Harry Potter Growth

Mr. Weasely's car represents the independence of adulthood. It provides the means of escape from Harry's childhood bedroom at the Dursleys. When Ron and Harry are unable to go to school on the Hogwarts Express, they steal the car, which gives them great freedom and joy at first, until they find they don't have the same resources that they did on the train: they get hungry and thirsty. The car's faulty invisibility booster represents the tenuousness of their adolescent position.

Godric Gryffindor's sword is a symbol of bravery. When Harry asks for help in the Chamber of Secrets, Gryffindor responds with the sword, through the Sorting Hat. Harry's loyalty to Gryffindor helps him. His tribe helps him. The sword is an allusion to the legend of Excalibur, the sword of King Arthur which must be drawn from a stone by the rightful king. Harry must be fit to carry the sword, so it also represents his identity.

In Harry Potter, a wand reflects both its owner’s personality and fate. Psychoanalytic critics have written about the wand as a phallic symbol, representing power. The disfunction of Ron's wand is part of his coming-of-age narrative.