Albus Dumbledore

Rowling has described Dumbledore as "the epitome of goodness."^[4] She said that he speaks for her, as he "knows pretty much everything" about the Harry Potter universe.^[5] Rowling mentioned that Dumbledore regrets "that he has always had to be the one who knew, and who had the burden of knowing. And he would rather not know."^[6] As a mentor to the central character Harry Potter, "Dumbledore is a very wise man who knows that Harry is going to have to learn a few hard lessons to prepare him for what may be coming in his life. He allows Harry to get into what he would not allow another pupil to do, and he also unwillingly permits Harry to confront things he'd rather protect him from."^[7] In a 1999 interview, Rowling stated that she imagined Dumbledore "more as a John Gielgud type, you know, quite elderly and – and quite stately."^[8] During his time as a student, Dumbledore was in Gryffindor House.^[9] Rowling said in a 2000 interview that Dumbledore is about 150 years old during the events of the novels.^[10] However, she has stated on her website that he was born in 1881, which makes him either 115 or 116 at the time of his death.^[2]

In 2007, Rowling was asked whether Dumbledore finds "true love". Rowling said that she always thought of Dumbledore as being homosexual and that he had fallen in love with the corrupt wizard Gellert Grindelwald, which was Dumbledore's "great tragedy"; Rowling did not explicitly state whether Grindelwald returned his affections.^[11][12][13] Rowling explains this further by elaborating on the motivations behind Dumbledore's flirtation with the idea of wizard domination of Muggles: "He lost his moral compass completely when he fell in love and I think subsequently became very mistrustful of his own judgement in those matters so became quite asexual. He led a celibate and a bookish life."^[14]

The name "Dumbledore" is an 18th-century word for "bumblebee".^[15] Rowling chose the name because Dumbledore loves music, and she imagined him walking around and humming to himself frequently.^[16]

Dumbledore is introduced in the opening chapter of the first novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997). Under cover of night, he brings the infant Harry Potter to the home of Harry's uncle and aunt, Vernon and Petunia Dursley. Harry's parents were killed by the Dark wizard Voldemort, and Dumbledore hopes he will be safe with the Dursleys. He leaves Harry on the doorstep with a letter explaining the situation. When Harry arrives at Hogwarts ten years later, Dumbledore tells him about the Mirror of Erised, a magical object that protects the Philosopher's Stone. Dumbledore is summoned to the Ministry of Magic by a false message on the night when Harry, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Professor Quirinus Quirrell enter the dungeons to retrieve the Stone. He realises during the trip that he is needed at Hogwarts, and returns in time to rescue Harry from Quirrell and Voldemort.

Dumbledore returns in the second novel, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998). Through a magical diary, Harry sees a younger Dumbledore in a series of flashbacks. The diary once belonged to Tom Riddle, who eventually became Voldemort. In one flashback, Harry sees Dumbledore questioning Riddle about a series of attacks on Muggle-born students. In the present, a basilisk emerges from the Chamber of Secrets and begins attacking people in Hogwarts. Following the attacks, Lucius Malfoy convinces the governors of Hogwarts to suspend Dumbledore from his position as Headmaster. Dumbledore is reinstated when it is revealed that Lucius coerced the governors into suspending him.

At the beginning of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), Dumbledore is forced to accept the presence of Dementors at Hogwarts. The Dementors have been sent to protect the students from Sirius Black, a supposed murderer who escaped from the wizard prison Azkaban. When Black breaches Hogwarts, Dumbledore closes every entrance to the school and grounds. After the Dementors cause Harry to fall off his broom during a Quidditch match, Dumbledore becomes angry and uses his wand to help Harry return safely to the ground. Later, Dumbledore suggests that Hermione use her Time-Turner to save Black and Buckbeak the hippogriff from execution.

In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), Dumbledore brings the Triwizard Tournament to Hogwarts. He also serves as a judge throughout the event. After the final task of the tournament, Harry returns from an encounter with Voldemort. Professor Mad-Eye Moody escorts Harry into the castle, and Dumbledore becomes suspicious. He discovers that Moody is actually Barty Crouch Jr., and that the real Moody is being held prisoner by Crouch. Later, Dumbledore listens to Harry's account of Voldemort's return.

Dumbledore appears in the fifth novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003). He is removed from his position as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, voted out of the Chairmanship of the International Confederation of Wizards, and is almost stripped of his Order of Merlin First Class due to his speeches regarding the return of Voldemort. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Magic attempts to discredit him and Harry, often through the Daily Prophet. Dumbledore enrages Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge when he intercedes at a hearing to prevent Harry from being expelled from Hogwarts.

The Ministry passes Educational Decree Twenty-two, which allows Fudge to appoint Dolores Umbridge as the professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts. Through her, Fudge gradually gains power over Hogwarts and Dumbledore, whom he fears is amassing an underage wizard army to overthrow the Ministry. Umbridge forbids students from practicing defensive spells in her class, which prompts Harry, Ron, and Hermione to form a secret practice group called Dumbledore's Army. When the Ministry discovers the group, Dumbledore shields his students from punishment by falsely claiming that it was his idea. He is removed from the position of headmaster for the second time.

When the Order of the Phoenix battles Voldemort's Death Eaters in the Department of Mysteries, Dumbledore arrives to aid them. He subdues most of the Death Eaters and binds them with an Anti-Disapparition Jinx to prevent them from escaping. He then engages in a duel with Voldemort, who tries to possess Harry so Dumbledore will kill him. After this ruse fails, Voldemort is forced to flee with Bellatrix Lestrange. Several Ministry officials witness the end of the battle, which leads to Dumbledore being reinstated as headmaster. Dumbledore explains to Harry that Voldemort chose Harry as his equal, and that either he or Voldemort must eventually kill the other.

In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005), Dumbledore brings Harry along as he attempts to persuade Horace Slughorn to rejoin the Hogwarts faculty. Harry notices that Dumbledore's right hand is shrivelled and blackened. During the school year, Dumbledore uses the Pensieve to teach Harry about Voldemort's life and his rise to power. In one of the Pensieve visions, Harry witnesses Dumbledore's first encounter with the young Tom Riddle. Dumbledore had known from the beginning that Riddle was dangerous, but believed that Hogwarts would change him.

Dumbledore and Harry learn that Voldemort created six Horcruxes to gain immortality, and that they must be destroyed before Voldemort can be killed. Harry repeatedly warns Dumbledore that Draco Malfoy is an agent of Voldemort, but Dumbledore refuses to take action against Draco. He tells Harry that he already knows more about what is happening than Harry does. Near the end of the novel, Dumbledore and Harry enter a cave in search of a Horcrux. Dumbledore drinks a potion inside the Horcrux's container and begins to scream in agony. When Harry attempts to retrieve some lake water for Dumbledore to drink, he is attacked by Inferi that reside in the lake. They try to drown Harry, but Dumbledore rescues him.

Dumbledore and Harry arrive in the Hogwarts Astronomy Tower with the Horcrux. Dumbledore asks Harry not to interfere in the events that are about to take place, and puts him in a body-binding curse. Immobilized, Harry is unable to intervene as Draco arrives and disarms Dumbledore. Several other Death Eaters then enter the tower and try to persuade Draco to kill Dumbledore. When Draco hesitates, Severus Snape appears and performs the killing curse on the headmaster. His funeral is attended by students, Hogwarts staff, members of the Ministry of Magic and others. He is entombed in a marble sarcophagus beside the Hogwarts lake.

Details of Dumbledore's earlier life are revealed in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007). The novel introduces his parents, Percival and Kendra Dumbledore, and his younger sister, Ariana (his younger brother, Aberforth, is mentioned in previous books). At the age of six, Ariana was attacked by three Muggle boys who witnessed her performing magic. She was deeply traumatised and was never able to control her magic again. Enraged, Percival attacked the boys and was given a life sentence in Azkaban. Kendra subsequently moved the family to the village of Godric's Hollow. Around the time that Albus completed his education, Ariana accidentally killed their mother. Albus became the head of the family and remained in their house with Ariana while Aberforth finished school.

 

Soon afterward, Dumbledore befriended the young wizard Gellert Grindelwald. They dreamed of uniting the three Deathly Hallows – the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone and the Cloak of Invisibility – and creating a world in which wizards rule over Muggles. One day, an argument between Albus, Aberforth, and Grindelwald led to a duel that resulted in Ariana's death. For the rest of his life, Albus felt guilty, never certain whether it was his own curse or another's that killed his sister. He felt he could not be trusted with power and turned down the position of Minister for Magic multiple times, eventually returning to Hogwarts as a professor of Transfiguration. Decades later, Dumbledore faced and defeated Grindelwald, who had become a Dark wizard and had obtained the Elder Wand. Dumbledore now possessed not only the Elder Wand but also the Cloak of Invisibility, which he had borrowed from James Potter before his death. Dumbledore would eventually pass the cloak on to Harry.

The truth about Dumbledore's death is revealed to Harry through Snape's memories in the Pensieve. Harry learns that Dumbledore put on a cursed ring that held the Resurrection Stone, which he hoped would allow him to apologise to his sister and parents. The curse damaged his hand, and Snape told him he would die in about a year. Dumbledore then revealed to Snape that he knew about Draco's attempts to kill him. Since Dumbledore was close to death, he asked Snape to use the killing curse on him. This act of self-sacrifice would prevent Draco's soul from being damaged by committing murder, and would cause Voldemort to trust Snape completely.

Near the end of the novel, Harry is struck by Voldemort's killing curse. He finds himself in an ethereal realm with Dumbledore, who confesses many regrets from earlier in his life. He informs Harry that he can return to his body and face the Dark Lord again. Harry returns, kills Voldemort, then places the Elder Wand in Dumbledore's tomb. In the book's epilogue, it is revealed that Harry named his second son Albus Severus Potter, after Dumbledore and Snape.

Dumbledore appears in the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (2016).The play is written by Jack Thorne from a story by Thorne, J. K. Rowling and John Tiffany. The plot occurs nineteen years after the events of Deathly Hallows, and features time-travel elements.

 

 

 

Dumbledore as portrayed in film. Clockwise from upper left: Richard Harris, Michael Gambon and Jude Law.

In the film adaptations of Philosopher's Stone (2001) and Chamber of Secrets (2002), Dumbledore is portrayed by Richard Harris, who was expected to play the character throughout the series. Before Harris was cast, Patrick McGoohan reportedly had an interest in the role, but could not commit due to health issues. Sean Connery was approached, but declined due to the film's subject matter.^[17] Harris turned down the role three times but eventually accepted it because his 11-year-old granddaughter threatened to never speak to him again if he did not take it.^[18] Harris was determined to portray Dumbledore again in Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), despite having been diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, and asked David Heyman not to recast the role. However, his death in October 2002 necessitated recasting.^[19][20]

Christopher Lee was the producer's immediate choice for replacing Harris, but scheduling conflicts due to Lee's commitments as Saruman in The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels forced him to decline.^[21] Ian McKellen was also offered the role, but he turned it down, having played the similar character Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, as well as feeling it would have been inappropriate to take Harris' role, as Harris had called McKellen a "dreadful" actor.^[22] Harris' family had expressed an interest in seeing Peter O'Toole being chosen as his replacement.^[23] Harry Robinson, who doubled for Harris in the first two films, and who also lent his voice in the first Harry Potter video game, was also considered for the role of Dumbledore.^[24] Four months after Harris's death, Michael Gambon was cast as his replacement.^[25] Gambon adopted a slight Irish accent for the role.^[26][27] He plays the character in all the remaining Harry Potter films.

In flashback scenes in Deathly Hallows – Part 1 and Part 2, a young Dumbledore is portrayed by Toby Regbo.^[28] In the prequel films Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) and Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022), Dumbledore is played by Jude Law.^[29][30]

In the novels, Dumbledore is described as tall, thin and elderly. His hair and beard are long and silver. He has a long and crooked nose, long fingers and bright blue eyes. He wears half-moon spectacles and a colourful array of robes. He once claimed to have a scar above his left knee in the shape of a map of the London Underground. At some point between the fifth and sixth novels, Dumbledore puts on a cursed ring, which causes his right hand to become blackened and disfigured.

Dumbledore is described as benevolent and wise. His demeanour is often described as serene, ethereal and composed, and he rarely displays strong emotions. He is eccentric, slightly effeminate and fond of knitting. He is known for his odd displays of whimsicality, and he often uses humour to put others at ease. His eyes are sometimes described as twinkling with kindness or mischief. Dumbledore is highly perceptive and emotionally intelligent, and has a deep capacity for love. He sees the good in every person, and insists on giving people second chances. Dumbledore's personality also has a more steely aspect. When he apprehends Barty Crouch Jr in Goblet of Fire, the look upon his face is described as "more terrible than Harry could have ever imagined." As Harry observes the "cold fury" in Dumbledore's visage, he understands why Voldemort fears him.

In spite of Dumbledore's many extraordinary qualities, he is a flawed character. According to Rowling, "Although Dumbledore seems to be so benign for six books, he's quite a Machiavellian figure, really. He's been pulling a lot of strings."^[31] In a 2005 interview, Rowling commented: "Immense brainpower does not protect you from emotional mistakes, and I think Dumbledore really exemplifies that."^[32] Dumbledore's greatest flaw, which he admits to Harry, is his desire for power. He eventually finds that those best suited for power are those who do not seek it. When he and Grindelwald first meet, they make plans to enslave Muggles and re-establish wizards as the natural rulers of the world. However, Dumbledore becomes disillusioned of this fantasy after his sister Ariana is killed during a duel between himself, his brother Aberforth, and Grindelwald.

Dumbledore is riddled with guilt over the circumstances surrounding the death of his sister. He feels enormous remorse for his selfishness in getting involved in the circumstances that led to her death, and is tortured for the rest of his life by the possibility that he might have been the one who cast the spell that killed her. When he looks into the Mirror of Erised, he sees himself redeemed in the eyes of his brother and his entire family alive and together.

Dumbledore is considered by many characters to be the most powerful wizard alive. Some say he is the only wizard Voldemort ever feared. During his education at Hogwarts, Dumbledore was known as the most brilliant student to have ever stepped into the school, winning "every prize of note that the school offered", and doing "things with a wand [the examiner had] never seen before". Rowling has said that Dumbledore is primarily self-taught, although he "had access to superb teachers at Hogwarts".^[33] Dumbledore readily acknowledges that he is unusually intelligent and an exceptionally powerful wizard. He admits a number of times to Harry in that he makes mistakes, and since he is smarter than most people, his mistakes "tend to be correspondingly huger." Dumbledore is also skilled in Occlumency, Legilimency and Transfiguration.

Dumbledore is the owner and master of the Elder Wand, an extremely powerful object which is one of the Deathly Hallows. He also has a pet phoenix named Fawkes. It is revealed in Philosopher's Stone by Mr. Ollivander that Harry's wand carries a phoenix feather as its magical core and that particular phoenix only gave one other feather, the one in Voldemort's wand that gave Harry his scar. It is later revealed in Goblet of Fire that Fawkes was the phoenix whose feathers provide the magical core in Harry's and Voldemort's wands.

The character of Albus Dumbledore has been compared to other archetypal "wise old man" characters. Dumbledore acts much like Merlin from The Sword in the Stone, in the manner of an "absent-minded professor";^[34] both Merlin and Dumbledore educate a story's main character in a castle. As writer Evelyn Perry notes, "Dumbledore resembles Merlin both personally and physically; he is an avid lover of books and wisdom who wears flowing robes and a long, white beard."^[35] Dumbledore has also been compared with Gandalf from J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.^[36] Dave Kopel draws comparisons between Rowling's writing and John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress and states that, among the Christian symbols that Rowling has used in her books, Dumbledore acts like "the bearded God the Father" figure in which Harry puts his faith to be saved from Voldemort and his servants.^[37] IGN also listed Dumbledore as their fifth favourite Harry Potter character, saying that "[f]or a character that was introduced into popular culture a mere twelve years ago, it speaks volumes that Professor Dumbledore has already taken his place among the great mentor figures in literature and film".^[38] IGN's Joe Utichi called Dumbledore his third favourite Harry Potter character, calling the revelation that he wasn't so "infallible" one of the most heartbreaking themes of the final book.^[39] Actor Michael Gambon received some criticism for his louder, more aggressive, portrayal of the character, who is depicted as exhibiting a more subdued, unflappable calm in the books. This has been attributed to Gambon's policy of not reading the source material from which his films are adapted.^[40]

As a main character of the series, major facts relating to Dumbledore have generated a vast number of essays and discussions. The death of Dumbledore at the end of Half-Blood Prince was discussed by fans and critics alike. A website named DumbledoreIsNotDead.com sought to understand the events of the sixth book in a different way and provided arguments to claim that the character did not really die.^[41] However, Rowling confirmed on 2 August 2006 that Dumbledore was, in fact, dead, humorously apologising to the website as she did so.^[42] Along with DumbledoreIsNotDead.com, a collection of essays, Who Killed Albus Dumbledore?: What Really Happened in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince? Six Expert Harry Potter Detectives Examine the Evidence, was published by Zossima Press in November 2006.^[43] In NextMovie.com's Harry Potter Mega Poll, Dumbledore's death was voted as the most unforgettable moment in the whole series.^[44]

In the Chamber of Secrets DVD interview, screenwriter Steve Kloves stated that he considers Dumbledore a fascinating character because of the wisdom he provides, but he feels that "Dumbledore bears such a tremendous dark burden, and he knows secrets and I think in many ways he bears the weight of the future of the wizard world" and the "only way that he can keep that at bay, the darkness, is to be whimsical and humorous".^[5]

In October 2007, while answering reader questions during a book reading at Carnegie Hall, Rowling was asked if Dumbledore had ever been in love. She answered, "I always thought Dumbledore is gay". She discussed for the first time his romantic relationship with his rival Gellert Grindelwald, describing it as a "great tragedy". She said she had informed David Yates, the director of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, of Dumbledore's sexuality by writing a note in the screenplay. She had crossed out a section where Dumbledore describes his attraction to a woman, and had written "Dumbledore is gay."^[45] When Yates learned about Dumbledore's sexuality, he recalled thinking it was "pretty cool".^[46] Michael Gambon, who portrays Dumbledore in six of the eight Harry Potter films, was reportedly amused by the revelation. Daniel Radcliffe, who plays Harry in the film series, found the news "hilarious".^[46]

The revelation of Dumbledore's sexuality occurred after the publication of the final novel, and made international news.^[47] Some gay rights activists and organizations praised Rowling, while others wished she had gone further to promote acceptance of homosexuality. A spokesman for the advocacy group Stonewall applauded the revelation, saying "It's great that JK has said this. It shows that there's no limit to what gay and lesbian people can do, even being a wizard headmaster."^[48] The gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell welcomed the news about Dumbledore, but was disappointed that Rowling did not mention his sexuality in the novels.^[48] In an editorial for The Guardian, the journalist James Ball wrote that depicting "the respected, heroic and beloved Albus Dumbledore as [a] fully realised gay character—whose sexuality was merely incidental to his achievements—would have provided a fictional role model like no other. With homophobic bullying still such a significant issue in schools, this is a missed opportunity with a real sting in the tail."^[49] Writing for Time, John Cloud argued that Dumbledore's silence about his sexuality implies that he is ashamed of it. Cloud claimed this silence "suggests a lack of personal integrity that is completely out of character."^[50]

Melissa Anelli, the webmaster of the fan site The Leaky Cauldron, praised the revelation, saying it promoted tolerance towards homosexuality. She added, "By dubbing someone so respected, so talented and so kind, as someone who just happens to be also homosexual, [Rowling is] reinforcing the idea that a person's gayness is not something of which they should be ashamed."^[51] Mark Harris of Entertainment Weekly said Rowling's choice "to make a beloved professor-mentor gay in a world where gay teachers are still routinely slandered as malign influences was, I am certain, no accident."^[52] Mike Thomas of the Orlando Sentinel claimed that Rowling displayed great skill by writing a gay character without labelling him as gay.^[53] Edward Rothstein of The New York Times said that "Rowling may think of Dumbledore as gay" but "there is no reason why anyone else should".^[54]

In a 2016 article, Aja Romano of Vox observed a critical stance among many Harry Potter fans towards Rowling's revelation. Romano asserted that because Dumbledore's homosexuality was revealed after his death, certain fans felt that Rowling contributed to a "longstanding, problematic 'dead gays' trope" instead of showing the headmaster "living out his queer identity".^[55] After the release of the film Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018), Delia Harrington of Den of Geek criticised the film's failure to mention Dumbledore's homosexuality. She claimed that Rowling, who wrote the screenplay, put Dumbledore back in "the closet".^[56] In a 2019 opinion piece in The Washington Post, Richard Morgan also expressed frustration that the headmaster is not portrayed as gay in the film. He quoted Matt Collette, the producer of the Nancy podcast, who had discussed the topic in a 2017 episode. Collette called Rowling a "queerbaiter", which Collette defined as "a writer who puts in just enough of a queer story line to appease the fans who'd like one, but not so much as to offend anyone who doesn't like gay people."^[57][58]

Some critics argued that Dumbledore's sexuality might not be considered canon. The New York Times columnist Edward Rothstein said that "Ms. Rowling may think of Dumbledore as gay"; however, "there is no reason why anyone else should".^[59] The East Tennessee State University's student newspaper accused Rowling of lying, saying her answer was a publicity stunt.^[60] Other critics quoted the Death of the Author principle, stating that Rowling's subsequent commentary is irrelevant to the understanding of the books.^[61]

In the third film in the series, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022), Dumbledore mentions that he was in love with Grindelwald, and tells other characters about their romantic relationship. After these lines were cut from the film's Chinese release, the filmmakers faced additional criticism from fans.^[f]

• Dry, Jude (1 February 2018). "J.K. Rowling, Stop Queerbaiting: We're Ready for Gay Dumbledore in 'Fantastic Beasts' — Opinion". IndieWire. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
• Smith, Michelle (22 December 2014). "The 'death' of J. K. Rowling: Why it doesn't matter what she has to say about Harry Potter". The Conversation. Retrieved 20 August 2024.

 

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