In this discussion, you will examine and discuss the classification process of finding the archetype of the hero in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone using the elements of Rankian analysis found i

According to Rank, hero myths, such as the stories of Oedipus, Moses, and Jesus, con- This excerpt comes from: M. Katherine Grimes, “Harry Potter: Fairy Tale Prince, Real Boy, and Archetypal Hero.”1 “Oedipal wishes”—Rank believed that the characteristics of the family romance were a result of the child’s anger at his father for interfering with the child’s desire for exclusive access to the mother. Interestingly, because the child projected his anger on the father figure, in the stories it is the father who is angry with the son. Rank explained that children store away these feelings and later express them by telling and appreciating stories that exhibit them. See the introduction (pp. 759–760) for more detail on this process. “dream or oracle”—In Phoenix, we learn that the basis of Voldemort’s fear is a prophecy (839). The ideas underlying Grimes’ analysis come from: Otto Rank, The Myth of the Birth of the Hero. “basket or other receptacle”— Moses is rescued from the Phar- aoh by being placed in a basket: see the painting by Hatherell, page 767. Jesus is born in a stable and placed into a manger, a receptacle for feeding animals. “Hagrid, a gamekeeper”—In Harry’s third year, Hagrid becomes Hog- warts’ teacher of the “Care of Magi- cal Creatures,” and throughout the series he delights in breeding, rais- ing, and taming all sorts of animals. tain ten 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. basic elements, eight of which have been fulfilled by Harry Potter: The boy is the son of royal or even immortal parents—Harry Potter’s parents are a wizard and a witch. Difficulties precede the conception, and in some cases the mother is a virgin—As of book four, we do not yet know the details of Harry’s conception. The child’s life is threatened when dream or oracle warns the father or another royal personage that the boy will be a danger—Voldemort, a sort of prince of evil, has reason to fear Harry and tries to kill him. The boy is separated from his parents—Harry’s parents are dead. The boy is exposed, often in a basket or other receptacle—Harry is laid on the doorstep of his aunt and uncle in a bundle of blankets. The boy is put into water, either to kill him or to save him—Harry and the other first-years are ferried to Hogwarts across a lake, and before Harry can be free from the Dursleys, Hagrid must fetch him from across a large body of water. The child is rescued by animals or underlings, often shepherds—Harry is rescued by Hagrid, a gamekeeper, and is later aided by his godfather in the form of a dog and his father in the form of a stag. The baby is suckled or reared by animals or lowly persons—Harry’s aunt and uncle, the Dursleys, are lowly persons, as is Hagrid, but in a very different way. The hero is eventually recognized as such, often because of a mark or a wound— Harry’s attack by Voldemort has left him with a scar on his forehead, a sign that other wizards recognize. The hero is reconciled with his father (or his representative), OR he exacts re- venge upon his father—Like the condition about conception, this characteristic has not yet been met in Rowling’s novel