Philosophical, Ideological, and Theoretical Tenets In

Today’s MediaBy Amy Rasmussen

The Harry Potter Movie Franchise

PlotHarry Potter is a young wizard who is seemingly fated to stop the most dangerous and evil dark wizard who has ever lived, Lord Voldemort. Over the course of the movies, Harry attends Hogwarts, a school for wizardry and witchcraft; where he begins to unlock the mysteries of Tom Riddle, aka Lord Voldemort, and how Harry’s past has affected his future . With the help of his friends and teachers, Harry lives through terror and joy until he finally battles to the death with Voldemort and his band of “Death Eaters.”

Major Characters and Their Philosophical,

Ideological, and Theoretical

Representations

Harry Potter Courageous Honest Loyal Intelligent Selfless Empathetic Tolerant Patient

Existentialist

Harry seems to be a shining example of Existentialist thought. He values the truth and honesty but those can change with the circumstances or gaining of knowledge. Harry repeatedly has to choose what to believe is the truth, and knowing that sometimes simply making the choice is more important than what he actually chooses.

Harry also has to decide when doing the right thing goes against the rules. He often defies school rules, breaks the laws of the Ministry of Magic, lies, and steals when necessary for the greater good. Rarely will he buck authority for self gain, but he will break the rules and disregard the idea of how he should act when it would be counter productive to his goal of defeating Voldemort or helping someone who is in need.

Harry worries that everything he has experienced and his connection with Voldemort means he is losing himself.

Lord Voldemort (aka Tom Riddle)

Power hungry Deceitful Murderous Prejudice Cruel Selfish Sadistic

Evil

Lord Voldemort is Tom Riddle, a previous student at Hogwarts, who in his quest for power turned to the dark arts. His goal is to wipe out any “unpure” wizards that have “Muggle” or non-magical bloodlines. He wants to rule over the Muggle world and will kill anyone who does not join his ranks of “Death Eaters.” He is the epitome of evil with no redeeming qualities

Hermione Granger

Intelligent Brave Perceptive Logical Voice of Reason Independent Steadfast

Realism

Hermione is one of Harry’s best friends and helps throughout his journey to defeat Voldemort. She is highly academic and often time the brains behind any plots and a useful source of information. Her logical and methodical approach to life, as well as her respect for higher authority and rules lend her characteristics of the Realism philosophy. Truth is found in practical experience and order and respect for the laws of nature (and magic in this case) are often what helps Hermione save the day.

Severus Snape

Duplicitous Ambitious Powerful Morally Ambiguous Spiteful Loyal Honorable

Moral Relativism

Severus Snape is probably the most complex character in the Harry Potter movies. His true motives and loyalties are constantly questioned up until the final scenes of the final movie. Throughout the previous seven movies Snape is constantly rude and sarcastic to his students, especially Harry. He is cold and often seen as evil, usually siding with whatever antagonist Harry encounters. Snape commits horrendous acts including murder and betraying everyone who trusts him. It is not until he is dying that Harry learns that Snape was working with Dumbledore the entire time and trying to protect Harry due to Snape’s great and undying love for Harry’s mother, Lilly.

This character addresses the question of how moral is doing the wrong thing for the right reason? Also can someone who continually does wicked deeds, still be a good person? In hindsight, once the Harry and the viewer learn of how tortured Snape was by his duplicity, Snape’s actions are put into proper context and seen as the sacrifices they were.

Albus Dumbledore

Protective Scholarly Creative Resourceful Faithful Witty Insightful

Existentialist Virtue

Albus Dumbledore is the current headmaster of Hogwarts for the first six years of Harry’s schooling there. He is a father figure to Harry and does his best to prepare Harry for what he will face yet trying to preserve Harry’s innocence and childhood. It is hinted that Dumbledore had a dark past in his quest for power, but he is currently a paragon of virtue. He displays many of the same Existentialist components as Harry, and may be the model in which Harry bases his view. Dumbledore often knows of Harry’s rule breaking and tends to acknowledge it with a wink and a nod, seeing the bigger picture, Dumbledore is not opposed to breaking rules for the greater good.

He values his experiences and trusts his instincts over what others tell him is true, even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. He is not naïve however, he tends to be able to get to the truth about people despite their attempts to fool him.

Ron Weasley

Forgiving Courageous Loyal Passionate Envious Insightful

Ron is one of Harry’s best friends, his first friend in fact. Ron, and by extension his entire family, care for and protect Harry from the perils of the wizarding world as well as his blood family. The unexpected hero, Ron often times does things he is scared of or unprepared for out of loyalty to Harry and Hermione. His character is an extension of Harry’s, thus he shows a lot of Existentialistic thought. Ron trusts what he knows and those who have proven themselves to him. Once you have his trust, it is hard to lose it. He sacrifices continually for the greater good and defeating Voldemort. He continually fights beside Harry and battles his jealousy of his life in Harry’s shadow.

Philosophies, Ideologies, and Theories reveled

through dialogue.Quotes from Harry Potter Movies 1-8

Harry Potter: “This connection between me and Voldemort... what if the reason for it is that I am becoming more like him? I just feel so angry, all the time. What if after everything that I've been through, something's gone wrong inside me? What if I'm becoming bad? “Sirius Black: “I want you to listen to me very carefully, Harry. You're not a bad person. You're a very good person, who bad things have happened to. Besides, the world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters. We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are. “ (Order of the Phoenix, 2007).

Professor Albus Dumbledore: “Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living and above all, those who live without love. “ (Deathly Hallows Part II, 2011)

Harry Potter: “Is this real? Or has this been happening inside my head?”Professor Albus Dumbledore: “Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” (The Deathly Hallows Part II, 2011.)

Professor Albus Dumbledore: “There will come a time when Harry Potter must be told something. But you must wait until Voldemort is at his most vulnerable. “Professor Severus Snape: “Must be told what?” [Shot of Snape going through the halls of the Potter house] Professor Albus Dumbledore: “On the night Lord Voldemort went to Godric's Hollow to kill Harry, and Lily Potter passed herself between them, the curse rebounded. When that happened, a part of Voldemort's soul lached itself onto the only living thing it could find. Harry himself. There's a reason Harry can speak with snakes. There's a reason he can look into Lord Voldemort's mind. A part of Voldemort lives inside.” Professor Severus Snape: “So when the time comes... the boy must die? Professor Albus Dumbledore: Yes. Yes... he must die.” [Shot of Snape collapsing at the sight of Lily's dead body] Professor Severus Snape: “You've kept him alive so that he can die at the proper moment. You've been raising him like a pig for slaughter!”Professor Albus Dumbledore: “Don't tell me now that you've grown to care for the boy. “[Snape casts a Patronus in the shape of a doe, just like Lily's- the same one that helped Harry find the Sword of Gryffendor in Part 1] Professor Albus Dumbledore: “Lily... after all this time?” [Shot of Snape holding Lily's body in his arms while crying] Professor Severus Snape: “Always.” (Deathly Hallows, 2011).

Hermione: “He called me a mudblood.” Hagrid: “He did not!” Harry: “What's a mudblood?” Hermione: “It means dirty blood. Mudblood's a really foul name for someone who's muggle born. Someone with non-magic parents. Someone like me. It's not a term one usually hears in civilized conversation.” Hagrid: “See the thing is, Harry, there's some wizards, like the Malfoy family, who think they're better than everyone else because they're what people call "pure blood.“’ Harry: “That's horrible!”Ron: [burps up another slug] “It's disgusting.” Hagrid: “And it's codswallop to boot. "Dirty blood." Why, there isn't a wizard alive today that's not half-blood or less. More to the point, they've yet to think of a spell that our Hermione can't do. Come 'ere. Don't you think on it, Hermione. Don't you think on it for one minute.”(Chamber of Secrets, 2002).

ConclusionThe major themes that run throughout the Harry Potter movies are ones that have been central to philosophical thought for millennia. Our heroes go through crisis of faith, challenges of character, and acts of redemption when they fall short. The classic themes of good and evil, facing loss, and living with the choices we make are explored in diverse situations and with differing outcomes. Harry Potter is a great example of how these issues are being addressed in today’s society. If one were to look closely at all the characters, major and minor, you could find a respectable representation of the major philosophical, ideological, and theoretical tenets.

References All quotes. Internet Movie Database

Entry, Harry Potter. Retrieved November 22-23, 2011 from http://www.imdb.com/find?q= harry+potter&s=all