Magic in Harry Potter
In the Harry Potter series created by J. K. Rowling, magic is depicted as a natural force that can be used to override the usual laws of nature. Many fictional magical creatures exist in the series, while ordinary creatures sometimes exhibit new magical properties in the novels' world. Objects, too, can be enhanced or imbued with magical property. The small percentage of humans who are able to perform magic are referred to as witches and wizards, in contrast to the non-magical Muggles.
For a person's ability to perform magic to be of use, much training is needed. When "wild", typically with young and untrained children, magic will still manifest itself subconsciously in moments of strong apprehension, fear or anger. For example, Harry Potter once made his hair grow back after a bad haircut; set a boa constrictor on his cousin Dudley at the London Zoo; and, in anger, made his Aunt Marge inflate enormously. While this reaction is usually uncontrollable, Tom Marvolo Riddle, later known as Lord Voldemort, was able to "make things move without touching them...make animals do what he wanted without training them...make bad things happen to people who annoy him...or 'make them hurt if I [he] want[s] to'" when he was a young child, apparently intentionally. In addition, Lily Potter was able to guide and control the blades of a flower by wanting to. Almost all magic is done with the use of a supporting tool or focus, typically a wand. On the subject of magic without the use of a wand, Rowling says:
“ You can do unfocused and uncontrolled magic without a wand (for instance when Harry blows up Aunt Marge) but to do really good spells, yes, you need a wand. ”
Mark Williams, who played Arthur Weasley in the films, commented in the special 50 Greatest Harry Potter Moments, "If only I had a wand, and I could KILL people!"
A wizard or witch is only at their best when using their own wand. Throughout the series, it is evident that when using another's wand, one's spells are not as strong as they normally would be. Ownership of a wand can transfer from one person to another if the original owner of the wand is forcibly disarmed (either magically or manually, as evident from Draco Malfoy's magical disarming of Dumbledore in Half-Blood Prince and Harry's manual disarming of Draco in Deathly Hallows). Moreover, if a person has the allegiance of more than one wand, and one of them is forcibly taken away, the other wands that respond to this person will also change their allegiance (Harry's taking Draco's hawthorn wand in Malfoy Manor in Deathly Hallows, leads to the Elder Wand also accepting Harry as its master: "Does the wand in your hand know that its last master was disarmed? Because if it does ... I am the true master of the Elder Wand.")
Within the books, technical details of magic are obscure. Of Harry's lessons, only those involving magical creatures, potions or divination are given in any detail.
Severus Snape once told Harry Potter that "Time and space matter in magic ..." during Harry's first Occlumency lesson in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Albus Dumbledore told Harry after finding the magically concealed boat to reach the locket Horcrux that "Magic always leaves traces, sometimes very distinctive traces."
Before publishing the first Harry Potter novel, Rowling spent five years establishing the limitations of magic; determining what it could and could not do. "The most important thing to decide when you're creating a fantasy world," she said in 2000, "is what the characters CAN'T do." For instance, while it is possible to conjure things out of thin air, it is far more tricky to create something that fits an exact specification rather than a general one; moreover, any objects so conjured tend not to last.
Harry's status as an orphan from the first book quickly establishes that resurrection of the dead is impossible. While corpses can be transformed into obedient Inferi on a living wizard's command, they are little more than zombies with no soul or will of their own. It is also possible through the rare Priori Incantatem effect to converse with ghost-like "shadows" of magically murdered people. The Resurrection Stone also allows one to talk to the dead, but those brought back by the Stone are not corporeal, nor do they wish to be disturbed from their peaceful rest. Throughout the series, this limit is continually mentioned, and wizards try to transcend it at their own folly.
Likewise, it is not possible to make oneself immortal unless one makes use of a mystical object of great power to sustain life (such as the Philosopher's Stone created by Nicolas Flamel or a Horcrux, the latter having been used by Tom Riddle). If one were to possess the three Deathly Hallows, it is fabled that they would possess the tools to become the "master of death". However, it is hinted that to be a true "master of death" is to be willing to accept that death is inevitable. Becoming a ghost is also an option for wizards and witches; however, it is said that it is "a pale imitation of life". Whether or not ghosts are sentient is not told. However, Snape states that a ghost is merely "the imprint of a departed soul left upon the earth".
True love is almost impossible to create magically, though Amortentia, a love potion, can create a powerful sense of infatuation.
For a person's ability to perform magic to be of use, much training is needed. When "wild", typically with young and untrained children, magic will still manifest itself subconsciously in moments of strong apprehension, fear or anger. For example, Harry Potter once made his hair grow back after a bad haircut; set a boa constrictor on his cousin Dudley at the London Zoo; and, in anger, made his Aunt Marge inflate enormously. While this reaction is usually uncontrollable, Tom Marvolo Riddle, later known as Lord Voldemort, was able to "make things move without touching them...make animals do what he wanted without training them...make bad things happen to people who annoy him...or 'make them hurt if I [he] want[s] to'" when he was a young child, apparently intentionally. In addition, Lily Potter was able to guide and control the blades of a flower by wanting to. Almost all magic is done with the use of a supporting tool or focus, typically a wand. On the subject of magic without the use of a wand, Rowling says:
“ You can do unfocused and uncontrolled magic without a wand (for instance when Harry blows up Aunt Marge) but to do really good spells, yes, you need a wand. ”
Mark Williams, who played Arthur Weasley in the films, commented in the special 50 Greatest Harry Potter Moments, "If only I had a wand, and I could KILL people!"
A wizard or witch is only at their best when using their own wand. Throughout the series, it is evident that when using another's wand, one's spells are not as strong as they normally would be. Ownership of a wand can transfer from one person to another if the original owner of the wand is forcibly disarmed (either magically or manually, as evident from Draco Malfoy's magical disarming of Dumbledore in Half-Blood Prince and Harry's manual disarming of Draco in Deathly Hallows). Moreover, if a person has the allegiance of more than one wand, and one of them is forcibly taken away, the other wands that respond to this person will also change their allegiance (Harry's taking Draco's hawthorn wand in Malfoy Manor in Deathly Hallows, leads to the Elder Wand also accepting Harry as its master: "Does the wand in your hand know that its last master was disarmed? Because if it does ... I am the true master of the Elder Wand.")
Within the books, technical details of magic are obscure. Of Harry's lessons, only those involving magical creatures, potions or divination are given in any detail.
Severus Snape once told Harry Potter that "Time and space matter in magic ..." during Harry's first Occlumency lesson in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Albus Dumbledore told Harry after finding the magically concealed boat to reach the locket Horcrux that "Magic always leaves traces, sometimes very distinctive traces."
Before publishing the first Harry Potter novel, Rowling spent five years establishing the limitations of magic; determining what it could and could not do. "The most important thing to decide when you're creating a fantasy world," she said in 2000, "is what the characters CAN'T do." For instance, while it is possible to conjure things out of thin air, it is far more tricky to create something that fits an exact specification rather than a general one; moreover, any objects so conjured tend not to last.
Harry's status as an orphan from the first book quickly establishes that resurrection of the dead is impossible. While corpses can be transformed into obedient Inferi on a living wizard's command, they are little more than zombies with no soul or will of their own. It is also possible through the rare Priori Incantatem effect to converse with ghost-like "shadows" of magically murdered people. The Resurrection Stone also allows one to talk to the dead, but those brought back by the Stone are not corporeal, nor do they wish to be disturbed from their peaceful rest. Throughout the series, this limit is continually mentioned, and wizards try to transcend it at their own folly.
Likewise, it is not possible to make oneself immortal unless one makes use of a mystical object of great power to sustain life (such as the Philosopher's Stone created by Nicolas Flamel or a Horcrux, the latter having been used by Tom Riddle). If one were to possess the three Deathly Hallows, it is fabled that they would possess the tools to become the "master of death". However, it is hinted that to be a true "master of death" is to be willing to accept that death is inevitable. Becoming a ghost is also an option for wizards and witches; however, it is said that it is "a pale imitation of life". Whether or not ghosts are sentient is not told. However, Snape states that a ghost is merely "the imprint of a departed soul left upon the earth".
True love is almost impossible to create magically, though Amortentia, a love potion, can create a powerful sense of infatuation.