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100 Inspirational Characters---- #4. Harry Potter
Me being me, this is not only inevitable, but something that I've got to talk about. This post is going to be all about the genesis of everything you see here today. :)
{I chose this picture because this was the Harry that I first met and fell in love with.}
Mmhm. Yep, I'm one of the 'Potter generation'. I started reading this series around the time when the second book came out; I was seven years old. And I was hooked right from the beginning. Apart from the first two, I waited all the years for all of the others. I am one of the numerous people who literally grew up with these books. So much of who I am was inspired by the themes of the series. The fifth book is what inspired me to be a writer, was the first fictional thing that ever made me cry. HP was my first fandom, and the fandom in which I wrote my first ever fanfics for, and it was the home of the first slash pairing I ever liked, which became the ultimate OTP of my soul (Remus/Sirius).
In short, I am a huge, huge, huge Harry Potter fangirl and nerd/geek.
*points up to the picture* And it's all that fucker's fault.
Yeah, Sirius Black may be my favorite HP character ever, Remus/Sirius may be my OTP, and I may have never really written Harry ever. But the thing is...of course I love Harry. If I didn't, how would I have ever made it to the end of book 3 to discover my Sirius? Why would I have continued on with the series after book 5, if I didn't like Harry?
Harry Potter has the distinction of being the only main character that I didn't want to punch in the face for one reason or another. Unlike some people, I was never mad at Harry (no, not even in OotP); I'm always inclined to feel gut-wrenching sympathy for him. No matter what, I was always in Harry's corner, on his side.
I think what makes Harry so admirable, likable, and such a great role model for kids like myself, and #4 on this list, is because he comes from nothing; most of his life, he's been bullied, abused, and neglected, and yet instead of sinking into a vicious cycle (like....Snape), Harry tries to help people, and to save them from having to suffer like he has. And throughout the series, that's with a piece of Voldemort's evil soul attached to him! Again and again, Harry proves that he's more inclined to put others ahead of himself, and he never hesitates to step up to the aid of those who need him.
Since I just finished reading PoA, one instance of Harry's nature comes after he finds out that Sirius 'betrayed' his parents, and he wants to rag on Hagrid for not mentioning this before. But when he finds that Hagrid's upset? Harry just "doesn't have the heart to do it". Harry's been suffering because of the dementors all year, was being forced to hear his mother being murdered, and found out that someone who was supposed to be his parents' best friend betrayed them to their deaths; and yet, despite his own torment, Harry's willing to put it aside to go to Hagrid's aid, even though he sees that what Hagrid had done by not telling him about Sirius was akin to betraying him.
But what I think is Harry's best attribute, especially speaking from an adult perspective, is his ability to forgive. What sets Harry apart from every other character is this: he does what pretty much no one else manages to do, and forgives people, no matter how much he's been wronged by them. He forgives Ron for ditching him twice, during times when he really needed him. He forgives Dudley for all the years of abuse he suffered from him. He forgives Dumbledore for manipulating him and essentially setting up his death; he forgives Snape for all his years of bitterness, hatred, and abuse, and he ends up naming his second son after both of them. He forgives his father for being human, he forgives his various classmates for turning on him at times, he forgives Dobby for attempting to save his life in CoS. He gives Wormtail mercy, and tries to save his life. He saves Draco's life and feels pity for him, and eventually develops an amicable relationship with him. He forgives Hagrid for essentially screwing him over multiple times, he forgives the people who have lied to him...fuck, he even gave Voldemort a chance for redemption----Harry is constantly forgiving and forgiving people, and it's really a beautiful thing. So many characters in the series have been consumed by their grudges, whereas Harry shows that it's actually healthier to just forgive and move the fuck on. And that's not saying that he finds it easy to do so; but Harry does it anyway, because he, more so than anyone, knows that life's too short to hold onto things that make you miserable.
And yet still, for all of Harry's many Jesus-like qualities, this is still Harry's coming-of-age story, and he's still a flawed human being. He's a kid; of course he fucks up and makes mistakes. Harry is not above failing, and failing hard at that (...Sirius's death, anyone? D:). But for all the shit life throws at him, for all the stumbles he takes along the way, Harry always gets up and keeps trying. Harry is very good at putting things into perspective, and always remembers that things could be worse, and he's never unappreciative of the things that he has or gets, even if they're things that most people take for granted. All he wants is love and a family, and I'm happy to say that he got it. And he manages to move on and forgive everything to boot. Really, what more can you ask of a person?
Harry Potter has to be high on this list, because more than anything else, he was my main inspiration when I was growing up. No matter how scared I am, or how much pain I'm in, or whenever the world gets too stressful and too much for me to handle, I always turn back to my HP books. For fourteen years now, Harry Potter has been one of the rocks of my world, and I will be forever grateful for how he shaped my identity. Harry taught me about forgiveness, about loyalty, love, and true friendship, about free will versus destiny, to always be accepting and to keep an open heart and mind.....again, so much of who I am today is because of him.
So, thank you, Harry Potter. I'd be lost without you (though I'm still waiting for my Hogwarts letter!), and for myself and the billions of people around the world that you inspired with your story, thanks for introducing us to the Hogwarts that'll always be there to welcome us home. :)
o - o - o
Harry Potter: On Monday, I will be in danger of...er...burns.
Ron Weasley: Yeah you will, we're seeing the skrewts again on Monday.
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
o - o - o
{I chose this picture because this was the Harry that I first met and fell in love with.}
Mmhm. Yep, I'm one of the 'Potter generation'. I started reading this series around the time when the second book came out; I was seven years old. And I was hooked right from the beginning. Apart from the first two, I waited all the years for all of the others. I am one of the numerous people who literally grew up with these books. So much of who I am was inspired by the themes of the series. The fifth book is what inspired me to be a writer, was the first fictional thing that ever made me cry. HP was my first fandom, and the fandom in which I wrote my first ever fanfics for, and it was the home of the first slash pairing I ever liked, which became the ultimate OTP of my soul (Remus/Sirius).
In short, I am a huge, huge, huge Harry Potter fangirl and nerd/geek.
*points up to the picture* And it's all that fucker's fault.
Yeah, Sirius Black may be my favorite HP character ever, Remus/Sirius may be my OTP, and I may have never really written Harry ever. But the thing is...of course I love Harry. If I didn't, how would I have ever made it to the end of book 3 to discover my Sirius? Why would I have continued on with the series after book 5, if I didn't like Harry?
Harry Potter has the distinction of being the only main character that I didn't want to punch in the face for one reason or another. Unlike some people, I was never mad at Harry (no, not even in OotP); I'm always inclined to feel gut-wrenching sympathy for him. No matter what, I was always in Harry's corner, on his side.
I think what makes Harry so admirable, likable, and such a great role model for kids like myself, and #4 on this list, is because he comes from nothing; most of his life, he's been bullied, abused, and neglected, and yet instead of sinking into a vicious cycle (like....Snape), Harry tries to help people, and to save them from having to suffer like he has. And throughout the series, that's with a piece of Voldemort's evil soul attached to him! Again and again, Harry proves that he's more inclined to put others ahead of himself, and he never hesitates to step up to the aid of those who need him.
Since I just finished reading PoA, one instance of Harry's nature comes after he finds out that Sirius 'betrayed' his parents, and he wants to rag on Hagrid for not mentioning this before. But when he finds that Hagrid's upset? Harry just "doesn't have the heart to do it". Harry's been suffering because of the dementors all year, was being forced to hear his mother being murdered, and found out that someone who was supposed to be his parents' best friend betrayed them to their deaths; and yet, despite his own torment, Harry's willing to put it aside to go to Hagrid's aid, even though he sees that what Hagrid had done by not telling him about Sirius was akin to betraying him.
But what I think is Harry's best attribute, especially speaking from an adult perspective, is his ability to forgive. What sets Harry apart from every other character is this: he does what pretty much no one else manages to do, and forgives people, no matter how much he's been wronged by them. He forgives Ron for ditching him twice, during times when he really needed him. He forgives Dudley for all the years of abuse he suffered from him. He forgives Dumbledore for manipulating him and essentially setting up his death; he forgives Snape for all his years of bitterness, hatred, and abuse, and he ends up naming his second son after both of them. He forgives his father for being human, he forgives his various classmates for turning on him at times, he forgives Dobby for attempting to save his life in CoS. He gives Wormtail mercy, and tries to save his life. He saves Draco's life and feels pity for him, and eventually develops an amicable relationship with him. He forgives Hagrid for essentially screwing him over multiple times, he forgives the people who have lied to him...fuck, he even gave Voldemort a chance for redemption----Harry is constantly forgiving and forgiving people, and it's really a beautiful thing. So many characters in the series have been consumed by their grudges, whereas Harry shows that it's actually healthier to just forgive and move the fuck on. And that's not saying that he finds it easy to do so; but Harry does it anyway, because he, more so than anyone, knows that life's too short to hold onto things that make you miserable.
And yet still, for all of Harry's many Jesus-like qualities, this is still Harry's coming-of-age story, and he's still a flawed human being. He's a kid; of course he fucks up and makes mistakes. Harry is not above failing, and failing hard at that (...Sirius's death, anyone? D:). But for all the shit life throws at him, for all the stumbles he takes along the way, Harry always gets up and keeps trying. Harry is very good at putting things into perspective, and always remembers that things could be worse, and he's never unappreciative of the things that he has or gets, even if they're things that most people take for granted. All he wants is love and a family, and I'm happy to say that he got it. And he manages to move on and forgive everything to boot. Really, what more can you ask of a person?
Harry Potter has to be high on this list, because more than anything else, he was my main inspiration when I was growing up. No matter how scared I am, or how much pain I'm in, or whenever the world gets too stressful and too much for me to handle, I always turn back to my HP books. For fourteen years now, Harry Potter has been one of the rocks of my world, and I will be forever grateful for how he shaped my identity. Harry taught me about forgiveness, about loyalty, love, and true friendship, about free will versus destiny, to always be accepting and to keep an open heart and mind.....again, so much of who I am today is because of him.
So, thank you, Harry Potter. I'd be lost without you (though I'm still waiting for my Hogwarts letter!), and for myself and the billions of people around the world that you inspired with your story, thanks for introducing us to the Hogwarts that'll always be there to welcome us home. :)
o - o - o
Harry Potter: On Monday, I will be in danger of...er...burns.
Ron Weasley: Yeah you will, we're seeing the skrewts again on Monday.
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
o - o - o