Louis Rammel

Professor Hagemaster

Research Writing

20 September 2019

Review of Literature

Why do some of the wizards of Harry Potter place such value on purity of blood, and

how does this reflect society as we know it? As Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is a book

by a British author, J. K. Rowling, and its movie adaptation reflects that, it is important to note

how the English Class System is taken from reality and reflected in these works. John O’

Sullivan writes that Britain is the kind of society that one would have great difficulty, even to an

impossible extent, to move to another class due to the solidarity of class barriers. (O’Sullivan

493). This is reflected in the Weasley’s and other families in the wizarding world as they are

poor and remain so for the entirety of the story. This also relates to the so-called mud bloods as

in the eyes of the pure blood wizards those with impure blood are less than themselves and will

remain so no matter their contributions or proficiency in wizardry. Furthermore, O’ Sullivan

claims that Britain is a class system predicated on accent, appearance, education, and people’s

interests. (O’Sullivan 495). This is also prevalent in Harry Potter as others are laughed upon for

looking ragged in appearance, and a lot of these people are mixed blood wizards who weren’t

aware of proper dress wear for wizard purposes. Which leads into those without direct wizard

ancestry not being taught informally before school, so those without pure blood often find

themselves starting out behind those with pure blood.

 Another aspect of Harry Potter can be seen through the lenses of Victoria Lynne Scholz

who states that similarly to the real world, issues take place in the wizarding world, including

segregation, and that this is often imposed by those in power (Scholz 125). This is clear as

characters with prejudice values claim positions of power and then mete out their warped views

on society. There is an argument to be made that this is originated in real world politics and

biases. Scholz goes on to say that some of the ruling class is increasingly preoccupied with social

status and family heritage, going as far as using slander such as mud blood and calling into

question those with mixed blood’s abilities (Scholz 125). This resonates with reality with biases

such as women not being able to perform the same tasks as men and vice versa to an extent. It

also reflects race relations as some people with more racist views would find error with someone

of differing race entering a position of power. Why is it that those in power whether in real life

and in fiction get to force their views on others?

Harry Potter and the discrimination of mixed blood wizards is also reminiscent of Hitler

and the hate the Jews receive. Voldemort is, after a fashion, the Hitler of the wizarding world. He

seeks to show that wizards are the superior beings and that all things should fall under his

purview. Joel F. Harrington writes that German officers were openly discussing genocide and

how they needed to secure the safety of the German people from the undesirables (Harrington

30). This is exactly the kind of talk the death eaters, Voldemort’s elite followers, say about

muggles, non-wizards, and mixed blood wizards. They speak of how they should eradicate them

from the world, especially those with no magic whatsoever. It’s also important to point out that

in Harry Potter there are houses and in Deathly Hallows all of Slytherin house, the house with

the most anti-mixed blood views, joined the death eaters in combat. This is indicative of those in

power influencing the views of others. Keep in mind that this is a school and those of Slytherin
house are kids, easily influenced by their elders. As is shown to be connected by all of the

authors I’ve noted so far, those in power play a large part in cementing the views of those around

them. So, I find it relevant to ask how much power do people allow those in places of influence

to wield and why? Furthermore, why do we allow those peoples who have a prejudice view on

others with different beliefs or heritages into power in the first place?

Once again, we will take a look at how the English Class System plays a pivotal role in J.

K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. This time, however, I’d like to address how

it reinforces the wealthy and respected classes. Joey Cheng and Jessica Tracy write that there is

not much to refute that one’s social class plays an important role on how someone thinks and

acts (Cheng & Tracy 102). This helps strengthen the point that class is one of the reasons why

that so many people that are wealthy or from a respected family flock to Voldemort’s side as

death eaters. They are born or raised to believe that others are inferior, and as such, don’t view

the hate towards non-wizards, or wizards of mixed blood, as anything but natural. It’s the social

mindset of that class that lends such power to the rallying cry of Voldemort’s prejudice

campaign to wipe those considered undesirable off the face of the world. This is not unlike the

way that some upper crust persons in today’s society view people such as the impoverished or

the homeless. They would rather them be relocated or imprisoned then actually extend a helping

hand. In truth, it’s the disgust of those considered less than oneself that really resonates between

Rowling’s world of fiction and our real world.

Another important topic that relates to Harry Potter is that women are second rate in the

movie. What I am looking at is their roles in the school of Hogwarts and various workplaces.

Additionally, I would like to present that none of the most powerful wizards are female. Karen

Jones and Jonathan Clifton express that men traditionally view women as weak and in need of
protection (Jones & Clifton 559). A number of women are presented, but none of them

encompass a lead role in any of the organizations. The male Dumbledore is the respected

headmaster of Hogwarts, despite their being the perfectly capable Professor McGonagall. She is

presented as the headmasters second in command, but never at any point in the story does she

fulfill the role Dumbledore resides in. Furthermore, Voldemort, a male antagonist, is the dark

lord and one of the most powerful wizards in the world. In point of fact, the two most powerful

wizards are Dumbledore and Voldemort, which as stated earlier, are not female. Also, consider

that Harry, the protagonist, is also male and the center of great, world changing events, whereas

Hermione, another protagonist, is simply a side character to Harry’s arc. This begs the question

of why a female Author such as Rowling wrote the characters this way? Robina Sharif and Gull

Hina say that one of the biggest hurdles for women is that it is male dominated (Sharif & Hina

69). Perhaps she knew that male readers wouldn’t except a female lead which this of course

leads us back to fiction reflecting reality as men are generally opposed to women having power,

at least over them, especially in the workplace. I do, however, find that this raises the question of

why men dislike the idea of women earning the same positions available to them?

To further capitalize on how bloodlines and purity of blood are considered potent sources

of influence, and are believed important, one can look to reality’s royal bloodlines. Royal

families and the society they lived in placed a high priority on the pureness of blood, not unlike

Lord Voldemort. In fact, they placed such a high approval on it that those of royal descent might

intermarry or have incestuous relations. David Dobbs notes that royal incest persists in societies

where those in power have no equals besides their gods and that since gods intermarry so to

should they (Dobbs 60). Lord Voldemort views himself as godlike and as such doesn’t want his

dominion tainted by those he deems impure. The royal and upper-class families didn’t approve
of marrying a peasant or lower-class citizen. Just like how if a pureblood wizard would find

themselves in a relationship with a non-wizard, they would be, after a fashion, ostracized. This

urges the question of why blood is important to society when the only differences between

people are the ones we decide exist?

 Works Cited

O’Sullivan, John. “Peter Bauer and the English Call System, by John O’Sullivan.” Cato Journal,

Cato Journal, Cato Institute, 1 Jan, 1970,

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sessmgr01&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=19628251&d

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Scholz, and Victoria Lynne. “Other Muggles’ Children: Power and Oppression in Harry Potter.”

The Midwest Quarterly, Pittsburg State University – Midwest Quarterly, 1 Jan. 2018,

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Harrington, Joel F. “Himmler's Witch Hunt.” History Today,

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Jones, Karen, and Jonathan Clifton. Rendering Sexism Invisible in Workplace Narratives. A,

http://web.a.ebscohost.com.proxy.indianatech.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=19&sid=16a93997-23dd-

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Cheng, Joey, and Jessica Tracy. The Impact of Wealth on Prestige and Dominance Rank

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Dobbs, David. “The Risks and Rewards of Royal Incest.” National Geographic, 13 Sept. 2017,

http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.indianatech.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=15&sid=37cd3f76-

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Sharif, Robina, and Gull Hina. Participation of women in Politics: A Perceptive of Hurdles and

Challenges.

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