Canon discussion
Page 3 of 12
Canon Celebration: Quidditch!
• Essay
Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Canon discussion
In the beginning, everything in the Wizarding World is new. We the readers are finding out things at the same time Harry Potter does. He first hears the word Quidditch from Draco Malfoy when they are getting fitted for robes in Diagon Alley and has to ask Hagrid what it… Read More
🎙️ Philosopher's Stone 6-17 Canon Celebration
• Essay
Ready to have some fun exploring? Here we go! Podcasts: Trunks by Selena Gallagher Platform Nine and 3/4 by Steve VanderArk How Many Students Are There at Hogwarts? by Steve VanderArk Whatever Happened to Sally-Ann? by Steve VanderArk The Significance of Hallowe’en by Rosie Payne… Read More
🎙️ Philosopher's Stone 1-5 Canon Celebration
• Essay
Welcome to the first of twenty-six blog posts in our Canon Celebration! This time around we’re exploring the first five chapters of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Why am I not saying “Sorcerer’s Stone”? Because that’s not the original name of the book, as you probably know. That’s the… Read More
🎙️ Encore Presentation: OP1 - Drought
• Essay
This is an encore presentation of an episode from March, 2018. Today we’re spending a little bit of time with chapter one of Order of the Phoenix. From the very beginning, we’re introduced to the theme of drought. Rowling writes: Cars that were usually gleaming stood dusty in their… Read More
🎙️ Encore Episode: Did Dumbledore Walk Around With It in His Pocket?
• Essay
This is an encore broadcast of the first Harry Potter Lexicon Podcast from June of 2011. Welcome to the Harry Potter Lexicon Podcast, in this first episode: Steve introduces the podcast thanks a few people reminiscing about visiting the graveyard in Godric’s Hollow the missing twenty-four hours the mystery… Read More
🎙️ Canon Thoughts: Goblet of Fire
• Essay
In my last canon thoughts podcast, I talked about the amazing third book in the Potter series, The Prisoner of Azkaban. Now we move on the book four, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I’m always a bit surprised by how many people consider this to be their… Read More
🎙️ "Canon" Musings
• Essay
Here at the Lexicon, we do our best to organize the information that has been presented to us by or with the express approval of J.K. Rowling. It’s an important job, because this fictional world of hers is an escape for many people, and in order to escape to… Read More
🎙️ OP34: Angrier Than the Occasion Warranted
• Essay
In the 34th chapter of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, we get to explore the wondrous Department of Mysteries. Anyone reading the books for the first time will tell you that by the time we get to this chapter, our curiosity is definitely piqued. Between… Read More
🎙️ Canon Thoughts: Prisoner of Azkaban
• Essay
In my series called Canon Thoughts, I’ve given my comments about books one and two of the Harry Potter series as well as about some of the early interviews which Rowling gave back in 1999 and 2000. I’ve also given my take on Crimes of… Read More
🎙️ Horcrux Deaths
• Essay
Today we’re going to talk Horcruxes. Specifically, how they’re made. I started thinking about this subject when I read a particularly interesting passage from Half-Blood Prince. Here’s what caught my eye: Dumbledore says that Voldemort “seems to have reserved the… Read More
Harry's Dreams, Continued
• Essay
Since the original essay ‘Harry’s Dreams’ was written by Steve VanderArk in 2006, there have been quite a few new pieces of canon writing from J K Rowling. Two of these in particular contain further dreams of Harry Potter’s to examine. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows… Read More
Deleted Scenes - Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
• Essay
Is “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay” really the Original Screenplay? Or is the widely available version actually “The Original Screenplay 2.0”? Every film has a screenplay or script. In Great Britain the norm is double-hole-punched A4 paper which is slightly taller and narrower than the North American… Read More
🎙️ Canon Thoughts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
• Essay
Like pretty much every Potter fan out there, I eagerly went to see “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.” I was prepared to be disappointed. I’d read a number of reviews which decried the muddled storylines, the gratuitous easter eggs for fans, and the messed up timelines. So I saw… Read More
🎙️ OP27: Dull March into Squally April
• Essay
Today we’re jumping into chapter 27 of Order of the Phoenix, entitled “The Centaur and the Sneak.” As I re-read this chapter looking for a good topic for this Minute podcast, I found myself making a series of notes about a lot of disconnected tidbits. So as I’ve done… Read More
🎙️ CS15: Contrasting Viewpoints
• Essay
The opening paragraph of Chamber of Secrets chapter 15, entitled “Aragog,” is describing some very contrasting atmospheres. Outside on the grounds of Hogwarts, summer is approaching. The weather is perfect, but inside of the castle things for Harry have never been going more wrong. The students go fearfully… Read More
How is Professor McGonagall in Crimes of Grindelwald?
• Essay
Though it is a charming bit of plot candy to throw out to eager Potterphiles, the mention of Professor McGonagall in the latest film “Fantastic Beats: The Crimes of Grindelwald” has caused a tidal wave of reaction all out of proportion to the size of the scene. The question… Read More
The Fantastic Beasts Saga Timeline
• Essay
The dates for each of these events is derived from a close read of canon sources, including the scripts for Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. 1881 Albus Dumbledore is born c. 1883 Gellert Grindelwald is born c. Read More
Discussing The 'Crimes of Grindelwald' Reveal (MAJOR SPOILER WARNING)
• Essay
UPDATE: I’ve now read the screenplay for the film and some interesting new details have been revealed. It undoes some of my theories in this post, but I’ve keep my original theories and put my updated ones below them in the “UPDATE” section. Anyway… MAJOR SPOILERS for… Read More
🎙️ CS11: Loyalty
• Essay
There is a lot that happens in Chapter 11 of Chamber of Secrets, entitled The Dueling Club. The final ingredients for the Polyjuice Potion are acquired. The dueling club meeting takes place, which leads to Harry finding out he is a Parselmouth. And Harry discovers… Read More
🎙️ OP22: In Essence Divided
• Essay
In chapter 22, we are introduced to St Mungo’s hospital. But we are also introduced to two other new ideas, one of which remained a mystery to fans even after the last book was published. One of these new ideas is the fact that the portraits of previous headmasters… Read More