About Books

Okay, this is going to be my last post on Harry Potter. I’m sure others have and will continue to talk about it far more eloquently than me. But I hope y’all have enjoyed reading my thoughts.

To sum up, I absolutely loved the book. Rowling has created such a wonderful world, such great, conflicted characters, such a rich vision that was fully realized from Book 1 all the way to the final page of Book 7. The books truly are classics, and I’m sure their reputation will only grow with time.

So, here’s to you, J.K. I hope you visit Harry & Friends again one day. (I really, really, really do). But if not, thanks for the memories. 😎

Another thing that bugs me about the Harry Potter books, especially in this last one, is the four Houses — and why nobody good is in Slytherin.

Sure, I know it’s the home of Draco Malfoy and his cronies, and has a history of producing some really bad eggs, like Voldemort. But surely, somebody in Slytherin is good — or at least a halfway decent human being. I wonder if this is some English class thing that I just don’t get. That Rowling is making some sort of statement. That good people are salt-of-the-earth Gryffindors and high-class, high-born snobs are Slytherins.

And I always wanted to see more characters (and just more in general) from the other two houses, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. I know Gryffindor was where Harry and Rowling’s heart was, but her world was so rich — I wanted to get a peek into the other Houses. I don’t think we ever see the inside of Hufflepuff, and we only get to see Ravenclaw in Book 7. (Right? I can’t remember …)

What about you? Do the Houses bug you? Inquiring minds want to know …

Oh, Severus.

Finally, finally, after seven books we understand why you seem to hate Harry so much and whose side you’re really on. 

The side of love.

Severus works for Dumbledore. He protects Harry. He double-crosses Voldemort. He risks his life countless times. He incurs the wrath of the Order of the Phoenix. He lets others assume the worst of him – all because of love.

Severus fell in love with Harry’s mom, Lily, when they were children. And it’s the reason he does everything he does. I have to say I didn’t see that one coming. Never even thought about it. But it makes perfect sense. The scenes of Severus and Lily are some of the most poignant in the whole book. Years after Lily’s death, Severus still makes his Patronus take on the form of hers — a silver doe. How sad and romantic and heart-breaking is that? 

In the book, Rowling calls Harry, Severus, and Voldemort “the lost boys.” Really, they’re archetypes. Harry is ultimate good, Voldemort is ultimate evil, and Severus is stuck somewhere between the two.

To me, Severus is the most interesting character of the three. He could so, so easily be evil. But because of Lily, he chooses to be good. And that, I think, is the ultimate sacrifice. To strive against your nature, to try to be better than you are. 

I don’t think Severus hates Harry. Certainly, he doesn’t love him. At least, not in the way most people love. I think looking at Harry is just too painful for him. That Severus knows that perhaps Harry could have been his son, if he hadn’t called Lily a Muggle. That he sees his betrayal of Lily (which eventually led to her death) every time he looks at that scar on Harry’s forehead. That Severus realizes what he’s lost.

We saw Voldemort’s fractured soul in the train station. How hideous and twisted it was. I’m going to choose to think of Severus at peace. Perhaps playing with Lily when they were children. Or in a portrait in Dumbledore’s office, talking with the other headmasters of Hogwarts.

It’s a place of honor. And Severus belongs there. 

What about you? Do you love or loathe Snape? Inquiring minds want to know …

Prophecies have always bugged me. Mainly because people always have the same reaction when they hear them — they try to do everything in their power to stop them from coming true. Oedipus. Macbeth. Countless other books and myths and stories — including Harry Potter.

I always wondered what would happen if someone in a story heard a prophecy and then did absolutely nothing about it. Would the prophecy still happen? I think not. To me, it seems like every action taken to stop a prophecy only brings it that much further along.

Let’s look at Harry Potter. His parents are murdered. He lives with his uncaring aunt and uncle. He is alone and friendless and unloved. Then, he goes to Hogwarts and finds his home, his friends, the world he belongs in. So, is it any wonder that Harry does everything in his power to keep his world safe? Harry fights for Ron and his family. He fights for Dumbledore. He fights for Hogwarts. He fights for all the people who have been kind to him since he grew up without a real family. He knows how important they all are, and he’ll do whatever he has to — including dying — to keep them safe.

But what if Voldemort hadn’t killed Harry’s parents? Would Harry be a different person?

Oh, yes.

Snape describes Harry’s father, James, as arrogant. And you know what? Snape is right. The images we see of James Potter aren’t very nice ones. He plays a cruel prank on Snape. He’s mean to Lily Potter. He struts around Hogwarts with Sirius. James Potter is arrogant. (I’m not saying he stays this way, but that’s how he was a kid.)

But what if Harry had grown up in the magical world with his parents. With the same sense of entitlement that James and Sirius had. Would Harry value Hogwarts and his parents the same way he does in the books? Maybe, maybe not. Harry might still be a hero, might still take on Voldemort, but he wouldn’t have the personal reason to fight. The sense of longing and loss. Which, to me, makes all the difference. That’s why we care about Harry. That’s why we root for him.

And really, it’s all because Voldemort acted on a prophecy. Just like Oedipus. Just like Macbeth. Just like countless others, most of whom meet a grisly end.

It bugs me.

What about you? Do prophecies bug you? Inquiring minds want to know …