HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE (1997)
- What does the episode of the Sorting Hat reveal about Harry? What does it say about fate in the story? Is it always superior to human will?
- Why does the school first prohibit the Forbidden Forest and then force Harry to enter it for his detention? Has there been a change in opinion among the Hogwarts authorities as to Harry’s ability to handle danger so that prohibitions are no longer as necessary as they used to be?
- Harry has no personal contact with Dumbledore until he is caught in the forbidden room where the Mirror of Erised stands. Why does this first close contact with Dumbledore occur in the mirror room? Is the situation more important than just a routine rule violation by a naughty student? If so, how?
- How does the Hogwarts world compare with the Muggle world? Does Rowling want us to make such a comparison?
- Throughout most of the story, we share Harry’s point of view. We see what he sees and experience what he experiences. In the first chapter, however, we are shown Mr. Dursley’s point of view as he drives to work, sees a cat reading a map, and encounters oddly dressed people on the streets. Rowling could have given us a more straightforward third-person story without any particular point of view. Why does she choose to show us Mr. Dursley’s thoughts and reactions in this first chapter?
- How many of you just read the book for the first time? How many of you are rereading the Harry Potter series?
- Why do you think J.K. Rowling depicts the Dursleys as being so terrible?
- What are the advantages to Harry not having known how special he is before he starts school? Disadvantages? What are some of the instances when Harry acts more like a bumbling Muggle than a great wizard?
- What are your first impressions of Hogwarts School? What about it makes it seem special and different?
- The title of each of the chapters provides some clues as to what will occur in each. Do the titles tell the whole truth? How do they reveal some of the more symbolic meaning of the story?
- Sometimes, the very qualities that seem to make a person disagreeable to you, as Hermione was to Harry and his friends at first, become assets to you once that person becomes you friend. Where else do you instances of this in the novel and what function do these instances play?
- In Chapter Nine, Harry disobeys a direct order from one of the teachers at the Hogwarts School and takes off on a broom. This infraction is normally cause for expulsion from the school. However, in Harry’s case, it brings him the honor of being chosen as the “Seeker” for his Quidditch team. Can you find other instances in the story where Harry’s actions lead to quite opposite results from what is expected? To what extent is the book’s plot advanced by such surprise turns of events?
- The Mirror of Erised (Desire) plays an important role in the Harry’s growing understanding of his internal conflict. The inscription around the top of the mirror translates: “I show not your face but your heart’s desire.” When Harry gazes into the mirror he sees his parents and other members of his family. Dumbledore, the headmaster of the school, cautions Harry, saying that the mirror “will give neither knowledge nor truth. Men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible,” and he concludes by saying, “It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” Harry longs for the connection to his family, something missing from his miserable childhood. How does he eventually make that connection to the past without losing sight of what is important in the present and essential to the future?
The young heroes have to face their greatest challenges without any support from adults until the last few pages. Discuss how Rowling uses these elements to build suspense. - Quirrell tells Harry that “There is no good and evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it.” How and where do you see this concept mirrored or distorted in the novel?
- Many novels of high fantasy borrow from the traditional stories of fairy tales, myths, and legends. The dog Fluffy which guards the trapdoor at Hogwarts School resembles Cerberus, the three-headed dog which guards the underworld of Greek mythology. What other creatures from traditional tales are paralleled in the story? How does each of these creatures play a pivotal role in advancing the plot?
- Consider the professors at Hogwarts, including Dumbledore, McGongall, and Quirrell – what does each character stand for? What does Harry learn from each one?
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