Harry had to fail - Harry's Tragic Flaws

[jenzajlp]

No: HPFGUIDX 130815

Julie Rice <julierice8 at y... wrote:
<snip> 
<JKR had to have Harry fail in Book 5 so that the
series was more realistic.<

<snip>
<He had to fail in book 5 so that we as readers would
actually wonder if he will make it at the end of book
7.  If he did just fine in book 5 and book 6, there's
no way he could fail in book 7.  I guess he could, but
we would all hate the series because "it's all about
the ending" (a quote from a recent Johnny depp movie).<

Jen replies:
I completely agree with this opionion and wanted to expand on it a 
little.  I think that Harry will also continue to fail through HBP, 
wherein he will eventually learn the lessons he needs to defeat 
Voldemort in Book 7.  OotP was the first book that really showed us 
all of Harry's flaws, which I think is why so many people
finished 
that book disliking him.  I believe that like every tragic hero, 
these flaws will lead to his downfall (which may not be death).  
Although, I do think that unlike the standard tragic hero, Harry will 
be able to redeem himself.  After re-reading OotP, I think JKR is 
setting Harry up for a big fall – maybe by alienating the people
he loves, maybe by making a critical error that causes someone he 
loves to be hurt, maybe both.   Harry is:  

*Short-tempered:  I think that Harry's tendency to fly off the
handle may soon alienate some of his friends, or may land him in big 
trouble.  See the numerous outbursts toward Ron, Hermione, Ginny, 
etc. in OotP as an example of the former – they're still
standing by 
him at this point, but how much abuse will they take before 
consciously or subconciously pulling away from him?  More telling is 
his inability to control his temper around Umbridge, even though he 
was specifically warned by McGonagall on more than one occasion to 
stay quiet.  I'm not saying that his outbursts in Umbridge's
class 
were unwarranted, because, she is a evil little troll, but it was not 
the smart thing to do.  Even Hermione, who has her share of angry 
outbursts was smart enough to realize that lashing out at Umbridge 
was a very bad idea.  What's even worse is that those in an
authority position, Harry's mentors, know this - but he is able
to 
get away with most of it without being punished because he is the 
famous Harry Potter.  McGonagall, the strictest of the bunch, simply 
gave him a `tsk tsk' for his actions.  This kind of behavior
toward
his short-temper makes him feel he is justified in being this way 
which leads to his second flaw


*Arrogant:  What really surprised me about Harry in OotP was his 
outright disregard for the advice his friends and mentors gave him 
because he either felt he was entitled to something or simply felt he 
was above it.   The most apparent of this being his utter dismissal 
of Sirius, Lupin, Hermione, AND Dumbledore – who all stressed the 
monumental importance of learning Occlumency.  Harry didn't want
to do it, and I think, ultimately thought he was above learning it.  
So he didn't.  He ignored the urges of those closest to him, those
he once admired greatly, and because of this, he placed everyone he 
loved in a compromising position in the battle at the Ministry of 
Magic.  

*Self-pitying:  Some of you may disagree with me here, or may think 
Harry is entitled to feel this way given all of the tragedy he has 
seen in his formative years.  I agree to an extent, but it appears to 
be getting worse and I think it will reach its pressure point in HBP 
now that Sirius has died.  I think there are more productive ways to 
deal with his feelings and he needs to overcome this flaw in order to 
concentrate on what's ahead.  For those who pity him as well and
feel that he is justified, I give you Neville as an example, who has 
had his share of tragedies and has never pulled the "You
don't 
understand/Woe is me" card that Harry pulled with his friends on 
multiple occassions in OotP.  

*Impulsive:  When Harry thought that Sirius was being tortured in 
OotP, he was ready to do just about anything to get there and save 
him.  When he is placed in these situations he doesn't think
about repercussions – at these times, Hermione has always been
his 
grounding force, trying to make him stop and think first before 
doing. But what happens if Hermione isn't there to slow him down?
 
What happens if, as I predicted earlier, Harry's arrogance and
short-temper alienate his friends?  He is setting himself up for 
errors.  Some may disagree that impulsivity is a flaw.  In a way,
it's
almost a testament to Harry's character because he is swayed
heavily 
by his feelings, something that Voldemort lacks.  And it's true
that 
at times that this can save the day  - but I don't think it 
ultimately works in the context of defeating Voldemort. Voldemort 
doesn't think with his heart because he doesn't have one.  He
deals 
in manipulation, torture, and ultimately, strategy.  Harry needs to 
be able to think before dealing with him which leads to an nteresting 
dilemma.  Right now, Voldemort's biggest advantage over Harry is 
knowing that he can manipulate Harry's actions.  In OotP,
Voldemort 
knew that he would be able to ensnare Harry by showing him that he 
had Sirius, because he knew that Harry would not think before flying 
off to his aid.  However, I think if Harry learns a balance between 
his heart and his mind, he will turn the tables and have a tremendous 
advantage over Voldemort, because the one thing that Voldemort lacks 
is love.  Many of you have pointed out that Love is a strong theme, 
perhaps the ultimate theme, in the series, and think it will be what 
wins the war.  I think this is true, as long as Harry uses his heart 
and mind hand-in-hand.  

My prediction is that in HBP, these flaws will continue to grow until 
Harry causes something bad to happen because of them.  It is only 
then that he will realize the error of his ways and be able to 
overcome them to defeat Voldemort.