There are many characters in Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone, by J.K. Rowling, to keep track of. Each character serves a different role in the story and the distinction between heroes and villains is made. Several characters bully or even try to hurt the main protagonists, Harry, Ron and Hermoine. However, these adversities only help the students’ character growth. Harry, Ron and Hermoine are supposed to be seen as good, but flawed characters, fighting against bad, or “evil”.
The first introduction to bullies, who may not necessarily fit what people think of as villains, are the Dursleys. They are Harry Potter’s aunt, uncle and cousin. Terrified of Harry’s magic and the fact that he might find out about it, they lock him away in a cupboard and constantly nag him. They want nothing to do with Harry and so he “dreamed and dreamed of some unknown relation coming to take him away” (50). Ten years of being hated and bullied by the Dursleys leads to Harry doubting his abilities and place at Hogwarts. However, his doubt also leads him to want to prove that he’s more than just a famous name, that he belongs at Hogwarts.
Once at Hogwarts, not unlike a regular school, Harry and Ron run into Draco Malfoy who ends up bullying them. Draco continuously tries to get them into trouble. At one point, after Neville Longbottom gets hurt learning to use a broomstick, Malfoy takes something of Neville’s and Harry attempts to get it back. Ignoring his teacher’s instructions, he “turned his broomstick sharply to face Malfoy in midair. Malfoy looked stunned” (148). Harry stands up to the bully to help out a friend and in return it actually benefits him. He lands a spot on the Quidditch team, and its playing Quidditch that he finds an activity that solidifies his belonging at Hogwarts.
Towards the end of the novel, Harry, Ron and Hermoine run into actual evil. They learn about the Sorcerer’s Stone and realize it is in danger, so they go to save it. It is blocked by many guards that some of the professors have set, but they use their bravery and knowledge to get through. Harry is left alone at the end and comes to find that Professor Quirrell is evil, working for Voldemort. Quirrell says to Harry, “There is no good and evil, there is only power and those too weak to seek it” (291). The problem with this statement is that Quirrell is implying that everyone with power wants to use it for bad things. Harry is seeking to protect himself, his friends and Hogwarts using his power, given to him by his mother. Harry is composed of such love from his mother that “it was agony to touch a person marked by something so good” (299). In that battle, the good (Harry and his friends) overcame the strength of evil and realized their own personal strengths in the process.
I agree that it is significant that Harry’s and his friends’ growth often comes from encounters with evil, hateful characters. Although they face a lot of challenges in their first year, the ones that are most significant are those that pit them against forces of evil. From Harry’s time with the Durselys, who bully and belittle him, he gains humility that he wouldn’t have otherwise. From his fights with Malfoy, specifically the one you referenced, Harry has an opportunity to stand up for Neville, even at risk to himself. This proves he has a selfless nature and helps his friends without a second thought. Finally, in order to defeat Quirrell and Voldemort, Harry, Hermoine, and Ron each have to pass a sort of test to get them to the chamber. Each one of them has a special skill they have to use in order to allow them passage. The only encounter that I would argue this is not true for is when Harry faces off with Quirrell directly. The only reason Harry defeats him and Voldemort then is due to the strength of his parents’ love for him, which isn’t a trait of his own. However, I still think this trend of growth for the characters through their struggles against evil is significant.
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