The Sorting Hat, Harry Potter, and the Nature of Fate - Dissertation Example

?The Sorting Hat, Harry Potter, and the Nature of Fate The role of fate in anyone’s life can seem to be a powerful force that guides each individual to their end. Whether or not it is a truth or a myth upon which we construct our realities, literary use of fate creates sweeping epic tales that funnel into exciting ends in which the hero’s actions will decide the fate of his world. The theme of fate in the Harry Potter series is defined earlier in his life, but one of the more important turning points is when the Sorting Hat waffles between placing him in Gryffindor and Slytherin. This is a classic pinnacle point in which the destiny of Harry is decided, a turning point between opposite theologies and moralistic theories about power. Harry has been given a choice, as the hat is unsure which house he should set Harry into when it is his turn to be sorted. Afraid of his own nature, Harry is clear that he wants to be in Gryffindor, but throughout the series he is plagued by the indecision that the hat initially had when sorting him into a house. The main theme of the Harry Potter series is that of death, but one of the sub themes is that of fate. Fate was written about Harry from before he was born. A foretelling is revealed in the seventh book. From that prophesy, it is revealed that neither Harry nor Voldemort can exist when the other does, thus one must destroy the other. In trying to thwart this prophesy before Harry grows up, Voldemort writes both of their fates by trying to kill Harry. It is through love that Harry is saved, however, when his mother intervenes. In the end, it is the lack of love that Voldemort has that is his weakness. Harry, on the other hand, though struggling with his intimate connection with Voldemort must overcome those darker impulses, is supported by the love of his friends and proves stronger. As Voldemort has tried to subvert his fate, it is in his action that he has created the situation that will prove to be his downfall. Essentially, he creates his own demise by acting in fear of the nature of a fated connection between himself and an infant. He bonds them with a destiny that neither will be able to avoid. It is through this bond that Harry is split into two equally strong lines of traits and skills, although he tends to favor his own sense of purity and heroism over the darker aspects of his nature, thus giving them a stronger hold within him. The house of Gryffindor is exemplified by the traits that are most often associated with heroic figures. Those in Slytherin are more ambitious, less sentimental and more prone to the dark arts. Harry shows throughout the series that he has ambitions and pragmatism, a sense of separating that which is sentimental with that which is necessary. The Sorting Hat states “Hmm, difficult. VERY difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind, either. There's talent, oh yes. And a thirst to prove yourself. But where to put you?” (Rowling 25) He also has an affinity for the magicks that are more associated with darkness and combat. However, although he has these traits, his heroic traits truly define him. He has to make the hard decisions, sometimes clouded by his youth, sometimes by his angers about the death of his parents, but most often with the morals and ethics of heroism, in combination with the sentiment that he feels for his friends. He is not hampered, but tempered by that sense of sentiment. Harry does what is right, even to his own detriment sometimes. The moment of indecision that the Sorting Hat has when selecting the house for Harry reveals an important element about Harry’s nature. Harry, despite his desire to be complete to his own nature is still affected by the parts of his self that are defined by those aspects of Voldemort. In the sixth book, Harry must wrestle with those aspects of anger and darkness that seem to be invading his life. While those aspects play very well as a metaphor for the various ways in which emotions are not within the control of a teenager, they also provide context for the darkness that Voldemort has established from his own being and placed into Harry. Harry has a part of Voldemort inside of him and this is the connecting thread that is the tangible framework that allows for the connection between them to have more meaning and defined importance. While Harry would have gone after Voldemort regardless of this tangible duality of self because Voldemort killed his parents, the tangible placement of the dark lord’s essence within him allows for an exploration of his duality and the nature of fate when it is undeniable. Within the story, the nature of fate is determined. However, fate is not foretold for the other characters in the story. As well, in the end it is the choices that all the characters make that give them the strength to write their own fates. Choice, in the end, is what keeps Harry alive. Trust and faith in each other is what provides them with triumph and this is defined once again by choice. Rowling is not writing about abandoning hope to fate, but embracing that although some things are outside of the control of an individual, in the end, it is the way in which choices are made that defines a life. Choosing to not be in Slytherin defined how Harry chose to frame his sense of self. He could have gone into that house and been great, according to the Hat, but he chose a better path. The path he chose was defined by his desire to shun those aspects of himself that he did not choose to embrace. The story of Harry Potter is developed with sophisticated themes, a well refined universe, and a sense of emotional connectivity that has put it into literary history. The themes provide a parallel to live, the theme of loss giving context to the theme of fate as Harry is set on a path that he is bound by the sense of that loss to follow. However, how he chooses to follow that path is the way in which Harry is given freedom. He is compelled by those emotions that were created through the death of his parents by Voldemort, but he is not bound by them to exhibit behaviors. In choosing Gryffindor and in not having the Hat choose the house for him, the reader is given the message that ultimately, it is the choices that are made that write fate. Works Cited Rowling, J K, and Mary GrandPre?. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Waterville, Me: Large Print Press, 2003. Print. Read More