Life After Hogwarts And The Many Careers Of The Wizarding World

Just like in the Muggle world people need to go to school and get good marks to get good jobs. That’s not saying that people who have good marks are promised to get a good job or that someone with bad marks is destined to have a bad job. There are many different jobs in the wizarding world from being the Minister of Magic, somewhat of the president of the wizarding world, to Teachers at Hogwarts to even just shop helpers on Diagon Alley. There are different jobs for different types of people, someone who is particularly adept at potions could work at an apothecary or someone who has excellent marks and are particularly brave could make a perfect Auror while someone who has been a thief their entire life could make an adequate Bus Driver for the Night Bus. Just like the more reputable careers of the Wizarding World like jobs within the Ministry of Magic or a Teacher and there are other jobs that aren’t so reputable such as working as a Death Eater or an Illegal Smuggler who sells highly valuable and illegal items such as Dragon Eggs or certain poisons or potions.

There would also be summer jobs for students or part time jobs for people who simply need another job. An Assistant at a Wand Shop or a Potion Shop would be perfect for a young Wizard who wants to find out about the world of working in the Wizarding World.
There are some jobs that have very specific prerequisites or assets such as Gringotts only hiring Goblins for the most part and in the Muggle world with the way things are now this wouldn’t be allowed where an employer would be able to hire people based on the workers race instead of the workers ability. The jobs in the Wizarding world wouldn’t be too different from Muggle jobs in the sense that a lot of jobs would be related, they just need to be ramped up because Wizards have the means to do so. Such as the Wizarding world has Aurors the Muggle world has Police Officers and in the Wizarding world they would have jobs exactly like the ones that there are in the Muggle world such as Shop Clerks,Judges, Taxi Services and even Animal Breeders. Wizards would be able to do Muggle jobs with no problem at all but Muggles would have an overwhelming struggle to try and do jobs in the Wizarding world.

Although Wizards have vastly different jobs than Muggles the same problems still occur such as spies in the government or people trying to take over the highest position in the government. Wizards to however have some relations to very important Muggles such as certain ministers and mayors in order to try and have some grip on the affairs of the Muggle worlds. Some Wizards might end up very high the chain of careers due to hard work and such and as a counterpoint to that some Wizards might end up on the very bottom end of the chain due to slacking and laziness. The difference between the potential hazards of the jobs of the Wizarding world and the jobs of the Muggle world is how easy it is to recover from the potential hazards. If a Muggle were to break their legs or something along those lines they run the risk of never being able to work again and risk ruining their lives. In the Wizarding world if someone was to break both of their legs they would be able to go to the Wizarding Hospital and after some immense pain they would be back to work maybe within a couple weeks.

The Many Secrets of Hogwarts, From Secret Passages to Forgotten History

There seems to be countless secrets that The Castle Of Hogwarts holds dear and there are some secrets that maybe nobody will ever know. Even the staff of the school don’t know many of the secrets such as the Chamber of Secrets. Due to the Marauder’s Map at least seven of the secret passages are made clear to Harry throughout the series despite some of them being closed off since the making of the map. There are also some secrets that are known only by staff of the school considering they need the password to get into Dumbledore’s office and some of the house common rooms. There are also secrets hidden in some of the paintings in the school such as the painting that hides the entrance to the kitchens where someone needs to simply tickle the pear to get it to giggle and show the entrance. There are dozens of other secret passageways varying in secrecy such as the Room of Requirement, to the passageway underneath the Whomping Willow that leads to the Shrieking Shack. There are also secret passages within the school and hidden tricks to getting around such as the vanishing step, or hidden doorways behind bookshelves that lead to other parts of the castle, most of which the castle caretaker Argus Filch knows about and uses to get around the castle faster than the students can.
There are things in Hogwarts that aren’t just secret passages and things that are a secret to everyone, there are also some tips and tricks to help students get around the school without too much trouble. Things that include running from the caretaker’s cat, Ms. Norris to knowing that the paintings in the school might help you in your time of need. There are also things that are widely known such as don’t ever go into the Forbidden Forest because who knows what lurks there and if you can help it don’t go swimming in the lake for fear of the Giant Squid and the Mermen that live there and they aren’t too keen on people dropping in for a visit. Hogwarts seems to be like a normal school in that keeping in the loop with your fellow classmates for the latest gossip and news might keep you on the path to success and in Hogwarts case it might keep you alive.
There are also things that hold historical significance in the school such as the knowledge that the school was built by three main founders, Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff. These are just widely known facts and history of the school. There are also things that might be taught in the school such as the history of the Headmasters at Hogwarts. All of these are outlined in the book “Hogwarts A History” which would be publicly available to all students interested except for the books in the restricted section which of course would be off limits. The Restricted Section seems to be another point of secrecy within Hogwarts as students that wish to access that section need explicit permission from a teacher and even then the students aren’t sure what lies within the shelves of it. The Hogwarts library would also have books on things outside of Hogwarts such as the potential history of the Ministry of Magic and the rise and fall of various wizarding factions. Hogwarts carries countless secrets within its walls and for someone to try and learn every one of the secrets of the school would take their entire lives maybe just focusing on one extensive secret such as the Room of Requirement. There are some secrets within the walls that maybe most people don’t wish to know and might be quite deadly.

10 Facts about Ronald Weasley

  1. Ron is a member of the pure blood Weasley family. Both of his parents, Arthur and Molly, come from pure blood lines. Draco Malfoy describes the Weasleys as having, “red hair, freckles and more children than they can afford.” He is the fifth Weasley son to attend Hogwarts. His elder brother, Percy, is a prefect and his older twin brothers, Fred and George, excel academically and are extremely popular because of their pranks. Ron and his family don’t really know much about the muggle world and are often fascinated by the things that Harry tells them about that aspect of his life.
  2. Ron has six siblings: Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, George, and Ginny. Ron often feels overlooked and left out. During their first meeting in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer Stone, Ron tells Harry, “Every one expects me to do as well as the others, but if I do, it’s no big deal, because they did it first.”
  3. Besides Hagrid, Ron is Harry’s first friend in the wizarding world and at Hogwarts. They meet on the platform 9 ¾ and then share a compartment on the train. They bond when Harry buys all of the tea lady’s sweets to share with Ron who only has homemade sandwiches to eat.
  4. Ron helps Harry defeat Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer Stone by directing their trio as they play a life size version of wizard’s chess. Ron sacrifices himself by allowing the white queen to smash his knight, which renders him unconscious, but wins the game. Harry and Hermione are then able to complete their quest.
  5. In the second book of the series, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Ron and his twin brothers, Fred and George, steal their father’s flying car and drive to the Dursley’s home to rescue Harry. Their father is curious about how this artefact operated, but their mother is livid.
  6. In the fourth book of the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Ron and Harry fall out when Harry is selected as the fourth participant in the Triwizard Tournament. Harry insists that he didn’t put his name in the goblet of fire. Ron doesn’t believe him. He feels as if he is constantly in Harry’s shadow. They don’t reconcile until Ron sees how dangerous the tournament is and realizes that Harry would never sign up for it.
  7. Ron realizes that he may have romantic feelings for Hermione when she is Viktor Krum’s date for the Yule Ball.
  8. Ron’s first girlfriend is Lavender Brown. They start dating during their sixth year at Hogwarts. Part of his reason for doing it is obviously to make Hermione jealous. They spend a lot of time making out (snogging) in public. She gives also gives him the annoying nickname, Won Won.
  9. Ron destroys one of Voldemort’s horcruxes, Slytherin’s Locket, but not before the necklace convinces him to abandon Harry and Hermione. The locket plays on Ron’s insecurities and whispers to him, “I have seen your dreams, Ronald Weasley, and I have seen your fears. All you desire is possible, but all that you dread is also possible. . .Least loved, always, by the mother who craved a daughter. . .Least loved, now, by the girl who prefers your friend. . .Second best, always, eternally overshadowed. . .” Eventually Ron destroys, but not after much temptation and anger.
  10. Ron and Hermione wind up together! In the epilogue of the final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, we see how the characters are faring 19 years after the Battle of Hogwarts. Ron and Hermione are married with two children, Rose and Hugo. In this final scene, they are seeing their daughter Rose off to her first year at Hogwarts. 

By Any Other Name: What Harry Potter Names Mean

Names in fiction are an excellent way to give readers a clue as to the personality or nature of a character—whether it’s in their nicknames, their first names, or their last names, the way characters are referred to in stories like Harry Potter are important.

Remus Lupin, for example. When Remus Lupin was a child, a werewolf bit him, and that bite turned Remus into a werewolf as well. This didn’t stop him from becoming a Hogwarts professor, or from having a group of loyal and dedicated friends. The interesting thing is Lupin’s name. Remus is actually also the name of a mythological figure. Legends about Remus and his brother Romulus detailed that they were raised by a she-wolf—and that they founded Rome. Like the legendary Remus, Professor Lupin manages to overcome his past and rise to great heights. Another interesting point about Lupin’s name is that ‘lupin’ is actually related to the Latin word for wolf. It seems that Remus Lupin was destined to be associated with wolves (and werewolves) from birth.

Sirius Black is Harry Potter’s godfather, as well as a close personal friend of Remus Lupin. While they were students at Hogwarts, Sirius, along with James Potter and Peter Pettigrew, studied and trained to become an Animagus, or a wizard who can transform into an animal. The animal that Sirius chose to take on the appearance of is a big, black dog—one that other characters routinely mistake for being a Grim, a particularly nasty omen of death. Astronomically speaking, Sirius is the brightest star of the Canis Major or “Great Dog” constellation. This association has led to the star/star system of Sirius being colloquially referred to as the “Dogstar”.

Merope Gaunt, the mother of Tom Marvolo Riddle, Jr. (who would later become Lord Voldemort) is named after the youngest of the Pleiades, the companions of Artemis. They were the daughters of the Titan Atlas and the sea-nymph Pleione, and share their name with the star-cluster of Pleiades. In the mythology, Merope married Sisyphus, a mortal. After bearing him several sons, she faded away—this is in part because she was becoming mortal. It is interesting to note that Merope Gaunt died after giving birth to Tom Riddle, Jr. In some ways, there seems to be a reflection of the Merope of myth in the Merope of Harry Potter.

Tom Marvolo Riddle was Voldemort’s name, before he took up the mantle of Dark Lord. In both the book and the movie, it is revealed that Tom Riddle’s full name is actually an anagram of “I Am Lord Voldemort”. This means that when the books were translated into different languages, in order to translate the anagram with the name, the name of Voldemort had to be changed. For example, in the French edition of Harry Potter, Voldemort’s name is Tom Elvis Jedusor.

Voldemort itself is an interesting name—Voldemort can be translated from French to mean ‘flight from death’. (It’s a fitting title for someone who tried so hard to escape death by not only seeking eternal life but also by attempting to become death’s Master.)

The tradition of having names that relate to stars and mythology extends to the younger generations of Harry Potter characters—Draco Malfoy, for example. “Draco” is the Latin for ‘dragon’, and can refer to not only the mythological creature, but also an Athenian lawgiver. This lawgiver was known for his particularly ruthless laws. “Malfoy” can be translated from French to mean ‘bad faith’; this is particularly interesting, seeing as the Malfoy family was not only aligned with Voldemort for years, but also seeing as the family broke from Voldemort’s ranks and aided Harry Potter, Voldemort’s greatest enemy.

The Secret World of Harry Potter: Things That Didn’t Make it To The Movies

The world of Harry Potter is full of magic, from shape-shifters to werewolves to dragons. On every page there is a new slice of magic, a new spell or hex or creature waiting to be found. It makes sense that when the books were adapted into films, some of that magic was left by the wayside. Here are some bits of secret magic that didn’t make it into the films, but that made the journey through Harry Potter’s world so magical.

Though the films made no reference to him, Peeves—the resident poltergeist of Hogwarts, known mostly for the devious pranks he played—was an integral part of the books. Throughout the novels, Peeves pranked or otherwise antagonized Hogwarts—from throwing things at students and staff, to emptying an inkbottle over a student’s head, Peeves made a name for himself through his antics. However, there were a few memorable moments that not only made readers laugh, but also showed a deeper side to the Wizarding World. During Harry’s fifth year, the Weasley twins left Hogwarts in protest of Delores Umbridge and her draconian rule—in the middle of exams, with a flourish that included fireworks, flying brooms, and a general disdain for authority. Their final words were to Peeves, and were followed to the letter: “Give her hell from us.” Peeves bowed to them, and tipped his hat, before starting an unparalleled reign of chaos. (It’s worth remembering that up to this point, the only people who could reliably control Peeves were the Bloody Baron—the Slytherin house ghost—and Professor Dumbledore.)  Another memorable moment for Peeves is the one time Professor McGonagall sided with him: during his rampage of chaos after the Weasley twins left, McGonagall happened to see Peeves trying to unscrew a chandelier. Her response was not to tell him to stop; instead, she told him the chandelier unscrewed the other way.

Harry himself is different in the books than in the movies. In the books, he is more independent, has a more explicit mistrust of adults and authority, and is generally a lot more sarcastic, with a darker sense of humor than in the movies.

This is most notable when Professor Snape corrected Harry for not calling him sir. Snape, at one point, merely repeated something that Harry had just said, but with the addition of the word ‘sir’ at the end. Harry responded with a simple, “There’s no need to call me sir, Professor.” This scene did not make it into the film adaptation, but it shows an integral part of Harry’s characterization.

The fifth book included a moment that is reflected in the film adaptation, but that wasn’t directly paralleled. At Christmas, Harry had a vision of Arthur Weasley, his friend’s father, being attacked by a large snake—from the perspective of the snake. This, along with the anxiety of being kept in the dark about the actions his friends are taking to fight against Voldemort, led to Harry isolating himself from his friends and those he knew best. In the book, this led to a moment where Harry, alone in his room, was afraid that Voldemort may have been possessing him at the time of the attack, or may be capable of possessing him in general. Understandably, Harry was deeply uncomfortable with this, but Ginny Weasley, another friend who has actually experienced the kind of possession Harry is afraid of, helped him to not only understand that he was not actually being possessed, but to also ease his mind about the whole ordeal.

These moments might not have made it into the movie, but they are the magic waiting in between the words of the stories that so many people love; they are the reason people keep coming back.