Aunt Marge's Big Mistake

Chapter 2 of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: Aunt Marge's Big Mistake

Synopsis

At breakfast the next morning, Harry is hardly surprised when nobody wishes him a Happy Birthday. Everyone is watching the new kitchen TV, which had been installed because Dudley was complaining about the long walk from the living room TV to the fridge. The TV newscaster is reporting on an escaped prisoner, Sirius Black, saying he is armed and dangerous; Aunt Petunia immediately goes to the window to see if he might be outside. Uncle Vernon prepares to leave for the train station to collect Aunt Marge, Vernon's sister and Harry's least favorite relative. Marge's past visits when she tortured him has left Harry with unpleasant memories, and he is unhappy that she is staying for a whole week. Uncle Vernon warns Harry to keep a civil tongue and that there will not be any funny stuff (presumably meaning magic). He reminds Harry that Marge believes he attends St. Brutus's Secure Center for Incurably Criminal Boys. As Uncle Vernon is leaving, Harry corners him with a counter proposal: if he behaves during Marge's visit, Uncle Vernon will sign his Hogsmeade permission slip. Uncle Vernon, reminded about how easy it would be for Harry to slip up and say something about his magical connections, and how little he has to lose by doing so, angrily agrees, and slams off to the station as Harry, resigned to acting like a Muggle for the week, sadly puts away all his magical stuff and sends Hedwig and Errol to Ron for the week.

The visit begins poorly, with Marge giving Dudley a big hug and a kiss and £20, while treating Harry as a porter. Throughout the week, Marge repeatedly insults Harry, at one point commenting about how problems in the parents usually appear in the offspring. When her wine glass suddenly shatters, she passes it off as her having such strong hands, unsuspecting that it could have been Harry who caused it to break – Harry is angry enough to have done it, but is unsure whether he did. On her last day, Aunt Marge goes into a diatribe about Harry's "good-for-nothing parents". Harry's anger causes her to start swelling, eventually inflating like a balloon and bobbing around on the ceiling. Harry knows he is probably in trouble for twice violating the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Under-Age Sorcery, an action that could result in having his wand snapped in two and/or being expelled from Hogwarts. Harry hurriedly packs his belongings, and dragging his trunk behind him, runs into the night.

Analysis

It would have seemed that no one could be more unpleasant to Harry than Uncle Vernon, but Aunt Marge is equally hateful. Her derogatory comment, "If there is something wrong with the bitch, there'll be something wrong with the pup," is seemingly an aspersion at Harry by targeting his mother's character, but it could also be a thinly veiled insult against Aunt Petunia, whom Marge may consider inferior and tainted by her blood relationship to Harry. Her animosity excludes Dudley, despite his blood connection to Harry and Petunia. Marge dotes on her young nephew.

Harry's interactions, both with Vernon and Marge, show how he has matured and gained self-confidence, and there has been a slight power shift in the household. Aware how much strength he holds, Harry now bargains, almost as an equal, with Vernon, to achieve what he wants. With Marge, Harry is able to restrain himself, barely, for almost the full week, only losing his temper when she insults his parents. It is noteworthy that we see Vernon attempting to defuse the situation. Vernon surely knows Harry is being pushed to his limits, and fears what might happen if those limits are exceeded. This illustrates their relationship's changing dynamic; even one year earlier, Vernon would never have worried about Harry in a similar situation.

While Harry has become more sophisticated and adept at manipulating and interacting with people, Uncle Vernon has grown fearful, perhaps realizing that as his nephew nears legal age, he could possibly retaliate with magic. Knowing that Vernon worries that Aunt Marge might learn he is a wizard, Harry barters with his uncle, offering good behavior and agreeing to act like a Muggle in exchange for having his Hogsmeade permission slip signed. However, when Harry is unable to contain his anger with the obnoxious Aunt Marge, he loses this opportunity. Although his uncontrolled reaction has lost him his chance to visit Hogsmeade, it also shows how powerful Harry's magical abilities have become. Without realizing it, Harry has demonstrated "wandless magic" several times, a nearly impossible feat for most wizards. While Harry is unsure if he shattered Aunt Marge's wine glass, it is certain that both his inflating her, and the cupboard unlocking when he retrieves his trunk, are magic, and as Harry's wand is locked in the cupboard, Harry is performing magic without its assistance.

Despite the changed relationship between Harry and Uncle Vernon, Harry is still a child, and his reactions are childish. Having gotten into trouble in Vernon's house, and presuming he violated wizard law, Harry's impulse is to run away. He has no clear idea where to go, or what he will do when he gets there; he simply decides that he must become a fugitive, believing he can gather his money from Gringotts and go into hiding. For one as famous as Harry, this is clearly wishful thinking at its worst; Harry could never remain hidden. It also never occurs to him that there are many, including Dumbledore, McGonagall, and the Weasleys, who would come to his defence. This actually is an interesting contrast to Harry's behaviour in his first year, where, knowing that he was headed into possibly mortal danger, Harry pressed ahead anyway. It likely would prove interesting to examine this event, and Harry's earlier excursion Through the Trap Door, to see how Harry's character is motivated in each case.

Questions

Review

1. Why does Harry run away? Was he right to?
2. How does Harry plan to have Uncle Vernon sign his Hogsmeade permission slip? What does this say about how Harry's character has changed?
3. Why does Aunt Petunia look outside the window? Are her fears reasonable?

Further Study

1. How is Harry able to perform magic unintentionally and without his wand?
2. How has Harry's relationship with his aunt and uncle changed? What accounts for this change?
3. Even if Harry had not inflated Aunt Marge, would Uncle Vernon have signed Harry's permission slip? Give reasons both for and against this.
4. Why does Aunt Marge insult Harry's dead parents? Why does Uncle Vernon attempt to intervene? Were Marge's insults also intended for someone else?

Greater Picture

It will be revealed that Sirius Black is actually a fugitive wizard considered dangerous to both wizards and Muggles. It therefore becomes necessary to warn Muggles about him. Though the Wizarding world is kept secret and separate from Muggles, there are key Muggle contacts who work with wizard officials. Just how Muggles are alerted is shown in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Aunt Petunia nervously peering out the window after the TV newscast may be for a very specific reason, rather than a general panicked reaction to a fugitive on the loose. Petunia is far more knowledgeable about the Wizarding world than Harry ever imagined. Dumbledore had likely briefed her regarding the circumstances surrounding her sister Lily's death. Perhaps recognizing Sirius Black's name and knowing that Black is connected to Harry and also to the Potters' murders, she now fears for Vernon and Dudley's safety, as well as her own, though she is probably less concerned about Harry's wellbeing. We have no guide as to how she feels about Aunt Marge.