Mod+5+The+Making+of+Home+Places+in+Harry+Potter

Abstract

• Examines characterization of homes in Harry Potter series.

• Shows associations between an environment’s physical traits and lived qualities.

• Discusses four homes in the series, highlighted in books and films.

• Analyzes Hogwarts as an unlikely, yet ideal, home for Harry.

1. Introduction

• Discusses homes vs. houses: Houses as mere structures; homes infused with meaning and experience.

• Phenomenological geography: Focuses on human experiences over mere structural views of space.

• Tuan's definitions: Space = geometrical; Place = rational/experiential.

• Places reflect human actions, values, and emotions.

• Bachelard’s study: Highlights emotional responses to intimate spaces like homes.

2. Number Four, Privet Drive

• Represents a perfect suburban home, yet contrasting with nurturing qualities:

  • Clean, tidy, spacious, full of family photos, but excludes Harry.

  • Harry’s space: Cupboard under the stairs and smallest bedroom embody neglect.

  • Locked away during summer, highlighting danger.

• Magic as a destructive force:

  • Harry’s visibility brings chaos into a ‘perfect’ home.

  • Magic occurs only when the Dursleys are away, indicating conflict.

• Final reflection: Harry views Privet Drive with fondness only after the Dursley’s departure.

3. Dark Homes: Malfoy Manor and Number Twelve Grimmauld Place

• Overview of wizarding homes: Malfoy Manor vs. Twelve Grimmauld Place.

• Malfoy Manor:

  • Exterior indicates wealth, with luxurious decor hosting dark ideologies.

  • Represents duplicity: Care for family vs. allegiance to Voldemort.

  • Draco experiences a ‘good home’ with family attachment despite underlying cruelty.

• Grimmauld Place:

  • Once grand, now decayed mirroring the Black family’s power decline.

  • Entrance reveals dark past (house elf heads, pureblood supremacy).

  • Sirius’ representation of rejecting family values visually contrasted with Regulus’ dark Slytherin themes.

4. The Burrow

• Represents a loving, welcoming home juxtaposed to the Dursleys:

  • Described as a haphazard structure, reflects warmth and safety for Harry.

  • Contrasts with well-ordered, but emotionally cold Privet Drive.

  • Harry’s joy: Feels at home due to warmth, food, and caring nature of the Weasleys.

5. “The first and only place he had felt at home”: Hogwarts

• Hogwarts as Harry’s true home:

  • Feels welcome and nurtured; contrary to its imposing architecture.

  • Symbolizes warmth of friendships, education, and belonging despite inherent dangers.

  • Contrasting experiences: Harry embodies friendship and protection, while Voldemort's legacy is one of fear and cruelty.

6. Conclusions

• Rowling contrasts physicality of home spaces against personal experiences:

  • Privet Drive as oppressive, while wizarding homes embody values reflecting their inhabitants.

  • Malfoy Manor and Grimmauld Place represent internal conflicts between appearances and true nature.

  • The Burrow’s untidiness symbolizes a loving, supportive environment.

  • Hogwarts as a space showcasing deep agency influencing identities of its inhabitants.

• Enduring message about home redefined by emotional connections and experiences.