Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

“I accidentally vaporize my maths teacher”

• first person narrative voice

• comical chapter title

• contrasts light-hearted tone with intense moments

• highlights his character as the unlikely hero

“Surely she wasn't that ugly”

• talking about Medusa

• italicised to suggest intonation

• could show his bravery in finding humour in scary situations, also makes the action less intimidating to the young reader

• could be considered a sign of immaturity

“despite the fact I have ADHD and Dyslexia”

• preposition suggests these traits make him lesser, his neurodiversity is associated with feelings of inferiority

“you see too much, not too little”

• quote from Annabeth

• beginning of Percy reframing his perception of his neurodiversity

• neurodiversity = superpower in this fantasy world

“I now understood what Annabeth said about ADHD keeping you alive”

• during the climax of the novel

• Percy’s fight with Ares

• As the hero, Percy faces the final evil independently, but draws strength from the support of his friends

• Highlights his journey towards self-acceptance

“You should be careful with names”

• A warning from Luke

• Names are used throughout the novel to reinforce the strict hierarchy of power between the Olympians and the demi-gods

• Percy is warned multiple times about the importance of names, but he doesn’t respect this hierarchy

• Refuses to bow down to the superficial demands of the Gods

• Foreshadows his later quest to demand respect from the Gods later in the series

“they’ll think you’re impertinent” “I am impertinent”

• interaction between Percy and Annabeth

• Annabeth has been raised in the world of the Gods, she is more respectful of them

• Percy’s impertinence is not impulsive and reckless, it is intentional - part of his desire to demand respect from them

Foster (2020)

• series follows a video game narrative structure

• gain experience by fighting monsters, that have the ability to regenerate

• Means that the action happens quickly - quick hit of reward for young readers e.g. Percy interacts with more monsters than is typical for any Greek hero

“the Greater Power of the West”

• speech from Chiron that attempts to justify the Greek Gods move to America

• suggests that western, particularly American, society is superior, that has only been shaped by wealthy European countries

• feels uncomfortable, ignores the oldest civilisations like Mesopotamia

• However - has since been revised by Riordan in response to criticism e.g. Rick Riodan Presents

Paule (2020)

• The text emphasises the power of western civilisation, a concept that is bound in imperialism and colonialism

• emphasises its divine lineage. Suggests that America’s westward expansion was divinely sanctioned

• The popularity of PJO means that it is irresponsible to ignore its harmful elements. Need to create works that are reflective of that diversity which we know existed in Ancient Greece and Rome

“I stared across the meadow. There were groves of trees, a winding stream, acres of strawberries spread out under the blue sky.”

• Percy’s arrival at Camp Half Blood

• Natural setting contrasts with industrial New York

• CHB is a welcoming home to Percy, which contrasts with how unsettled he feels at losing his mother

• Contrasts with the entrapment he has felt in all of his schools

“My mother was gone. The whole world should be black and cold. Nothing should look beautiful.”

• contrasts with the welcoming descriptions of CHB

• Percy has a welcoming home waiting for him, but he is not ready to receive it without his mother

• Foregrounds his motivations in the adventure of the novel, and the journey towards finding a home and forming connections

“I spent my days devising new strategies for capture the flag and making alliances with the other cabins to keep the banner out of Ares’s hands.”

• End of the novel, highlights Percy’s newfound peace in CHB

• engrossed in the activities, bonding with the other half-bloods

• a sense of contentment - CHB is now a home to him

“He crumpled his Coke can and threw it into the creek, which really shocked me. One of the first things you learn at Camp Half-Blood is: Don’t litter.”

• reinforces the environmentalist message of the novel

• one of the first signals of Luke’s betrayal, significant enough to pick up on

• Luke doesn’t respect the grounds of CHB, an arrogance that he is more important than the natural surroundings

Coats (2017)

There is a need for greater diversity in fantasy – engaging in representative fantasies can allow children to think beyond the conditions of their embodiment and present social environments  

Fantasy can offer a world where atypical thinking and different neurotypes are not problematized, but are viewed as necessary, valued and heroic. 

Dewan (2004)

1. The idea of home is a central motif across cultures – it is a place for maturation, identity and adaptation to life’s circumstances  

2. Characters have a longing for centering home, but this also exists in tension with a need to grow and change.  

3. Freedom – exists outside the home, a place to enact choice – however adapting to this changing reality can be a tenuous and frightening process. 

“I couldn’t help wondering why an immortal, all-powerful being would like the smell of burning food”

The other demi-gods blindly offer the Gods the most exciting part of their food – just another way to reinforce the hierarchy, while Percy doubts the purpose of this exercise, he still takes part in the ritual 

““If my father is so interested in me,” I said, “why isn’t he here? Why doesn’t he speak to me?”

• Questions, doesn’t blindly accept the help he is given, questions it, demands more

• the Gods are not villains, they are the good guys, but they are faulted – being divine does not signal perfection  

• Percy is still understanding his place in the social hierarchy, grows to question it further in the course of the series.

Chaterjee (2024)

• the narrative that disabilities are superpowers has been critiqued in wider society

• Could be extended to PJO, Riordan is a neurotypical author writing about the neurodiverse experience

“A Queen among women”

• Used to describe Sally Jackson

• She is mortal, yet she is a “queen”

• Her admiration is earned from her moral strengths and the love she shows her son, rather than her immortal power

• Contrasts with the Gods, who assume power and respect from their children but offer no love or attention in return

Rick Riordan’s Blog

Wanted to “honour” the potential of children with learning difficulties, and argues that these are a mark of being talented, creative and out of the box thinkers

Core message of the novels - its not a bad thing to be different - the message that Percy discovers about himself in the TLT