The HP Lexicon Podcast

In my last podcast, I talked about the first of two magic duels in chapter 36 of Order of the Phoenix, the one between Harry and Bellatrix. Now it’s time to move on to the main event, the massive duel between Albus Dumbledore and Voldemort.

There is no other magical battle in the entire series to equal this one. The roller-coaster flow of spells and counterspells is wild and breathtaking. This is certainly one of the most exciting, most cinematic magical battles in the entire saga.

This mighty duel is the centerpiece of the entire seven-book tale. We are most of the way through the middle book of the series. It’s the watershed moment, when the forces of good and evil collide and the fate of the wizarding world is at stake. But neither side wins, not yet. So what is the actual point?

The most important aspect of this duel is to show how powerful truly high-level wizards are, and how powerless Harry is in this situation. Remember, up to this point Harry has seen himself as what I call “super-hero Harry.” He has begun to count on his abilities and his “special-ness” to be able to face Voldemort one day. And of course he does! Any of us would. If we have to fight a supervillain, we had better find our inner superhero or we’re toast.

And toast it is. Harry gets a first hand look at just how powerful he will need to be in order to go toe to toe — or wand to wand — with Voldemort. He sees magic way beyond that which he has experienced, way beyond what he even thought possible. His abilities, while impressive for a fifteen year old wizard, are nowhere near strong enough for a flat out battle.

Of course, we’re seeing it too. We’ve been wondering how this is all going to end and assuming there will be a huge showdown at some point. We have imagined Harry and Voldemort in a duel, something like that Priori Incantatem faceoff in the graveyard, and figuring that maybe, just maybe the twin wand cores would be the secret to Harry winning the day. But in this duel, there is little wand-against-wand spellcasting. The truly epic combat consists of all environmental effects and transfiguration. The most jaw-dropping spells completely bypass the kind of “spells meeting in midair” situation that allowed Harry to escape the graveyard battle. Instead we see the water from the fountain whipped into a liquid prison and streams of fire morphing into a serpent. We see Voldemort teleport from place to place and then completely dematerialize to take on spirit form and to possess Harry.

Even Dumbledore has no defense against this last tactic, and Harry feels Voldemort take over, enveloping and consuming him. And then we get the first inkling of the kind of power which CAN defeat the Dark Lord. Harry’s heart is filled not with hate and aggression but with love for Sirius. And that power is what drives Voldemort away. Here’s how it’s described:

He was gone from the hall, he was locked in the coils of a creature with red eyes, so tightly bound that Harry did not know where his body ended and the creature’s began: they were fused together, bound by pain, and there was no escape

`If death is nothing, Dumbledore, kill the boy…’

In the next chapter, Dumbledore makes this connection clear when he says

“There is no shame in what you are feeling, Harry … On the contrary… the fact that you can feel pain like this is your greatest strength.’

And finally:

“It is [love]… that you possess in such quantities and which Voldemort has not at all. That power took you to save Sirius tonight. That power also saved you from possession by Voldemort, because he could not bear to reside in a body so full of the force he detests. In the end, it mattered not that you could not close your mind. It was your heart that saved you.”

And two books from now, it will indeed be Harry’s heart which defeats Voldemort once and for all.

The post OP36: Of Magic and Duels Part Two appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

Umbridge is one of those characters the reader is supposed to hate and despise, but she isn’t a Death Eater, she’s just a nasty person. Sirius sums this up well by saying “The world isn’t split into good people and Death Eaters”, and Umbridge is the perfect embodiment of this maxim, showing the nuance that Rowling can give to her characters. Not everything is black and white, and characters can be antagonists without being associated with Voldemort.

However, not every Harry Potter character has this depth. In the third book we are introduced to Macnair, the Ministry of Magic executioner who’s tasked with killing Buckbeak. The books show him as a little bit too bloodthirsty, and obviously, Harry, and us the readers, dislike him because of what he’s there to do. Surely this is just narrator bias though, right?

Nope. In the next book we learn that he’s literally a Death Eater too. And in Rowling’s original outline of the fifth book, he’s the most mentioned death eater after Lucius. If he’s not a good person, even if only from the limited viewpoint of the protagonist, then clearly he must be a Death Eater and Rowling confirms this. Some characters really are that one dimensional.

The post Of Umbridge and Macnair appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

In this podcast we’re going to take a look at the incredible magical duels in chapter 36 of the Order of the Phoenix.

Before we get to the main duel in the chapter, however, that between Voldemort and Dumbledore, we learn a bit about the Unforgivable Curses when Harry and Bellatrix have their own duel in the Atrium before Voldemort appears.

After killing Sirius, Bellatrix runs away through the Department of Mysteries and into the Atrium of the Ministry of Magic headquarters. Harry chases after her, consumed by righteous anger. Once he catches up to her, he fires off the Cruciatus curse in her direction, knocking her off her feet. But she isn’t affected the way he would have expected. He has cast the spell incorrectly.

Here we see something very interesting. The spell clearly involves more than the words and the wandwork. In some ways it mirrors the Patronus Charm, which requires happy thoughts. In this case, Harry’s anger, fierce though it is, doesn’t provide the needed “energy,” if you will. Here’s how the book describes it:

Hatred rose in Harry such as he had never known before; he flung himself out from behind the fountain and bellowed, “Crucio!”

Bellatrix screamed: the spell had knocked her off her feet, but she did not writhe and shriek with pain as Neville had – she was already back on her feet, breathless, no longer laughing. Harry dodged behind the golden fountain again. Her counter-spell hit the head of the handsome wizard, which was blown off and landed twenty feet away, gouging long scratches into the wooden floor.

“Never used an Unforgivable Curse before, have you, boy?” she yelled. She had abandoned her baby voice now. “You need to mean them, Potter! You need to really want to cause pain – to enjoy it – righteous anger won’t hurt me for long – I’ll show you how it is done, shall I? I’ll give you a lesson -”

The intention must be there, not just the emotion of hatred, but an actual desire to cause pain. Perhaps this is why the Curses are considered as evil as they are: they are specifically caused by evil emotions.

Rowling actually has another larger reason for this exchange, a reason which comes into play at the very end of the series in the confrontation between Harry and Voldemort in chapter 36 of Deathly Hallows. You see, the key to that confrontation and indeed, the key to the overarching plot of the entire series, is Harry’s intentions in that moment. He is facing Voldemort, the cause of all the pain and suffering and sadness in not only his life but that of so many others in the Wizarding World. He has every reason to be filled with hate and anger. He has every reason to want to make Voldemort suffer and die with dramatic vengeance. In other words, he has every reason to want and be able to use the Unforgivable Curses on Voldemort.

And here, in chapter 36 of Order of the Phoenix, we see that he has learned how to use one of them, the Cruciatus Curse, from a true mistress of inflicting pain, Bellatrix Lestrange. He has learned his lesson well. He has clearly mastered the Imperius Curse, as we see when he uses it to control Bogrod and Travers during the raid on the Gringotts vaults. And later that day, in Ravenclaw Tower, Harry also successfully uses the Cruciatus Curse on Amycus Carrow.

So when he faces Voldemort in the Great Hall as the sun rises, we know that he is capable of casting an Unforgivable Curse. He has demonstrated both curses within the last twenty-four hours. This makes Harry’s decision to turn away from the evil emotions that drive those terrible spells and instead cast a non-violent, an ANTI-violent spell, Expelliarmus, so striking. He offers Voldemort the chance for remorse, for redemption. He is embodying the deep magic espoused by Dumbledore himself: the power of love. Remember this exchange between Dumbledore and Voldemort when the latter came to Hogwarts asking for a teaching job?

“Yes, I certainly do know that you have seen and done much since leaving us,” [Dumbledore] said quietly. “Rumors of your doings have reached your old school, Tom. I should be sorry to believe half of them.”

Voldemort’s expression remained impassive as he said, “Greatness inspires envy, envy engenders spite, spite spawns lies. You must know this, Dumbledore.”

“You call it ‘greatness,’ what you have been doing, do you?” asked Dumbledore delicately.

“Certainly,” said Voldemort, and his eyes seemed to burn red. “I have experimented; I have pushed the boundaries of magic further, perhaps, than they have ever been pushed —”

“Of some kinds of magic,” Dumbledore corrected him quietly. “Of some. Of others, you remain . . . forgive me . . . woefully ignorant.”

For the first time, Voldemort smiled. It was a taut leer, an evil thing, more threatening than a look of rage.

“The old argument,” he said softly. “But nothing I have seen in the world has supported your famous pronouncements that love is more powerful than my kind of magic, Dumbledore.”

“Perhaps you have been looking in the wrong places,” suggested Dumbledore. (HBP20)

Voldemort’s kind of magic is embodied in the Unforgivable Curses, the curses which Harry knows and can perform. But in what is clearly a prophecy fulfilled, he doesn’t use them. He chooses love, and Voldemort dies.

What we see in that moment is a transformed Harry, a young man who has gone through terror and horror and loss to learn the hardest lesson of all, that the deepest, most powerful magic in the universe is the power of love. This painful transformation begins in the very next chapter of the book.

The post OP36: Of Magic and Duels Part One appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

Season Three is Here!

Hello, everyone. Back in January, 2018, I created a new short-form podcast called The Harry Potter Lexicon Minute. I had planned on a shorter title — The Harry Potter Minute — but discovered that there was already a podcast with that name, so I added the Lexicon’s name. The podcast ran for over 160 episodes, through November of 2019. I added a few more episodes in the summer of 2020 during our 25th anniversary Canon Celebration. 

And now I’d like to welcome you all to a new season of the Harry Potter Lexicon Minute podcast. This time around I’ll be finishing up my series on Order of the Phoenix, which stopped at chapter 35 back in September of 2019. I’ll add to my Canon Thoughts series, and maybe investigate a lingering Potter mystery or two. Some of our other editors have been working on scripts as well. I’m aiming for one or two episodes a week for at least the rest of the summer. So make sure you subscribe wherever you get your podcasts so you won’t miss a single one. I and the rest of the Lexicon team are really looking forward to sharing our enthusiasm for the Wizarding World with you. Thanks for listening!

The post Season Three is Here! appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

Summer is over and it is time to return to Hogwarts. Harry has lessons with Professor Dumbledore to look forward to. He becomes surprisingly talented in Potions class and works hard as the new Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. But what is his classmate Draco Malfoy actually up to?

Ready or not, here we go!

Fifty Years Ago by Steve VanderArk

Pince and Prince by hpboy13

Episode 25: The Horcrux Conundrum by Steve VanderArk and Nick Moline

Horcrux Deaths by Steve VanderArk

These guides were originally written in 2005 and 2006. Since that time, a few edits were made here and there but basically the text remained the same. To get ready for this Canon Celebration, our editors have been revising each one. We’ve added fan artwork to the Guide which illustrates the text. At the bottom in the Commentary section we’ve added a gallery of additional artwork. So even if you’ve read our guides before, please give them another look. And if you’re doing a re-read of the books, have the Guide to each chapter open as you go! I’m sure you’ll find a lot of information you didn’t know.

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 7

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 8

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 9

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 10

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 11

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 12

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 13

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 14

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 15

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 16

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 17

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 18

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 19

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 20

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 21

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 22

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 23

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 24

Fitting the books into the real-life calendars isn’t easy! In fact, it’s impossible. But that didn’t stop us:

Day by day calendar of events in the book

Differences between the British and American versions

“Mistakes and non-mistakes” in the text

Ginny Weasley: A Gryffindor and a Match for Harry by Tim Lambarski

Is Harry a Horcrux? by Stephen Haas

The Complications with Memory by Suzanne Foster

An Almanac of Quidditch at Hogwarts by Philip Legge

The Bendable Vow: Dumbledore’s Hand In One Last Legal Loophole by D.B. Fwoopersong

Love and Death in Harry Potter by Paul Spilsbury

Some Thoughts on House-Elves by Douglas Moran

What is Magical Power in the Potterverse? by Hugo Costa Paes

We have hundreds and hundreds of pieces of fan artwork in our collection. Some subjects get a lot of depictions — Diagon Alley is a favorite topic, for example, and, well, of course it is! But there are a few pieces which illustrate more unusual moments in the text. Here are a few examples:

Romilda Vane finds Harry on the Hogwarts Express (HBP7)

Harry earns his first detention from Snape (HBP9)

The cursed opal necklace and Katie Bell (HBP12)

Ginny and Ron disagree about interference in her love life (HBP14)

Horace Slughorn’s Christmas party (HBP15)

Inside an edited Pensieve memory, Slughorn and Tom Riddle (HBP17)

Apparition lessons (HBP18)

Hepzibah Smith and Hufflepuff’s cup (HBP20)

Harry and Ginny’s first kiss (HBP24)

Our Artwork Challenge for all you fan artists out there is to depict one of the lesser-known characters and scenes in the series. If we really like your work, we may feature it in the Lexicon! Here are some suggestions from these chapters:

Send your artwork to [email protected]. By submitting it, you are giving us permission to display your work on the Lexicon. We would like to include your name with your artwork so you are properly credited, so when you send your work let us know what name to use. Please also include a way to get a hold of you so that if we decide to feature your work as part of our regular collection we can contact you for more details. All artwork we display remains the property of the artist and they retain all copyright.

Sectumsempra! – Levicorpus! – Langlock! – and even the useful Muffliato…. The Half-Blood Prince may be a genius at Potions, but the Prince’s book is also filled with dubious spells – the worst of which probably shouldn’t be used on anyone, not just students. In their discussion, Hermione makes quite a few sensible comments:

“So you just decided to try out an unknown, handwritten incantation and see what would happen?”

“….it’s probably not Ministry of Magic-approved. ….And also, because I’m starting to think this Prince character was a bit dodgy.”

“Dangling people upside-down by the ankle? ….Who puts their time and energy into making up spells like that?”

“Maybe your dad did use it, Harry, ….but he’s not the only one. We’ve seen a whole bunch of people use it, in case you’ve forgotten. Dangling people in the air. Making them float along, asleep, helpless.” (HBP12)

But Ron and Harry won’t listen to her objections. Of course.

Hermione recognises that the person who wrote these spells has an affinity for Dark Magic. All through the book, she continues to try and investigate who they might be – especially after Harry’s near-fatal disaster using Sectumsempra (HBP24).

The Quidditch pitch and stadium at Hogwarts take up a substantial section of the Hogwarts School grounds. As the school’s location is hidden (and is likely to be unplottable as well), Hogwarts’ students are able to have their Quidditch pitch in situ year-round – unlike the stadia for professional and World Cup matches, which have to be hidden from Muggles. Although there are only six matches during the school year, Quidditch is an important part of school life and the rivalries between house teams are quite fierce.

More revelations, betrayals and death await us next week when we cover the last six chapters of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

The post Half-Blood Prince 7-24 Canon Celebration appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

Everything turns a bit darker in Book Five. Lord Voldemort has returned. Dementors show up in unexpected places. And Harry is unhappy, even when he has re-joined his friends before the end of the summer.

Ready to find out why? Let’s go!

Encore Presentation: OP 1: Drought by Steve VanderArk

OP 2: Kneazles by Steve VanderArk

OP 3: Why Not Side-Along Apparition? by Steve VanderArk

OP 4: Discovering Grimmauld Place by Steve VanderArk

OP 5: I Don’t Think I Like This Book by Steve VanderArk

OP 6: Drawing Room Delights by Steve VanderArk

OP 7: The Ministry of Magic by Steve VanderArk

OP 8: Sweet Victory Forshadowed by Steve VanderArk

OP 9: What is a “Flint?” by Steve VanderArk

OP 9: Lucius? I Remember Him by Steve VanderArk

The Twins’ O.W.L.s by hpboy13

Number Twelve by Selena Gallagher

Portraits by Eileen Jones

The Photograph and the Boggart by Abby Koop

Seeing is Believing by Eileen Jones

Episode 3: “There’s an Elf Head Hanging Outside the Window” by Steve VanderArk

Episode 10: “This Gap Is Where It All Changed” by Steve VanderArk

These guides were originally written in March of 2002. Since that time, a few edits were made here and there but basically the text remained the same. To get ready for this Canon Celebration, our editors have been revising each one. We’ve added fan artwork to the Guide which illustrates the text. At the bottom in the Commentary section we’ve added a gallery of additional artwork. So even if you’ve read our guides before, please give them another look. And if you’re doing a re-read of the first book, have the Guide to each chapter open as you go! I’m sure you’ll find a lot of information you didn’t know.

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 1

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 2

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 3

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 4

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 5

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 6

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 7

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 8

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 9

Fitting the books into the real-life calendars isn’t easy! In fact, it’s impossible. But that didn’t stop us:

Day by day calendar of events in the book

Differences between the British and American versions

Edits and changes to the text

In Search of Little Whinging by Ravenclaw Rambler

How Safe is Privet Drive? by Jen Reese

The Tragedy of Petunia Dursley by Ali Hewison

Surrey: Showing the Location of Little Whinging (on the scene investigation) by Nik the Hermit

In Search of … Grimmauld Place by Ravenclaw Rambler

How A Man Treats His Inferiors by Abby Koop

Only Black in Name: Andromeda Black Tonks by Cathy McCabe

Arthur Weasley’s Relationship to Sirius Black: First Forays into the Black Family Tree by Sylvie Augustus

Ginny Weasley: A Gryffindor and a Match for Harry by Tim Lambarski

We have hundreds and hundreds of pieces of fan artwork in our collection. Some subjects get a lot of depictions — Diagon Alley is a favorite topic, for example, and, well, of course it is! But there are a few pieces which illustrate more unusual moments in the text. Here are a few examples:

The portrait of Sirius Black’s mother Walburga (OP4)

Harry’s hearing (OP8)

Fred, George and Ginny were doing a kind of war dance

Photograph of the original Order of the Phoenix (OP9)

Our Artwork Challenge for all you fan artists out there is to depict one of the lesser known scenes and characters in the series. If we really like your work, we may feature it in the Lexicon! Here are some suggestions from these chapters:

Send your artwork to [email protected]. By submitting it, you are giving us permission to display your work on the Lexicon. We would like to include your name with your artwork so you are properly credited, so when you send your work let us know what name to use. Please also include a way to get a hold of you so that if we decide to feature your work as part of our regular collection we can contact you for more details. All artwork we display remains the property of the artist and they retain all copyright.

In Chapter 7, we finally get to go inside the Ministry of Magic, a place we have been hearing about since the very first book.

The magic starts even before you arrive. The visitor’s entrance is through an old-fashioned red telephone box.

“No, no, I’m sure it’s fine,” said Mr Weasley, holding the receiver above his head and peering at the dial. “Let’s see … six …” he dialled the number, “two … four … and another four … and another two …”

All of the department names we hear while Harry and Arthur Weasley are in the lift are so very intriguing. What fun it would be to be able to explore all of them properly!

“Level Seven, Department of Magical Games and Sports, incorporating the British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters, Official Gobstones Club and Ludicrous Patents Office.”

Harry gets a little bit of time to look around on the second level – particularly where the Aurors are headquartered. It may be that this helps him decide on his future career path later in the book (OP29).

Sirius Black allows his ancestral family home at Number Twelve Grimmauld Place to be used as the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix.

So, where in London is Grimmauld Place? Wherever it is, the houses are supposed to be look both “grim” and “old”. Places of that description are not very hard to find all over Greater London.

In Ravenclaw Rambler’s essay In Search of … Grimmauld Place, the areas around King’s Cross Station are considered – and mostly discarded – as possible candidates for its location. Of course, J K Rowling may have had an impossible place that doesn’t fit at all into the real world in her mind’s eye when she wrote about it.

For my book In Search of Harry Potter, I explored the area around King’s Cross trying to find a square which fit the description of Grimmauld Place. According to clues in the books, the square would have to be within one mile of King’s Cross but closer to another, more run-down Underground station. The houses would have to be quite tall, since Grimmauld Place has five floors. I discovered only one square which met those criteria: Lonsdale Square in Barnsbury. Houses in that square, built in the mid-1800s, stand four or five stories tall. The nearest Underground station is Highbury & Islington but King’s Cross is within a 20-minute walk. –SVA

It is time for the students to go back to Hogwarts! What changes will there be this year? Who will be the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher? Join us next week for the Lexicon’s Canon Celebration of Chapters 10 to 27 of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

The post Order of the Phoenix 1-9 Canon Celebration appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

We now start Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, a book with several exciting events for Harry and his friends to experience. We go back to the Weasleys and attend an international event where a disaster takes place. What more can happen?

If you’re ready to find out – on we go!

Canon Thoughts: Goblet of Fire by Steve VanderArk

Fifty Years Ago by Steve VanderArk

The Weasleys and Ottery St Catchpole by Steve VanderArk

GF 1: Mysteries and Surprises by Susan

GF 2: Looking Cool by Susan

GF 3: Writing by Hand by Susan

GF 4: A Lot of Long Sentences by Susan

GF 5: Looking Back and Forward by Susan

GF 6: Foreshadowing – Lovegoods and Apparition by Susan

Wizard Currency by Selena Gallagher

The Changing Quidditch World Cup Schedule by Nick Moline

Everything you’ve wanted to know about Socks by Morag Traynor

These guides were originally written in March of 2002. Since that time, a few edits were made here and there but basically the text remained the same. To get ready for this Canon Celebration, our editors have been revising each one. We’ve added fan artwork to the Guide which illustrates the text. At the bottom in the Commentary section we’ve added a gallery of additional artwork. So even if you’ve read our guides before, please give them another look. And if you’re doing a re-read of the first book, have the Guide to each chapter open as you go! I’m sure you’ll find a lot of information you didn’t know.

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 1

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 2

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 3

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 4

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 5

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 6

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 7

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 8

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 9

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 10

Fitting the books into the real-life calendars isn’t easy! In fact, it’s impossible. But that didn’t stop us:

Day by day calendar of events in the book

Differences between the British and American versions

Edits and changes to the text

3 Cool Things We Learn About Harry in Goblet of Fire Chapter 9 by Steve VanderArk

Harry’s Dreams by Steve VanderArk

In Search of… The Burrow by Ravenclaw Rambler

Wizard Money by Anton Generalov aka “XAHrOBEP”

How A Man Treats His Inferiors by Abby Koop

How many Quidditch World Cups have there been anyway? by Nick Moline

We have hundreds and hundreds of pieces of fan artwork in our collection. Some subjects get a lot of depictions — Diagon Alley is a favorite topic, for example, and, well, of course it is! But there are a few pieces which illustrate more unusual moments in the text. Here are a few examples:

Nagini and Frank Bryce in the Riddle House (GF1)

A dinner in the garden at the Burrow (GF5)

The Wronski Feint – Viktor Krum and Aidan Lynch (GF8)

The Dark Mark (GF9)

We have tons of images of the Burrow, Dementors and Divination. Snape and Potions lessons are another very popular topic. Our Artwork Challenge for all you fan artists out there is to depict one of the lesser known scenes and characters in the series. If we really like your work, we may feature it in the Lexicon! Here are some suggestions from these chapters:

Send your artwork to [email protected]. By submitting it, you are giving us permission to display your work on the Lexicon. We would like to include your name with your artwork so you are properly credited, so when you send your work let us know what name to use. Please also include a way to get a hold of you so that if we decide to feature your work as part of our regular collection we can contact you for more details. All artwork we display remains the property of the artist and they retain all copyright.

Harry buys Omnioculars for himself, Ron and Hermione before the final of the 1994 Quidditch World Cup (GF7). Omnioculars – which look somewhat like normal binoculars but have extra features such as instant replay and slow-motion – are only mentioned a few more times in the books: during the match (GF8), when Harry happens to find his pair in his pocket later (GF9), and a further three separate occasions during the Quidditch World Cup tournament in 2014 (QWC). But while they may not be very important as a magical device, there is something about how Harry interacts with them that is interesting.

He initially uses the Omnioculars to slow down the Bulgarian and Irish Quidditch team players, as the speed at which they move on the pitch is far too fast for the naked eye to take in. He is therefore somewhat behind “real time” when Ireland scores first. Hermione then scolds him:

“Harry, if you’re not going to watch at normal speed, you’re going to miss things!”

He is “furious with himself” and turns the dial back to normal speed, and doesn’t slow it down again unless the match is stopped for fouls and penalty shots, or an injury. Lesson learned.

In a way, this follows on from another lesson learned – when Harry was in his first year and caught by Albus Dumbledore in front of the Mirror of Erised. He told Harry:

“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that.”

It will be important for Harry to learn to look forwards rather than backwards – particularly when it comes to the search for the Horcruxes and Deathly Hallows later on.

We know from the History of the Quidditch World Cup, an essay written by J K Rowling, that:

“Possibly the most infamous World Cup final of the last few centuries was the Ireland-Bulgaria match of 1994, which took place on Dartmoor….” (QWC).

Kennilworthy Whisp quotes Zacharias Mumps’ early description of the game of Quidditch, in the book Quidditch Through the Ages:

“Choose areas of deserted moorland far from Muggle habitations and make sure that you cannot be seen once you take off on your brooms.” (QA5)

Dartmoor fits this description. It is located in Devon (in the West Country), which is the same county where you find both The Burrow and Ottery St Catchpole. Although the moors are a tourist attraction, they aren’t as busy as some other areas in England. Even in this modern day and age, there is plenty of room to hide a Quidditch tournament!

Hogwarts’ students head back to school again, where a mysterious big event is going to take place. Chapters 11 to 18 contain some big surprises for them all, including a rather alarming new teacher and a fire-filled cup.

The post Goblet of Fire 1-10 Canon Celebration appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

In the early 2000s, Harry Potter fans debated the possible range of dates for the saga. Small clues like the reference to a PlayStation in book four were discussed in detail. — Since the PlayStation wasn’t available until December 1994 in Japan and September 1995 in Europe, some argued that the events of Goblet of Fire couldn’t have happened until after that time. Some toyed with the idea that Uncle Vernon might have gotten his hands on a Japanese version while on a business trip, but that would still make book four have to happen no earlier than 1995. Others argued that Rowling’s world doesn’t have to match the real world — and clearly doesn’t in a lot of other ways — so the date of the PlayStation shouldn’t be a determining factor when dating events in the Potter universe. And the debate raged. You can find some of the essays written during that time here on the Lexicon. 

Far more compelling was the fact that Nearly Headless Nick celebrated his 500th Deathday in October of the second book. The cake at the party listed the date of his actual death as being the 31st of October in 1492, which would date the first half of the second book to 1992. I held that opinion, especially since that would mean that the first books take place during the actual years Rowling was writing them in the early 1990s.

The debate went on for years and it wasn’t until the release of the Black Family Tree in 2006 that Rowling finally stated in canon that the year of Draco’s birth, and therefore also Harry’s, was 1980. This settled the arguments once and for all. Harry’s school years therefore were from 1991 through 1998. This was verified in the novels themselves, which many fans consider to be the highest form of canon, when the dates on the gravestone for Lily and James Potter were revealed in the seventh book. 

Before then, Rowling had been particularly cagey about coming right out and giving specific years for things. Even when it would have been easy to slip in a date, she chose not to do so. In Order of the Phoenix, for example, the prophecy that Neville, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Luna discovered in the Department of Mysteries was labeled with the date when it was spoken by Trelawney. However, instead of stating it outright, Rowling describes it this way: “In spidery writing was written a date of some sixteen years previously…” (OP34).

By the time that fifth book was published in 2003, the Lexicon had already included a very detailed timeline of the Wizarding World. I had compiled it over the course of two years, from 2001 to 2003. The amount of information available to be included was enormous, but most of it wasn’t from the Harry Potter novels. Oh no, there were several other amazingly detailed sources of historical information available back then, all written by Rowling herself. 

Back in 2001, Rowling published two little books for charity which we now refer to as the Schoolbooks. They were Quidditch Through the Ages and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. These two books were filled with Rowling’s quirky humor. They were also filled with historical information about the Wizarding World. 

In 2003, Electronic Arts released a video game based on Chamber of Secrets which featured a series of Famous Wizard cards which players could find and collect. Rowling wrote the information for those cards and once again, the text was loaded with puns on the names and clever humor in the descriptions. And, like the Schoolbooks, the cards were chock-full of historical information about the Wizarding World. 

When the Schoolbooks were published, I immediately began taking notes and making lists. My notes evolved quickly into a detailed timeline, starting in ancient times and running to the present. This timeline caught the eye of Warner Bros who borrowed it as the official timeline to be included as part of the Extras on the DVD of Chamber of Secrets.

Rowling reveals some very interesting information about the development of Wizarding culture over the two millennia the timeline covers. The events and personalities revealed in those canon sources, now augmented by a lot of other canon including the Black Family Tree, Dumbledore’s notes in Tales of Beedle the Bard, and others, give us a very detailed look at the scope of Wizarding History. 

Here are the distinct eras which can be discerned from all these sources:

Ancient History isn’t given exact dates, but probably runs from about 3000 BC to 100 AD.

This era included such notable magical folk as Andros the Invincible and Circe in ancient Greece. Herpo the Foul also appears in this bygone era, the original Evil Dark Wizard. 

The Medieval Era, which goes from 100 through 1400 AD, includes such notable events at the establishment of Hogwarts. Muggles mistrust of witches and wizards grows throughout this time.  

From 1400 until 1692, this mistrust became more and more virulent until finally wizards and witches all over the world decided together to withdraw and hide from Muggles entirely. Around 1700, this was accomplished with the establishment of the Statute of Secrecy. 

Wizard culture and Muggle culture developed separately for the next two hundred years, until the end of the 19th century. The birth of Albus Dumbledore in 1881 marks the beginning of the Modern Era. The events of this era, which runs through the twentieth century, are dominated by the rise and fall of two powerful Dark Wizards: Grindelwald and Voldemort. The stories of how these wizards came into power and were defeated are told in the Fantastic Beasts films and the Harry Potter novels. 

Each of these eras is filled with stories and interesting people. You can explore all this rich history on the Lexicon by clicking on Events at the top of any page and following the links. 

Oh, one last thing. Just how accurate is the Lexicon’s timeline? That question has always bothered me a little. Yes, it’s the Lexicon’s timeline in that I compiled it and published it there. But it’s really Rowling’s timeline. She wrote the sources which I used, I just gathered all the tidbits of history scattered through the novels, the Daily Prophet newsletters, the Famous Wizard cards, the Schoolbooks, and other sources and laid them out in order. So when I read an article saying condescendingly that McGonagall’s appearance in “Crimes of Grindelwald” doesn’t fit with some “fan-made timeline,” I get a bit annoyed. No, it’s not a fan-made timeline, it’s a Rowling-made timeline. She’s contradicting herself, not us fans. Rowling just never bothered to actually put all her facts down in order the way I did. 

And that timeline, which the Lexicon has proudly put forward since the early 2000s, is as accurate as the facts Rowling gave us. Which means, pretty darned accurate! 

The post The History of the History of the Wizarding World appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

Welcome to the third book in the series, The Prisoner of Azkaban! Many fans consider this to be their favorite Harry Potter novel. Harry is another year older, another face-off with Voldemort under his belt. What could be in store for him and his friends this year?

Let’s crack the new adventure open and find out!

Canon Thoughts: Book Three by Steve VanderArk

Chocolate by Selena Gallagher

Pets at Hogwarts by Ashmita Shanthakumar

These guides were originally written in March of 2002. Since that time, a few edits were made here and there but basically the text remained the same. To get ready for this Canon Celebration, our editors have been revising each one. We’ve added fan artwork to the Guide which illustrates the text. At the bottom in the Commentary section we’ve added a gallery of additional artwork. So even if you’ve read our guides before, please give them another look. And if you’re doing a re-read of the first book, have the Guide to each chapter open as you go! I’m sure you’ll find a lot of information you didn’t know.

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 1

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 2

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 3

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 4

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 5

Fitting the books into the real-life calendars isn’t easy! In fact, it’s impossible. But that didn’t stop us:

Day by day calendar of events in the book

Where Does the Name “Knight Bus” Come From? by Morag Traynor and Susan

Harry’s Things by Morag Traynor

We have hundreds and hundreds of pieces of fan artwork in our collection. Some subjects get a lot of depictions — Diagon Alley is a favorite topic, for example, and, well, of course it is! But there are a few pieces which illustrate more unusual moments in the text. Here are some examples:

Wendelin the Weird enjoyed being burned so much that she allowed herself to be

Harry had never met a vampire, but he had seen pictures of them

Percy pompously greeting Harry – and Fred & George going over the top imitating him (PA4)

These first few chapters provide a goldmine of topics for this week’s Artwork Challenge! How many can you illustrate? Here are some ideas we’d love to see brought to life:

If we really like your work, we may feature it in the Lexicon! Send your artwork to [email protected]. By submitting it, you are giving us permission to display your work on the Lexicon. We would like to include your name with your artwork so you are properly credited, so when you send your work let us know what name to use. Please also include a way to get a hold of you so that if we decide to feature your work as part of our regular collection we can contact you for more details. All artwork we display remains the property of the artist and they retain all copyright.

Atlas Guide to our favorite wizarding marketplace

We will be moving on to the next set of chapters, 6 through 11, of Prisoner of Azkaban. Come explore with us!

The post Prisoner of Azkaban 1-5 Canon Celebration appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.

Welcome to the fifth installment of our celebration series!

We’ve been warned not to return to Hogwarts, met some new allies and foes, and accidentally broken one of the most fundamental rules of wizarding society. What a way to start the school year!

Ready to have some fun exploring what’s next? Here we go!

CS 6: Howlers, Mandrakes, and Muggleborns by Eileen Jones

CS 7: Mudbloods and Murmurs by Eileen Jones

CS 8: Ghosts by Eileen Jones

CS 9: Filch by Eileen Jones

CS 10: Harry, Draco and Quidditch by Eileen Jones

CS 11: Loyalty by Eileen Jones

CS 12: In Dumbledore’s Office by Eileen Jones

These guides were originally written in March of 2002. Since that time, a few edits were made here and there but basically the text remained the same. To get ready for this Canon Celebration, our editors have been revising each one. We’ve added fan artwork to the Guide which illustrates the text. At the bottom in the Commentary section we’ve added a gallery of additional artwork. So even if you’ve read our guides before, please give them another look. And if you’re doing a re-read of the first book, have the Guide to each chapter open as you go! I’m sure you’ll find a lot of information you didn’t know.

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 6

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 7

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 8

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 9

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 10

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 11

Reader’s Guide to Chapter 12

Fitting the first book into the real-life calendars isn’t easy! In fact, it’s impossible. But that didn’t stop us:

Day by day calendar of events in the book

Troubles with Time by Steve VanderArk

Hogwarts Ghosts by Mike Gray

How Do Duels Work? by Hugo Costa Paes

We have hundreds and hundreds of pieces of fan artwork in our collection. Some subjects get a lot of depictions — Diagon Alley is a favorite topic, for example, and, well, of course it is! But there are a few pieces which illustrate more unusual moments in the text. Here are a few examples:

A nearly dead Errol arrives with a Howler (CS6)

The result of Ron’s wand backfiring (CS7)

The Deathday Party for Nearly Headless Nick (CS8)

Gryffindor vs Slytherin Quidditch match (CS10)

We have tons of images of Gilderoy Lockhart and Moaning Myrtle. Snape and Potions lessons are a very popular topic. However, we have very few of the House ghosts apart from Nearly-Headless Nick, his Deathday Party or of Dean, Lee, and Seamus. Our Artwork Challenge for all you fan artists out there is to depict one of the lesser known characters in the series. If we really like your work, we may feature it in the Lexicon! Here are some suggestions from these chapters:

Send your artwork to [email protected]. By submitting it, you are giving us permission to display your work on the Lexicon. We would like to include your name with your artwork so you are properly credited, so when you send your work let us know what name to use. Please also include a way to get a hold of you so that if we decide to feature your work as part of our regular collection we can contact you for more details. All artwork we display remains the property of the artist and they retain all copyright.

The Heir of Slytherin

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It is all about friendship and trust. Once the attacks start, the speculation about who the Heir of Slytherin might be runs wild throughout the school. Harry’s History of Magic class queries Professor Binns about the existence of the Chamber of Secrets. Students have checked out all the relevant books from the school Library. Other students converse in corners and corridors; some of them buy protective charms and amulets. Harry worries because he can hear evil voices as he moves around the school – voices that Hermione and Ron can’t hear. Harry even wonders about possible Slytherin ancestry and whether it is significant that the Sorting Hat had originally wanted to put him in Slytherin. After the Duelling Club incident, Harry is suspected because he can speak Parseltongue. However, he has the trust of his friends and Hagrid, and he will come through this with their support. 

Dobby’s tale of woe

We are given a few new clues as to what Dobby is trying to save Harry from in this long pleading rant. The key points:

So Dobby wants to protect Harry from what exactly? The monster from the Chamber? But Harry is a pure-blood and not in danger. No, the plot seems to involve more than just the release of the monster. Dobby is afraid that something will harm Harry beyond physical injury (since Dobby was willing to cause Harry physical injury to protect him from whatever it is). A very logical conclusion is that Dobby fears that Harry will be subverted to the Dark Side, which brings us back to the fact that the Malfoys believed that Harry might be a Dark Lord around which to rally their Pure-Blood cause. It also suggests that Dobby knew or perhaps sensed that the power of the Diary was stronger than even Lucius realized.

Where is Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom? There are references in the book to its location being on the first floor:

“Oh no,” said Hermione, stopping abruptly. “Turn back, turn back, I don’t want to talk to Moaning Myrtle –”

but also in the very next chapter on the second floor, just next to where Mrs Norris was petrified:

“Oh, Ron, there won’t be anyone in there,” said Hermione, standing up and coming over. “That’s Moaning Myrtle’s place. Come on, let’s have a look.”

It is still a mystery. The differences in floor numbering between the UK and the US can’t explain it either (what in the UK is called the ground floor is the first floor in the US). References to its location in other books (GF22, GF25, CC2) haven’t really been able to clear this up.

Our celebration will continue next week with the rest of the second book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, highlighting Chapters 13 through 18. Come and join us for the discussions!

The post Chamber of Secrets 6-12 Canon Celebration appeared first on Harry Potter Lexicon.