Blog #3: The End of the Harry Potter Series

I was excited to finally read all seven books in the Harry Potter series because I had only gotten through books one through four when they were initially released. As an adult reader, I felt like I could analyze the character development better and anticipate events.

I was surprised that much of Dumbledore’s background was kept from the reader until The Deathly Hallows. His cleverness made him likeable and is how he kept information concealed seamlessly throughout the series. My feelings toward Dumbledore changed when I found out that he was involved with Dark Magic with Grindlewald as a younger man and may have been responsible for his sister’s, Adriana, death.

As a child, Snape was not a likeable character because of growing up in a neglected household. His secretive nature and bitterness toward other characters added to his unattractiveness. I admired Snape’s talent in balancing his two personas as a member of the Order of the Phoenix and a reformed Death Eater. I learned to like Snape even more after Harry views his Penseive towards the end of The Deathly Hallows and sees that Snape cared for Harry’s mother, Lily. He also spent his entire adult life trying to protect Harry by spying on Voldemort for Dumbledore.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione all stayed true to each other as loyal friends, with bumps in the road at points. Ron struggles with his personal self-doubt and immaturity of constantly being in Harry’s shadow during the series. When Ron is put in situations where he is unsure of what to do, his vulnerability comes out because he is used to being told what to do at home. When Ron accepts that he is loved, he is able to grow into an independent individual rather than second to Harry, which made me think he was finally maturing by the end of the series. Hermione is the most driven and focused out of the trio. Unlike, Ron she is able to think on the spot well when under pressure. I was not too surprised with the epilogue because there was romantic chemistry between Ron and Hermione as well as Harry and Ginny during the series. I was happy to see that they were living as happy adults nineteen years later and had families that were both thriving.

In regards to society at large, the series has impacted readers of all ages tremendously. The popularity grew with the movies and a new Harry Potter theme park in Orlando. Fans develop personal connections with the characters by the end of the series. I personally was very upset with Hedwig’s death because he was Harry’s connection to the wizardry world and his companion when he was living Privet Drive.