In J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter’s upbringing plays a significant role in his decision making. After his parents death, Harry’s aunt and uncle, Vernon and Petunia Dursley, raise him. However, they are neglectful and abusive guardians. His entire childhood, the Dursley’s ensure Harry feels like an outcast and worthless. His feelings are apparent when Hagrid tells Harry he is a wizard. Harry’s initial reaction is that he “felt quite sure there had been a horrible mistake” (Rowling 57). Instead of feeling joy, Harry just feels disbelief and self-doubt because Harry thinks he will always be invisible. This self doubt that stems from his early childhood, continues throughout the book. Whenever Harry faces a situation in which he has no control he quickly resorts to the feeling of worthlessness.
Harry’s upbringing does not just have a negative effect on him though. Harry grows up not experiencing any love. This allows him to create deep friendships, especially with Ron and Hermione. In return for his first experience of love, Harry gives his unwavering loyalty. An example of this is shown early on when Harry is getting sorted into his house. He witnesses Draco bullying Ron and so when Harry puts on the hat he thinks, “Not Slytherin, not Slytherin” (121). Harry’s thoughts convince the hat to put him in Gryffindor, a house that values bravery and loyalty more than anything. This is a small instance of Harry’s loyalty. As the novel progresses and he experiences more love, his loyalty becomes stronger.
Both Harry’s self doubt and loyalty are a direct result of his abusive and neglectful upbringing with the Dursleys. While Harry’s self doubt is a negative attribute, his loyalty to his friends makes him such a lovable character. Additionally, Harry’s self-doubt sets him up for a character arc, not just over the course of the book, but over the course of the entire series. The novel would also not progress if Harry did not care deeply about his friends. So, while Harry suffers much abuse, it was essential in setting up his character development. These traits also set up the themes of identity, self-discovery, and the ripple effect of one's past.
Undoubtedly, Harry Potter’s traumatic childhood is crucial to understanding why he acts the way he does. For Harry, Hogwarts feels “more like home than Privet Drive ever had” (Rowling, 170). Additionally, his lonely upbringing with the Dursleys leads him to value the bonds he creates at Hogwarts in a selfless manner. One of the final instances of Harry’s self doubt in the novel is his embarrassment at Hermoine calling him a great wizard, and he responds by saying that he’s not as good as her. However, Hermione tells him that apart from her own devotion to books and cleverness, “there are more important things — friendship and bravery” (287).
ReplyDeleteIt is not until Harry defeats Quirrell that he understands the extent of his modesty. Dumbledore tells Harry that “only one who wanted to find the Stone — find it, but not use it — would be able to get it” (300). What sets Harry apart is his unselfishness, as anybody else would seek out the Stone to get all the money and life they could want. However, as Dumbledore says, “the trouble is, humans do have a knack of choosing precisely those things that are worst for them” (297). This doesn’t apply to Harry however, as his harsh upbringing leads him to put others before himself.
I had not thought about this while reading this book, especially as this was not a main point we seemed to talk about in our class discussions. However, reading your post and thought process, it does make sense to me. Harry grew up in an unloved and unwelcoming environment where he was basically hidden away throughout his childhood. For one to grow up that way and one day hear they are a wizard, they will have more of a sense of disbelief and thinking it is untrue, rather than being excited. This is because of them thinking they are not special enough, unlike other children may think.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with your point that Harry’s childhood helps Harry make strong relationships and guide him through decisions. He was able to make strong friendships with what seems like unlikely characters due to some of their differences, but it was because he valued their morals and their friendships more so. Self-doubt will often follow a child through the rest of their lives, and that is definitely shown through Harry in the novel. Knowing that it was possible for Harry to end up in Slytherin because of his family, but he still ended up in Gryffindor because of his values, shows how his childhood affected him. In class we talked about how many traits will pass from parents to children, but since he was not raised by his parents, and instead was raised in a completely different environment, Harry’s values were different along with the way he thought, allowing him to be a Gryffindor. This is just the start of the effects that Harry’s upbringing had on him as well.