Traditional Fairytales and Harry Potter

By Janae Diaz

What is a fairytale?

  • Belongs to the same sort of tradition as folk lore; told by the common folk and belonged originally to oral culture. Often told at family gatherings and then passed onto another group.
  • The stories might vary as they go throughout the world and have many different versions based on the country’s telling.
  • Think of broken telephone: the essential story will remain the same, but some details are different.
  • Many scholars were men of religion, and cautioned parents/servants/nurses against telling children fairytales in fear of corruption.

If you somehow have been living under a rock, then what is Harry Potter?

  • The Harry Potter series is a series of seven novels written by J.K. Rowling.
  • About a young wizard named Harry Potter and his friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, and their adventures at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry and in the Wizarding World.
  • In each of the seven books, there is an underlying evil force that the trio must face and defeat (usually Lord Voldemort).
  • If you don’t know the rest, please educate yourself and read the books or take the cheater’s way out and watch the film adaptations.

The Series

  1. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
  2. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
  3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
  4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
  5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
  6. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
  7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Magic

  • This is the most obvious comparison between traditional fairytales and Harry Potter.
  • The majority of the appeal of the Wizarding World that J.K. Rowling has created is that it allows readers to immerse themselves into a world that is not their own.
  • Readers are able to learn the mysteries and secrets of the Wizarding World as Harry does, travelling and growing with him from age 11 to 17.

Fairytales and Children

  • The original fairytales written by the Grimm Brothers are incredibly gory as they were not intended for children.
  • For example, in the Grimm Brothers’ “Cinderella,” when the slipper doesn’t fit one of the stepsisters, the stepmother hands her a knife and tells her to slice off her heel to fit into the shoe (Grimm 112).
  • Fairytales were often meant to teach lessons or morals.
  • Later, there were versions made that had been “softened” for children, and adapted into even softer versions by Disney.

Harry Potter and Children

  • The series was originally written by J.K. Rowling as a collection of children’s books.
  • There has been an ongoing debate on whether or not Harry Potter is too “dark” for children.
  • If you read the series as a child, you were able to grow up with Harry. However, this doesn’t mean that it is a “children’s book,” as it is acceptable for all ages.
  • As the series progressed and the themes grew darker and more mature, it was because the main characters were maturing as well.

Harry Potter and Lessons

  • K. Rowling’s novels teach the importance of friendship, courageousness, loyalty, and love.
  • All seven books have one thing in common: a triumph of good over evil, which lies in the morals that one holds.
  • The trio (and Neville Longbottom) is rewarded with points at the end of the first book for bravery and loyalty.
  • In the seventh book, Harry learns that the one thing that he had over Voldemort was his mother’s love. It is repeated throughout the series that the reason Harry survived Voldemort’s killing curse was because his mother’s love protected and cast a barrier over him.

Allusion to Fairytales:

The Tale of the Three Brothers

  • K. Rowling makes a direct connection to fairytales through her “Tale of the Three Brothers,” which eerily sounds like a Grimm Brothers tale.
  • It is used as somewhat of a creation story/myth to describe The Deathly Hallows, which is the story of the Elder Wand, the Cloak of Invisibility, and the Resurrection Stone. ”Together they make one master of Death.”
  • The story was told to children, much like fairytales, and was finally written in The Tales of Beedle the Bard.

Parental Figures in Fairytales

  • In traditional fairytales, the main character’s parents are often away or deceased. This then gives way to “step- or surrogate parents” (Behr) who are usually ”evil.”
  • For example: The step-mother in “Cinderella,” the Queen in “Snow White,” and Rumpelstiltskin in “Rumpelstiltskin.”
  • The main characters are always rescued from their unfortunate situations, and their sub-par parental figure is typically punished for doing them wrong.

Parental Figures in Harry Potter

  • The Dursley’s are the family that took Harry in when his parents died, as Aunt Petunia was Lily Potter’s sister.
  • Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia make Harry live under the stairs, cook, clean, and wear hand-me-downs, while they do whatever it takes for their spoiled son, Dudley, to be happy.
  • Ming-Hsun Lin argues that “takes the position of the conventional heroine, a kind of male Cinderella” (Greenhill).
  • Harry’s horrible life outside of the Wizarding World allows him to be the unfortunate underdog who the readers feel should have a happy ending because of his poor previous life.
  • Like in fairytales, Harry comes out on top with wealth and fame, much like Cinderella when she marries the prince.

The Role of Animals in Fairytales

  • In traditional fairytales, animals are either used as friends or foes.
  • In “Little Red Riding Hood,” the wolf is undoubtedly the antagonist, and is used to show little girls how easily it is to be tricked and put in danger if you do not stay on the path like your mother told you to.
  • In “Cinderella,” doves and other birds fly into the kitchen to help Cinderella clean, and then to help her get dressed for the ball. (Which is also portrayed in Disney’s version)
  • Most animals in fairytales that are portrayed as friends or sidekicks are often not intimidating animals (ie. Mice, frogs, etc.)

The Role of Creatures in Harry Potter

  • K. Rowling diminishes the belief that everything “big and scary” is bad through the use of intimidating creatures as friends.
  • For example, Hagrid is half-giant and does whatever he can to help the trio throughout the series. His half-brother, Grawp, who is a full giant, aids the “good side” and fights in the Battle of Hogwarts.
  • Giants are traditionally seen as evil in fairytales (ie. “Jack and the Beanstalk.”)
  • Remus Lupin is werewolf, but Rowling paints him in a more human picture, as he knows how to control his monthly transformation.
  • Threstrals (beasts who are only visible to those who have seen someone die) appear to be frightening from their skeleton-like stature. However, in The Order of the Phoenix, they aid Harry and his friends as they fly atop them to search for Sirius.
  • Sirius is an animagus—meaning he can transform into a set animal that he has registered with the Ministry of Magic as—and turns into a frightening large black dog, which is portrayed as “an omen” by Professor Trelawney in the third book. However, he is Harry’s godfather and very much so not an evil character.
  • Hedwig, Harry’s owl, is his constant friend and confidante, and gives her live to protect him in the seventh book.
  • Dobby, a house elf, also acts as a guide and friend for Harry, and gives his life to protect him in the seventh book.

Heroes and Villains

Heroes and Fairytales

  • Typically, in fairytales, men are seen as the handsome hero, and almost always a charming prince, who is strong, active, brave, assertive, resourceful, and cunning.
  • Women, however, are typically inactive, passive, patient, dependent on masculine intervention, and play the “damsel in distress.” They are also often described as the most beautiful women in the land.
  • Snow White was only a damsel in distress in the first place because she challenged the Queen and “was as beautiful as the brightest day, and more so than the queen herself” (Grimm 187).

Harry Potter: The Chosen One

  • Harry Potter was destined as the chosen one who would ultimately defeat Voldemort in a prophecy by Professor Trelawney:
    • “The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches… born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies… and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not… and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives… the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies….”
  • Voldemort took this to mean Harry, as he was born at the end of July (but so was Neville Longbottom) and targeted the Potters.
  • However, Harry knows nothing about the Wizarding World and has to learn as he goes along – therefore, we root for the underdog, not the confident hero.

Hermione Granger: The Anti-Damsel

  • K. Rowling uses Hermione Granger, who is “the brightest witch of her age,” to defy almost every stereotype of female characters in fairytales.
  • Hermione is originally described in Philosopher’s Stone as a girl with: “…lots of bushy brown hair and rather large front teeth” (Rowling 116).
  • Rowling creates the heroine who makes the heroes even better.
  • Without Hermione, Harry and Ron would be clueless as she’s the brains behind their adventures.
  • For example: They wouldn’t have known what a horcrux was and ultimately wouldn’t have been able to defeat Voldemort by destroying all seven of them.

Rooting for the Good Guys

  • Traditional fairytales have conditioned us to immediately root for the good guys over the bad guys.
  • For example, in “Little Red Riding Hood” nobody hopes that the wolf gets out unscathed.
  • In Harry Potter, we root for The Golden Trio (Harry, Hermione, Ron) over Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Gryffindor over Slytherin. Essentially, Harry over everybody who’s “bad.”
  • Everybody applauds at the end of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, where Dumbledore awards points to Gryffindor willy-nilly and steals the House Cup from Slytherin (who rightfully won), but nobody cares because they’re “snakes” and represent evil.

The Triple Agent

  • Rowling surprises everyone with the complexities of Severus Snape’s character, which is unlike the conventional “good vs bad” of fairytales.
  • In the beginning of the series: Snape used to be a Death Eater but Dumbledore changed his ways. We’re still suspicious of him.
  • After Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Snape kills Dumbledore and everybody goes into a frenzy. He was a double agent?!
  • After the chapter titled, “The Prince’s Tale,” in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Snape was in fact a triple agent and in love with Lily Potter. He devoted his life to protecting Harry because he failed to protect Lily from Voldemort. He killed Dumbledore because he had to in order to continue protecting Harry, and Dumbledore knew that. Everybody cries.

Do The Good Guys Always Win?

  • In traditional fairytales, the protagonist always has a “happily ever after,” and the antagonist typically is killed, exiled, or locked away.
  • In Harry Potter, although the good guys ultimately win the Battle of Hogwarts and Voldemort is defeated, there are many casualties along the way.
  • Seven books and 43 pages in which someone has died. This does not mean only 43 people have died (which is still a lot), as some pages contain multiple killings.