Tears of joy, sorrow, and anger are all that I can remember after reading the 7th book for the first time. I thoroughly enjoyed that 7th book because of the emotional roller coaster it put be through. Every time a character died, I cried. Every time The Trio found another Horcrux, I was proud. There are just so many great parts to this novel; I don’t even know where to begin!
One of my absolute favorite parts was getting to see Kreacher’s story and why he loved the Black family so much. I, along with Hermione and Dumbledore, always believed wizards needed to be nicer and more loving to their house elves; especially Kreacher. I would have thought that Harry would know that too through his relationship with Dobby. Harry knows house elves can be defiant of their masters they do not care for. They have to hurt themselves to do it, but it is possible. Kreacher’s story brought me to tears, but I am proud of Harry for giving Kreacher Regulus’ locket.
I also enjoyed how J.K. Rowling showed a different side of two of my favorite characters—Mrs. Weasley and Neville Longbottom. We have seen Mrs. Weasley irate at the twins or Ron and Harry, but we don’t ever see her actually use her magic to hurt someone. I LOVED that fact that the first time this happens, it’s for Bellatrix. I laughed out loud when I read that scene. I also found comfort in how Neville has grown and changed throughout the entire series. He went from Neville, the boy almost of Squib status who tries to stick up for his friends to protect the points of Gryffindor, to Neville, the man who rallies against Death Eaters and kills Nagini using Gryffindor’s sword. He is the character that has developed and changed the most in the series and I find it very comforting. I never thought Neville was sorted into the correct house, but this book completely changed my mind.
Every time someone died in Deathly Hallows I cried. There were two parts that really had me sobbing during this round of reading, and they were when Dobby died and when Harry turns the Resurrection Stone thrice in hand as he walks toward his “death” in the forest. With this being my 4th time reading the novel, I still felt like Harry was going to die, even though I knew he wasn’t going to. Rowling just describes that scene so well that it gets me every time.
The parts that I found to be “potentially problematic” were the parts that dealt with Dumbledore and Snape. I never really understood why Dumbledore trusted Snape, but I knew there had to be a pretty damn good reason. Like Harry though, I felt like Dumbledore betrayed me from keeping so much information from Harry. I put my trust in him as the reader, and I felt like if he were around everything would be O.K. Once I found out about his family situation though, I was mad. The story of Dumbledore and Grindelwald trying to find the Deathly Hallows for “the greater good” just irked me. Ariana and Aberforth needed Dumbledore in so many ways, and he failed them. With this being said, when I look back on the series, I know Dumbledore suffered from guilt every moment of his life. From when he looked in the Mirror of Erised to drinking the potion in the cave, I now know what Dumbledore actually saw, and I’m empathetic towards him. Now knowing all that we do about Dumbledore, I can see why he didn’t give all this information to Harry. He didn’t want Harry to worry about anything else, but the Horcruxs. Dumbledore wanted Harry to trust him, but by not telling Harry himself produced confusion and hurt.
Dumbledore’s story really put me on edge, but Snape’s seemed to make sense to me. Earlier in the series we see Snape call Lily a Mudblood in his memory, and both characters are hurt by it. Snape says he didn’t mean it and Lily won’t forgive him, but that’s really the moment I knew Snape loved her. He always seems to look at Harry’s eyes because they are the most obvious trace of his mother. When Snape’s love for Lily was confirmed after he died, my attitude towards him completely changed. He has lived the hardest life, in my opinion, of the series. Constantly be questioned about his allegiance and being called a coward, I can’t imagine how many times Snape just wanted to tell everyone what he was going through. I love his character. His story was a great twist in the plot of the Harry Potter series.
My feelings towards the Trio didn’t change all too much because I expected them to rise up the way they did. I knew they would face whatever they had to together, even with Ron’s little episode of absence. By the end of the series, I was so proud of them all and the journey they went through together. They have grown up so much within this series and it brings a tear to my eye that my friendship and journey with them has come to an end once again.
The Harry Potter series is already placed in a larger social context because of the fan base located around the world. Rowling made this world where people can live with magic, but still deal with death, love, friendship, trauma, empathy, and so much more. She made this world seem so real and relatable to the readers that it’s bringing people from all over our world together. There are hundreds of fan sites discussing the series/films and there’s even an amusement park now to make the Wizarding World appear even more realistic. Even though the series has come to an end, Harry Potter will stay in the hearts of the fans forever because that’s how big of a deal he and the Wizarding World are.
No comments:
Post a Comment