Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Books/Half-Blood Prince/Chapter 3
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Chapter 3 of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Will and Won't
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[edit] Synopsis
The chapter opens at the Dursleys' house where Harry is asleep. Scattered about his room are many Daily Prophets. The paper now hails Harry as 'The Chosen One', who will be instrumental in the recently-returned Voldemort's downfall.
Dumbledore arrives to collect Harry. Despite Dumbledore previously sending a letter setting the time, and Harry anxiously waiting his arrival for most of the week, he is astonished and puzzled that Dumbledore is fetching him from the Dursleys after only two weeks, and he is further surprised when Dumbledore actually arrives. The Dursleys are also surprised; Harry apparently never told them he was coming. Dumbledore merely ignores their disdain and makes himself comfortable. Harry notices that Dumbledore's hand is black and shriveled, but he says nothing to Harry about how he acquired the injury, saying only he will explain later.
Dumbledore tells Harry that Sirius Black has bequeathed him all his possessions, including 12 Grimmauld Place, Kreacher, and Buckbeak. However, there may be a spell that automatically leaves the inheritance to the eldest surviving Black male or prevents it from passing to a non-pureblood wizard. Because Sirius was the last Black male, it would likely pass to the eldest female relative, namely Bellatrix Lestrange (Sirius's cousin). To test whether Harry is the true heir, Dumbledore summons Kreacher, the loyal Black family House-elf. When Kreacher reluctantly obeys Harry's command, it confirms that Harry is the rightful heir.
Kreacher is sent to work at Hogwarts, and Buckbeak (now renamed Witherwings) is left in Hagrid's care. Dumbledore tells the Dursleys to expect a short visit from Harry in a year's time. The magical charm that has protected Harry from Voldemort since infancy will expire when he comes of age on his seventeenth birthday. However, he is required to make one final visit to the Dursleys the following summer to maintain its effectiveness, then his ties to his maternal family can be permanently severed. Before departing, Dumbledore reproaches the Dursleys for their bad manners, mistreating Harry, and over-indulging Dudley.
[edit] Analysis
Dumbledore's injured hand indicates that sinister events may be underway in the wizarding world that Harry is not yet privy to. For whatever reason, Dumbledore chooses to keep them from Harry, at least for now.
It has been suggested that Dumbledore acts out of character in this book. This is particularly obvious in this chapter. While still a peaceful and wise wizard, Dumbledore seems to act with a bit more directness and urgency than usual. He uses magic to sweep the Dursleys to the couch and chides them for their ill-manners, and he actively criticizes how they have treated Harry and raised Dudley. While he is still as good-natured and civil as ever, there seems to be an unexpected edginess in his manner. As can be expected, the Dursleys ignore Dumbledore's rebuke and seem unlikely to ever change.
Many readers may be somewhat alarmed when Dumbledore offers Harry a glass of mead. Mead, a wine made from honey, is usually relatively strong at 14% alcohol by volume, and it would be illegal to give it to a minor in North America. Liquor laws are less restrictive in Britain, however, and though someone underage may not purchase liquor in the UK, there is nothing that prohibits someone younger than 18 years from drinking wine or beer if it is offered by an adult.
[edit] Questions
- How might Dumbledore have hurt his hand? Why doesn't he tell Harry how it was injured?
- Why won't Harry be protected at the Dursley's house after his 17th birthday?
- What effect will Harry's 17th birthday have on his relationship with the Dursleys?
- Why would Dumbledore personally fetch Harry from the Dursleys after only two weeks there? Where might he be taking him?
- What does Dumbledore say to the Dursleys about how they've treated Harry and raised their son, Dudley? Why did he never speak up about this sooner?
- Dumbledore's behavior and demeanor is somewhat different here. How has it changed, and what might be the reason?
[edit] Greater Picture
Some theorists believe that Dumbledore used the "Kreacher test" not only to see whether Number 12 Grimmauld Place actually belonged to Harry rather than Bellatrix Lestrange (Sirius' cousin), but also as a means to determine whether Sirius' younger brother, Regulus Black, was still alive. (It will be learned in the next book that Regulus is the mysterious R.A.B. who leaves a note at the end of this novel.) This test may be inconclusive, as the tradition is that property, such as a house, is directly handed down the male family line. It is entirely possible that the charm ensuring this, if there was one, would prevent a lateral transfer from the eldest male child, once he had come into his inheritance, to his younger brother. When Sirius died without offspring, the charm might have simply ceased operation.
The reason for Dumbledore's drastic character change can be attributed to him being damaged by a ring Horcrux, an object containing a deadly curse that should have killed him. He was able to get help from Severus Snape, who has kept him alive by extraordinary magical means, although only temporarily. This minute-to-minute awareness that he will soon die, and the resulting sense of urgency, is likely the cause for his changed character.
Dumbledore, speaking directly to Petunia, mentions that they have corresponded before. There were actually at least four letters, though at this point in our reading there is nothing that can be attrbuted as being "correspondence". Dumbledore wrote a letter, which he left, along with Harry, on the Dursleys' doorstep at the series' beginning, and the Howler addressed to Petunia in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is also revealed to have been sent by Dumbledore. There is no indication that Petunia responded to either, and correspondence does rather imply that messages are being exchanged; despite this, many readers will assume that it is either one of these letters to which Dumbledore is referring. However, we will learn, in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, that Petunia had earlier written to Hogwarts pleading for admission, and that Dumbledore responded, declining her plea on the grounds that she was unable to perform magic. If we assume that Dumbledore had implied an informational exchange, then he can only have been referring to this first set of letters.
