[HPforGrownups] Re: What was James Potter's Patronus

[Deborah Krupp]

No: HPFGUIDX 167686


 "hpcentaur" <hpcentaur at ...> wrote:
 
  What was James Potter's Patronus animal?
 
 Geoff:
 Unusually for me, I'm not diving into my books to check, 
 but my memory seems to suggest that we are not told a
 bout James' Patronus, nor any belonging to the Marauders, 
 for that matter.
 
 I think that there seems to be some confusion in the minds 
 of members between the fact that James' Animagus form is 
 a stag and that is also the form of Harry's Patronus.
 
 Unless something comes up in Book 7, I suspect that it is a 
 coincidence -  or a red herring produced by JKR.

Deborah writes:
Just a quick review, but the animagus is rare and is best described as the essence of the wizard to whom it belongs in animal form.  Patronuses are the guardian of the wizard to whom they belong, and make them feel safe, but are not necessarily connected to the wizard's essence.  To me this makes Hermione's and Ron's patronuses animal forms of one another - Hermione as Jack Russell (persistent, smart, a bit of a know-it-all) and Ron as an otter ( a bit of a clown).
 I feel just the opposite of what Geoff cites as coincidence or red herring.  By making Harry's patronus his father's essence, Jo tells us about Harry and James.  It is no coincidence that what protects Harry is his father's essence.
As many have said, we don't have any canon as to what James' patronus is - (again, why doesn't Harry ask these questions?) but I'd suspect it might be the essence of Lily (whatever that might be, my guess is a unicorn) which would make him feel safest.
Along this line of thought, that Dumbledore's patronus is a phoenix is even more poetic.  He doesn't fear death, as it is not the end - immortality of the soul in some world or another is his guardian and allows him to make noble choices of what is right versus what is easy.  He is free to choose what is right because he is unencumbered by any fear of death - he knows he will live forever.
Deborah