Elements of Myth in Harry Potter, Part 2: The Question of Death

Myths ask and attempt to answer many of the grand questions of life, some of which were cited in Part One of this series on Myth. We’ll take this post and another to tackle the matter of which fundamental human questions Harry Potter seeks to answer, and we’ll spell it out in detail in the coming posts. [I initially planned this series to be 5 posts, but it will likely be more].

Question: Death

There’s hardly any doubt that Rowling is taking the issue of death very seriously in the novels. A quick rundown:

~ Philosopher’s Stone: The death of Harry’s parents gets the whole series started. The Mirror of Erised represents an opportunity for Harry to react to the loss of his parents. His questions about the impending death of Nicholas Flamel gives Dumbledore the opportunity to begin teaching him about death from the right perspective. “To the well-organized mind, death is the next great adventure.” We are also told of the power of Lily’s sacrificial love, a perfect example of dying well.

~ Chamber of Secrets: The near-death of some students and the willingess on the part of Harry to sacrifice himself in the battle with the basilisk key us in to the fact that Harry is growing up to be like his parents, and he is learning very early that there are indeed some things worse than death.

~ Prisoner of Azkaban: The presence of the Dementors represent death in all its ugliness, and Harry is forced to hear the screams of his mother as she died whenever he encounters the evil creatures. We continue to learn that there are some things worse than death by observing Harry’s willingness to allow the betrayer of his parents to live. We also get a connection to his deceased father’s love in the incident of the patronus charm at the lake, in which Harry believes he had seen his father, and Dumbledore explains that his father lives on in him (Harry).

~ Goblet of Fire: We face death head-on in this novel, with the murder of Cedric Diggory and the chilling effects of the Priori Incantantem spell.

~ Order of the Phoenix: The death of Sirius Black is clearly, up until this point, the most difficult one to take, as evidenced by Harry’s breakdown in Dumbledore’s office. We also learn of the prophecy and the apparently necessary death of either Harry or Voldemort.

~ Half-Blood Prince – The death of Albus Dumbledore is the greatest loss of the series so far. He was the only one Voldemort ever feared, and the Order of the Phoenix goes on without their powerful and wise leader. His funeral marks a critical plot turn in the series.

Evil and the Flight from Death

All of this is contrasted with the series’ Dark Lord, whose very name means “Flee from death.” Voldemort has asserted that there is nothing worse than death (in his battle with Dumbledore in Order) and has assured us that he has gone further than anyone ever has on the path to immortality (at his rebirth in Goblet of Fire). Voldemort embodies the great fear that we all face: What happens when we die?

He has succumbed entirely to it, and his obsession with avoiding death at all costs alerts us to the despair that accompanies those who do not know what to do with the universal question of death.

We have not yet begun to explain how Rowling answers the question of death; we are only setting the question up. In coming posts, we’ll dig into the details of the story to observe how Rowling answers the question.

See The Finality of Death for more on this issue.