The End

I think, with the last book I found the most poignant moment to be when we learn about Severus’s true loyalty and his love of Lilly Evans. Admittedly, it’s been since 2007 since I read the last book for the first time, and remembering my initial reactions is a bit tough, but I do remember the Prince’s tale having a profound effect on me. I had spent years hating Severus Snape right along with Harry and after he killed Dumbledore, I was sure I would never forgive him. There was no way that JK Rowling could put Snape in a good light again, but oh how wrong I was! I had always understood the important theme of love emanating through the series, but it always seemed kind of a given. Of course Lily would save her son, and of course Sirius and Harry loved each other, and yes all of this impacted Harry’s fight against the Dark Lord, but Severus’s love of Lily helped me see the loving theme in a new light. For Severus to risk his own life repeatedly to save the son of the girl he loved and the man he hated is a task unimaginable to me. It broke my heart to realize how much agony that Severus must have gone through, throughout his entire life.

My feelings toward Dumbledore have varied over the years. The first time I read it, I was in denial much like Harry was. How could Dumbledore have done some of the atrocious things that he did. Why would he abandon Harry in his time of need? Even at the end when much of Dumbledore’s thinking is explained I still had trouble accepting some of the things he did. What I think disturbed me the most was I realized how human Dumbledore was. In my mind, I saw Dumbledore as infallible even though he admitted that he was not. Now that I’ve read it a few more times I think the shock has dwindled a bit. I realize now that Dumbledore was a typical yet talented teenager. The argument that Harry gives claiming that Dumbledore was “his age” at the time of his wrong doings doesn’t seem to be valid to me. Harry is NOT a typical teenager. He was forced to grow up fast. I don’t think Dumbledore really was forced to grow up until the death of his sister. Now I realize that that was the critical turning point in Dumbledore’s life. Once his thinking of “For the greater good” hit so close to home, he realized the errors of his ways and used the rest of his life to make up for it. Dumbledore was ambitious and brilliant, but he was still a teenager who hadn’t experienced enough to know what was good and just and what was not.

When Ron left, I remember feeling an extreme sadness and quickly skipped through the pages to find when and if he rejoined them. A Harry Potter adventure just didn’t feel right without the trio being together. I felt slightly betrayed by Ron, who had always been there for Harry, and had suddenly up and left. However, I was pleased to see that he returned and learned/made up for his moment of weakness. And Harry finally realized that Dumbledore was not perfect and embraced death. He began to understand some of the complex magic that Dumbledore was always trying to explain to him. Hermione didn’t seem to change as much, but she did show herself as being very loyal. I always imagined Ron to be the one who was Harry’s sidekick, but in this she proved herself just as worth as Ron.