Lord Voldemort murdered his parents. His mother
died trying to save him; her sacrificial love gave
him some power to resist further attacks by
Voldemort.
Harry was put under the supervision of his
Muggle (non-magical person) relatives, namely
his mother's sister Petunia and her
husband Vernon Dursley. They lived in
Little Whinging, a
suburb of
London, along with their spoiled son Dudley
Dursley (born
June 22,
1980). They carefully concealed from Harry any
knowledge of his
magicalal abilities, saying that his parents had
been killed in a
car crash. They also treated Harry with great
disdain and cruelty, always being biased against him
in favour of their own son, Dudley. A week before
being eleven, Harry received a letter from a unknown
identity, but his Uncle Vernon didn't let him read
it (he knew it was from the Magic World). Several
more letters appeared but even so, Vernon managed to
keep them away from Harry (he even tried to "shake"
the letters, renting a house in the middle of the
sea). Finally, in the first hour of his eleventh
birthday, a mysterious man, Hagrid, appeared in that
hut and delivered the letter Harry should have read
a week ago. The letter invited him to enroll at a
magic school; much to his Uncle Vernon's
displeasure.
This school is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and
Wizardry, commonly abbreviated to "Hogwarts",
and it is where most of the action in the novels
takes place. It is a castle in the middle of a ring
of mountains, usually reached by taking the
Hogwarts Express from
Platform 9 3/4 at
Kings Cross station,
London. It is in
Scotland, according to a margin note in
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and
Rowling's own comments in an interview.
His closest friends at Hogwarts were
Hermione Granger and
Ron Weasley. He had a constant rivalry with and
dislike for
Draco Malfoy. Another constant of school life
was the increasing threat of the wizard
Lord Voldemort.
According to the rules above, the
Philosopher's/Sorceror's Stone would be set
between 1991 and 1992; Chamber of Secrets
would be 1992 and 1993; Prisoner of Azkaban
would be 1993 and 1994; Goblet of Fire
would be 1994 and 1995; Order of the Phoenix
would be 1995 and 1996. The next book is 1996 and
1997. The seventh and last book would cover 1997 to
1998, and Harry should've left the school in 1998,
aged 17.
Novels and films
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
- Book release:
1997
- Film release:
November 16,
2001
- Note: Both the book and the film were
retitled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's
Stone in the U.S.
Second book and film:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- Book relese:
1998
- Film release:
November 15,
2002
Third book:
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- Book release:
1999
- Film release:
June 4,
2004
Fourth book:
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Book release:
2000
- Film release:
2005
Fifth book:
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- Book release:
June 21,
2003.
- Film release:
2006 or
2007
2001 also saw the publication of two books
supposedly reproduced from copies held in the
Hogwarts library (complete with notes scribbled in
the margins by Harry Potter and friends).
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by
Newt Scamander (written by J. K. Rowling) and
Quidditch Through the Ages by
Kennilworthy Whisp (also written by her), with
proceeds going to
Comic Relief.
Controversy
The books have provoked various kinds of
controversy, in which feelings run unusually high.
Accusations of promoting witchcraft
The American Library Association tracks the number
of challenges (formal written complaints made to a
library or school about a book's content or
appropriateness) made to books annually. The Harry
Potter series are among the most frequently
challenged from 1998 to present. The complaints
allege that the books have
occult or
Satanic themes, are
violent, and are anti-family.
Some
Christian groups in the
United States have denounced the series for
promoting
witchcraft or
Satanism. "It contains some powerful and
valuable lessons about love and courage and the
ultimate victory of good over evil," said Paul
Hetrick, spokesman for
Focus on the Family, a national
Christian-fundamentalist group based in Colorado
Springs. "However, the positive messages are
packaged in a medium — witchcraft — that is directly
denounced in scripture."[1].
See
Christian views on witchcraft.
Some groups have burned or attempted to burn
(such burnings require permits in most locations)
J.K. Rowling's books, often with other books deemed
to contradict
Biblical teachings. See:
Harry Potter censorship,
book burning.
In contrast, the
Catholic Church gave the series its approval by
saying that it is imbued with Christian morals and
that the good versus evil plot is very clear.
Christian
Congregationalist minister John Killinger also
argued that, rather than corrupting children's
minds, the novel encourages young readers to follow
the teachings of
Jesus Christ.
Accusations of plagiarism
Rowling was sued by
Nancy Stouffer, writer of
The Legend of Rah and the Muggles. Published in
1984, the book featured a protagonist named Larry
Potter, and also included such characters as Lilly
Potter, Larry's cousin. Stouffer alleged
copyright infringement, but
U.S. District Judge Allen G. Schwartz rejected
Nancy Stouffer's claims that she was plagiarized and
fined Stouffer
$5050,000 for "submission of fraudulent
documents" and "untruthful testimony." Stouffer was
also required to pay a portion of the attorney's
fees incurred by Rowling, her U.S. publisher
Scholastic Press, and
Warner Bros Films.
Comic book fans have noted that a comic book
series first published in
1993 by
DC Comics called
The Books of Magic by
Neil Gaiman shares many similarities to
Rowling's book. These include a dark haired young
boy with glasses named Tim Hunter who discovers his
own potential as the most powerful wizard of his age
after being approached by magic wielding
individuals, the first of whom gifts him with a pet
owl. Rowling officially denies being aware of this
series, and since
AOL Time Warner is both the producer of the
Harry Potter film adaptations and the owner of DC
Comics, legal action is considered highly unlikely.
See also
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,
Hogwarts Express
Houses:
Gryffindor,
Slytherin,
Ravenclaw, and
Hufflepuff
Students:
Cho Chang,
Penelope Clearwater,
Hermione Granger,
Neville Longbottom,
Draco Malfoy,
Adrian Pucey,
Fred and George Weasley,
Ginny Weasley,
Ron Weasley,
Parvati Patil,
Fleur Delacour,
Percy Weasley,
Cedric Diggory,
Luna Lovegood,
Colin and Dennis Creevy,
Blaise Zabini,
Marietta Edgecombe
Teachers and employees:Albus
Dumbledore,
Rubeus Hagrid,
Severus Snape,
Minerva McGonagall,
Dolores Umbridge,
Madam Hooch,
Sybill Trelawney,
Gilderoy Lockhart,
Argus Filch,
Poppy Pomfrey
Ghosts:Nearly
Headless Nick,
Peeves,
Moaning Myrtle
Wizards:
Sirius Black,
Lord Voldemort,
Lucius Malfoy,
Cornelius Fudge,
Remus Lupin,
Kingsley Shacklebolt,
Nymphadora Tonks,
Alastor Moody,
Charlie Weasley,
Bill Weasley,
Arthur Weasley,
Molly Weasley,
Peter Pettigrew,
Barty Crouch,
Bellatrix Lestrange,
Amos Diggory
Relatives of Harry Potter
Pets:
Hedwig,
Scabbers,
Pigwidgeon,
Crookshanks
Places:
The Burrow,
Diagon Alley,
Knockturn Alley,
Hogsmeade,Little
Whinging
Harry Potter\ in translation
Broomstick,
Invisibility cloak,
Quidditch, Sorting Hat,
Whomping willow
Boggart,
Dementor,
Thestrals
Muggle, Mudblood,
Squib, Half Blood
School stories
Magic (Harry Potter)
Songs in Harry Potter
Parodies of Harry Potter
Barry Trotter, by Michael Gerber - a series
of Harry Potter parodies published in the
United Kingdom.
Porri Gatter (Порри Гаттер), by Andreyi
Zhvalevskiyi (Андрей Жвалевский) and Igor'
Miyt'ko (Игорь Мытько) -
Belarusian series of Harry Potter parodies.
Tanya Grotter (Таня Гроттер), by Dmitri
Yemetz (Дмитрий Емец) -
Russian series about a magical schoolgirl,
described by the author, as "a sort of Russian
answer to Harry Potter."
Welcome Back, Potter - a
Saturday Night Live sketch combining Harry
Potter and the sitcom
Welcome Back, Kotter.
Unauthorized books featuring Harry Potter
Harry Potter and Leopard-Walk-Up-to-Dragon
- originally in
Chinese
Harry Potter Kolkataye (Harry
Potter in Calcutta), by Uttam Ghosh, written in
Bengali
Fan Fiction
Fan fiction is basically stories written by
fans. There are innumerable fan fiction stories on
the
internet about Harry Potter, and several sites
dedicated to Harry Potter fan fiction (such as
The Sugar Quill and
FictionAlley).
When asked about Fan Fiction,
J. K. Rowling said "I've read some of it. I find
it very flattering that people love the characters
that much." She generally supports fan fiction
(except for ones that have
s--ual themes).
Many fan fiction stories "pair" different
characters together in a romantic relationship, in
order to show the author's support for that "ship" (aka
relationship). The relationships
fans support and write about run from completely
canon-based (such as
Lily/James
or
Arthur/Molly),
through the realms of the quite possible (such as
Ron/Hermione)-
and there's even a significant fan base for pairings
that, if the currently available evidence is weighed
without preference or wild speculation thrown in,
don't look like they have much of a chance of
occurring in canon (such as homos--ual
relationships, in---t and
Harry/Hermione
(Which the author confirmed are "very platonic
friends")). For those curious as to the popular
opinion of who Harry will eventually be with, an
ongoing poll in Fictionalley currently stands at
45.96% believing it will be
Ginny, 23.83% who believe that J.K. Rowling has
been deceiving her audience with false statements
and red herrings and it will be
Hermione, 13.19% believing it will be
Luna, and 8.94% maintaining that it will be
nobody at all. When Rowling was asked if there would
be any unusual pairings in the forthcoming books,
she said, "I don't really want to say as it will
ruin all the fan sites."
Fan-fiction and fan-cognition in general tend to
have an interesting derivative view of themes and
characters in the books. For example, the online fan
crowd has much more sympathy for
Draco Malfoy than the average fan.
Trivia
P. G. Wodehouse's
1948 novel Uncle Dynamite includes
a character named Police Constable Harold
Potter, and another called Hermione (not
Granger, but Bostock)
Dutch
Prime Minister (2002-)
Jan Peter Balkenende is known for his
resemblance with Harry Potter.
Actors and Characters
Daniel Radcliffe -
Harry Potter
Emma Watson -
Hermione
Rupert Grint -
Ron Weasley
Robbie Coltrane -
Rubeus Hagrid
Alan Rickman -
Snape
Tom Felton -
Draco Malfoy
Sean Biggerstaff - Oliver Wood
Mark Williams -
Arthur Weasley
Chris Rankin -
Percy Weasley
Bonnie Wright -
Ginny Weasley
Jason Isaacs -
Lucius Malfoy
