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Qualitative research, in contrast, seeks to understand the hows and whys in order to get an in-depth understanding of human behavior and social interactions. Unlike quantitative research which is broad and generalized, qualitative research is very personal and detail-oriented. Research is collected through participant observation (the sociologist immersing him or herself in the environment of study), in-depth interviews, discussion groups, and ethnographic research. Dolores Umbridge actually used qualitative research methods when she was Hogwarts High Inquisitor, albeit not as objectively as sociologists would have. Her purpose was to ensure the effectiveness and improve upon the standards of the teaching methods at Hogwarts. To do so, she attended classes, made notes, and interviewed students and teachers.
Sociological Occupations
There is a very wide range of jobs available for sociologists due to the broadness of our discipline and research training. Some sociologists, like the majority of the authors of this book, become researchers and/or university professors. Others may want to work for international or government agencies as analysts or policy developers. Additional jobs that may draw sociologists include race relations or social service organizations, public health outreach, non-profit organizations, and community planning and development. Sociologists interested in demographics (i.e., the study of human populations) may work for polling organizations like Gallup or their nation’s Census Bureau.
Why is Sociology Important?
Sociology aids our understanding of society and human groups, which in turn teaches us about culture and cultural differences. All aspects of daily life and social interaction are key to understanding how societies work. Through this understanding, sociologists can aid in pinpointing problems in a society and help in bringing about social change or reform to better life in that society.
Sociology also has another purpose. By learning about society, how it runs, figuring out why we do the things we do, etc., we are, essentially, enlightening ourselves. Moreover, as sociology helps us to identify and define problem areas in a society, the more we learn about our society the more we may want to help change it for the better. Sociology is an enlightening experience. Through looking at society on a grand scale, we also learn about ourselves.
While sociology is important to understanding human ways of life, it isn’t limited to “real” existing societies. The fictional wizarding world of Harry Potter can also be viewed sociologically. Therefore, in the following chapters, we turn the tools of sociology onto the wizarding world to examine its day-to-day life, social interaction, social groups, institutions, inequality and other various aspects of the society itself. By learning the ways in which wizarding society works, we can not only gain a deeper appreciation for that world J.K. Rowling created, but we can make connections to our real world and better understand ourselves and our ways of life.
PART I - SOCIETY
“It’s the Best Place for Him”
The Magical Uses of Space
Florence Maätita, Marcia D. Hernandez and Kristen Kalz
Introduction
Sociologists have addressed space in our social worlds for over a century. Some scholars consider Georg Simmel to be the first to examine the social relevance of space and the effects of space on social interactions. In his work, which centered primarily on the relationship between the big city and the mind of the individual, Simmel focused on the essential qualities of spatial forms that allow actors to turn empty spaces into something meaningful. Among these features, Simmel recognized the exclusive and unique character of the space and the possibility of changing locations. His treatise on the effects of urban space on human interactions, The Metropolis and Mental Life (1903/1976), was influential in the development of what eventually became the Chicago School of Sociology.
In addition to informing a major school of sociological thinking, Simmel made significant contributions to urban sociology. By examining the relationship between the city and its inhabitants, scholars highlight the relational aspects of space (Lynch 1960; Harvey 1985). Sociologists and geographers call this examination of space on our actions and interactions spatiality. These authors have built on Simmel’s writings by identifying space as, among other things, a metaphor for safety (Bachelard 1969) and as a site of struggle (Harvey 1985; Lefebvre 1991).
Attention to spatial sociology beyond urban sociology did not emerge until the past few decades. Recent discussions of space have examined the relationships between natural space, social space, social groups and individuals, although there is debate about the arrangement of these relationships. Gans (2002: 330) contends that “individuals and collectivities shape natural and social space by how they use these, although each kind of space, and particularly the social, will also have effects on them.” Thus, what is essential to Gans’ approach to spatial sociology is the centrality of the user and the use of space.
In this chapter, we seek to add to the growing body of spatial sociology literature by examining the user and the use of space in the wizarding world. While notions of safety and struggle are undeniably central in the magical world, in this chapter we highlight the relationships between groups of individuals and spaces. We are interested in how inhabitants of the wizarding world (especially Harry Potter) use and interact in these physical locations. Essentially, this understanding of space entails a use- and user-centered way of examining space. First, we discuss how Harry uses space to create a safe environment for himself and his counterparts. Second, we examine how sites differ in terms of who designates its use (e.g., what/where does Harry Potter consider safe from himself and his loved ones? How might that be different from what Dumbledore or the Minister consider appropriate for Harry?). Finally, although we can consider most of these locations safe spaces for Harry, they are also contentious and can potentially leave Harry open to grave danger.
Safe Spaces in the Wizarding World
Scholars have reported on safe spaces as physical, political and intellectual sites in which marginalized groups can feel free of any prejudice and discrimination (Hyndman 2003; Stroudt 2007; Redmond 2010). We employ “safe space” here to refer to a physical, social and symbolic milieu in which Harry Potter can be removed from any threat of harm at the hands of Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Harry also uses such spaces as a way to elude other threats such as Sirius Black (until he finds out that Black means him no harm) and the Minister of Magic.
One safe space for Harry Potter is where he lives after his parents’ death: 4 Privet Drive, the residence of his last surviving blood family members, the Dursleys. Here is where he gets the first (of many!) letters from Hogwarts. More significantly, Harry uses 4 Privet Drive as a safe space as he returns here for summer holiday at the end of each year at Hogwarts. This suburban habitat is one of Harry’s few connections to his parents, although it is physically and symbolically removed from the wizarding world.
Arguably, the ultimate safe space for Harry Potter is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, especially Gryffindor Tower. Hagrid explains to Harry why Hogwarts is so safe:
[Lord Voldemort] was takin’ over. ‘Course, some stood up to him – an’ he killed ‘em. Horribly. One o’ the only safe places left was Hogwarts. Reckon Dumbledore’s the only one You-Know-Who was afraid of. Didn’t dare try takin’ the school, not jus’ then, anyway. (SS 55)
Furthermore, as Hermione tells Harry, “As long as Dumbledore’s around you’re safe. As long Dumbledore’s around, you can’t be touched” (HP1). Molly Weasley echoes this sentiment two years later when she thinks that Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban and is on his way to find and kill Harry. She says to her husband, “Well, Arthur, you must do what you think is right. But you’re forgetting Albus Dumbledore. I don’t think anything could harm Harry at Hogwarts while Dumbledore’s headmaster” (POA 66).
Specific locations within Hogwarts are also significant for Harry in terms of the safety they provide him and his associates. For one, while at Hogwarts Harry and other students use the Ro
om of Requirement (also called the Come and Go Room) as a safe space in a number of ways. On one hand, they use this room to hide critical magical and incriminating objects such as when Harry hides the Half-Blood Prince’s potions textbook, and Tom Riddle hides Rowena Ravenclaw’s diadem after he makes it a Horcrux. More important, the Room provides a safe haven for Hogwarts students who wish to learn how to defend themselves from the Dark Arts. When it becomes clear that Dolores Umbridge, their fifth year Defense against the Dark Arts teacher, will not teach them vital practical skills and information, students – who form Dumbledore’s Army – take it upon themselves to find a space to learn. To open the room, Harry thinks, “We need somewhere to learn to fight… Just give us a place to practice… somewhere [Umbridge and the Inquisitorial Squad] can’t find us…” (OOTP 389, emphasis in original).
Regardless of – or because of – Dumbledore’s presence and the safety of Hogwarts, Harry feels of sense of “belonging” at the school. When Dobby implores Harry not to return to Hogwarts for his second year Harry stammers “W-what?... But I’ve got to go back… I don’t belong here. I belong in your world – at Hogwarts” (COS 16, emphasis in original). Others agree that Harry belongs at Hogwarts as well. One such indication occurs when Harry is preparing to return to school for his fifth year after he was nearly expelled. His godfather, Sirius:
put up a very good show of happiness on first hearing the news, wringing Harry’s hand and beaming just like the rest of them; soon, however, he was moodier and surlier than before, talking less to everybody, even Harry, and spending increasing amounts of time shut up in his mother’s room with Buckbeak. (OOTP 158)
Hermione thinks that Sirius is being selfish and counsels Harry to “Don’t you go feeling guilty!” because “you belong at Hogwarts and Sirius knows it” (OOTP 158).
Designating the Use of a Space
While we must acknowledge how Harry Potter uses safe spaces, we must also address who designates how Harry must use them. In many cases, Harry himself is instrumental in determining how he will use a particular safe space. For example, not only is Hogwarts safe, but Harry designates the castle and its grounds as his home. Early in his first year, Harry begins to see Hogwarts as home. He remembers that he “could hardly believe it when he realized that he’d already been at Hogwarts two months. The castle felt more like home than Privet Drive ever had” (SS 170). By the end of the year, we witness Harry’s increasing power to claim this space for himself. As they board the Hogwarts Express, Hermione Granger says, “Feels strange to be going home, doesn’t it?” Harry responds, “I’m not going home. Not really” (HP1). Just a few months later, he asserts his even more strongly to Dobby in declaring that, “Hogwarts is my home!” (HP2). In these instances, we see that Harry himself has designated this safe space to be used as his home.
Others are also instrumental in setting the terms for how Harry should use certain safe spaces. Professor Dumbledore, for one, plays a key role in designating how Harry Potter will use spaces. We first become aware of this role when Dumbledore meets Professor McGonagall at 4 Privet Drive the evening after Voldemort killed James and Lily Potter. McGonagall expresses her concern over leaving Harry with his Muggle aunt and uncle by asking if it is safe to leave him there. Dumbledore responds, “[4 Privet Drive] is the best place for him. His aunt and uncle will be able to explain everything to him when he’s older. I’ve written them a letter” (SS 13). Later we learn that Dumbledore set numerous magical enchantments on 4 Privet Drive making it safe for Harry as long as he was a minor living under the supervision of his mother’s blood relative, his Aunt Petunia.
Even Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, designates a safe space for Harry. The summer before his third year at school Harry blows up his Aunt Marge and leaves 4 Privet Drive. When he eventually arrives at the Leaky Cauldron, thinking that he is in an immeasurable amount of trouble, he finds that Fudge wants Harry to stay in Diagon Alley until school begins. Fudge continues:
Just one thing, and I’m sure you’ll understand… I don’t want you wandering off into Muggle London, all right? Keep to Diagon Alley. And you’re to be back here before dark each night. Sure you’ll understand. Tom [the innkeeper at the Leaky Cauldron] will be keeping an eye on you for me. (POA 46)
Later on, we discover that Fudge has designated the Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley as safe spaces for Harry to use because he wants to protect him from Sirius Black, who everyone thinks is out to kill Harry Potter.
Contested and Contesting Spaces for Harry
There are cases in which other witches and wizards attempt to exercise an ability to designate if Harry can use an established particular space as a safe space. These spaces then become contested spaces. Moreover, others sometimes engage in contesting if Harry should even use a space at all.
Contested Safe Spaces
Throughout his adolescence, Dark witches and wizards attempt to make various safe spaces lose their capacity to provide protection for Harry and his counterparts. One such space is Hogwarts as there are moments during Harry and his friends’ tenure in which students’ safety at Hogwarts is compromised. When Lord Voldemort, via Ginny Weasley, opens the Chamber of Secrets for instance, and Muggle-born students are attacked, Dumbledore confesses that “our students are in great danger,” and instructs McGonagall to tell the staff “the truth – tell them Hogwarts is no longer safe” (HP2). As the situation worsens, there is a great deal of concern over the future of the school. When their “worst fears [are] realized” and “a student [is] taken by the monster into the Chamber itself,” Professor McGonagall concludes, “We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow… This is the end of Hogwarts” (COS 293). Thankfully, however, Harry and Ron (and Hermione, of course) were able to save the day.
Hogwarts ultimately is turned into an un-safe space for Harry when Professor Snape kills Dumbledore at the end of sixth year. After Dumbledore’s funeral, Harry reveals to Ron and Hermione that he has no intentions of returning to Hogwarts the following year. He explains:
“I’m going back to the Dursleys’ once more, because Dumbledore wanted me to… but it’ll be a short visit, and then I’ll be gone for good” (HBP 650). This plan gives a hint of what is in store for Harry, Ron and Hermione in their subsequent adventures hunting Voldemort’s Horcruxes, a time during which there is a near-absolute absence of safe spaces. Moreover, it shows Harry acknowledging, and honoring, Dumbledore’s designation of Dursleys’ as a safe space for him.
Like Hogwarts when the Chamber of Secrets is opened, the Dursleys’ home can lose the capacity to provide protection. No. 4 Privet Drive will no longer be a safe haven for Harry or the Dursleys the instant Harry turns 17. As Harry relates to his uncle when imploring him to let the Order of the Phoenix relocate and protect the family: “…once I’m seventeen, all of them – Death Eaters, dementors, maybe even Infer – which means dead bodies enchanted by a Dark wizard – will be able to find you and will certainly attack you” (DH 35). Ultimately the Dursleys accept this plea and leave 4 Privet Drive admitting “it’s not safe for us here anymore” (HP7 part I).
During the Second Wizarding War, 12 Grimmauld Place becomes the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix. Its safety is slightly compromised, however, after Bellatrix Lestrange murders Sirius Black, her cousin, during the Battle of the Department of Mysteries. As Dumbledore explains:
Black family tradition decreed that the house was handed down the direct line, to the next male with the name of ‘Black.’…[And while Sirius’] will makes it perfectly plain that he wants [Harry] to have the house, it is nevertheless possible that some spell or enchantment has been set upon the place to ensure that it cannot be owned by another other than a pureblood. (HBP 50)
Upon establishing that Harry had in fact inherited the house from Sirius and that ownership did not pass to Bellatrix Lestrange (neé Black), Harry agrees to continue allowing the Order of the Phoenix use the space. The space thus returns to being safe and Harry, Hermione and Ron u
se it as such the next year as they begin their final quest for the remaining Horcruxes. After the trio steals the Horcrux from Umbridge in Ministry of Magic, however, they try to return to Grimmauld Place. Unfortunately, Yaxley, a Death Eater, grabs Hermione as they disapparate and is still holding on when they arrive at 12 Grimmauld Place. Hermione finally shakes him off and takes herself, Ron and Harry elsewhere because now that “Yaxley could get inside the house, there was no way that they could return” (DH 271). This turn of events signals the end of 12 Grimmauld Place as a contested safe space as it becomes resolutely un-safe.
Contesting Spaces
While there are a number of cases in which a previously safe space becomes no longer safe, there are also moments in which Harry’s desired, or designated, use of a space does not correspond with others’ perspectives. At these moments, Harry and the other witch or wizard are contesting his use of the space. At 4 Privet Drive, for example, when Uncle Vernon decides to move Harry’s living quarters from the cupboard under the stairs to the smallest bedroom, Dudley is furious at the loss of his toy room. “I don’t want him in there… I need that room… make him get out…” he bawls (SS 38, emphasis in original). Dudley is contesting Harry’s designated use of this space but to no avail:
