The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for Muggles

Is it always wrong to use a love potion?

Is death something to be feared . . . or "mastered"?

What can Severus Snape teach us about the possibility of redemption?

Is love the most powerful magic of all?

J. K. Rowling′s wildly popular Harry Potter books may appear to be simple children′s tales on the surface, but like Hogwarts, they conceal many hidden chambers, trapdoors, and perplexing secrets. Drawing on all seven books in the Harry Potter series, The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy offers a powerful brew of insights about good and evil, love, death, power, sacrifice, and hope. Is it true, as Dumbledore says, that our choices reveal far more about us than our abilities do? Is there an afterlife, and what might it be like? Here′s a Pensieve for your thoughts. So take a healthy slug of Baruffio′s Brain Elixir and join Bassham′s Army of talented philosophers in exploring the mind–stretching deeper questions of the Potter books and films.

To learn more about the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series, visit www.andphilosophy.com

BLACKWELL PHILOSOPHY AND POP CULTURE SERIES

This book has not been approved, licensed, or sponsored by any entity or person involved in creating or producing Harry Potter, the book series, or films.

Foreword by Tom Morris.

Acknowledgments: Some House Points I′d Like to Make.

Introduction: Harry Potter and the Enchantment of Philosophy.

PART ONE The Horcrux of the Matter: Destiny, Identity, and the Soul.

1 The Soul in Harry Potter (Scott Sehon).

2 Sirius Black: Man or Dog? (Eric Saidel).

3 Destiny in the Wizarding World (Jeremy Pierce).

PART TWO The Most Powerful Magic of All.

4 Choosing Love: The Redemption of Severus Snape (Catherine Jack Deavel and David Paul Deavel).

5 Love Potion No. 9¾ (Gregory Bassham).

6 Harry Potter, Radical Feminism, and the Power of Love (Anne Collins Smith).

PART THREE Potterwatch: Freedom and Politics.

7 Patriotism, House Loyalty, and the Obligations of Belonging (Andrew P. Mills).

8 Dumbledore′s Politics (Beth Admiraal and Regan Lance Reitsma).

9 Dumbledore, Plato, and the Lust for Power (David Lay Williams and Alan J. Kellner).

PART FOUR The Room of Requirement: A Potter Potpourri.

10 Is Dumbledore Gay? Who′s to Say? (Tamar Szabó Gendler).

11 Choices vs. Abilities: Dumbledore on Self–Understanding (Gregory Bassham).

12 The Magic of Personal Transformation (S. Joel Garver).

13 Just in Your Head? J. K. Rowling on Separating Reality from Illusion (John Granger with Gregory Bassham).

14 A Pensieve for Your Thoughts? Harry Potter and the Magic of Memory (Amy Kind).

15 A Hogwarts Education: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (Gregory Bassham).

PART FIVE Beyond the Veil: Death, Hope, and Meaning.

16 The Real Secret of the Phoenix: Moral Regeneration through Death (Charles Talia).

17 Beyond Godric′s Hollow: Life after Death and the Search for Meaning (Jonathan L. Walls and Jerry L. Walls).

18 Why Harry and Socrates Decide to Die: Virtue and the Common Good (Michael W. Austin).

Contributors: The Hogwarts (for Muggles) Faculty.

The Marauder′s Index.

GREGORY BASSHAM is chair of the Philosophy Department and a professor of philosophy at King′s College in Wilkes–Barre, Pennsylvania. He is coeditor of the forthcoming The Hobbit and Philosophy and has coedited The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy, The Chronicles of Narnia and Philosophy, and Basketball and Philosophy.

WILLIAM IRWIN is a professor of philosophy at King′s College in Wilkes–Barre, Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles, including Batman and Philosophy, House and Philosophy, and Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy.