The Harry Potter series is about good, evil, magic, courage, death and mother's love... Today is mother's day in the UK so I decided to take a moment to realize the importance of mothers. A mother’s love can completely change the course of a person’s life. Nowhere in the nerdy world do we see this more than in the story of Harry Potter. J. K. Rowling's mother had, in a certain way, a huge impact on her work. J. K. Rowling’s mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and she suffered for many years before finally succumbing to it. This was a turbulent period in J. K. Rowling’s life and she was extremely affected and depressed. Rowling has confessed that writing was her only means of consolation then and she has even said that she fought her loss by writing about Harry’s losses.Throughout the series, one recurrent theme is the importance of parents and a loving family. Like in the Deathly Hallows, Harry says, “Parents shouldn’t leave their kids unless they’ve got to”. Rowling’s childhood wasn’t extraordinarily happy and she didn’t get along with her father,that is what probably made her emphasize on family values and more importantly on mother’s love. She was also for some time, a single mother which must have strengthened her views on the power of mother’s love.
Of the mothers in the Harry Potter story, I decided to talk about and the impact that these mothers had on the lives of their sons.
Molly Weasley
Children: Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, George, Ron, Ginny
Molly is fiercely protective of her children, very mother bear-like. Molly takes an active role in the lives of her children. She has a bit of a temper and is a strict disciplinarian, but is as quick with a hug as she is with a lecture or a scolding. One thing that sets Molly apart from the other mothers is that she is almost a mother to all. (Well, all who deserve it.) While in the stories, we really only see her interacting with her kids, Harry, and Hermione, we do get the sense that she would take that same role with other children. At times, we even see her become a mother to her husband, Arthur, and the members of the Order of the Phoenix. Molly loves her family and her friends and is utterly devoted to her children, even the ones that are right foul gits. Her love provides a safety net for her family, as well as creating a lasting connection between herself and her children. Even the surrogate ones. They can count on her and she can count on them, when it comes down to it, no matter what.
Narcissa Malfoy
Children: Draco
Narcissa is firm in her beliefs that pure-bloods have the right to rule. However, she loves her son and from all accounts has been a good mother to young Draco. While Draco is not a nice person, he does not have the discipline problem that we see in Dudley or even in some of his friends. Draco is a driven and ambitious young man, though the ideals that have been instilled in him are questionable. Like most mothers, Narcissa is worried for her son. She asks Snape to protect him when Draco was tasked with killing Dumbledore. The most telling instance of Narcissa’s love her child comes during the battle for Hogwarts. A supposedly dead Harry is laying on the ground and Narcissa goes over to check on him. Seeing that he is not dead, she asks him if Draco is safe, to which Harry whispers that he is. Narcissa then tells Voldemort that Harry is dead. Later, after Draco and The Dark Lord’s creepy hug, she takes him and leaves, literally turning her back on Voldemort.
Lily Evans Potter Children: Harry Harry’s mother died protecting him while he was still a baby. This is the most important thing to happen in Harry Potter. If she killed Voldemort or died in any other way, there would be no story. It was her ultimate sacrifice that saved Harry. A mother’s love can literally change the world. Even though she was gone, her love protected him for many years. Lord Voldemort could not even touch Harry because Harry was protected. Harry had a special place for James Potter, to be sure, but throughout his young life it was the idea of his mother that drew his attention. As stated, he had his mother’s eyes and it was these eyes that Snape looked in and saw his love, Lily Evans. This caused Snape to protect the boy. Although Lily’s presence in Harry’s life was short, she is arguably the most important of the mothers in Harry Potter. Her sacrifice, her appearance in the Mirror of Erised, her appearance in the Priori Incantatum, and again through the Resurrection Stone, all had an immense impact on Harry’s life and the lives of those he sought to protect. Mother's are the best and we don't always realize that love as powerful as our mother's for us leaves its own mark.