Importance of Father Figure

I said I wanted t blog about how i feel the latest Harry Potter book shed a lot of light on family - more specifically the importance of father figures..

So. If you have not completed the book or intend to start the book, pls do not continue reading as this contains spoiler.

***********************************************************

I feel that JK Rowling has embedded the message of family, and the importance of the father figure in her story quite well. And if one looks at the context, how she was struggling with her own kid when her man left her, it was perhaps, not to hard to imagine why the theme keeps popping up again and again.

The most obvious has to be when Harry was confronting Lupin - pointing out that Lupin was shirking his responsibility as a father by leaving Tonks and the baby. Harry said something to the effect that Fathers should be with their babies, it is the right thing to do.

Also, Harry himself has always been looking for a father figure - from wanting to learn all about his father, to his strong ties with Sirius and also finding the father figure in Dumbledore.

And I can't help noticing how boys who grow up without father figures inevitably veer to the bad path - Voldermort himself lacks a father figure in his own life, but he has chosen it that way because he would rather not have a weak person as his father.

What struck me in the last book was the revealing of Snape's life story. He was also a tragic victim of someone who grew up without a father figure in his life, without someone to protect or look out for him. Hence, boys who are left to fend for themselves are often caught in a struggle, much like Harry did in his first few years in Hogwarts, before he found Sirius and then Dumbledore.

I really believe that father plays an important role in a kid's life, just as mothers do as well.
Particularly for boys, having a role model in the form of a father figure is crucial in a boy's development. As boys grow, they become more influenced by their fathers than their mothers, the mum only has stronger influence in the first 6 years of the boys' life (according to Steve Biddulph). The rest, the boys are largely influenced by male figure, who can be one's dad or an adult male who is involved in the development of the child.

Hence, it is good that males are increasingly involved in their children's lives, as I think kids can benefit a lot from the influence of the dad. The dad offers security and assurance, and forms an image that the kid can grow into.

It is heartening for me when I see many fathers accompanying their boys or girls in class at JG, the fathers sing and dance to the tunes with their kids, and nuture them as the kids learn to feed themselves, and play with the kids during their outdoor play. These men are just great... just as Hubby is too, as we do our hourly shift with En every Saturday for his JG class. Jia You!!