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Chapter 9: The Mirror of Erised
<p style=”text-align: left;”>“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that.”
Summary:
Christmas was coming. While most of the other children, including Hermione, would be returning home for the holidays, the Weasley children and Harry would be staying at Hogwarts (something Harry was very excited about). The school is a bustle with preparations, and Ron, Hermione and Harry use most of their spare time trying to find any information about the elusive Nicolas Flamel.After everyone has left and break had begun, Harry and Ron spend their time eating, lounging, playing wizard’s chess, and plotting ways to get Malfoy expelled. On Christmas morning, Harry was genuinely surprised to see that he has presents from Hagrid, Hermione, Ron’s mother, and even more shocking, the Dursleys. There was also a strange gift with a note that said: “Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time it was returned to you. Use it well.” The note wasn’t signed, but inside was a beautiful, but rare and valuable, invisibility cloak. It was Harry’s best Christmas ever.
Harry uses the cloak that very night, to try and sneak into the restricted section of the library, but is almost caught by Filch and Snape patrolling the corridors. He manages to sneak into an empty, unused classroom where he finds a large mirror with an inscription carved around the top: Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi (I show not your face but your heart’s desire). Curious, Harry steps in front of the mirror and instead of seeing only himself, he sees a group of people behind him. He soon realizes that he’s looking at his family, including his mother and father, for the first time in his life. The next night, Harry drags Ron with him to the mirror, but Ron doesn’t seem to see the same thing. Instead, he sees himself as Head Boy, with the house cup, and as captain of the quidditch team.
When Harry returns to the mirror for a third time, he is surprised to find Albus Dumbledore waiting for him. Professor Dumbledore explains that the mirror shows your deepest, most desperate desires, and that many men have wasted away before it. He tells Harry that the mirror will be moved to a new location, and asks him to not go looking for it again. Before Harry sneaks back to the common room, he asks Professor Dumbledore what he sees in the mirror to which he replies “I? I see myself holding a pair of thick, woolen socks.” Harry was not quite sure if he was telling the truth.
ANALYSIS:
“And since you know you cannot see yourself
So well as by reflection, I your glass
will modestly discover to yourself
That of yourself which you yet know not of.”
– William ShakespeareA large part of this chapter is more slice of life moments, but woven between these is the idea that “family doesn’t end with blood” (forgive my Supernatural reference). Harry is building a family out of love and loyalty, and we as readers start to see that he is already considered an adopted Weasley, not just by Ron and his brothers, but by his mother as well. Yes, she probably feels sorry for Harry and sends him a sweater because she knows that it may be the only gift he receives (and apparently puts more effort into it according to Fred and George), but we know that as the books progress, she truly thinks of him as a son, and this is just the beginning. Fred and George make Ron and eventually Percy put on their sweaters and they all celebrate together, because “Christmas is a time for family,” and that includes Harry.
So it’s extremely poignant and heartbreaking that when Harry looks into the mirror, all he sees is his family surrounding him. It’s the one thing his heart (or soul), truly desires, and even his new burgeoning family unit can’t quite fit the hole in his heart from losing his parents. J.K. Rowling has even stated that:
“The Mirror of Erised is absolutely entirely drawn from my own experience of losing a parent. ‘Five more minutes, just please God, give me five more minutes.’ It’ll never be enough. After five minutes of telling her all about Jessie and, you know, because she – she has a grandchild whom obviously she never saw, and then I’d just be trying to tell her about the books and then I’d realize that I hadn’t asked her what was it like to be dead. Fairly significant question. But I can well imagine that happening. But it would never be long enough.” –J.K. Rowling, November 2002
It haunts him so much that he, twice, risks sneaking out to the empty classroom just to see his parents again (parents who, up until now, he had never even seen a picture of). As readers, we see how desperate this boy is for affection, for family, for belonging. And he is willing to stay there alone, all night, just for that feeling of being with his family.
Which brings us to Albus Dumbledore. This chapter marks the first time Harry and Dumbledore meet one on one, and it’s the first of many intimate, and odd, conversations they will have over the next 7 years. Dumbledore obviously cares about Harry very much as an individual, not just as a student, and he takes on a somewhat protective, fatherly figure role for Harry. It’s strange (even a little too coincidental) that he surprises Harry at a moment when he’s most vulnerable, searching for his heart’s (soul’s) desire, of knowing his family. His advice to Harry, “It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that,” is not only sound, but heartfelt (and deeply personal).
There’s a lot for us to discuss regarding their relationship, but there’s also a few points and/or questions I’d like to bring up from his exchange with Harry:
First, according to Harry Potter Wiki, the mirror had been housed in the Room of Requirement for approximately 100 years before Dumbledore moved the mirror to the empty classroom. He did this right before Harry started school (and let’s not forget how convenient it was that the door to this classroom was conveniently ajar, to allow Harry to hide from Snape and Filch). Second, Dumbledore says he doesn’t “need a cloak to become invisible”, and he knows not only what Harry sees in the mirror but Ron as well. One can only assume that he is either psychic and/or can read minds, OR he has been in the room the last 3 nights that Harry has visited (and if he was, was he there for himself, or because he knew Harry would go?). Third, Dumbledore’s explanation and advice to Harry regarding the mirror: It shows men their deepest desire, it shows neither knowledge or truth, and many have been driven mad, not knowing if what they see is real or possible. It will be moved and please don’t go looking for it. But, if you do ever happen to run across it again, you’ll be prepared. And lastly, we find out later in the book that Dumbledore is, in fact, the anonymous bestower of the invisibility cloak. So it’s safe to say that Dumbledore knew James Potter, who for some reason gave him the invisibility cloak before he died. Should we assume Dumbledore manipulated these events to ensure that Harry found the mirror, or was it coincidence? How much of these events throughout the series are orchestrated by outside forces, or is it fate?
POSSIBLE FORESHADOWING:
Harry’s father gave someone his cloak just before he died. It’s very old, and very rare.The mirror is moved to an undisclosed location, but not before Dumbledore gives Harry some advice.
Harry seems to think Dumbledore my be lying about what he sees in the mirror.
DISCUSSION POINTS:
Do you think that Dumbledore is lying about what he sees in the mirror, or is he able to control his desires so much that he can manipulate what he sees?
Why didn’t Dumbledore reveal himself earlier, if he had known Harry (and Ron) had been visiting the mirror?
What do you think you’d see if you looked into the mirror?
[adrotate group="5"]Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
Chapter 9: The Midnight duel
“But people only die in proper duels, you know, with real wizards. The most you and Malfoy’ll be able to do is send sparks at each other. Neither of you knows enough magic to do any real damage.”
Summary:
It is the second week of classes, and Harry is dismayed to find out that flying lessons will be shared with Slytherin House. Because he has not yet learned to fly, Harry knows he will be ridiculed by Draco Malfoy, who has been boasting about his skills on a broomstick (along with all the other first year boys).
At breakfast Neville receives a Remembrall (a device to help him remember things) from his grandmother, and Draco attempts to steal it. At the flying lesson, Neville falls off his broom, injuring himself. Madame Hooch takes him to the hospital wing, ordering everyone else to remain on the ground. Spotting Neville’s dropped Remembrall, Draco grabs it and takes off on his broom to place it in a tree for Neville to fetch later. Harry flies after him, and discovers that he has a natural talent for flying on a broomstick. After Harry confronts him, Draco hurls the Remembrall away, but Harry dives and catches it mid-air, just inches above the ground. He is immediately caught by Professor McGonagall, who has been watching from her office. She drags him away, apparently in disgrace, but to his surprise introduces him to the Gryffindor Quidditch team captain, Oliver Wood, and says Harry will be the new Seeker for the team.
Later, Draco challenges him to a Wizard’s Duel in the trophy room at midnight. Harry accepts, and Ron volunteers to be his second. As Harry and Ron sneak out later that night, they are followed by Neville and Hermione, who were both locked out of the Gryffindor common room (and both Harry and Ron are annoyed that they are tagging along). Reaching the trophy room, they hear Filch approaching. They realize that Draco never intended to show up, but instead informed Filch that students would be there after hours. The students run off, evade Peeves the Poltergeist, and dive unwittingly into the forbidden third-floor corridor. They evade Filch, but soon realize their hiding place is occupied by a huge, ferocious three-headed dog. They escape back to the common room, where Hermione mentions that the dog was atop a trap door, apparently guarding something. Harry concludes the dog must be guarding the same package Hagrid retrieved from Gringott’s Bank.
ANALYSIS:
“I hope you’re pleased with yourselves. We could all have been killed – or worse, expelled. Now if you don’t mind, I’m going to bed.”
In his second week at school, Harry is still worried at every step that everyone will find out he’s an fraud. It’s natural that he would feel a little displaced, especially after 11 years of never being told he was good at anything. He’s in a brand new school, learning things he has no experience with, and he feels like everyone, even muggle-born Hermione, is catching on a bit quicker than him. So imagine how he felt, in that one moment when he stepped on a broom, and he was actually REALLY GOOD at it. So good in fact, that instead of getting into trouble for disobeying a teacher, he is given a coveted position on the Quidditch team as a first year, the youngest one in a century. He also finds out that Professor McGonagall knew Harry’s father, who was also an excellent Quidditch player. It’s the first of many things we will find Harry has in common with his father.
Side note: Something I always find amusing every time I reread, is Professor McGonagall’s sheer enthusiasm that they finally have a chance to beat Slytherin, and her obvious love of the game. According to Pottermore, “she played for the Gryffindor team in her student years but a nasty fall in her final year left her with a concussion, several broken ribs and a lifelong desire to see Slytherin crushed on the Quidditch pitch.”
Harry is also starting to show a tendency to break the rules, (which is surprising considering how worried he is that he’ll be expelled at any given moment), and he will continue to do so throughout the series. He ignores Madame Hooch’s command to stay on the ground, and sneaks out after curfew to “duel” with Draco. But I think it’s important to note that his disregard for authority is never motivated by rebellion or to simply be mischievous; he always has a good, even noble, reason for his actions. He’s trying to get Neville’s Remembrall back, and he needs to “uphold his honor” by meeting Draco for their fight. He has a tendency to trust his own judgement instead of following the rules (or listening to Hermione), and he’s willing to stand up to darker forces and defend the “weak”. What I find surprising (and a little unbelievable to be honest), is that Harry is rarely punished, and often rewarded for his behavior, which probably doesn’t help his rebellious ways. And even when he is punished, it never seems to prevent him from doing what he thinks is right, even if to his own detriment.
The wizard’s duel also tells us a lot about our characters and sheds a light on traits that we will see them exhibit again and again over the series. Draco feels humiliated that Harry has bested him (and escaped punishment), and must have his revenge, but being unwilling to risk consequences himself, he sets Harry up. His cowardice is apparent even at an early age. Harry shows courage and integrity, but also a rash and impulsive nature. Ron, also, shows bravery and loyalty by offering to be Harry’s second and going with him to the trophy room, before he even knows what he’s getting into. Hermione goes along with the boys, despite her protests, but she is willing to help them get out of whatever scrape they get into. And even though Ron and Harry may not want her to tag along, she proves immensely helpful. She not only is able to unlock the door to the third-floor corridor for them to hide, but she also is the only one that notices that the 3-headed dog is actually guarding a trap door. From this small tid bit of information, Harry is able to deduct that this must be where the package from vault 713 is being hidden.
POSSIBLE FORESHADOWING:
When Draco is forced to choose a second, he chooses Crabbe instead of Goyle. Does this imply he thinks Crabbe is the more powerful of the two?
Draco and Harry’s duel: Will they ever get a chance to go through with it?
DISCUSSION POINTS:
What do you think Neville’s forgotten that prompts his grandmother to send him a Remembrall? And why is Draco so intent on having it?
Why do you think Hermione goes along with the boys, instead of alerting a teacher?
Would a Slytherin describe Draco’s manipulation of Harry (luring him into a trap) by drawing on his brash tendencies as a clever strategic move worthy of celebrating?
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
This first look into the classes of Hogwarts on the surface appears surreal to the reader. We can’t transfigure one object into another or cast charms, but in the world of Harry Potter those things are possible and expected. We soon realize, though, that classes at Hogwarts aren’t all that dissimilar from reality. Once again, Rowling takes the time to parallel the experiences between the magical and the mundane. Hogwarts students might not have science, but they do study astronomy and potion making. Their history might not be about Muggle events but it’s still full of boring events and dry facts that most kids aren’t interested in learning. And finding your classes and adjusting to new teachers is an issue for everyone.
It’s funny I never thought of it this way. I always wondered why Hogwarts students didn’t take more “normal” courses like math or literature, simply because no matter if you’re Muggle or Wizard, these things should come in handy: math, reading, science. But yes, potions taking the place of chemistry, wizard vs muggle history, etc makes sense from a basics perspective.
There’s some very interesting possible foreshadowing in this chapter, and its somewhat well known among Harry Potter fans. Snape asks Harry the following:
“Potter, what would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?”
According to the Victorian language of flowers, asphodel is a type of lily, which means “my regrets follow you to the grave.” Wormwood means “absence” and symbolizes bitter sorrow. Snape was in love with Harry’s mother, Lily, and feels guilty for her demise. So, the possible hidden meaning to Snape’s question could very well mean “I bitterly regret Lily’s death.” Snape’s secret love for Lily was planned by Rowling for a very long time, so this wouldn’t surprise me if this was intentional. In fact, it’s well known that Rowling told Snape’s secret to Alan Rickman way back when he first started playing Snape in the films, and he took advantage of that knowledge in regards to his performance.
Yes! I was going to post this because I saw it on Pinterest ages ago but you beat me to it Matthew Paul. Darn you for beating me.
What would be your favorite subject at Hogwarts (in First Year)?
At 11? Probably Charms. Herbology would never have been my favorite, especially because despite how hard I try, I don’t have a green thumb. As I got older though? Probably History of Magic. Because I’m a huge history lover/nerd and had a really boring teacher like Binns (who might have been a ghost too).
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
We both found it really interesting to think about the other side of this situation. Harry is so starved for attention, that his best friend for life is literally the first person he meets on the train for Hogwarts. Was this just because it was Ron or could it easily have been Neville, or Lee Jordan, or even Draco Malfoy? He trusts and admires Hagrid at face value, because he is the one that came to rescue him from the Dursleys.
Sometimes fate needs a little push, eh. But your points about Harry and Ron are striking. Harry and Ron are a lot alike and that draws them together but it could have gone a myriad of other ways. It could have been any family in the train station that helped the little orphan boy, not necessarily the opposite end of the spectrum like the Malfoy’s but any old normal non-snobbish Wizarding family. Speaking of fate, at some point we should talk about how magic works in this world. There are two ways magic can manifest, I suppose, in fantasy. It can be a general tool but without any sort of agency of its own. It doesn’t act on the world by itself and without a human aid and it doesn’t get regarded or elevated in religious terms (or ascribed to a godhead). Then there’s the other way in which magic does act on the world, it can break the fourth wall and cause X to happen because it needs X to happen. Obviously, there is no conversation in universe about gods but I do wonder if magic *acts* on this world (and yes, I’m taking JKR out of this equation. She’s the god here but she exists in our world and not within the characters world). Making sure the Weasley’s walked by at just that moment, making sure Ron ended up in Harry’s train car, making sure Hermione walked into Ron and Harry’s car just in time to have a conversation about magic that left a lasting impression on all three. Just another thing I’m thinking about.
We noticed that as well. How convenient it was for Harry to be abandoned essentially by the Dursleys, only to have the Weasleys show up immediately after. Coincidence? Fate? Or just storytelling. All of them are adequate answers. And to Jo’s point, I absolutely don’t think that Harry would have like Draco, much less have BFF’d him. The Malfoy’s are much too like the Dursleys for him, but the opposing side was a real rabbit hole of possibilities. Essentially, with different decisions, Harry could have ended up being the new Tom Riddle You-Know-Who. The similarities are there for a reason.
And speaking of You-Know-Who, a thought we had yesterday that I’ll throw out there (and it may be too early but keep this in the back of your mind while we read): Do you think Dumbledore did the opposite with Harry, hoping for a different outcome? We’ve already asked why he didn’t come to fetch him himself, could that have been a motivation?
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
Ron clearly doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with coming from a Muggle family, while we know at this point that Draco would not agree.
Imma play devil’s advocate for a second here. Ron doesn’t think there is anything wrong with Muggle born wizards. BUT he doesn’t exactly accept the Malfoy or their ilk either. He’s the one, in this chapter, who voices his displeasure at the idea of going into the Slytherin house…something Harry is going to carry with him into the next chapter. Ron has certain prejudices too, though to be fair to Ron, it’s more intolerance FOR intolerance. In my book that doesn’t measure up to intolerance for those whom are different, but JKR does a fantastic job of showing that prejudices aren’t just based on family and blood…they can be wide and unwieldy.
What do you think would have happened if the Malfoys met Harry at the platform instead of the Weasleys? What if Draco had sat in Harry’s compartment instead of Ron?
Good question. Harry has met Draco before so he’s already wise to Draco’s “I’m better than everyone shtick.” I think Harry is just an innately good boy and it stems from his unfortunate life with the Dursley’s. I don’t think Harry would have been influenced by Draco to think like him but I almost (ALMOST) wonder if there’s something to be said about seeing both sides of the story. I don’t think the Malfoy’s are RIGHT in their assessment of the world as voiced by Draco (some families are better than others) but it’s hard to understand a culture when you dismiss them as simply “bad.” Cultures, families, and individuals are complex and it’s our inability to see complexity that leads to intolerance and violence. Simply putting Draco in a “bad” box and writing him (and others) off as so one note is a disservice to the complexity of the human condition and situation. Something to think about.
How do you think Harry’s sudden friendship with Ron colored his view on Slytherin? Do you think it affected his decision in the next chapter?
YUP. And in fact, it might be the entire first part of my Chapter 7 analysis so I won’t say more now.
If the Malfoys met Harry at the barrier I doubt they’d even help. If the boy doesn’t know where the barrier was then they’d recognize him as someone unfamiliar with the Wizarding World…not one of their kind
Ah, but what if they recognized him as Harry Potter? Would they help him then? I…am inclined to say yes but not out of the goodness of their hearts. Harry Potter is, at the least, rumored to be powerful and as we can see from Draco, that family is drawn to that which is powerful. Draco sees that Harry is poor, under fed, and poorly clothed…yet he wants to make friends with him. Why? Because Harry Potter is a name in the wizarding world with a lot of influence.
My husband and I had a lot of really in depth discussions on these questions, which is why I decided to use them. It is entirely feasible that Lucius could have recognized Harry as James’ son on the platform (they were, briefly in school together, plus Snape), if Harry had asked for help. And in recognizing him, the Malfoys absolutely would have gone out of their way to be kind and hospitable to Harry Potter. I’m actually surprised Molly didn’t recognize him to be honest. She was in the Order of the Phoenix with his James and Lily, and we are reminded in every book how much Harry resembles his parents.
We both found it really interesting to think about the other side of this situation. Harry is so starved for attention, that his best friend for life is literally the first person he meets on the train for Hogwarts. Was this just because it was Ron or could it easily have been Neville, or Lee Jordan, or even Draco Malfoy? He trusts and admires Hagrid at face value, because he is the one that came to rescue him from the Dursleys. Harry is willing to believe anything anyone tells him, regardless of what is true or not, prejudice or not. We discussed this a little while ago, but remember how heartbroken you felt when you got to Book 7, and you learned more about Dumbledore? We believe everything we’ve read up until that point: he was the greatest wizard of his time, he was noble, he defeated Grindelwald! And now, as we reread we have started to see that Dumbledore is not so good, even at the very beginning. As my husband puts it, “talk about an example of moral ambiguity”. We were just as Harry is now, just taking the stories as they are given to us and looking at the world through rose colored glasses.
So Slytherin is bad. But is it? Not EVERY witch or wizard in Slytherin is evil, but certainly evil people came out of Slytherin. The Malfoys are vain and proud (and yes, snobs) but certainly lots of wizarding families are. And the Weasleys too exhibit behaviors that they consider to be better than others. Lucius and Narcissa absolutely love their son, that can’t be denied and even JKR wrote about Lucius “anyone who is still capable of love is redeemable”.
Harry was very susceptible to the “word” of those he met first, the victors if you will. He was also very naive about the world he was walking into. So in our discussions we found it intriguing to think about the possibility of Draco being the boy in the cabin, showing a different side to the world. Harry may have always come to the same conclusions, but it’s very easy to see how he could have thought “well, maybe I was mistaken.”
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
Chapter 6: The Journey from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters
“Not to worry,” she said. “All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. Don’t stop and don’t be scared you’ll crash into it, that’s very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you’re nervous.”
Summary:
Back at the Dursley’s, Harry counts down the days until he departs for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry reluctantly asks Uncle Vernon to take him to King’s Cross Station (who agrees only because Dudley has an appointment to have his pig’s tail removed). The Dursleys leave Harry at the station, who is unable to find Platform 9 ¾ where his train is supposed to leave.
Harry approaches a wizarding family and asks them for help in getting to Platform 9 3/4. We soon find out this is the Weasley family, and Harry meets Percy, Fred, George, Ron and Ginny (and their mother). Ron and Harry share a compartment during the train ride, and start getting to know each other. Ron tells Harry about a break in at Gringotts bank.
During the train ride, various other students stop by the compartment to introduce themselves to the famous Harry Potter. A shy boy named Neville Longbottom comes by, searching for his toad, Trevor; Hermione Granger, a rather bossy girl, arrives shortly after, helping Neville in his search. She appears disdainful when Ron’s attempt to cast a spell fails, causing the two boys to take a dislike to her. Later, Draco Malfoy, the boy Harry met in Madam Malkin’s shop in Diagon Alley, stops by, flanked by his two friends, Crabbe and Goyle. Malfoy attempts to coerce Harry into an alliance; that fails, partially because Malfoy bad-mouths the Weasley family. Finally, Hermione returns, saying the train is about to arrive at Hogwarts, and they should change into their school robes.
At Hogsmeade Station, Hagrid appears and shepherds the first-years to small boats that carry the students across the lake to Hogwarts Castle.
ANALYSIS:
“Crazy, but that’s how it goes. Millions of people living as foes. Maybe, it’s not too late, to learn how to love, and forget how to hate.” – Crazy Train, Ozzy Osbourne
When Harry arrives at King’s Cross Station, he officially starts his journey into his new life. We talked about the Leaky Cauldron as a gateway to the wizarding world, or a liminal space, and as far as liminal spaces are concerned in our reread, Platform 9 ¾ is one of the big ones. It literally becomes Harry’s transition from one world to another. He leaves behind the Muggle world and truly enters the Wizarding one. He leaves a life with no friends and barely a semblance of family, and in this chapter we meet the people who will become those for life. Harry had nothing of his own- he had no money and only received hand-me-down clothes, and now he has his own money and is eager to share with others. And finally, a life where he is rarely even acknowledged and enters one where almost everyone knows his name.
Rowling also takes great care to show us completely opposite examples of family. The Durselys laugh as they leave him alone in the train station, where Harry has no idea how to get to Platform 9 ¾. The Weasleys arrive together, led by a caring, empathetic, and likeable mother – Molly. We instantly feel Molly’s maternal instinct towards Harry in one exchange, and it shines all the brighter in stark contrast to how Petunia treats him. Further on in the series, we find out that Petunia has actually been to Platform 9 ¾ with her mother to see her sister Lily off to school, which makes this event even more vile on the Dursleys part And when Molly finds out who that young boy was, her only remarks were “Poor dear – no wonder he was alone, I wondered. He was ever so polite when he asked how to get onto the platform”. Not an ounce of awe or celebrity worship – she just sees a young boy, all alone, who’s had enough troubles in his life and didn’t need to be reminded of them on his first day of school.
We are introduced to a few other students, who will ultimately be Harry’s circle of friends, most notably Ron and Hermione. These early interactions, though just in passing, give us a small window to each of them and their inner insecurities and their very natural fears about starting school. Harry reveals that he’s worried that he’ll be last in his class, because of his upbringing in a non-magical household (and the large shoes he doesn’t think he’ll fill from the wizarding community). Ron says that because he’s the sixth boy, his parents probably won’t be impressed with anything he does, because his brothers have all done it before him. Hermione, for all of her “know-it-all” tendencies, hopes that all of her studying will “be enough”, because none of her family is magical at all. So our 3 core characters all feel that they aren’t good enough, albeit in different ways.
While Ron and Harry are getting to know each other, Draco Malfoy enters the cabin. While Ron has treated Harry as he would any other boy, Draco attempts to network for advantage with those that may be useful – which clearly doesn’t include Ron. While we’ve discussed at length the prejudice and discrimination that the Dursleys have towards the magical world, we now see that similar prejudices exist within the magical community itself. While most people (for us in America) hide behind colorful euphemisms or patriotic mottos, the Malfoys at least are pretty open about it. Draco already knows that Ron is a Weasley, a word he uses with contempt, and that his family is poor which Draco considers lesser than his own wealthy family. It seems apparent the reason for the contempt between Malfoys and Weasleys runs deeper than socio-economic poor vs rich. “You’ll soon find out some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. You don’t want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there”.
It’s worth noting again, that these are HUMAN behaviors, not just Muggle or Wizard, and these ideals are handed down through generations. Ron and Draco are direct reflections of their families and the different branches of how wizards view the world. In contrast, when Harry voices his fear of being last in his class Ron merely says “You won’t be. There’s loads of people who come from Muggle families and they learn quick enough.” Ron clearly doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with coming from a Muggle family, while we know at this point that Draco would not agree. In Chapter 5, Draco obviously adheres to a class system among wizards, that he sees his family as better than most. He insults Hagrid, and makes remarks about the “other kind” not being allowed into Hogwarts, that only old wizarding families should be allowed. Many of you have referred to the connection between the Nazi movement during WW2 and the Muggle vs Pureblood mania of You-Know-Who, so it’s interesting to see two different viewpoints from 10 year old boys, indoctrinated at early ages by their parents.
POSSIBLE FORESHADOWING:
Ron mentions that the wizarding bank, Gringotts, has been broken into but apparently nothing was stolen and nobody was caught.
Dumbledore’s bio on his chocolate frog card: “Considered by many the greatest wizard of modern times, Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon’s blood, and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel.”
Scabbers wakes up and attacks Goyle.
DISCUSSION POINTS:
What do you think would have happened if the Malfoys met Harry at the platform instead of the Weasleys? What if Draco had sat in Harry’s compartment instead of Ron?
How do you think Harry’s sudden friendship with Ron colored his view on Slytherin? Do you think it affected his decision in the next chapter?
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
Harry is quite cheeky in this chapter and so is JKR. I love the way she wrote Vernon slowly going mad each day, tiny little moments that show him coming unhinged.
Like his mustache being half ripped out.
I also like how Harry isn’t afraid to talk back. He’s not cowering in fear of his relatives but actually shouts back and demands his letters. This passage always gives me the giggles:With a strangled cry, Uncle Vernon leapt from his seat and ran down the hall, Harry right behind him. Uncle Vernon had to wrestle Dudley to the ground to get the letter from him, which was made difficult by the fact that Harry had grabbed Uncle Vernon around the neck from behind. After a minute of confused fighting, in which everyone got hit a lot by the Smelting stick, Uncle Vernon straightened up, gasping for breath, with Harry’s letter clutched in his hand. –Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J. K. Rowling. US edition, pp. 38
Just imagining this scene is quite funny. Like a cartoon fight between a cat and dog. The whole chapter has that Tom and Jerry feel about it.
He’s legitimately on the verge of a nervous breakdown, it’s brilliant. And it’s only Chapter 3 of the first book.
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
Something else I wanted to mention to go along with the “ignorance” theme we see in this chapter–by the time Harry is released from his “jail sentence” it’s the summer holiday. According to the Harry Potter wikia, Dudley was born in June. As an American, I’m not 100% sure this is right (maybe POM can clarify) but my brief research suggests that British school summer holidays begin in July. This means a few things 1) Harry was locked up (sneaking out for food at night presumably) for probably a month 2) Harry missed all his final exams and, at least, the final month of school. Vernon and Petunia don’t care if Harry receives any sort of proper education; they care about what is best for them and in this case, it’s keeping Harry out of sight and out of mind. I’m curious as to what Vernon and Petunia thought Harry’s future would be (if they thought of it at all.) Did they imagine that he’d get a good job and be able to move out after graduation? Did they picture him going to university and moving out? If they deny him an education, or at least don’t concern themselves with it, then how did they picture ridding themselves of Harry once and for all?
I did try to figure out the timing of everything for my post but the exact length of time was hard to pinpoint. According to Harry Potter Wiki, Dudley’s birthday is June 23rd. I looked up terms in British schools, but they seem to vary, some summer holidays start in May, some in June, some in July. The timing between the arrival of the letters and Harry’s birthday is about 8 days, and it sounds like Harry’s been out of his “imprisonment” for a little while, considering he’s avoiding Dudley and his gang and trying to spend a lot of time outdoors (and who can blame him after being locked up). So that’s why I assume it’s somewhere between 3-4 weeks. 3 gives Harry at least a week before the letters arrive, 4 means they arrive almost immediate after he’s released. And yes, I thought about the fact that they hadn’t let him out at all, meaning he’d missed school and exams, etc. Did none of his teachers even notice? Did they contact the Dursleys and ask where Harry had been? We don’t really know anything about his school life other than nobody would be friends with Harry because of Dudley and his gang.
*snorts at “When Harry met Sassy”
It’s very fun to go back to an almost eleven year old Harry and see his sense of humor. Others in the series are often more known for their wisecracks or jokes, so it’s easy to forget how funny Harry is himself. I laughed a good bit at him and his snarky comments.I was super excited to have this chapter and this is one of the reasons. RG mentioned it earlier, but Harry doesn’t really speak at all until this chapter, and we start to see that this kid has a personality. It really ties in with him being given an identity by the arrival of the letters. Not only does Harry feel like someone actually cares about him, we the readers start to get to know him a little better and see him as a real person.
Another reason I love this chapter is because of the mystery behind everything. Where are all these letters coming from and how do they know where he is? And then you don’t even get to know by the end, and it just ends on this cliffhanger with a BOOM and someone on the other side of the door. How could you NOT immediately start the next chapter?
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
Chapter 3: The Letters from No One
The Durlseys blamed Harry Potter for the zoo incident, and locked Harry in his cupboard for his “longest- ever punishment”. When he is finally released, weeks have passed since Dudley’s birthday fiasco, school had ended and Dudley and his gang were always around to engage in Dudley’s favorite sport: Harry Hunting.One morning, the mail came and Harry was ordered to retrieve it for Uncle Vernon. There on the doormat was a postcard from Aunt Marge, a brown envelope that looked like a bill, and – a letter for Harry. Harry couldn’t believe it. No one, ever, had written to him. And who would? He had no friends or family other than the Dursleys, but still here it was, a letter addressed to him:
Mr. H. Potter
The Cupboard under the Stairs
4 Privet Drive
Little Whinging
SurreyThe envelope was thick and heavy, and had a strange seal on the back. When Harry returned back to the kitchen, he sat down and began to open his letter, which was immediately taken away by Uncle Vernon. When he and Aunt Petunia saw who it was from, Dudley and Harry were ordered out of the room (but listened at the door). Aunt Petunia thought maybe they should reply, scared that the writer knew where Harry slept. Uncle Vernon decided for the both of them: they would ignore it, and eventually it would go away.
That evening, Uncle Vernon told Harry he had burned his letter, and that he would be moving upstairs into Dudley’s second bedroom. The next day, another letter arrived in the mail, this time with “Mr. H. Potter, The Smallest Bedroom” on the address. Uncle Vernon immediately grabbed it and ordered Harry to his room, despite his protests. For days, more letters appeared, not just by post, but cropping up in the strangest of places: under the door, squeezed through the window – Aunt Petunia even found some in the eggs! After being assaulted by thirty or forty letters shooting out of the fireplace, Uncle Vernon had had enough and declared they were leaving.
They got into their car and left. After many miles (and doubling back to prevent anyone from trailing them) they eventually stop to stay at a gloomy hotel. However, Vernon’s plans were thwarted when “about a hundred letters” arrive the next day at the hotel, addressed to Harry, again with an updated address. Once again Vernon & co. flee and this time acquire a boat to take them to a remote island with a lone decrepit, miserable hut on it. That night Harry remembers that the next day would be his eleventh birthday and counts down the time until midnight, by the light of Dudley’s wristwatch. He watches the clock turn to Twelve AM, and at that precise moment, there was a loud knocking at the door. Something was wanting in…
ANALYSIS:
There is no denying that Harry Potter is a special kid anymore; but the Dursleys sure are trying to. Many of the other strange things that have happened in the past ten years, even the disappearing glass in the zoo, could have been explained away as a freak occurrence, a weird coincidence, a strange gas leak even, until the day that letters started arriving for Harry. JKR shows us the letters flooding in the house, and appearing in odd places without ever telling us, or Harry, what the contents are. We are told that no matter where Harry is, the letters are addressed to him: the cupboard under the stairs, the smallest bedroom, Room 17. It is far more effective for us to know that, no matter what, someone is trying to get these letters to him, than for us to actually find out what the contents are. The mysteriousness of the events is also shown through JKR’s use of gothic-like imagery to heighten the suspense and create an uneasy mood: the dark night, the terrible weather, a desolate island with a ramshackle hut, and the chapter ending on the stroke of midnight with a climactic large thump at the door. No one can deny anymore that something “magical” is happening here, even if Harry hasn’t quite figured it out himself.Defiantly, the Dursleys go to extraordinary lengths to ensure their life is “normal”, rather than letting Harry know the truth. They decide to ignore the problem, and eventually it would go away.
“Vernon,” Aunt Petunia was saying in a quivering voice, “look at the address – how could they possibly know where he sleeps? You don’t think they’re watching the house?”
“Watching – spying – might be following us,” muttered Uncle Vernon wildly.
“But what should we do, Vernon? Should we write back? Tell them we don’t want -”
Harry could see Uncle Vernon’s shiny black shoes pacing up and down the kitchen.
“No,” he said finally. “No, we’ll ignore it. If they don’t get an answer…. Yes, thats best… we won’t do anything…”
“But -”
“I’m not having one in the house, Petunia! Didn’t we swear when we took him in we’d stamp out that dangerous nonsense?”Uncle Vernon tears up the letters, burns the letters, nails the mail box shut, and nails planks to any cracks on the door to prevent them from being delivered. They are willing to drive for miles and miles over 2 days, to escape the delivery of these letters to Harry, when surely wouldn’t it have been easier to just hand a letter to Harry and have him open it? By the end of the chapter, we know the Dursleys can’t hide behind their “normal” life anymore. It is worth noting that the idea of “ignore it and and eventually it will go away” OR “deny it and it’s not the truth” is not just a “Dursley” or even a “Muggle” problem for that matter; this is a real world, human problem (and one that we will see and talk about again later in the series). We recently touched upon it briefly, but considering the real world examples we’ve already discussed (LGBT rights, racism, religion, etc.) it’s easy to see how the Dursleys could hide their head in the sand and ignore what’s about to happen, even if they know it’s coming. It’s this idea of denying the truth, even if the truth is literally coming through the fireplace and pelting you in the head.
There are more examples of the abuse and neglect that Harry has been subjected to for the past ten years. Dudley is taken shopping for brand new uniforms for the private school he will be attending in the fall, and Harry is given some of Dudley’s old clothes that Petunia will dye gray for his uniform. We know from future chapters that Petunia is a neat freak, and that she often stayed up until after midnight cleaning the kitchen. Surely, it would have been easier to just buy Harry new clothes, rather than dying old clothes for his uniform? It was mentioned numerous times how awful it smelled, offending everyone in the family. For me this, solidifies the fact that Petunia went out of her way to make Harry miserable, when it would have been in everyone’s best interest to just buy him some cheap clothes. We also find out that there has been an extra bedroom in the house these last 10 years, filled with Dudleys broken and unwanted toys, and books that have never been opened. (What’s more astounding, is that as of right now, we really have no motivation for the why the Dursleys treat Harry this way, other than that he is “different”.)
The effect of living under these conditions is apparent when Harry receives the first letter:
“Harry picked it up and stared at it his heart twanging like a giant elastic band. No one, ever, in his whole life, had written to him. Who would? He had no friends, no other relatives – he didn’t belong to the library, so he’d never even got rude notes asking for books back.”
Harry is astounded to receive a letter that is solely for him. In many ways, it may have been the first thing that had ever been just for him. His whole life, he has been treated as if he doesn’t exist, and now, he has been recognized and acknowledged as an individual. When Harry remembers his birthday, we find out that last year he received a coat hanger and a pair of Uncle Vernon’s old socks, and it is as if this is a common occurrence. It’s even fair to assume that the Dursleys forgot or deliberately ignored his birthday some years.
Many people would be broken by this, but not Harry. For the first time, we really start to see his defiant wit and independent will, his inextinguishable hope (and a sassy sense of humour!). He counts down the days until school starts and he’s free of Dudley, he stands up to his Uncle and demands to be given HIS letters (“I want to read it,” said Harry furiously, “as it’s mine.” pg 35), he makes desperate attempts to retrieve his letters by waking up early to get to the mail first, only to find Uncle Vernon sleeping under the mail slot to prevent it. And even though he’s never had a real birthday, never felt special or important, never been anything more than just Harry, the kid who lives in the cupboard under the stairs, he stays up late, counting down the seconds until it’s officially his birthday. Because after all, you don’t turn eleven every day.
Possible Foreshadowing:
Mrs. Figg is mentioned again but she “wasn’t as bad as usual”. Could there be a reason why?MEMORABLE QUOTES (aka “When Harry met Sassy”)
“No, thanks,” said Harry. “The poor toilet’s never had anything as horrible as your head down it – it might be sick.”
“Oh,” he said, “I didn’t realize it had to be so wet.”
“Make Dudley get it.”
“It was not a mistake,” said Harry angrily, “it had my cupboard on it.”
Discussion Points:
– Who do you think is sending the letters, and how do they know where Henry is at all times?
– Why do you think the Dursleys won’t let Harry read the letters?
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
Back to the present day of the story, it’s just heartbreaking how strong Petunia’s prejudices are. Yes, we get more of Vernon’s viewpoint on it more than her, but Petunia is quietly in the background, the linchpin in this absurd family. It’s her family, her blood, she prejudices, too. It’s just unfathomable.
Vernon is the guy you hate on sight and from the very first. He’s loud, gruff, in your face and wears his prejudices on his sleeve. But it’s Petunia who is the one who is quietly…evil (ugh, not sure I want to use that word but going for it). Vernon is very verbally abusive and “man of the house” but Petunia has the quiet rage and anger and utter resentment toward Harry that I think cuts deeper. He is literally her blood and her rule is not to ask questions, to humiliate him, to lock him in a dank cupboard with spiders, to sneer at him, to be quietly hateful of his very existence. It’s like what if Harry died. Just picture that for a second. Vernon would be glad that his life went back to normal and there was no longer any fear about anyone finding out about Harry’s “otherness.” But I don’t know that Vernon would delight in Harry’s death. But Petunia would be glad for all of that as well, but I can’t help but wonder if she’d be glad that he was just dead. The final reminder of her sister finally gone.
THIS. I mentioned it earlier, but without any pictures of Harry, he doesn’t have a room, the stories that they tell people about him. If he had died early on, nobody would have known or cared. The Dursleys would have moved on with their lives and been glad. People would have hardly noticed or they would have made up some story about him.
Also, it’s a good thing that Harry doesn’t have an issue with spiders………
Keeper of the Cheshire Cat’s smile, Baelfire’s sword, Snow’s backpack, Robin Hood’s bow, Ariel’s purse, Ariel’s smile, Henry’s heart, Belle’s shoe collection
