By Skylar Huchel
In Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire, Rowling employ elements of Campbell’s depiction of the hero’s journey, such as the hero’s Call to Adventure, his initial Refusal of the Call, the Crossing of the First Threshold (Indick 46). It is through these three principles that Harry’s maturation is propelled forward.
The first of these two, The Call to Adventure, can be seen in chapter one of The Goblet of Fire when Harry experiences a clairvoyant dream and awakens to his scar burning. In this dream, Voldemort and his servant Wormtail are plotting to kill Harry. This Call to Adventure is singular to Harry alone, as he is the sole person alerted of Voldemort’s reascent to power before it becomes public knowledge. This is because Harry is forever tethered to Voldemort through his scar, as a result of the curse Voldemort tried to administer upon Harry as a baby. Therefore, he alone receives this harbinger of what’s to come, along with the future responsibility to vanquish Lord Voldemort.
As if this wasn’t enough, Harry receives an additive to his initial Call to Adventure via his scar burning upon waking from this dream. Harry’s scar burning is a physical sign of Voldemort’s presence, as seen in The Sorcerer’s Stone, as well as it being a signal for when Voldemort is feeling murderous. In this first chapter, the burning sensation of the scar also provides Harry with a physical manifestation of the significance of his dream, so that he will heed the dream as true, rather than simply dismiss it upon waking. This further signifies the Call to Adventure Harry receives. According to Campbell’s analysis of the hero’s journey, the Call to Adventure represents a transitional phase of the hero: he is maturing from a child to a man (Indick 47). The Call of Adventure encapsulates the adolescent or in-between phase, where, as in Harry’s case, there is a lot of internal conflict, as he is forced to take on a more mature role (i.e. alert others of a significant change in Voldemort’s potential rise to power).
In chapter two, the internal conflict Harry faces is depicted in his debate on whether to tell Ron and Hermione, as well as Dumbledore, about his dream and the aftereffects it has had on his scar. This exemplifies Campbell’s second trademark of the hero’s journey: The Refusal of the Call. According to Indick, this is when the young hero denies taking on the more mature, adult role that is being required of him (Indick 48). Harry must overcome his doubt about the importance of his dream and scar’s reaction, and thus seek the wisdom of one who has faced the Dark Arts before: his godfather, Sirius Black. As a sign that Harry has finally accepted his Call to Adventure, he sends a letter to Sirius informing him of what has occurred.
Rowling further implements another concept of Campbell’s interpretation of the hero’s journey in The Goblet of Fire when Harry attends the Quidditch World Cup with the Weasleys. This can be identified in the novel as The Crossing of the First Threshold, which is when the hero leaves the mortal world behind and “enters the realm of adventure” in order to face the supernatural forces he must endure in order to mature (Indick 50). In chapter eight of Goblet of Fire, Harry leaves ordinary Muggle-life with the Dursleys and finds himself submerged once again in wizarding culture when he attends the Quidditch World Cup with the Weasleys. Here, Harry witnesses a variety of occurrences that are only attributable to wizards and the magical world in which they live: transportation via portkey, a rainstorm of vanishing leprechaun gold—not to mention the leprechauns themselves, the siren-like allurement of a group of veelas, the convenience of viewing a sporting event through omnioculars, and the main wizard-sport itself: Quidditch. While these are all relatively enjoyable features of the magical, wizarding world, there is a much darker incident that transpires at the Quidditch World Cup, which pushes Harry into more mature matters. This is the summoning of the Dark Mark. Not only are Harry, Ron, and Hermione alone at the scene where the Dark Mark is conjured, but it is Harry’s wand that is found to be responsible for its conjuring. This entwines Harry (as well as his two best friends) into adult matters that they otherwise would have been simply second-hand witnesses to, like most everybody else at the event; rather, through simple chances of being at the right place at the right time (or the wrong place at the wrong time, depending on how one looks at it), they were able to gain a firsthand account of the Mark being summoned and the authorities’ reaction to it, as well as baring witness to a suspect (i.e. Winky the House Elf) being found at the scene of the crime.
In summation, throughout Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire, elements of Campbell’s version of the hero’s journey can be identified. These include The Call to Adventure, Refusal of the Call, and The Crossing of the First Threshold. The Call to Adventure is seen in the opening chapters when Harry has a portentous dream about Voldemort gaining strength, and this Call is continued upon waking when Harry experiences his scar burning. Harry’s Refusal of the Call occurs when he contemplates whether to take action about this dream and his scar’s reaction to it. While initially refusing to act upon it, he ultimately confides in his godfather and thereby accepts the Call. The third element of Campbell’s—The Crossing of the First Threshold—transpires whenever Harry leaves behind his Muggle relatives and joins Ron’s family at the Quidditch World Cup. While there, he is once more thrown into the magical world of wizards, as well as adult matters. These elements of the hero’s journey work together to further Harry’s maturation.
Works Cited
Indick, William. "The Hero." Ancient Symbology in Fantasy Literature: A Psychological Study, PDF file, McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, pp. 40-62.
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire. Bloomsburgy, Scholastic Inc., 2000.