Harry, is magically talented. Ron just makes witty comments.

Yoda: REALLY old dude. Luke's mentor. Says a lot of cryptic nonsense.

Dumbledore: REALLY old dude. Harry's mentor. Says a lot of cryptic nonsense.

Chewbacca: Big and hairy, very loyal to Han Solo.

Hagrid: Big and hairy, very loyal to Dumbledore.

Theres probaby more than that, but i'm too tired to think of it now. *Yawns* I'll sleep on it.

 

Those are all just common story elements. Its not ripping it off. People say she ripped off tons of stuff, but when so many stories come before you, its hard not to run into similar story elements. There are a LOT of lesser known stories with similar ideas in them as well.

 

They are common but JK stole things form everyone.

Harry Potter comes from a children book known as Larry Potter about a magical little boy with glasses who flies on a broom stick.

So I think more of Harry Potter comes from Larry Potter.

I have know respect for Rowling at all.
She stole things from everyone.

-Seldon

 

I think I'm going to plagiarise some books and then make lots of money

 

They are common but JK stole things form everyone.

Harry Potter comes from a children book known as Larry Potter about a magical little boy with glasses who flies on a broom stick.

So I think more of Harry Potter comes from Larry Potter.

No...from what I can remember, Larry Potter was invented by someone who was proved in court to have ripped off JK Rowling.


(Unless that was a joke, in which case ignore me.)

 

Who cares if she ripped it off or not, both are great stories.

 

First, those are just common story elements and character archetypes. Although Rowling isn't that great of a writer. But peopel like her stories, so hey.

Second, to share a funny story. When you first said, "very few people know this" I thought you were saying that very few people in real life know who Darth Vader is.

 

yeah, but she also ripped off lotr in that case, since alot of those things were "borrowed" when GL wrote star wars

although its come to the point where im not gonna start pointing the "plagairism" finger, since you pretty much all need those things to make a good epic adventure.

 

Maybe she did, maybe she didn't. I just think it's kinda funny. Funny ha ha, not funny strange.

Darth Dude: Cool! When you pull it off, let me know.

Jabba-wocky: LOL! Nope, I think pretty much everyone in real life knows who Vader is!

 

I don't think she ripped off Star Wars. If anything, I think Harry Potter tries to be a kiddie version of LOTR.

 

There is a huge difference between "ripping off" and being influenced by something or somebody. There are two things we must remember with literature. First, it is progressive, with new stuff being made on top of the old, and second there are influences that span ages and ages. Specially when writing epic adventures. Rowling, Lucas and even Tolkien are all writing in the same tradition of the epic hero. Many heroes come from the same background, notice that Luke, Harry and Frodo are all orphans, which is a well established background for epic heroes since it gives them a mysterious past. There are also well known, established paths that the epic hero takes. Like the initiation rites we see Luke, Harry and Frodo take. And the descent into the underworld that all these characters also take. You have to look at literary history before acussing anybody, from Lucas to Rowling, of stealing ideas because it just might be that they are following the same tradition.

 

Rowling is a big SW fan. (She prefers the OT, although she took her daughter to see the prequels.) She said that during times of writer's block, she'd watch the OT. So I'm not surprised that there are similarities between her characters and Lucas's; Harry, Hermione and Ron are like a teenage Luke, Leia and Han, and so forth.

I don't think she "ripped off" anything.

 

Okay, okay, I'll admit it: I don't really think she ripped off Star Wars. I was just kidding. But I really loved how seriously everyone took it.

However, I do honestly think there is a possibly that Harry Potter was influenced by Star Wars. It's strange to think how two storys with characters that seem so different at first glance could have so much in common.

 

I can see a SW influence yes but GL was himself was inspired and influenced very heavily by Joseph Campbell who writes extensivly on myths,legends and relgious meanings of things which are the basis of most hero epics such as LOTR,SW and HP.

 

I can see a SW influence yes but GL was himself was inspired and influenced very heavily by Joseph Campbell who writes extensivly on myths,legends and relgious meanings of things which are the basis of most hero epics such as LOTR,SW and HP.

Well I don't know much about LOTR; I saw the movie but never really understood it. I know that in SW and HP, both "Lord V's" are guys who have had tranformations that make them unrecognizable, and the bad guy in LOTR, (what's him name?) has a suit and helmet kinda like Vader, with a deep, scary voice. And in all three stories the main villian serves an even more evil villian, in HP Voldermort serves Salazar Slyterin, in SW Vader serves Palpatine, and in LOTR What's-His-Name serves the Ring, I guess. So I guess you are right about that.

 

Mixza, just to clarify your confusion a bit. In LOTR, the newly evil Saruman serves Sauron, also known to you as, "What's-His-Name." So, the pattern holds of a lesser evil serving a greater evil (Anakin serving Palpatine, for example). Incidentally, Saruman from LOTR is played by Christopher Lee who also plays Star Wars' Count Dooku/Darth Tyranus, the lesser evil in both cases.

 

HP Voldermort serves Salazar Slyterin

I know this is nitpicking and I apologize for it, but I am a Potterphile and I have to correct this. Voldemort does not serve Slytherin, he is the heir of Slytherin. Voldemort only serves himself and his thrist for power.

I am such a geek.

 

yup..Voldemort is Palps of HP.. not really a Vader type character in HP yet..Lucious Malfoy would come closest I guess...

 

Incidentally, Saruman from LOTR is played by Christopher Lee who also plays Star Wars' Count Dooku/Darth Tyranus, the lesser evil in both cases.

I didn't know that. Yet another connection. You learn something new everyday!

Voldemort does not serve Slytherin, he is the heir of Slytherin. Voldemort only serves himself and his thrist for power.

Yeah, I was kinda reaching a bit there. I based that on the second book. In Chamber of Secrets, you could kinda say he was partly serving Slytherin, partly serving himself. But only in that book.

 

No, she didn't rip it off. She may have been inspired by SW, and she definately respects it, but HP is it's own thing. And it absolutely rocks.

 

Does Lord of the Rings have any prophecy in the story somewhere? Cuz Harry Potter and Star Wars both have a prophecy.

 

The Return of the King is that prophecy you speak of.

Rowling took a lot from LOTR...Giant Spider, Cave Troll, ferocious trees, Nazgul (Dementors), Gandalf (Dumbledore)...

Of course Tolkien borrowed a lot of that from ancient myths.

 

exactly the same applies to The Matrix, Siegfried, the Iliad, Superman, King Arthur and countless other stories. It's what you call the "Jesus myth", or the "Superman myth", the story of the small, seemingly insignificant hero who turns out to be the center of an ancient prophecy and who will save mankind and absolve our sins. The lack of parents in those cases just helps to illustrate that the hero is "nobody's child" and therefore "everybody's child", humanity's rescuer. It's as old as time, if the world around you doesn't make sense and your life sucks you dream that somebody might come to make it all good for you. And preferably if that somebody is YOURSELF, the insigificant Zero.

 

BlueTrooper: Yeah, Gandalf and Dumbledore even kinda look alike. What is it with wizards and long, white beards? I bet if Yoda were human, he would have a long white beard, too! Lol.

It's as old as time, if the world around you doesn't make sense and your life sucks you dream that somebody might come to make it all good for you. And preferably if that somebody is YOURSELF, the insigificant Zero.

Gee. Now I'm all depreased.



Just kidding!

 

Does Lord of the Rings have any prophecy in the story somewhere? Cuz Harry Potter and Star Wars both have a prophecy.

yes lord of the rings does have a prophercy, it's about aragorn and stuff.

"All that glitters that is not gold..." I can;t remember exactly how it goes but the last line is "the crownless shall be king"

i'll have to ask bib for the full prophecy, he knows stuff like that.

on a humourous note here's a lonk to a thread i started ages ago relating SW to HP

Madame Jocasta Nu looks like Professor Minerva McGonagal