Velazquez 1 Alyssa Velazquez Logan Bearden ENC 1145-31 22 January 2014 Paper 1: Second Draft Novels contain the

power to illustrate, create and evoke different types of moods and emotions to their readers. With the use of text, an author can create anything they would like their readers to understand and imagine. The authors use of descriptive words in their text can help readers to visualize, feel, connect and even transport them to whole new worlds. This use of imagery through text is an essential element of reading a novel; in a readers mind the text they read can create an image of how the mood and environment is while the scene is occurring. A film, on the other hand, uses moving images and sound to depict the scene and set mood, using elements such as lighting and soundtrack music to create and enrich the scene. Novels provide the power to fully envelop their readers through descriptive imagery while films usually can only provide their audience with an outsiders perspective. For this paper I plan on doing a comparison between the elements used in the film and the novel to depict the scene of Dumbledores death. Albus Dumbledore is such an essential character to this series that his death was not only one of the most important events that occurred in the novel, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, but in the overall series. The scene occurs basically in the same way between the two mediums: Harry and Dumbledore return to Hogwarts, Harry hides, Dumbledore speaks to Malfoy who has come to kill him, other Death Eaters enter the scene and finally Severus Snape enters and kills Dumbledore all while Harry watches from his hidden place. Though the plot is the same, there are some minor differences between the two depictions such as dialogue and different characters

Velazquez 2 .In addition to these plot changes are the different elements used in each medium that differ the way the scene is seen. While reading the moments leading up to Dumbledores death I felt a sense of urgency and struggle from Harry as he watches the whole scene unfold, unable to assist because Dumbledore had immobilized him from doing so. This scene is written in a way that the readers imagine the scene from the eyes of Harry rather than from a third person perspective. Harry is depicted as being frozen in place, watching the scene with the inability to move. This choice of having Harry frozen creates a sense of tension between the struggle of Harry wanting to assist but physically being unable to do so. During the interaction between Dumbledore and Malfoy and the other Death Eaters Dumbledores character becomes progressively weaker as the chapter continues. This description of Dumbledores weakness shows him as being slumped on the floor too weak to move versus the strong and commanding image of Dumbledore as seen in the film only seems to emphasize the tragedy of his death. The film depicts this scene more from a third person perspective. This perspective is apparent in the way that the scene was filmed, alternating between showing the scene between Malfoy and Dumbledore and where Harry is in relation to this encounter. In addition to relationship in space between characters, is the movement quality used by Harry. The film portrays Harry as having this freedom of moment to move about the space and watch what is occurring, making the viewers optimistic that should Dumbledore need assistance Harry is capable of doing so. The film loses the aspects of intensity and suspense because Harry is moving around while watching rather than being frozen and watching with the readers able to see Harrys internal struggle. The film also loses the intensity of Snapes character by a plot change in which Snape is shown gesturing to Harry to be quiet before moving into the view of

Velazquez 3 Dumbledore, Malfoy and the other Death Eaters. This gesture gives his character and that moment a sense of predictability in which the viewers know Snape is going to interfere in either a positive or negative way whereas in the novel his abrupt arrival shocks the readers and Harry. The lighting of the scene is also an important element in the film depiction of this scene. The novel portrays a starry night sky whereas the atmosphere in the film is dark and cloudy. The shadows in this scene are probably necessary to include because the scene would be hard to film and see on screen without some lighting. The film does a great depiction of Dumbledores actual death, emphasizing Dumbledore being struck by Snapes curse and falling down the tower. The camera angles used make the depth of the tower seem that Dumbledore is falling into an infinitely continuing drop. The soundtrack music during this part also adds to the drama, evoking a gloomy heartbreaking mood that causes the audience to react in accordance. The description of Dumbledores actual death in the novel, on the other hand, is not overtly descriptive or as dramatic as the movie portrays it to be. In the novel the chapter concludes with Dumbledores death and his fall down the tower but only in one long sentence: For a split second, he seemed to hang suspended beneath the shining skull, and then he fell slowly backward, like a rag doll, over the settlements and out of sight. The length of the sentence and the commas used throughout this sentence give the description a sense of pause, time and suspension. The placement of this sentence at the end of the chapter is also important, providing a sense of finality that would not work if placed in the beginning or middle of a chapter. In text imagery and description were the main elements that brought to life the scene of Dumbledores death whereas the darkness, the use of camera and the soundtrack music enhanced this scene to its viewers. Though somewhat different, the mediums of novel and film both with

Velazquez 4 their own unique elements were able to capture the tragedy of Dumbledores death that resonated with readers and audience members.