Blog #1 Response #2

In the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and the Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, one can find more often than not that expectations are rarely fulfilled. One of the first and the main expectations presented is there being something different about Harry Potter. He is not the average suburban English boy. This knowledge of how Harry Potter is different presents another expectation, which is that Harry is destined for greatness. But the reader can assume that this greatness may just involve succeeding in school or sport, but Harry is the “Boy Who Lived,” and he has no idea why and how this will affect the rest of his life. When Harry Potter defeats Professor Quill/Lord Voldemort in achieved a form of greatness that other first year students could mostly likely not have achieved.

Although Harry Potter being destined for greatness is an expectation that is met in the first book, an expectation that is not met is the assumption that Professor Snape is the one who wants to steal sorcerer’s stone. From the first time the reader meets Professor Snape, J.K. Rowling presents as a shady character. Snape dislikes Harry, even though Harry has no idea why. Snape wants to be the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, but he does not get the job. Harry learns that Snape also was in Slytherin when he was at Hogwarts. There is not a witch or wizard who did not go bad, who was not in Slytherin. Every aspect of who Snape is presents him as the bad guy. So the reader, along with Harry, assumes that Snape is the one trying to steal the sorcerer’s stone. That expectation is obviously not filled when it turns out that Professor Quill/Lord Voldemort are the ones trying to steal the sorcerer’s stone.

For some reason in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, I did not think that Dobby was being serious when he said that something bad is going to happen at Hogwarts. I was expecting that he was going to be wrong and everything was going to be fine, but that expectation was completely shattered when Harry started hearing voices and I remember being fourteen and thinking, “oh boy…here we go again.” I think it is important to have expectations that are not fulfilled because it keeps readers on the edge of their seats. They want to keep reading and it really moves the action along.