Harry Potter: The Unreliable Narrator

Course Overview

This course proposes a look at the characters in Harry Potter through the eyes of our narrator: Harry himself. Harry is an 'unreliable narrator,' as the stories are from his point of view, which means we see people through his lens. Do the characters we are meant to dislike share any characteristics? Why should we trust Harry? Does Professor Snape really have 'curtains of hair' and 'sallow skin', or is this just what eleven-year-old Harry sees in a person he doesn't like? Is Draco Malfoy really an evil bully or is this just how he behaves towards Harry and his friends? How does our narrator Harry tell us which characters we should fear, hate or distrust? Students will look at the first book, 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone', to unpack this. Although it is only the first book that is covered on this programme, students are encouraged to apply what they have learnt to other texts in the Harry Potter series.