Harry Potter

"You're a wizard, Harry."

- Rubeus Hagrid to Harry Potter

"Facing this stuff in real life... is not like school. In school, if you make a mistake, you can just try again tomorrow, but out there... when your a second away from being murdered, or watching a friend die right before your eyes... you don't know what that's like."

- Harry Potter to DA in Hog's Head

"Come on Tom, let's finish this the way we started it... Together!"

- Harry Potter to Voldemort. Harry James Potter (born July 31, 1980) is the main protagonist of the series of books and films of the same name, he is a wizard who survived an attempted murder by a dark-wizard named Lord Voldemort as an infant - leaving him with a distinctive lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. He is the son of James Potter I and Lily Potter.

He was portrayed by Daniel Radcliffe in all eight films.

Personality and Traits
Harry Potter was an extremely brave, loyal, and selfless person who possessed tremendous strength of character. He willingly went to what he truly believed to be his death because he believed that this was the only way to defeat the Dark Lord. Harry was also marked by what Lord Voldemort once deemed a "weakness for heroics" — he would go to great lengths and take great risks in order to help others, particularly his loved ones. Notably, this was taken advantage of by Voldemort in 1996, when he lured Harry to the Department of Mysteries by making him believe that his godfather was in danger. Harry was also very strong-willed and unafraid to stand up for himself. The fact that he was capable of repelling the Imperius Curse suggests that he had an unusually strong sense of himself and his morals. Dumbledore once made parallels between Harry's traits and qualities that Salazar Slytherin looked for in his own hand-picked students, but noted that Harry's choice not to draw on those qualities really defined who he was rather than the simple fact that he had them.

Harry was perfectly prepared to put his friends' needs and best interests first, shown by how he ended his relationship with Ginny Weasley, due to his concern for her well being (even though being with her was one of the best things that ever happened to him). The amount of trust that Harry put into his friends was so strong that he absolutely refused to consider that any of them would betray him to Voldemort. Considering that Harry knew a person who had betrayed all of his closest friends to Voldemort, his closest friends being Harry's parents, godfather, and Remus Lupin who was there when Harry declared his trust in him, proves Harry's ability to love so unequivocally.

The closeness that Harry felt for many was great enough for him to behave violently if any of them were harmed. When his godfather was murdered by Bellatrix Lestrange, Harry attacked her in a grief-stricken rage of righteous anger and attempted to use the Cruciatus Curse on her. He also attacked Severus Snape after the latter murdered Albus Dumbledore. Ironically, the only people with whom Harry ever initiated a duel were Snape and Bellatrix and he only desired to do so right after they killed someone he loved. This highlights Harry's bravery even further because Harry was fully aware that Snape and Bellatrix were two very skilled and experienced duellists, but did not hesitate to harm them as soon as he was pushed into it.

However, Harry was also accused of being arrogant, in particular by Severus Snape (although in fairness, Snape was extremely biased, and Harry often found being famous and admired very difficult), and could be hot-tempered and impulsive. This could sometimes make him rude to authority figures such as Professor Snape and Minister for Magic Rufus Scrimgeour. In contrast, Dumbledore stated that "many teachers report that [Harry's] modest, likeable, and reasonably talented". Harry was prone to moodiness during his adolescence, though this is likely the result of the great emotional stress and trials he endured during this period. An example of when Harry showed something close to arrogance was when in his fifth year, Ron became a prefect instead of him.

As mentioned earlier, Harry is not a flawless individual. Anger became a serious problem around his fifth year. After being cut off by Dumbledore, then later Ron and Hermione he was extremely agitated to the point where he viciously screamed at his friends at Grimmauld Place. This bad-tempered nature only worsened after discovering the Prophet and Fudge were calling him a liar about Voldemort's return. Harry lashed out on many authority figures in his life because of this, specifically the Dursley family. He embarrassed Dudley in front of his gang then came close to attacking him with magic after he brought up Cedric, and came close to doing the same with Vernon when he thought he was expelled from Hogwarts. Harry's anger normally gets the better of him, specifically around Dolores Umbridge, who after lashing out during her class she had him endure torturous detentions with the Black Quill, to the point where he had an emotional breakdown after Sirius' death but was able to calm down with the help of Dumbledore.

Harry possessed an instinctual, intuitive intelligence that allowed him to make intellectual leaps, as opposed to the logical intelligence of Hermione. For example, Harry divined the truth about the Deathly Hallows, well before Hermione would accept it. And although he was clever, Harry lacked intellectual curiosity, rarely putting forth effort into school work; for example, he relied on the notes of the Half-Blood Prince to get ahead in his sixth year Potions class rather than devoting time to studying (although he did study reasonably hard for his Ordinary Wizarding Levels, the only set of wizarding qualifications he sat at Hogwarts), and generally did his best magical work when tackling practical exams rather than theoretical ones. This could be a result of the lack of confidence that Harry developed from growing up with the Dursleys.

Barty Crouch Jr. (disguised as Alastor Moody) remarked that Harry possessed a streak of pride and independence that almost cost him the Triwizard Tournament. His pride didn't allow him to ask for help regarding the problem of breathing underwater for an hour, which was required for the Second task that took place in the Black Lake, was what almost cost him the competition. Harry was also known for wanting to tackle challenges and obstacles on his own, without the aid or intererence of others. His friends had to frequently remind him that he needed their assistance and that he "did not always have to go it alone".

Harry also seemed to have a bit of an obsessive personality, a trait he shared with his arch enemy Lord Voldemort. He could be somewhat nosy and was known for sleuthing around and getting involved in things that did not concern him. For instance, during his sixth year Harry became intensely preoccupied with finding out what Malfoy was doing in his free time(which unfortunately led him to nearly killed him by using Sectusempra without thinking twice). He also developed on unhealthy obsession with the Deathly Hallows, to the point where he was listless with longing for the three artefacts. This period of listlessness lasted for many weeks during the hunt for Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes.

Harry's greatest strength was his ability to feel love, despite having a miserable childhood of neglect. Harry was extremely loyal to and protective of his loved ones and that love was what allowed him to overcome Voldemort. Dumbledore noted that Harry's strength of will at resisting the temptation of the Dark Arts, even when granted a direct insight into Voldemort's mind and methods was due to Harry's ability to love. Harry even claimed that he felt sorry for Voldemort because of his inability to feel or understand love.

Albus Dumbledore noted that Harry was unfailingly kind and compassionate. This is shown by how he freed Dobby from the Malfoys and by standing up for Muggle-borns, half-bloods, and half-breeds (like Hagrid). This is likely attributable to his childhood, during which the Dursleys deprived him of compassion and discriminated against him due to his magical abilities. Also, Harry was not a cruel person and he never wished anyone harm. He rarely initiated duels, instead fighting in self-defence. Even after Bellatrix Lestrange had murdered his godfather, Harry failed to cast the Cruciatus Curse on her. Bellatrix noted the he had failed to cast the curse properly because he had cast it out of righteous anger and not malicious intent. However, he did use the Cruciatus Curse more effectively on Amycus Carrow after he spat at and insulted Minerva McGonagall. In addition, he saved Peter Pettigrew from being killed by his (Pettigrew's) former friends Sirius Black and Remus Lupin, though this was not done for humanitarian reasons but for the memory of his father.

Remus Lupin once noted that Harry had very good and nearly always right instincts. Harry had a strong awareness of the incalculable power of certain acts, which is never more apparent than when he refused to allow Lupin to accompany him and leave his wife and child at home and realised that Ron Weasley was meant to destroy Slytherin's locket.

In some ways, Harry can become extremely intimidating toward people such as Gilderoy Lockhart, Mundungus Fletcher, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley. It is seen that Harry can become extremely frightening when pushed to the point of anger or extreme annoyance. When in a bad mood and argumentative, even Harry's closest friends have been shown to be wary of him, usually replying to his angry tone in a calm and appeasing voice. The only person who does not appear to be afraid of him when he is angry (other than his teachers and other authority figures in his life) is Ginny Weasley.

Harry seems to have good and long memory, as he remember the motorbike ride to Privet Drive with Hagrid when he was eleven and could remember the deaths of his mother and Voldemort's laughter when the events occurred ten years earlier. Harry possessed a tremendous eyesight as well, he was able to locate the Golden Snitch (which was approximately the size of a golf ball) in a massive Quidditch field. Harry also cared very much for his children. He comforted his daughter, Lily Potter when she was upset about not going to Hogwarts. He also made sure his younger son Albus Potter would not be teased a lot by Harry's older son, James Potter.

Although never as given to sarcasm or humour as his best friend Ron, Harry often displayed a dry wit. For instance, on finding out that Hermione Granger intended to take twelve O.W.Ls, he asked her if she planned to eat or sleep at all that year. This humour often became more cutting when applied to people Harry disliked. When threatened by Draco Malfoy and his cronies after the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, Harry remarked that he supposed that "Lord Voldemort's just a warm-up act compared to you three", responding to Malfoy's threat that he was dead by casually commenting "Funny, you'd think I'd have stopped walking around". Harry also displayed wittiness on the occasion when he first encountered Crookshanks, remarking that he was either "a very large cat or quite a small tiger". He was also known to apply his cutting wit to Severus Snape as well. During his first Potions lesson, Snape antagonised Harry with question after question, until Harry responded with "I don't know. I think Hermione does, though, why don't you try her?"

Although he never sought power himself and would be content with a normal life, when a situation required him to step up he would do so. Such as when he, Ron, and Hermione discovered Voldemort and Quirrell's attempt to steal the Philosopher's Stone and his time as teacher/leader of Dumbledore's Army. Harry has shown not-inconsiderable leadership abilities, to the point that Dumbledore reflected that Harry was a better leader than him as he never sought power for himself but simply had to assume the mantle of leadership due to circumstances beyond his control and found in the process that he did it well.

During his youth, Harry tended to see things in a rather stark, absolute manner, particularly when it came to the Hogwarts' Houses. Harry generally regarded members of Slytherin House as evil and therefore his enemies, while Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, and Hufflepuffs were allies. The former part could be due to his own status as a Gryffindor and that many of the Slytherins he encountered, such as Lord Voldemort, Draco Malfoy, and Severus Snape, were significant enemies of his during this period. In addition, many of his friends and allies, such as Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore, and Hagrid, were fellow Gryffindors. However, this mentality eroded as he aged, since he encountered both allies among Slytherin, such as Horace Slughorn (and later, Snape), and enemies among the other three Houses, such as Peter Pettigrew (a fellow Gryffindor) and Quirinus Quirrell (a Ravenclaw). By 2017, Harry had adopted a more moderate attitude on the Houses, telling his younger son Albus Potter that "it doesn't matter to us" if Albus was Sorted in Slytherin or Gryffindor. In addition, Harry named that same son after Severus Snape, whom he recounted as "the bravest man [he] ever knew".

Appearances

 * 1) Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
 * 2) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
 * 3) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * 4) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * 5) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * 6) Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * 7) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * 8) Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
 * 9) Pottermore (Online website)

Trivia

 * Harry is similar to Tom Clarke as both are wizards and both lost one or both of their parents at a young age on Halloween (Harry was one when his parents James and Lily were killed by Lord Voldemort on Halloween 1981 whilst Tom was ten when his mother Helen was killed by a Nekross probe on Halloween 2006). There a two differences between the two: first, Harry has unlimited magic, whilst Tom can only cast three spells a day. The second difference between them is Harry attends Hogwarts to learn magic whilst Tom attends a normal school and is taught magic by his grandmother Ursula and possibly Helen before her death.
 * Though was known used 2 of 3 Unforgivable Curses (namely Cruciatus and Imperius), Harry's proficiency with them was inferior than the Dark Wizards due to his pure heart.
 * When Harry uses Imperius Curse on Gringgots Staff when he, Hermione, and Ron hunted Hufflepuff's cup, his influence over them worn off in faster rate.
 * Harry is similar to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Both have special talents (Rudolph has a red nose that can glow and Harry is a wizard and can do magic). Both are cousin of an antagonist (Dudley Dursley and Arrow). Both were disliked by the antagonist (Dudley disliked Harry because he is a wizard and Arrow disliked Rudolph because he has red nose). But they are now in good terms.
 * After Harry Potter saga, Daniel Radcliffe went to play villainous Walter Tressler Mabry appearing in the magic heist film, Now You See Me 2 from 2016, starring American actor Jesse Eisenberg.
 * In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, it's revealed that in some ways, Harry is complete opposite with his nemesis Voldemort though at the same time they share a number of things in common:
 * Known similarities with Voldemort:
 * Harry and Voldemort have blood relations with Salazar Slytherin, but Harry is very distantly related to Salazar Slytherin, but is not a descendant of him, as Voldemort is descended from Slytherin and the second Peverell brother, while Harry is a descendant of the third.
 * Both once having a parent before they died but their difference are:
 * Harry's parents were loving parents that willing to gave their life for their son's safety, while...
 * Voldemort's parent were unofficially divorced where his mother dies soon after the childbirth while his father, whom disown his wife and unborn child ultimately assasinated by Voldemort himself years later.
 * Both has developed their powers in the equal age but...
 * Harry was skeptical about his magic heritage even with him have used his powers once (which is reasonable due to used them for the first time by accident) and yet to mastered it until attending Hogwarts.
 * Voldemort has fully mastered his powers and even used them to threatened others.
 * Both known making a number of friends but..
 * Harry deeply trusts his allies and friends, while
 * Voldemort had no affection toward his allies and friends and only see them as expendable pawns.
 * Obvious difference with Voldemort
 * Voldemort was a model student in Hogwarts that uses his reputation as mask for hiding his malicious nature, while Harry is not a model student and known having records in breaking rules, but still a good boy nevertheless.
 * Harry was born with pure love union from his parents, while Voldemort's instead born with a fake love union (implied either Imperius Curse or Love Potion).
 * Harry had not fear with death while Voldemort was otherwise.

Similar Heroes

 * James Henry Trotter (James and the Giant Peach): both lost their parents and were sent to live with abusive relatives


 * Mark Evans (The Good Son): both heroes lost a mother


 * Richard Tyler (The Pagemaster): both wear glasses, get teased by bullies, and have challenged a fierce monster or dragon


 * Koda (Brother Bear): both heroes lost a mother


 * Simba (The Lion King): both heroes lost a father


 * Bart Simpson (The Simpsons): both heroes have an evil archenemy with a desire to kill them (Bart's archenemy Sideshow Bob and Harry Potter's enemy Lord Voldemort)


 * Mowgli (The Jungle Book): orphan boys who are very brave and stubborn, can talk to snakes, faced a fierce enemy (Mowgli faced Shere Khan while Harry faced Lord Voldemort). In the 2016 live action remake, their perspective fathers died


 * Danny Fenton (Danny Phantom): both possess extraordinary powers, can turn invisible, not good model students at school


 * Anya/Anastasia Romonov (Anastasia): both heroes survived and or escaped the villain's terrible curse (Anastasia/Anya escaped from Rasputin and Harry Potter survived Lord Voldemort)


 * Littlefoot (The Land Before Time): both heroes lost a mother


 * Bambi (Bambi): both heroes lost a mother, have an archrival (Harry has Draco Malfoy while Bambi has Ronno)


 * Tom Clarke (Wizards vs Aliens): both lost a mother on Halloween night, they are also wizards who can perform magic


 * Sora (Kingdom Hearts): rescued a girl (Sora rescued Kairi while Harry rescued Ginny), can perform magic, participated in a tournament