Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets

“Dobby has never been asked to sit down by a wizard—like an equal—”

Dobby’s surprise at Harry’s simple invitation to sit down suggests that he has rarely, if ever, been on the receiving end of common courtesy. The later revelation that he belongs to the Malfoy family emphasizes their cruelty and abuse of him. That Harry, a relative outsider in the magical community, treats Dobby respectfully by default shows that the prejudice against non-human magical creatures is a learned, cultural response.

“Life at the Burrow was as different as possible from life on Privet Drive. The Dursleys liked everything neat and ordered; the Weasleys’ house burst with the strange and unexpected.”

The Weasleys and the Dursleys can be considered foil characters, just as their homes contrast with each other in many ways: one is urban, the other rural; one is a typical model, while the other is unique; one becomes a prison to Harry, while the other offers him the freedom to explore. In the same way, Harry’s experiences in the magical world allow him room for expression and self-discovery.

“We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy.”

Mr. Weasley’s curt rebuttal to Mr. Malfoy in Flourish and Blotts bookstore highlights a significant rift within the wizarding world between those who think fondly of Muggles, as well as Muggle-born witches and wizards, and those who consider Muggles to be inferior. The oppression of Muggles is a core part of Voldemort’s agenda, and his followers find a friendly association with Muggles to be shameful, even repulsive. Mr. Weasley, on the other hand, works in his official capacity to protect Muggles from abuse.

“Harry’s whole body went numb. Dumbledore was looking unusually grave. He stared down his very crooked nose at them, and Harry suddenly found himself wishing he and Ron were still being beaten up by the Whomping Willow.”

After Harry and Ron arrive at Hogwarts in a flying car, they are chastised by Snape and McGonagall. Only when Dumbledore appears does Harry find himself feeling genuinely remorseful. Harry’s desire to please Dumbledore suggests that he considers Dumbledore as something of a father figure, even if he doesn’t fully open up to him.

“I understand. Natural to want a bit more once you’ve had that first taste—and I blame myself for giving you that, because it was bound to go to your head—but see here, young man, you can’t start flying cars to try and get yourself noticed. Just calm down, all right? Plenty of time for all that when you’re older.”

Following Harry and Ron’s arrival in the flying car, Lockhart's advice to Harry reveals his patronizing attitude and obsessive focus on fame and appearance. By assuming that Harry is desperate to generate more attention, Lockhart reveals his own priorities. By the end of the novel, it becomes clear how much Lockhart is willing to sacrifice to achieve his ends, including his integrity and the memories of those whose deeds he claims credit for.

“And a few of you need to read Wanderings with Werewolves more carefully—I clearly state in chapter twelve that my ideal birthday gift would be harmony between all magic and non-magic peoples—though I wouldn’t say no to a large bottle of Ogden’s Old Firewhisky!”

Lockhart’s supposed ideal birthday gift is calculated to elicit a sympathetic response. His attempt to appear generous and wise is cheapened by his subsequent statement that he would accept a bottle of whisky, showing how little thought or seriousness he attaches to the goal of relations between magical and non-magical people. Those, like Harry, who spot the contradictions between Lockhart’s feigned generosity and his self-serving tone are not likely to be fooled by him.

“It was a voice, a voice to chill the bone marrow, a voice of breathtaking, ice-cold venom.”

This description of the basilisk’s voice emphasizes its effect on the listener, Harry in this case. The voice has a chilling effect and takes his breath away, suggesting the creature’s malevolence and power, while the mention of venom foreshadows Harry’s later wounding by the basilisk. Linked as it is with Voldemort and Slytherin, the basilisk serves as a physical manifestation of their hatred against Muggles and Muggle-born students.

“Filch’s knobbly hands were twisting together. ‘If I thought you’d read my private—not that it’s mine—for a friend—be that as it may—however—’ Harry was staring at him, alarmed; Filch had never looked madder.”

Filch is distraught and embarrassed to find that Harry read his Kwikspell course, which reveals him to be a Squib, a non-magical person born into a magical family. While Harry bears no specific ill will toward Filch on that account, Filch’s reaction is supported by Ron’s subsequent amusement at discovering Filch to be a Squib. Prejudice or amusement at Filch’s inability to perform magic serves as a mirror image of prejudice against Muggles.

“Slytherin wished to be more selective about the students admitted to Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, believing them to be untrustworthy.”

This is the most comprehensive explanation of the prejudice against Muggle-born students offered in the book, yet it leaves several questions about how and why Slytherin distrusted them. As kept alive by wizards such as the Malfoys, this prejudice reveals itself in equal parts distaste for Muggle-born students and pride in existing magical heredity. In the face of clear evidence that Muggle-born students such as Hermione can excel, the Malfoys fall back on some indefinable quality of purity as justification. This quote provides no real rationale for their thinking because, ultimately, there is none.

“I don’t want to break the rules, you know. I think threatening Muggle-borns is far worse than brewing up a difficult potion. But if you don’t want to find out if it’s Malfoy, I’ll go straight to Madam Pince now and hand the book back in—”

Hermione bends her usually strict adherence to rules to brew the Polyjuice Potion in the hopes of identifying Slytherin’s heir. To her, Harry, and Ron, moral goals take precedence over administrative rules. Their proactiveness in investigating the mystery, while others are content to let authorities deal with it, also plays a role in their growing independence and coming of age.

“Slytherin has better brooms than us […]. No point denying it. But we’ve got better people on our brooms.”

Wood’s pep talk before the Quidditch match with Slytherin demonstrates confidence and the importance of people over (admittedly magical) technology while suggesting the high tensions between houses at Hogwarts. The house system allows like-minded individuals to come together, but it can also foster tribal mentalities and stereotypes; note that Wood refers to his teammates not as better “players” but better “people,” a more comprehensive term.

“Ah, if Harry Potter only knew! […]. If he knew what he means to us, to the lowly, the enslaved, we dregs of the magical world! Dobby remembers how it was when He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was at the height of his powers, sir! We house-elves were treated like vermin, sir! Of course, Dobby is still treated like that […]. But mostly, sir, life has improved for my kind since you triumphed over He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Harry Potter survived, and the Dark Lord’s power was broken, and it was a new dawn, sir, and Harry Potter shone like a beacon of hope for those of us who thought the dark days would never end, sir.”

Dobby is part of a marginalized population. His comments shed light on the political and moral conflicts underlying Voldemort’s search for power. By opposing Voldemort, Harry aligns himself with the marginalized groups viewed as inferior by Voldemort and his followers.

“Deliberately causing mayhem in Snape’s Potions class was about as safe as poking a sleeping dragon in the eye.”

Rowling sprinkles the text with humorous asides like this one. Many are also specifically related to the magical world, suggesting that, like any other culture, the magical community has unique expressions. Snape’s occasional appearance as an object of ridicule makes him something of a caricature, though his character takes on added depth in later sequels.

“Harry couldn’t explain, even to himself, why he didn’t just throw Riddle’s diary away. […] And while Harry was sure he had never heard the name T. M. Riddle before, it still seemed to mean something to him, almost as though Riddle was a friend he’d had when he was very small, and had half-forgotten.”

Harry’s decision to hold onto Riddle’s diary despite all signs that it has no particular merit reveals the subtlety of his connection with Voldemort, which is a theme of the series. In a way that is not fully explained until later sequels, Voldemort is part of Harry. Thematically, the presence of good and evil inside of Harry signifies a conflict versus self.

“‘Well, hurry off to bed,’ said Dumbledore, giving Riddle exactly the kind of penetrating stare Harry knew so well.”

Dumbledore is the only teacher to suspect the truth about Riddle when Hagrid is arrested for opening the Chamber of Secrets. Harry often feels that Dumbledore can look through or into him as well. Dumbledore’s extraordinary perceptiveness stops short of omniscience, as even he cannot stop the attacks, but he helps Harry make sense of his discoveries and experiences after the fact, in this novel and most of the others in the series.

“Tom Riddle had turned Hagrid in because he was faced with the prospect of a Muggle orphanage if the school closed. Harry now knew exactly how he felt.”

Harry and Riddle both prefer Hogwarts to their homes away from school. Both seek to end the attacks at least partially to protect the school from closure. While both are loyal to Hogwarts in some sense, they have very different visions of what the school should be and who should attend.

“However, […] you will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me. You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it.”

Dumbledore’s parting words as he is temporarily suspended from the school show remarkable foresight, since he seems to recognize that Harry and Ron are nearby, hiding under the Invisibility Cloak. The loyalty he receives from them is not based on blind obedience but rather on shared values and goals. Like Dumbledore himself, the help he sends to Harry is not particularly imposing in appearance, but it enables him to rid the school of Riddle and the basilisk through a combination of intelligence and elegantly applied magic.

The creature that was lurking somewhere in the castle, he thought, sounded like a sort of monster Voldemort—even other monsters didn’t want to name it.”

Here, Harry recognizes a similarity between Voldemort and the basilisk: both inspire such fear that others choose not even to mention them by name. Voldemort and the basilisk are also linked in violent purpose, as well as kinship to Slytherin, which starts with “s,” a letter both visually and audibly with snakes; “Slytherin” also sounds like “slithering,” which is how snakes move. More broadly, snakes have historically been viewed negatively within the Judeo-Christian tradition as evil and deceptive.

“Lockhart gazed desperately around him, but nobody came to the rescue. He didn’t look remotely handsome anymore. His lip was trembling, and in the absence of his usual toothy grin, he looked weak-chinned and feeble.”

Lockhart's true nature begins to show when the other teachers turn on him and jokingly nominate him to fight Slytherin’s monster. His trembling lip suggests his fearfulness, while his weak chin suggests ineffectiveness. Lockhart thrives on adoration, but his peers on the Hogwarts teaching staff are far too skilled to be fooled by his façade.

“He couldn’t not go, not now they had found the entrance to the Chamber, not if there was even the faintest, slimmest, wildest chance that Ginny might be alive.”

Harry seeks out the Chamber of Secrets not for fame or glory or abstract ideals but to save Ginny, who, at this point, is more of an acquaintance than a friend. To Harry, each life is precious, whereas Riddle is willing to sacrifice Ginny’s life to restore his own. Rowling’s use of synonyms for emphasis (“faintest, slimmest, wildest”) shows that Harry has the heroic quality of willingness to make an effort and potentially sacrifice himself even when success appears extremely unlikely.

“The music was growing louder. It was eerie, spine-tingling, unearthly; it lifted the hair on Harry’s scalp and made his heart feel as though it was swelling to twice its normal size.”

The first, and perhaps most important, effect of the help that Dumbledore sends to Harry in the Chamber of Secrets is to bolster his confidence. That this occurs through music implies music to be a kind of magic in its own right. Harry’s increase in confidence also solidifies his membership in Gryffindor House, which is known for bravery.

“I can see now... there is nothing special about you, after all. I wondered, you see. Because there are strange likenesses between us, Harry Potter. Even you must have noticed. Both half-bloods, orphans, raised by Muggles. Probably the only two Parselmouths to come to Hogwarts since the great Slytherin himself. We even look something alike… But after all, it was merely a lucky chance that saved you from me.”

When Harry explains that he survived Voldemort’s attack on him as a baby due to his mother dying to protect him, Riddle attributes this to chance. Harry and Dumbledore, however, recognize Harry’s mother’s love for him as the root cause of Harry’s survival and Voldemort’s defeat, not chance. Voldemort’s disdainful attitude reveals the pride and overconfidence that make him susceptible to defeat by Harry and his friends, time and time again.

“Let’s match the power of Lord Voldemort, Heir of Salazar Slytherin, against famous Harry Potter, and the best weapons Dumbledore can give him.”

Riddle explicitly frames his attack on Harry as a continuation of larger battles of ideas. Harry becomes Dumbledore’s champion and, with the appearance of the sword, Gryffindor’s as well. That Riddle chooses to describe Fawkes and the Sorting Hat as “weapons” reveals the narrowness of his militaristic mindset; Fawkes does fight, but he turns out to heal Harry just as well as he wounds the basilisk.