Hogwarts Herald

Having finally borrowed a copy of Sorcerers Stone, (SS) since I can’t find mine, I have re-read chapter one of Book 1. That’s right, way back at the beginning. Since my predecessor on this blog has already written a darn fine synopsis of this first chapter for those who have read all the way to the end of the series, this will be my first chapter directed toward people who have not yet read the books, and maybe not even seen the movies. I know there are still a fair few of you out there, and I have hopes that you will enjoy these books as much as I did!!! I hope to recover the exact same wonder and magic I had reading it the very first time by looking at it through new eyes with you. Ok, on with the show.

“Harry Potter rolled over in his blankets without waking up. One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not knowing he was special, not knowing he was famous…”

The first bit, upon opening the first chapter of this book, is this quaint drawing. It depicts a young child, perhaps even an infant, swaddled in blankets. Obviously outdoors at night, with an envelope sticking out of his little blanket. He is the Boy Who Lived.

Our story begins, however, not with him at all. Instead we meet a couple by the name of Dursley, living at Number 4 Privet Drive, and completely contented with their “perfectly normal thank you very much” life. They have a son, but he is indeed not the Boy Who Lived either. As a matter of fact, we find out very quickly that the child seems to be a spoiled brat. Well as much as parents will create out of a toddler. Mr. Dursley runs a firm that sells drills, and Mrs. Dursley seems to be a busybody for a living.

We are quick to find out where the Dursleys come into play in Harry’s story. It seems that Mrs. Dursley has a sister by the name of Lily who is married to James Potter. And for some reason this fact is the very bane of their existence. The deepest secret that they have. All of this backstory, as with any book, is to get us in mind of a group of people that we will get to know very well, therefore it is safe to assume that although the Dursleys have not had any contact with Harry Potter in the past, they will have great deal to do with him in the future.

On the morning that we begin our journey, Mr. Dursley is traveling to work and encounters groups of strange people dressed in cloaks. There are owls flying around town in the broad daylight, and there is a cat, sitting on the corner of his street, reading a map. But that can’t be right? Cats don’t read maps after all. During this day Mr. Dursley actually overhears a conversation, with mention of the name Potter, and their son, Harry. And one of the strange men in cloaks hugs Mr. Dursley around the middle, calling him a Muggle. What on earth is a Muggle? Strange things seem to be happening all over England, as is reported on that evening’s news. After the Dursleys go to bed, Mr. Dursley safe in the thought that even if the strange things have to do with his ne’er do well sister-in-law and her family, they will have nothing at all to do with him.

At this point the story gets really interesting, as the cat encountered by Mr. Dursley that afternoon sits watching the street corner carefully. As it watches, seemingly out of thin air, a man appears at the street corner. Using a strange device that appears to be a cigarette lighter, he manages to capture the balls of light from every lamp on the street. The cat that was watching for him, is gone now and in its place is a woman. She speaks to the man who is described as tall, very thin, and very old. Mostly due to the length and silver of his hair and beard that can both be tucked right into his belt. We get the impression that he is a friendly soul, due to his “light bright blue eyes sparkling behind his spectacles” This, it seems, is Professor Dumbledore.

From his conversation with the woman who has taken the place of the cat, I get the impression that he is highly respected and that is knowledge of current events may be the only one to be trusted. While snacking on Lemon Drops, Professor Albus Dumbledore reveals to Professor McGonagall that Mrs. Dursley’s sister, Lily is dead, and so is her husband. Their young son, however, is not. Here, we find the Boy Who Lived. The evil person who killed his parents was not able to kill this child. And when he was not able to, his power broke. This Voldemort , known widely as “You Know Who” has been terrorizing the world for 11 years. But for some reason the Dursleys know nothing of this.

Presently, as beast of a man called only Hagrid, falls out of the sky on a flying motorcycle borrowed from one “young Sirius Black” carrying a bundle of blankets holding one Harry Potter, sleeping as only a baby can. He is to be left in the hands of people who hate his parents and everything about them. People who have never even met him, and had a hard time even remembering his name. Every time I read this passage I am struck by the tragedy of it. Here, in the first pages of this book, a young couple with a child too young to ever remember them, are killed mercilessly. Only because of the fact that he will be too famous for any child to really grow up with properly, he is left with these horrible people. He is kissed lovingly by a giant of a man with a big bristly beard and hands the size of garbage can lids, who very clearly knew and loved his parents. And left in the hands of horrible people with a horrible child. And he has a scar, on his head, shaped like a lightnening bolt. He’ll carry that scare his entire life. Professor Dumbledore says, though, that even if he could remove it he wouldn’t. Scars have a way of coming in handy sometimes it seems.

Tomorrow: The Vanishing Glass