Rereading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone for the first time reveals Rowling’s subtle use of foreshadowing and symbolism that builds on both the plot of the first novel and the series as a whole. Foreshadowing is also used to spark readers curiosity and create tension that drives the plot and expands on the wizarding world. The first chapter establishes Harry’s backstory and introduces the themes of family and love, which are key throughout the series. Harry’s scar is a powerful symbol of his personal connection with Lord Voldemort and hints at future themes of prophecies and destiny. The theme of friendship is also introduced early on with Albus Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall’s relationship and Hagrid who helps Harry to become more acclimated to being a wizard and famous. The power of friendship mirrors the power of love, and it is best explored with Harry Ron and Hermione. Each member of the trio builds off each other’s strengths and supports each other’s weaknesses. Harry’s new friends help him with his feelings of isolation, Harry and Ron save Hermione from a troll, and Ron is helped to get the attention he desires by being awarded fifty house cup points. The trio’s power together is also displayed in their ability to bypass the protections placed around the Sorcerer’s Stone in the climax of the novel.
Dumbledore
uses the Mirror of Erised as the true safeguard for the Sorcerer’s Stone to ensure
that only those of pure intentions could retrieve the stone. Erised spelled
backwards is desire and Dumbledore warns Harry that looking into the mirror for
two long can drive people mad with obsession. The mirror demonstrates the theme
of temptation in the series, which is first seen with the Sorcerer’s Stone
which could make any wizard or witch live forever and be immensely rich. The theme
of temptation is seen throughout the series and closely relates to Voldemort’s desire
for power which leads him to sacrifice his soul. Voldemort’s torn soul and his return
to power is hinted at by the centaurs and by Hagrid who claims, “dunno if he
had enough human left in him to die. Some say he's still out there, bidin' his time”
(57). The connection between Voldemort and Harry is integral to not only the
novel as a standalone story but the whole series. Foreshadowing and symbolism
reveal the novel’s plot and introduce themes that reveal characters’ strengths
and motivations.
I have yet to read some of the books in the Harry Potter series, but I am still aware of the majority of events that occur throughout the seven books, and after rereading the first book, I noticed more instances of foreshadowing events later in the series.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 7, after the sorting ceremony, Harry has a dream that he is wearing Professor Quirrell’s turban and speaking with it (Rowling, 130). This dream foreshadows not only the ending of this book, but also references later events in the series where Harry feels connections to Voldemort, due to the horcrux connections. At the end of the book, Harry finds out that Professor Quirrell has Voldemort living inside him, so when Harry dreamt of wearing Quirrell’s turban, it was because Voldemort is hiding behind the turban throughout the book. Then later throughout the series, many times Harry has dreams or visions of objects or events connected to Voldemort, similar to his dream of the turban, and so it’s interesting to address that this dream is one of those first instances, and we just don’t realize why it’s happening yet.