Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Books/Goblet of Fire/Chapter 26
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Chapter 26 of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: The Second Task
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[edit] Synopsis
In Charms class, Harry, Ron, and Hermione are learning Banishing charms, the opposite of Summoning. Fortunately, the class noise and confusion muffles their private conversation. Harry reveals what he has learned about the second task. He must find a way to breathe underwater for one hour and recover whatever the Merpeople have taken from him. He also says Mr. Crouch was in Snape's office that same night. Hermione is curious as to why Mr. Crouch would be there. Harry remembers Moody saying that Professor Dumbledore believes in second chances, and he wonders just what Snape did to warrant one.
As requested, Harry sends an owl letter to Sirius recapping everything that happened. Over the next several weeks, he, Hermione, and Ron scour the library searching for ways to breathe underwater, but to no avail. The only joyful spot is an owl letter from Sirius that arrives the day before the second task, though Sirius only wants to know when the Hogsmeade weekend is. Harry responds, and glumly goes to Care of Magical Creatures class.
Hagrid appears to have given up on the Blast-Ended Skrewts, as only two are left. He seems to be trying to prove that he can teach as well as Professor Grubbly-Plank by continuing the lesson about unicorns, and it seems he actually knows many useful things about them. Today, he has captured a pair of foals, and Parvati and Lavender are absolutely delighted by them. While telling everyone to gather round, Hagrid takes Harry aside to let him know that he is sure Harry will be able to beat the second challenge. Harry is too nervous to answer.
As evening approaches, Harry, Hermione, and Ron are racing through spell-books looking for a way that Harry can survive underwater. As the sun sets, Fred and George appear and tell Ron and Hermione that Professor McGonagall wants to see them. Saying they will see Harry in the common room after, Ron and Hermione leave. When the library closes, Harry takes as many books as he can carry back to the Gryffindor common room. As he frantically scours through them, the common room gradually empties. He has searched all the books, and Ron and Hermione have still not returned. Harry gets his Invisibility Cloak and returns to the library where he finally falls asleep reading spell-books by wand light.
Dobby wakes him mere minutes before the second task. Harry says it is too late to compete, but Dobby says he must because he has to retrieve his "Wheezy". Harry finally understands that "Wheezy" is Ron. Dobby says he knows that Harry did not find the right spell, so he did. He overheard Professor McGonagall and Professor Moody talking about the second task and realized that Gillyweed would allow Harry to recover "his Wheezy." He presents Harry a handful and returns to the kitchens. Harry arrives at the lake shore just in time. Percy Weasley, again filling in for Mr. Crouch, is upset when Ludo Bagman insists Harry be given a moment to catch his breath. As he positions the Champions at the shore, Ludo asks if Harry is okay and has a plan. Replying more confidently than he actually feels, Harry responds that he does.
The challenge starts. Harry wades into the lake chewing the Gillyweed but nothing happens. Suddenly, gills sprout on his neck, and, unable to breathe, he dives underwater. Discovering he also has webbed toes, Harry sets off. Grindylows attack and he jinxes them off. Moaning Myrtle appears and indicates which way Harry should travel, complaining she dislikes it there because the Grindylows always chase her. Harry finds a sizable, if crude, Mermish village. Tied to a large statue in the "village square" are four figures: Ron, Hermione, Cho Chang, and a young girl, about eight years old, who, from her fanning white-blonde hair, Harry guesses is probably Fleur's sister.
The Mermish guards do not interfere, but they refuse Harry's attempt to borrow a spear to cut Ron free. Harry finds a sharp stone and cuts Ron free. Worried that the other Champions have not appeared, he also tries to free Hermione, but is stopped by the Mermish guards. Harry is still trying to save Hermione when Cedric arrives with a large air bubble around his head. He tells Harry to get going, Fleur and Krum are almost there. Cutting Cho free, he heads for the surface. Krum appears with his head transformed into a shark; he is unable to bite through Hermione's ropes, so Harry hands him his sharp rock, which Krum uses to cut her free and heads to the surface.
When Fleur does not appear, Harry attempts to cut the last hostage free but is again prevented by the mermen. This time he threatens them with his wand and they back away nervously. Harry frees the girl and Ron and heads to the surface, accompanied by the mermen, making Harry nervous. Harry's watch has stopped, and he worries that they might be pulled back down when the hour is up. As the surface appears, the Gillyweed wears off. Harry barely makes it to the top. Wild, green-haired faces surround him, but they are all smiling. Ron and the girl wake up and are looking around. A great cheer erupts from the stands, and Harry gets Ron to help with the girl. On the shore, Madam Pomfrey is treating Cedric, Cho, Krum, and Hermione. Fleur is restrained by Madame Maxime from throwing herself into the lake to get to her sister. Ludo Bagman and Dumbledore are beaming, and Percy, looking somehow younger, runs into the lake to help Ron.
Once they are all ashore, Fleur runs to hug her sister, Gabrielle, saying she was stopped by the Grindylows. Madam Pomfrey wraps Harry tightly in a blanket and administers a pepper-up potion that causes steam to come out his ears. Hermione compliments Harry on figuring out the task on his own. Seeing that Krum is listening, Harry decides to tell her later that Dobby helped him. Krum, possibly to regain Hermione's attention, points out that she has a water beetle in her hair. Hermione brushes it away and asks Harry if it had taken long to find them. Harry is now feeling rather silly and embarrassed. First Ron, and now Hermione, have pointed out that Dumbledore would never have allowed them to die, so his staying to make sure all the hostages were rescued was pointless.
Meanwhile, Dumbledore is in conference with the Mermen Chief, Merchieftainess Murcus. He then asks to confer with the judges before the final marks are given. Madam Pomfrey has rescued Ron from Percy's clutches and administers a pepper-up potion to him as well. Fleur, still bedraggled, has numerous cuts on her face and arms, and her robe is torn, but she refuses Madam Pomfrey's help, demanding she treat Gabrielle first. She approaches Harry, saying that he saved her sister when he did not have to, and kisses him twice on each cheek. Harry can almost feel steam coming out his ears again. Fleur says that Ron also helped and swoops to kiss him as well. Hermione looks furious, but before she can say anything, the judges break their huddle. Ludo announces the standings. Fleur, although using the Bubble-Head Charm, failed to rescue her hostage and only gets 25 points; Cedric Diggory, also using the Bubble-Head Charm, brought his hostage to the surface one minute outside the allotted hour, getting 47 points; Viktor Krum, using a partial Transfiguration, returned second with his hostage for 40 points. Harry Potter returned last, but according to the Merchieftainess' report, arrived at the hostages first, and was delayed by his determination to free all the hostages, not only his own. Most of the judges feel this shows moral fiber and deserves full marks. Harry is awarded 45 points, tying him for first place with Cedric.
Ludo announces the next task is scheduled for the 24th of June; the Champions will be briefed about the task's nature exactly one month prior. Harry is immensely relieved that the second task is over, and there is nothing to worry about until 24 June. He resolves that next Hogsmeade trip, he will buy Dobby a year's supply of socks.
[edit] Analysis
Harry's performance during the second task reflects how he behaves in most situations. As the first Champion to reach the tethered hostages (with help from Moaning Myrtle), he then feels obligated to ensure the other three "victims" are rescued. And though Harry behaved admirably during the first task by tipping off Cedric about the dragons, here his reasoning is flawed. It never occurs to him that every possible safety precaution has been implemented and the volunteers' lives were never endangered. Rather than heading for the surface, guaranteeing a win, he instead waits for the other Champions to arrive and retrieve their hostages, then insists on "rescuing" Gabrielle when Fleur fails to show. Only later does Harry realize how foolishly he behaved when Ron and Hermione insist they were always safe and that Dumbledore would never jeopardize any student's safety. It actually would have been more logical for Harry to search for the missing Fleur, as the Triwizard Champions lack the same protection as the volunteers. Destined since birth as the "chosen one", Harry's ongoing conflict with Voldemort has skewed his overall thinking somewhat, and, in his mind, the battle has become his burden alone to carry, his mission to accomplish by himself. As a result, Harry feels compelled to rush in and be the hero whenever he feels others are threatened, even those able to fight their own battles. Though Harry feels he must face most obstacles alone, he is only able to compete in the Tournament because others such as Hermione, Moody, Dobby, Cedric, and Hagrid have guided him, and will continue to do so. While Harry is gradually learning to rely on others, he is still generally reluctant to accept outside help, especially when it is suspicious characters like Ludo Bagman, who Harry now suspects has some ulterior motive. Even though Harry's heroism was misguided, it is still rewarded when Dumbledore persuades the judges to assign Harry extra points for "moral fiber."
Harry foolishly protecting the hostages from a nonexistent danger does have a very real and useful value in the story. This light on Harry's character suggests quite strongly that under real dangerous circumstances, he would never abandon others in peril, even to save himself.
Harry is also learning that things are sometimes other than what they initially appear to be. As with the Veela, the Merpeople are first introduced to readers as beautiful ethereal creatures, as represented by the stylized painting in the Prefects' bathroom. Harry is rather shocked to discover that their true appearance is far different. The author shows here that beauty, or the lack of it, does not accurately reflect any person's inner character, although assumptions are often based on superficial physical traits. And while appearance may legitimately represent someone's character to a limited degree, it is mostly one's actions that determine who and what an individual or group truly are. While Merpeople have a rather hideous and scary appearance, they are benign beings loyal to Dumbledore and Hogwarts. Harry, forgetting this was only a competition, got a little carried away with his "rescue mission" and rushed to judgment when faced with something unknown; he adopted a defensive and threatening posture against the Mermen that was based more on appearances than actions, even though these were obviously Tournament officials.
Curiously, Harry seems to pay little attention to Cho Chang immediately after the event. He notices Madame Pomfrey tending to her injuries, but following that, he only focuses on Hermione, Ron, and the judges. This may indicate that his infatuation, if that is what it is, with Cho may be waning, or was less than he thought it was.
It is interesting that Hermione is apparently angry when Fleur kisses Ron, even though it is quite innocent and Viktor Krum is also attempting to attract Hermione's attention. Although Harry is in no state to notice Hermione's furious expression when she witnesses this, we are presumably meant to see it, as it hints that Hermione may have serious feelings for Ron.
This is the second time the Grindylows have been seen, the first being in Professor Lupin's office in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. At that time, it was noted that the Grindylow's fingers are extraordinarily long and relatively easy to break, but Harry does not use this information when he is attacked.
One must wonder why Fleur is portrayed as having so much trouble getting past the Grindylows. She must be among the best that Beauxbatons has to offer, or Madame Maxime would not have brought her to the Tournament, and yet her magic seems, comparatively, rather weak. We are not presented with any reason for this portrayal.
The "water-beetle" in Hermione's hair should be noted.
[edit] Questions
[edit] Review
- Why does Harry stay and help the other Champions with the task, allowing them to reach the surface before he does?
- Was Gabrielle in any danger? What prompted Harry to rescue her?
- What do Ron and Hermione tell Harry after the second task, and why does that embarrasses him?
- Were the judges justified in awarding Harry extra points for "moral fiber"? Just what did Harry do to earn that?
[edit] Further Study
- The other Champions were prepared for the second task. Why were Harry, Ron, and Hermione unable to find a spell for breathing underwater?
- Why does Hermione look so furious just after the task? Why did Krum try to distract her?
- Why might Sirius want to know when the next Hogsmeade weekend is?
[edit] Greater Picture
The water-beetle, of course, will turn out to be Rita Skeeter, who is an unregistered Animagus. Overhearing the private conversation between Hermione and Viktor, she will use that as the basis of a scurrilous story that will appear in Witch Weekly at the beginning of the next chapter. That story will create a rift between Hermione and Mrs. Weasley that will remain unresolved until the book's end.
Harry's need to be the "hero" will play a crucial, and ultimately tragic, role in Book Five, Harry Potter and the The Order of the Phoenix. Hermione later admonishes Harry for always wanting to rush to the rescue, even when there is no real danger, and citing the underwater "hostages" as an example. Despite her warning, when Harry receives a vision that Voldemort is torturing Sirius, he immediately goes to save him without verifying first if the vision is genuine or considering whether or not his predictable behavior is being used to lure him into a trap.
We are here also seemingly laying the groundwork for the creation of an alliance between Hogwarts (in the person of Hermione) and Durmstrang (represented by Krum). By the time this is actually useful, Krum will have graduated – as he did not grow a beard when crossing the Age Line, he must have been at least 17-years-old, making him either a sixth or seventh year student – but he may well have some influence in that part of the world. In fact, while Krum will reappear in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, his contribution will be more personal; the alliance will be with Hermione rather than with Hogwarts, and will simply allow Harry to remember a specific fact that will be useful in the remainder of his quest.
