Kripa Shah

Assignment Two
Introduction
I chose the Harry Potter series as my topic; specifically the last two books in the series.
The goal in this figured world is to escape death and to survive when the enemy, Lord
Voldemort, attacks.This series means a lot to me because I grew up watching the movies and
reading the books; my sister had a strong interest in the series, which caused me to be interested
as well. This series shows a lot more than a simple story about a magical world with the basic
hero versus anti-hero theme. It involves many events that could potentially occur in the real
world such as, dealing with death or being an orphan your entire life. The series also shows that
having nutritional love as a developing child will lead to positive growth rather than leading to
an evil mind without love and affection. This series is also very applicable to real life situations
and can help one easily relate back to the many characters. By reading these books and watching
these movies, I have learned how one may deal with events such as death and/or falling in love.
The series has taught me to be brave during tough times and that good will always overcome
evil. I also learned that having supportive, positive people in your life can make you better and
lead you to the right path (keep you on the right track).
Literature Review: Becoming Voldemort
Terms:
Voldemrt: One of the main characters of the Harry Potter series, Voldemort is considered the
antagonist. According to Shah, killing is nothing to him because he is full of evil and is
obsessed with gaining power/being the most powerful wizard (pg. 2). Voldemort has no family
throughout the entire series; he only has his army along with a close group of sidekicks. He has
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:26 PM
Comment [1]: Why uoes he attack. What is his
motive.
many people that believe he can conquer power, but he does not care for anyone but himself. The
one and only living thing he cared about was his snake, Nangini, and that is only because it
carries a part of Voldemorts soul.
Wizard: A wizard is someone in the magical world of Harry Potter that is able to cast spells and
will attend Hogwarts at some point to master wizardry.
Harry Potter: He is the main character of the entire series and is considered the protagonist. Shah
(2014) says he is considered the one due to the fact that he survived as an infant against the
enemy, Voldemort (pg. 1). Harry Potter receives a lot of attention from not only the entire
wizard world, but also gets a lot of concern from Professor Dumbledore and the Weasley family
(along with a few others). His two best friends, Ron and Hermione, always stay by his side and
they accomplish everything together. The only person left in his family was Sirius who was later
killed by Voldemort.
Horcrux(s): There are seven of these objects and each one is part of Voldemorts soul. He
wanted to be immortal; therefore, he split his soul into seven parts and locked them inside of
horcruxes. Ben (2011) gives the definition by stating that it is an item of dark magic that holds
apiece of soul, used to attain immortality (p. 1). In order to defeat Voldemort, Harry Potter must
find each Horcrux and destroy it to protect the magical world from being corrupted.
Muggle: A human from the real world; never considered a wizard. Ben (2011) says, the
original meaning is "a person who possesses no magical powers,"(pg. 1).
Pureblood: A wizard who is purely a human of the magic world; created by two parents who are
purely wizards. Ben (2011) defines Pureblood as a magical person with no Muggle blood(pg.
1).
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:30 PM
Comment [2]: Awkwaiu. Says he gets alot of
attention but then heie you say he gets alot of
concein.
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:36 PM
Comment [3]: What aie the 7 hoiciuxs.
Halfblood: A wizard who is half muggle, half wizard; still considered a wizard because they
have the ability to cast spells and perform magic. Ben defines a Halfblood as a magical person
with one Muggle-born parent (pg.1).
Mudblood: A mudblood is basically one lucky human who ends up being a magical child without
magical parents. Ben (2011) defines a Mudleblood as a magical person born into a Muggle
family (pg. 1).
Hogwarts: Hogwarts is The School of Magic and Wizardry. This school takes in kids at the age
of eleven and its goal is to train these young wizards by teaching them spells and how to use
their wands to control their magic. This is a key location throughout the entire series and is seen
as the safest area in the entire magical world.
Childhood Development
This paper traces a narrative concerning how family helps specific characters to accept
their own mortality. In contrast, Voldemorts characters lack of family love causes him to seek
out a way to control death. There are many concepts that are involved in the development of a
child and many aspects that affect the childs future. Parents are a tremendous impact on a
childs life, without them the child can be considered incomplete. A parent is a key provider that
supplies not only necessary nutrients, but also love and protection. LaFortune agrees by saying
(2014), having their parents show an interest in their activities develops a strong sense of self in
the child (pg. 1). This quote shows that parental interest goes a long way in a childs life. This is
something Voldemort lacks. Although Harry also lacked parent involvement, he still had people
taking good care of him starting at the age of eleven.
Voldemort never had anyone pay heed to him in a loving and affectionate manner.
Children need their own guide that shows them what is right and wrong; they need someone to
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:37 PM
Comment [4]: Coulu use Beimione as an
example.
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:39 PM
Comment [5]: So it uoesn't have to be paients.
}ust a well stiuctuieu suppoit gioup that gives
the chilu enough attention anu love.
lead them into a positive lifestyle. A child needs someone that devotes even a little attention to
him/her self. Seifert states that, A child who is part of a stable family environment develops a
sense of belonging -- which leads to a healthy self-esteem, confidence and individuality (pg. 1).
I feel that this comment explains why Voldemort is overly confident and is obsessed with power.
His lonely childhood leads to him wanting to rule the world and conquer total power control.
The Anti-Hero
Voldemort grew up as an orphan; automatically you know that he will feel lonely and
unwanted. The Newsweek Staff (2011) states, Young Voldemort was an orphan and denied any
kind of parental affection or love, so hes been an isolated figure from a very young age (p.
1).According to Adrienne (2013), The orphanage workers considered him a strange child, and is
it hard to imagine just how little affection (never mind love) they might have given him (pg. 1).
This statement shows that even at the orphanage, Voldemort received little to no affection
from the staff; therefore, he was not well-nurtured or taken care of. This lack of care from family
or family-like figures leads to Voldemort completing negative (evil) deeds and he ends up full of
negativity.
Voldemort is considered the anti-hero not only because he is the protagonist, but also
because he simply does not perform heroic deeds. Bunting says that anti-heroes are what
society detests: cruelty, cowardice, self-interest, and dishonesty (pg. 1). Voldemorts childhood
development was not much of a development. Finnes (2011) says Voldemort doesnt know
what love is; its a language he doesnt understand (p.1). This statement is referring to the love
you receive from a family. As mentioned earlier, love is not the only ingredient children acquire
from parents, they also from an attitude that is shown to others around them. Unfortunately,
some parents are full of negativity and that causes their child to have an egotistical or rude
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:43 PM
Comment [6]: Is theie an example of
something that he may have uone in his chiluhoou
to show why he acts how he acts. Naybe the
scene wheie Bumbleuoie goes to visit him at the
oiphanage anu shows him his magic.
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:45 PM
Comment [7]: Baiiy also says this iight aftei
Siius is killeu. When voluemoit goes in his bouy
oi something. At the ministiy.
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:49 PM
Comment [8]: 0ncleai sentence. uiammai
issues
attitude. Malfoy is a great example of this; his family teaches him bad things and that is clearly
shown through his attitude toward the protagonists. Husain states (2009), There are some
wizardslike Malfoys familywho think that they are better than everyone else because their
people are all pure blood (Rowling 1998: 89) (p. 7).
Entering A Conversation: Fantasies Know Humans Too
Many books and movies are considered unrealistic, but is that truly the case? Can
fantasy novels and films not apply to the real world? Every piece of literature can teach us life
lessons, whether they are about realistic scenarios or not. There are many examples of fantasy
fiction that accurately portray human development and habitual behavior. Many events that
occur may not apply to real life situations, but the characters actions can be used in the real
world. The Harry Potter series is a prime example of fantasy fiction that accurately shows the
acts of being human.
Although each character is that of the magical world, they are all still human. J.K.
Rowling creates terms to differentiate between wizards and non-wizards (Muggles vs.
Purebloods/Halfbloods/Mudbloods). They are considered different because Muggles are ordinary
humans whereas Purebloods, Halfbloods and Mudbloods are humans that have magical powers
in some way. These terms cause what is seen as discrimination; each one is separated into
categories (similar to races). Being a Pureblood is considered to be the highest prestige simply
because they are full of a hundred percent magical blood. Mudbloods are looked down upon
more than halfbloods because their magic cannot be traces; therefore, the Purebloods question
their magical abilities. This accusation is proven false throughout the entire series because one of
the main characters, Hermione Granger, is a Mudblood and she manages to perform spells
perfectly and knows which spell to use at appropriate times and locations. This could apply to
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:50 PM
Comment [9]: Such as what.
Deepan Patel 3/21/14 6:14 PM
Comment [10]: Such as what.
any human, even in the real world. For example, many students in standard classes are put down
in comparison to students in honors classes, but many standard students work hard and end up
more successful than the honors students.
Emotions are key to human characteristics and this fantasy fiction clearly portrays
humanly emotions throughout the entire series. The characters experience tragic deaths, betrayed
relationships, and love from family friends and even significant others. Harry Potter experiences
close death various times throughout the series and the emotions that are portrayed are accurate
to real-world experiences of death. Harry deals with his tragedies any ordinary human would; he
copes by surrounding himself with positivity from loved ones. Also, Ron and Hermione have a
strong connection that turns their friendship into a loving relationship. Throughout the series we
see them grow as friends, then we see them getting jealous, and ultimately they end up with one
another as a couple by the end.
Basic human, everyday life is also shown in this series as well, such as, eating and
sleeping. These are basic human actions that are shown in fantasy fiction. Many people may not
notice these little things such as hugging someone as a means of greeting or giving a high-five
when someone does a job well. Even going to a school for an education of some sort is shown in
this series; children enroll into Hogwarts School of Magic at the age of eleven. Hogwarts also
has its very own sport, which is very different from normal human sports, but having a sport at
the school can be compared to any sport played by normal humans. Their magical world also
has its own government called the Ministry. Similar to the real world, they higher position you
have in the government, the more respect you have from the community members. Also, just like
our government, their ministry attempts to keep order in society.

Deepan Patel 3/21/14 5:55 PM
Comment [11]: Compaie to a type of
goveinment it is similai too.
Conclusion/So What
After discussing the relation to real world versus the fantasy world portrayed
throughout the series, I found that Voldemorts childhood development led to his evil
personality. So why is this important? Why should someone pay any sort of attention to such a
topic when reading the Harry Potter series? This topic is important because it gives a valid
reason to why Voldemort and Harry Potter grew up in such different ways despite the fact that
they were both orphans. My topic explains why Voldemort became so evil (due to him feeling
unwanted and abnormal). The research I have completed also elaborates on the fact that fantasy
fiction can, indeed, apply to real life situations; even make-believe stories include human
characteristics. I could further my research by researching the opposing argument: what events
and actions in fantasy fiction simply cannot apply to the real world? Also, further research on
childhood development can be completed by focusing on various other characters that had
positive or negative influences while growing (Hermione, Malfoy, Neville, etc.). Ultimately my
research brings up different topics that most readers or viewers may not catch the first time when
reading or watching the series.



Deepan Patel 3/21/14 6:11 PM
Comment [12]: Tie in youi "enteiing the
conveisation" pait to this section. Auuiess how
uniealistic things can be iealistic.