Uncovering the Hidden Pattern of the HP Books

[sienna291973]

No: HPFGUIDX 93289

It occurred to me some time ago, that there seemed to be a hidden 
pattern to the way the stories in the HP series were structured. 
Something beyond the obvious I mean; some sort of cyclical 
blueprint. At the time, I didn't have the opportunity to take this 
intuition seriously and I forgot all about it. Then, while reading 
some responses to my essay Harry, Hermione and the Sphinx at the 
PortKey (http://talk.portkey.org/index.php?showtopic=6919), I got 
hit by a big brainwave.

The books are repeating themselves. I believe that JKR has set up a 
type of `hexagram' of books, with the first 6 mirroring each other. 
Two triangles. Book 7 I think will stand completely alone.

So, for the sake of this theory – in one triangle of the hexagram we 
have the first trio of books – The Philosopher's Stone, The Chamber 
of Secrets and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

In the second triangle – we have The Goblet of Fire, The Order of 
the Phoenix and Book 6 (whatever it may be called).

In the posts that follow, I will attempt to demonstrate how these 
books mirror each other and what implications this has for Book 6. 
With thanks to the HP Lexicon for the wonderful outlines of each 
book).

Part 1: The Philosopher's Stone and the Goblet of Fire

Mirrored Events 

There are many instances of mirroring between the first and fourth 
books of the series. To begin with, both books begin with an 
experience or event that happens independently of Harry. In PS/SS, 
it's the event where Voldemort kills Harry's family and is 
vanquished. In GoF, it's when Voldemort kills his own family.

In both books, someone from the wizarding world comes to confront 
the Durselys and take Harry to the world where he belongs. In PS/SS 
it is of course Hagrid, who leaves Dudley with a pig's tail in the 
process. In GoF it is the Weasleys who of course leave when the 
twins bestow on Dudley the gift of a huge lolling tongue. After 
PS/SS, it is the first time Dudley is touched by magic again.

In both PS/SS and GoF, Harry finds himself quite suddenly and 
unexpectedly at the centre of attention. In PS/SS, he finds out he 
is a wizard and quite a famous one at that. In GoF, he unexpectedly 
becomes a TriWizard champion, throwing him into the spotlight and 
the `celebrity' limelight again. In fact in PS/SS, Snape actually 
welcomes Hogwart's `new- celebrity' and in GoF, as we know, Harry is 
subjected to the usual pitfalls of fame through the atrocious Rita 
Skeeter. In both cases, his celebrity causes him grief.

After his own sorting into Gryffindor in PS/SS, the first time Harry 
gets to see another sorting is of course in GoF. In fact after 
PS/SS, the first time that Harry's scar hurts again is in GoF.

In PS/SS, Harry sees the images of his parents in the Mirror of 
Erised. In GoF he sees their images in the form of the grey shadows 
that come out of Voldemort's wand. 

In PS/SS, Harry has an experience with a dragon in the form of 
Norbert who is brought into Hogwarts by Hagrid. In GoF, Harry has a 
somewhat more drastic encounter with a full-grown dragon during the 
first task of the tournament. These are the only times, so far, that 
we have seen dragons in the Harry Potter books. We get introduced to 
Charlie in PS/SS when they organise with him to come and take 
Norbert away. The next time we see Charlie, he is again taking care 
of Dragons.

In PS/SS, Harry and co find a dead Unicorn in the forest. In GoF, 
Cedric (the symbolic innocent and the one with the unicorn-tail 
wand) is killed. The quote: "Always the innocent are the first 
victims" is often cited as a foreshadowing of Cedric's death and 
indeed it quite literally was.

In PS/SS, Harry, along with Ron and Hermione, has to pass a series 
of tests to save a magical object (the Philosopher's Stone). These 
tasks (and there are five) are getting past fluffy, getting through 
the devil's snare, catching the flying key, winning a chess game and 
solving a riddle.

In GoF, Harry once again has to get through a series of tests (once 
again there are five). These are beating a boggart, getting through 
a golden mist, getting past a blast-ended screwt, dealing with a 
huge spider and (of course) solving a riddle. As we can see here, 
the common element is solving the riddle – both instances of which 
are associated with Hermione. See my other essay for an analysis of 
the imagery of the Sphinx and how it relates to H/Hr. The Sphinx of 
course protected the heart of the maze that housed the Goblet much 
as the Potion's riddle was the final barrier before getting to the 
Mirror of Erised.

In both cases, the one who was ultimately responsible for trying to 
kill Harry and bringing him to Voldemort is the DADA teacher (the 
only two books in which a teacher is the culprit). In PS/SS it was 
of course Quirrel. Chapter 17 of the book is called `The Man with 
Two Faces'. In GoF it is False!Moody who is the culprit - a man who 
very literally was a man of `two faces' – that of his real self 
(Barty Crouch Jr.) and that of the man he is impersonating (Mad Eye 
Moody).

In PS/SS, Harry is saved by the lingering traces of the sacrifice 
his mother made. Quirrel can't touch him. In GoF, we once again see 
Harry's mother. The blood is once again referred to. And even though 
Voldemort can now touch him by virtue of their shared blood, Harry 
is once again saved when his parents and the other ghosts/ shades 
enable him to escape.

Finally, both PS/SS and GoF are characterised by a massive change in 
Harry's life. In PS/SS of course it is the discovery of his heritage 
and the evil legacy that accompanies it. In GoF, it is the return of 
Voldemort.

Mirrored Objects

In PS/SS, the magical object in question is the Philosopher's Stone 
(also called the Sorcerer's Stone). The Stone of course bestows 
limitless gold and immortality on the one who has it. Voldemort goes 
after this stone in order to achieve a return to power and this 
immortality.

In GoF, the magical object in question is the Goblet of Fire. Fake!
Moody of course turns to goblet into a portkey, which takes Harry to 
Voldemort and enables him to return to power. Voldemort himself 
refers to the Stone and the fact that he now sets his sights lower:
 
`There was no hope of stealing the Philosopher's Stone any more, for 
I knew that Dumbledore would have seen to it that it was destroyed.  
But I was willing to embrace mortal life again, before chasing 
immortal.  I set my sights lower
 I would settle for my old body 
back again, and my old strength.'
GoF, pg 569 

So, what are people's thoughts on this? Are there any other thematic 
similarities?

Sienna

Coming Soon: Part 2: The Chamber of Secrets and the Order of the 
Phoenix