Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Essay Questions

The moral relativism of loyalty is a theme that runs throughout the entire series of Harry Potter novels. The positive qualities of such bonds expressed through the friendship of Harry, Hermione and Ron are paralleled by the dark side of loyalty to Voldemort. How does the Goblet of Fire suggest more strongly than any other book in the series the idea that loyalty is neither inherently good nor bad?

Barty Crouch, Jr. actually winds up being one of the most fascinating characters in the entire densely populated world of Harry Potter, and the most fascinating elements of his character can be directly traced to what he clearly views as a morally justified loyalty to Voldemort. In fact, his justification of remaining loyal to Voldemort trumps every other bond of loyalty. For instance, he has no compunction at all about killing his own father. It is precisely at the intersection between blood kinship and friendship that the limits of loyalty are often put to the test. More often than not, family wins out, but not only is Barty, Jr. willing to step over his dead father’s carcass to remain loyal to Voldemort, he is equally willing to overlook the one fundamental belief that supposedly defines the Death Eaters: Junior could not care less that Voldemort is of mixed blood.

Describe how Rowling, through the character of Rita Skeeter, critiques tabloid-style media. What are some of the consequences of Skeeter's reporting both on a domestic and global scale?

Rowling shows how Skeeter's writing divides people who would otherwise be on each other's side. For instance, when she writes an article about why Harry entered the Tournament (which he didn't) it reinforces Ron's misconception of Harry's relationship with his status as a celebrity. When she writes about Hermione's supposed love-triangle with Harry and Viktor Krum, it causes Molly Weasley to treat her differently until Harry assures Molly that the article is fake and that he and Hermione are not romantically involved.

Though Skeeter's articles are often supposed to be funny, we see how it also directly endangers the public and reinforces negative stereotypes and emphases on race and blood purity in subtle ways, like following every instance of Hermione Granger's name in her article with the distinction that she is "Muggle-born" (206, 127). And in Chapter 36, "The Parting of the Ways," when Fudge refuses to believe Harry's testimony about the return of Voldemort, Fudge cites suggestions that Harry is unreliable and unstable, prone to making things up. Harry says, from his hospital bed, “You’ve been reading Rita Skeeter, Mr. Fudge" (285). Fudge "reddens slightly," but maintains his stance. Had Skeeter not published those articles about Harry, perhaps the Minister would have given his story more consideration, or at least would have had less of an excuse to ignore it. Skeeter also publishes an article "exposing" Hagrid for being a half-giant; her article is rife with negative stereotypes of giants.

How does The Goblet of Fire shift the responsibility for a despotic tyrant like Voldemort from the personal to the more broadly social?

The first three books all place a heavy focus on the personal decisions, failures, and misguided actions of individuals for allowing Voldemort to gain power, and for failing to deal in a timely fashion with the compounding of this mistake. Likewise, the heroes of the story are situated as individual actors working together to try to stop the plot of those followers to restore him to life. This fosters a definite historical misconception that Voldemort was a unique threat to the stability of the magical world, neither recognized by its institutional systems of authority nor equipped with any capacity to have managed him if he had been recognized as such a threat. That all changes in Goblet of Fire with the revelation that the Ministry of Magic not only knew just how dangerous his growing influence could be, but also failed to take steps to prevent disaster because it was itself weakened by both corruption and incompetence. Later books in the series expand upon this systemic failure to stop Voldemort.

Discuss how The Goblet of Fire addresses bigotry in the wizarding world. Give three examples.

The Goblet of Fire introduces a sense of self-reflectiveness into the Harry Potter series regarding the problematic relationships between witches and wizards and other non-human participants in wizarding society. Hermione recognizes that Barty Crouch Sr. mistreats his house-elf Winky; she also recognizes that house-elves, extremely powerful creatures with the same thinking and feeling capacities as humans, are enslaved, and no one seems to have a problem with that. So she creates an organization called S.P.E.W. (Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare) and tries to convince her peers that elf slavery is wrong. The book also addresses Hagrid's heritage as a half-giant and the prejudice that carries with it. Hagrid has to fear for his livelihood after Rita Skeeter reveals in a newspaper article that his mother is a giant. Finally, Rita Skeeter problematizes Harry's relationship with werewolves; one of Harry's mentors and favorite professors (and his father's boyhood best friend) is a werewolf. For those who have read the third book, Remus Lupin is known to be a kind-hearted wizard who stands against forces of hate and subjugation, but he is forced to leave his job when people find out that he is a werewolf.

Discuss the significance of adolescence and "growing up" in The Goblet of Fire.

Though Harry and his friends are only fourteen years old, they have to deal with a lot of adult situations in The Goblet of Fire. Of course, they are able to have some of the hallmark teenage experiences, like their first school dance, jealousy, and the realization that their closest friends might actually be potential romantic partners, like when Ron aptly observes that Hermione actually is "a girl," and then finds himself in the throes of jealousy, stuck between the desire to love his Quidditch idol, Viktor Krum, and the animosity he feels towards Krum for taking Hermione to the Yule Ball.

Then there are the more grave circumstances that the trio faces (particularly Harry). Harry is constantly facing his own mortality, but now that Voldemort has risen from the brink of death, Harry has a constant target on his back, and he knows Voldemort will stop at nothing to kill him. The kids are finally confronting the cruelty of the world and the cruelty that people are prepared to perpetrate against one another. Harry watches Wormtail murder his friend Cedric in cold blood, mere feet from where he's standing. He then has to carry his friend's corpse back to Hogwarts to return to his parents, who don't even know that he's dead yet. Harry learns the truth about Neville's parents, who were Aurors until they were captured by Death Eaters and tortured into a state of permanent insanity; they still reside at St. Mungo's hospital and when Neville visits them, they have no idea who he is. This coming-of-age is further reflected in their changing coursework. In Defense Against the Dark Arts, Moody focuses on hexes rather than magical creatures in order to bring the students "up to scratch on what wizards can do to each other" (85).