Character+analysis

Character analysis

There are several characters in the novel Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, such as students, family members, friends, teachers, and of course Harry and his friends Ron and Hermione. But this time I would like to concentrate about the main character Harry Potter.

R   owling describes Harry Potter as a scrawny, bespectacled, black-haired boy. He is small for his age and has green eyes. Harry is in addition a very solemn, curious and sometimes a very quiet boy. Harry Potter is an orphan which means that he is parentless. Rowling says that she made Harry and orphan because she wanted him to have a free agenda. Harry shouldn’t have any pressure or fear for letting down or disappoint his parents. Harry Potter has a very special feature which describes him. This feature is a lightning-bolt shaped scar on his forehead. In the book it’s described that “//When he was one-year-old, the most evil wizard in hundreds of years attempted to kill Harry. Voldemort killed Harry's parents, and then he tried to kill Harry, he tried to curse him. Harry has to find out, before we find out. And — so — but for some mysterious reason, the curse didn't work on Harry. So he's left with this lightning-bolt shaped scar on his forehead, and the curse rebounded upon the evil wizard who has been in hiding ever since"//   The main character Harry Potter has a great physical quality that affects the book positively. An example is why Harry is described as small for his age whereas his cousin Dudley is described as a fat big boy. This physical trait adds humour to the novel, in my opinion. Dudley seems like the boss, and treats Harry badly. The roles of the boys change completely when Dudley finds out about Harry’s magical powers. From being pushed around by Dudley, Harry now gets the chance to play some tricks on his cousin.

When Voldemort killed Harry’s parents, something unusual and strange happened to him. Lilly, Harrys’ mother, dies while she sacrificed herself to save his son’s life. In the novel it is described as “//This gave Harry a protection which Voldemort could not overcome, a kind of magical formula of love//. As a result of this protection Harry managed to survive the Avada kadavra- killing curse. A formula that no one before ( or since) have survived!

Harry is a boy with a lot of emotions. His greatest desire is to be accepted among people, mentioned as a normal boy not a stupid freak with a scar on his forehead. When Rowling lost her mum she decided to write more about Harry’s loss, longings and feelings because she knew exactly how it felt herself. If people hurt Harry’s fiends or his feelings, such as telling that his parents was some stupid fools etc… he often gets angry. His temperament adds a lot of exciting episodes and maybe dangerous scenes to the novel. Harry is a person who cares more about his friends than he cares about himself. He happily risks his own life for helping other. An example is when Harry confronts Riddle in the Chamber of Secrets, and he realizes that he is a young Lord Voldemort. Harry puts up a fight against the basilisk, in order to try to save Ron’s sister Ginny. He tries to convince others not to put themselves in danger because of him. This has perhaps something to do with the “love” he got from his mother. He has a strong ability to always see something good in people, even if they do not deserve it. Harry is also a very loyal boy and expects loyalty back. This quality has often prevented Harry from seeing things objectively, and also of preventing him from receiving constructive criticism from his friends, such as Hermione. Harry has in addition a tendency to become very worried about who he can trust and who he can’t. For example, Harry is reluctant to trust Severus Snape, even though the headmaster Dumbledore trusts him.