Hope
An example of imagery can be seen in chapter six, when Harry Ron and Hermione see Fred and George’s shop for the first time.
“Set against the dull, poster-muffled shop front around them, Fred and George’s windows hit their eye like a firework display.” -p116
The street and shop around Fred and George’s shop are dull and dreary, reflecting the general feeling of most people. Even though these are dangerous times and it seems to drain the life out of almost everything, hope shines bright. The joke shop shining brightly in a dank sea of despair gives people hope that they will preserve through this time. Their shop projects an image of hope.
Pure-Blood Mania
Both Gaunt children are described as having peculiar appearances. Morfin Gaunt is described very dirty, with matted hair and missing teeth. The peculiar additions is his eyes, they “were small and dark and stared in opposite directions” (p201). Merope Gaunt is cleaner than her father and brother, but has eyes identical to her brother. Harry notices this, and finds it extreme disturbing and odd. The Gaunts are the last living descendants of Salazar Slytherin. Many pure-blood families marry a pure-blood cousin, rather than marry a half-blood or a muggle-born. Dumbledore informs Harry aside from their eyes, descendants of Slytherin are often instability and violent because of their habit of marrying cousins. To put in simply, the Gaunt children are products of several generations of inbreeding. This has given them an odd outward appearance, unstable emotions and a heavy violent streak. This image casts a dark shadow on Pure-Blood witches and wizards and those fighting to keep the blood lines pure. The Gaunts are images depicting the dangers of reinforcing an archaic and racist stereotype.
Good vs Evil
“But then, through the darkness, fire erupted: crimson and gold, a ring of fire that surrounded the rock…”-p576
This scene creates an image of Dumbledore bringing forth light into the depths of darkness. After the potion surrounding the locket had been drunk, by Dumbledore, he was very pale and sick. As the Inferi advanced Harry panicked and forgot to bring fire into the darkness. Although he is near death, Dumbledore rises magnificently and casts a ring a fire surrounding Harry and himself. This creates the image of Dumbledore shining brightly in darkness, or light fighting the darkness, or traditional Christian imagery of good vs evil.
Death
The finality of death is painted by the description at Dumbledore’s funeral: “Bright, white flames had erupted around Dumbledore's body and the table upon which it lay: Higher and higher they rose, obstructing the body.” -p645 This scene describes the transformation that physically happened when the tomb was created. During this scene Harry believes he briefly sees a phoenix flying up toward the sky, but in a second it vanishes revealing the marble tomb. Harry believes he is seeing signs of life or rebirth, via the phoenix, but that hope is dashed when he is immediately faced with the image of the newly appeared tomb. This image personifies the finality of death.
Pheonix
Fawks is Dumbledore's pheonix. The pheonix symbolizes death and rebirth. When Dumbledore dies Fawks flies around the grounds singing a song that personifies grief. Once his song, for his fallen master, is concluded he leaves the grounds. He departs one final time, like his master. Later Harry would see what he thought was a pheonix rising from Dumbledore, as the tomb was generating, which flew toward the sky. This image of the pheonix rising can be equated to his soul rising to heaven.
