one of the most important things to me about harry potter is its portrayal of happiness. in the harry potter world, happiness isn’t just a feeling—it’s a weapon. look at how harry and his friends fight: with riddikulus, laughter stymies a creature made of fear; with expecto patronum, the very memory of happiness beats back the grim forces of depression.
the weaponization of positivity stretches beyond that. fred and george weasley’s inventions, meant for laughter, turn into arms against umbridge’s regime. and after their departure from hogwarts, their joke shop becomes not only the single bright spot in diagon alley (literally & figuratively) but a hub of defensive magic. the whole weasleys’ wizard wheezes narrative serves as maybe the clearest example in the series that happiness can act as both shield and sword.
there is something deeply empowering in a depiction of happiness as something so tangible and usable. as a profoundly depressed person, i often feel myself scrounging for happy memories and clutching them close; i find myself grasping for laughter in the dark. the physicalization of expecto patronum is not a quantum leap from reality. the boggart’s laughter as combat fuel, the weasleys’ levity as not just a choice but a difficult and defiant one—it’s all familiar.
the series has its share of darkness, but it revels most in the light. it lets us believe that the act of joy is not small, trivial, or inconsequential. happiness is something not just to be lived—it is to be wielded, on your own behalf and the behalves of the people around you, to battle against the world’s heavier elements. harry potter teaches us this.
the idea of harry potter not only straddling two worlds between him (the british wizarding world and the british muggle world) but also being met at each end by two entirely different systems of historical dehumanization/subjugation (with harry on one hand being a half-blood in a society built on blood pedigree and on the other hand being black mixed-race in a society built on white supremacy) is at once extremely tragic and extremely compelling narratively
it’s also interesting that either status has a completely negligible effect within the opposite world (i.e. harry’s blood status means nothing in muggle britain and his race means nothing in wizarding britain)
mixed-race harry continues to rise to the top as the most narratively compelling interpretation of the text
All the blood status in the hp universe is a metaphor for racism but you know what’s boring? Metaphors for racism that only involve white people. Harry is often described as “dark” and like if James Potter’s family was desi and Lily Evans’s was white, that would enhance Harry’s feelings of otherness while growing up with the Dursleys because lbr Vernon was probs a flaming racist.
“Potter” could easily be an anglicized version of a south Asian last name like Potdar or Potluri, and you could make an argument for a pure blood family like the Potters engaging in and profiting from cultural exchange through the British colonization of India so there was an opportunity to establish generational wealth there.
Also on the night he died, James was making pretty-colored lights for Harry. That was October 31st. In 1981, Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights, started on October 27th. It lasts five days.
SHIT I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT THE DIWALI THING OMG. (though Potdar or Potluri aren’t any Indian names that I’ve ever heard of) BUT BUT BUT DIWALI! desiprongspotter do you know about this?
Potdar seemed like a weird anglicisation of Podar which is a Gujrati family name (a rich one too); but apparently it’s Maharastrian. Potluri is an old caste associated surname that I’m pretty sure is Andhra Pradeshi/Telanga.
TBH I’m pretty sure desi Potters would’ve chosen a new English last name to blend into the English wizarding community rather than anglicise their own last names because of the effects of Racism + the Raj
There were only few people in the books that Harry Potter ever said were attractive. Tom Riddle, Cedric, Fleur, and Sirius. Harry repeatedly said they were attractive
I’m not saying that harry potter might be bisexual.. but harry is bisexual lets not forget his obsession with draco and that he was immune to fleur’s veela charms after the first time
Harry thought Blaise was handsome, too.
#everyone thinks Blaise is handsome
Charlie Weasley.
I’m not sure he ever said Charlie was handsome but we all know Charlie is handsome
people say “so and so character would get along” but do you ever imagine two characters from different fiction that, should they ever meet, would be a reason for everyone to duck and cover and pray for their lives because ALL HELL IS ABOUT TO BREAK LOOSE.
It’s the year 2030. They’re making a Harry Potter remake, not a modern adaptation but set in the original era. And it’s fucking indulgent in 90s nostalgia. Someone’s got a butterfly clip, Ron is wearing a choker, there’s muggles playing with pogs, Spice Girls is playing in the background. Voldemort is wearing a crop top.
It’s simultaneously the worst and fucking best thing you’ve ever seen.
I’ve backslided into Harry Potter again, and now I really want to write the fic where Vernon and Petunia actually try and do right raising their biracial magical nephew, but they stillfuckinghatemagic.
Because just how much would’ve changed if he had a decent upbringing?
How much would’ve changed if he had Vernon and Petunia on his side as
loving adoptive parents rather than abusive assholes? Harry who grew up in a loving home. Harry who grew up with Dudley as a brother. Harry who spent weekends helping Petunia in the garden or being a happy kid. Harry who fights
Voldemort and his Death Eaters not for prophecy, but because they took
lives and they robbed his parents and his adoptive parents chances for
reconciliation.
Because:
Petunia looks at the baby, reads the letter, rages and rages, and rages.
Petunia buries the Potters alone. But comes back days later to lay flowers only to find a fucking monument built for them. No-one came to bury them, but came to glorify them.
Petunia looks at Harry, who even at one, looks more like his father, but
he has Lily’s eyes, and they look at her like an accusation.
Petunia looks at Harry again and all she can feel is anger. Is rage. Is despair. Because she was robbed of magic at an early age. She was robbed of any limelight by Lily. And now, and now, she’s been robbed of Lily. Of any second chances with Lily because despite everything she loved Lily. And now she’s being asked to care for Lily’s son. Raise him until he can be sent off into battle too to die.
So she looks at Harry, with James tan skin and James messy hair, and Lily’s eyes, calling for his Appa and Amma, looks at this boy that’s been sent to her to fatten up before the slaughter and decides no.
Harry’s skin and hair and eyes will be his own. He will not be anybody’s goddamn saviour, nobody’s warrior, nobody’s soldier, and nobody’s second chance.
Hi, I’m bringing this back because I had the greatest mental images in this AU of an actual decent human being Vernon Dursley absolutely losing his shit when his sister makes the eventual shitty comment about Harry, and throwing her out of No 4 Privet Drive in the middle of the night without a care about what the neighbours think.
Years again, she decides shitting on an olive branch (that was only being offered because Harry is an insistent child who dislike families splitting apart wants her around) is more important than being a decent person to a child. So while Vernon and Marge get into a legendary shouting match, Harry maybe loses his temper causing her to inflate. But instead of running off, both Vernon and him have to calm down immediately, because Petunia and Dudley see nothing wrong about just shoving Marge out the door and letting her float into the stratosphere.
After the Third Year of ridiculous events that should not happen at a school (“what do you mean you have a godfather who was wrongfully arrested?”), Actual Decent Human Being Vernon Dursley puts his foot down and signs Harry and Dudley up for self defence classes.
Petunia writes a lot of long angry letters to the school clearly stating at if they do not get their shit together she will not be sending Harry back, the wizarding world can go burn for all she cares.
She also has Harry write letters to Sirius and Remus inviting them over, because she knows the boy she raised. She knows he may not say anything but he’s internally drowning. And as much as Vernon and her hate magic, it will not come at the cost of Harry’s well being. So Sirius and Remus get invited, get told to not do blatant magic, and Harry and Dudley get a very fun summer.
Harry Potter does not participate in the Triwizard Tournament, because the moment he writes home about it, Petunia makes good on her threat. A very determined Remus Lupin shows up on behalf of the Dursleys (he has a letter to prove it) to pull Harry out of school.
Lord Voldemort’s plans are fucked because Harry has decent people who care about him, but they also give zero fucks to respect Dumbledore so they will not go along with his bullshit. He’s running a school. If he cannot guarantee the safety of their nephew and surrogate son, then they will take him out and send him to a place where he’s safer.
I’ve backslided into Harry Potter again, and now I really want to write the fic where Vernon and Petunia actually try and do right raising their biracial magical nephew, but they stillfuckinghatemagic.
Because just how much would’ve changed if he had a decent upbringing?
How much would’ve changed if he had Vernon and Petunia on his side as
loving adoptive parents rather than abusive assholes? Harry who grew up in a loving home. Harry who grew up with Dudley as a brother. Harry who spent weekends helping Petunia in the garden or being a happy kid. Harry who fights
Voldemort and his Death Eaters not for prophecy, but because they took
lives and they robbed his parents and his adoptive parents chances for
reconciliation.
Because:
Petunia looks at the baby, reads the letter, rages and rages, and rages.
Petunia buries the Potters alone. But comes back days later to lay flowers only to find a fucking monument built for them. No-one came to bury them, but came to glorify them.
Petunia looks at Harry, who even at one, looks more like his father, but
he has Lily’s eyes, and they look at her like an accusation.
Petunia looks at Harry again and all she can feel is anger. Is rage. Is despair. Because she was robbed of magic at an early age. She was robbed of any limelight by Lily. And now, and now, she’s been robbed of Lily. Of any second chances with Lily because despite everything she loved Lily. And now she’s being asked to care for Lily’s son. Raise him until he can be sent off into battle too to die.
So she looks at Harry, with James tan skin and James messy hair, and Lily’s eyes, calling for his Appa and Amma, looks at this boy that’s been sent to her to fatten up before the slaughter and decides no.
Harry’s skin and hair and eyes will be his own. He will not be anybody’s goddamn saviour, nobody’s warrior, nobody’s soldier, and nobody’s second chance.
Hi, I’m bringing this back because I had the greatest mental images in this AU of an actual decent human being Vernon Dursley absolutely losing his shit when his sister makes the eventual shitty comment about Harry, and throwing her out of No 4 Privet Drive in the middle of the night without a care about what the neighbours think.
Years again, she decides shitting on an olive branch (that was only being offered because Harry is an insistent child who dislike families splitting apart wants her around) is more important than being a decent person to a child. So while Vernon and Marge get into a legendary shouting match, Harry maybe loses his temper causing her to inflate. But instead of running off, both Vernon and him have to calm down immediately, because Petunia and Dudley see nothing wrong about just shoving Marge out the door and letting her float into the stratosphere.
After the Third Year of ridiculous events that should not happen at a school (“what do you mean you have a godfather who was wrongfully arrested?”), Actual Decent Human Being Vernon Dursley puts his foot down and signs Harry and Dudley up for self defence classes.
Petunia writes a lot of long angry letters to the school clearly stating at if they do not get their shit together she will not be sending Harry back, the wizarding world can go burn for all she cares.
She also has Harry write letters to Sirius and Remus inviting them over, because she knows the boy she raised. She knows he may not say anything but he’s internally drowning. And as much as Vernon and her hate magic, it will not come at the cost of Harry’s well being. So Sirius and Remus get invited, get told to not do blatant magic, and Harry and Dudley get a very fun summer.
Jfc it’s not like JKR came out of the womb clutching the first draft of Harry Potter, have people forgotten that she’s not always been rich and that she was actually pretty fucking poor not so very long ago and remembers what it’s like?
Have we forgotten this is the woman who took herself off the Forbes list because she gave away so much money?
Cheloneuniverse 