The Harry Potter book series has sold over 450 million copies and is currently translated into almost every language on the face of the earth (“Harry Potter”). Millions have faithfully followed the story about this magical world and have fallen in love with the many enchanting characters. What most readers do not recognize is the prominence that classical Greek/Roman mythological allusions play in the beloved roles in Harry Potter through their names and personality attributes. The importance of names is extremely significant to a person’s identity, especially in literature where words are meant to bring stories to life. Rowling continues this concept through her characters by linking her characters names to classical folklore charismas that share similar personas. Rowling does a fantastic job with cleverly connecting her characters to classical Greek/Roman mythological figures through the etymology of their names and similar personality traits to their wizard counterparts, such as Professor McGonagall and Filch. An apparent allusion to a classical mythological figure is the Hogwarts’ transfiguration professor Minerva McGonagall. Professor McGonagall is an extremely intelligent woman, which is seen because she is tenured teacher who is respected by both her students and fellow professors. She is also known as an excellent strategist in wizard duels, which can be seen clearly in Rowling’s last installment when McGonagall duels and defeats Snape when he is in search of Harry
The Harry Potter novels by J.K. Rowling are a well known and highly celebrated series. In the first novel, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the audience is introduced to the main character, Harry. Harry is an embodiment of many common themes and devices in literature. However, Rowling manages to employ these literary tropes while creating a story entirely different from any other. The novel Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone provides an example of how to effectively utilize common literary motifs and archetypes without being cliché.
In Harry Potter and the sorcerer’s stone, the author J.K. Rowling introduces to the reader several characters.
Harry Potter is a fictional character invented by J.K Rowling in the series of seven books starting with Harry Potter and the Philosopher 's Stone and ending with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Wikipedia, 2015). Harry is the main character in this series whose parents died when he was young and he was brought up by his aunt and uncle (Philosopher’s Stone, 1997, p.5). Harry was neglected by his aunt and uncle (Philosopher’s Stone, 1997, p.27). Harry is presented a whole new reality when he goes to the zoo one day and his integration into the magical world changes him from the foundation. These changes within him will be analysed using the developmental psychology theories of Lawrence Kohlberg and Erik Erikson to explain how the environment aided or obstructed Harry’s development.
The character I found most intriguing in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was Regulus Black. Regulus Black was the younger brother of Sirius Black, and was quite a minor character in the Harry Potter series. His first appearance was in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, also written by J. K Rowling, in which Sirius showed Harry the Black Family tree. Sirius regarded Regulus negatively, quoted as saying, “…his idiot brother, soft enough to believe [their dark wizard parents]….” (111). Sadly, at that point in the series, we only get a brief and rather biased view of Regulus. It isn’t until Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows where it is revealed that Regulus was more than a blind follower of dark magic. The story of his redemption is a reason why this character is one of my favorites, notwithstanding that it is short
How do you define a hero? Some may define a hero with the ability to fly, or run fast; to others a hero may be saving someone who is in dangers; others may define a hero as one who is able to help another in various ways. Harry Potter is a orphan boy who find out he is a wizard and goes to a magic school, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While he is at Hogwarts, he develops his supernatural qualities, goes on a journey, and defeats evil. Although Harry Potter is not a Epic hero in the same way as Odysseus, Harry Potter still fulfills the stages of epic hero cycle and proves that he is a hero by overcome obstacles and showing his bravery, and selflessness.
Harry Potter is a fascinating tale of sorcerers, wands, broomsticks, dragons, and magic. The story begins with a young boy named Harry Potter who lives at number four Privit Drive, Surray, England. His journey begins after the death of his parents at the hands of the evil Lord Voldemort. Harry learns of his past and his future as a wizard from Hagrid, the keeper of keys and grounds at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He travels to Hogwarts where he learns spells and enchantments, makes new friends, finds enemies, and discovers fantastic secretes. J.K. Rowling weaves a web of impeccable storytelling with this critically acclaimed novel. In the tale of Harry Potter imagery, symbolism, and motif take central focus.
Ray Bradbury, the author of the story, “The Naming Of Names,” used character traits, sensory details, and internal conflict to display the theme of “Accepts your ideas,” using the protagonist of the story, Harry. Harry is a father with an ordinary family forced to colonize Mars, with the rest of Earth’s population once it is revealed that America is in a deadly nuclear war… Once on Mars, Harry realizes oddities and loses his trust for his new home especially, after realizing that his mentality began to change. So throughout the story, he attempts to convince his family of the issues they’re facing, and gradually realizes that the world, including himself, is doomed.
Fantasy appeals to us, to put it crudely, because of the relationship between magic and morality. An alternate world filled with strange and wonderful things, a world defined by imagination, gives us a setting in which to lose ourselves within. J.K. Rowling has done this and has captured the minds and hearts of readers all around the world with her bestselling series “Harry Potter”. As we engage in the engrossing narrative following Harry Potter and his friends, some may be able to relate to the lives of such characters. J.K. Rowling takes an undeniably riveting approach to showcasing the round characterizations throughout her novel "Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone" to such a degree that the reader can personally identify with such characters.
An Exploration into the Common Traits of Fictitious Heroes through the Analysis of J.K. Rowling 's Harry Potter and the Philosopher 's Stone
The hero’s journeys of Gilgamesh and J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series shape the central characters and develop their qualities so they can rise to their station and overcome their difficult tasks along the way.
The meaning of names is a central focus of the novel, because names define people. Their worth and functions are summarized by the names. To some extent, the names also discourage originality. This occurs especially to
Literary heroes that are also ordinary children are engaging to readers, particularly child readers. James Pope and Julia Round write that “Roald Dahl is a fascinating author in that his books for children feature child heroes who are very often neither hero nor villain, but a wild, subversive combination of both” (258). These characteristics are also true of Coraline and Harry Potter, as they are presented as imperfect, but ultimately find the power within themselves to save what is important to them. Children readers are empowered by Coraline and Harry because they identify with these ordinary children and feel as if they can also make a difference in their lives, as the characters defeat the evil in theirs.
But what makes him so special. He has many defining character traits that makes him a hero.
Using imagination and creativity, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series has defined literature as transformative. In this seven-book series J.K Rowling imagined and creatively pieced together a fantasy world of muggles, wizards, tyrants, and heroes to symbolically share with readers problems plaguing modern society. Similar to Shelley’s work of the past, never before have readers in the modern era seen teenage and adult mania surrounding an 11-year-old wizard. Some will argue that J.K. Rowling’s young-adult series lacks depth or wants to twist young minds by using magic and evil, but through close examination it is evident that
In the Harry Potter series by J.K Rowling Harry starts of in the unfamiliar wizarding world of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After lord Voldemort killed Harry’s parents he is sent of to his aunt and uncle's house as a baby. Harry does not like living with them but eventually at age 12 he gets a letter to attend hogwarts which he will soon find out that he is a wizard. After being sorted into one of the four houses (Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, ravenclaw and slytherin)he gets sorted into gryffindor and finds friends in his house(Ron and Hermione). They have to stick together and work together to defeat him. This leads to one of the themes for this book series being that “You are much stronger when with friends”.