• Source On February 3, 2000, classrooms across America went online to ask J.K. Rowling their burning questions about Harry Potter. Here are some of the most important canon questions and answers from the interview [transcript]: Did you make up the plot in every aspect first by charting the characters and… Read More
• Source The second online chat Rowling held through Scholastic.com. According to the website, “On October 16, 2000, classrooms across America went online to ask J.K. Rowling their burning questions about Harry Potter.”… Read More
• Titles, nicknames, and honorifics Nickname Scorpius Malfoy gives himself after viewing the alternate universe in which The Augurey and the Dark Lord ruled the Wizarding World together (CC3.14). Read More
• Character Scorpius Malfoy is the son of Draco Malfoy and Astoria Greengrass. Scorpius greatly resembles his father Draco (DH/e, CC). An only child, Scorpius, along with his mother and father, lives apart from the wizarding world due to Astoria’s illness (CC4.4). To the disapproval of his grandparents,… Read More
• Event Scorpius Malfoy boards the Hogwarts Express on Platform Nine and Three-quarters at King’s Cross and starts his third year at Hogwarts. This is soon after the death of his mother Astoria Greengrass Malfoy, as the funeral has not yet taken place (CC1.4). Read More
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Posted by in Canon discussion / Essays
Introduction It only took a second. J. K. Rowling had agreed to talk about her writing for the television documentary, Harry Potter and Me. She took random pages from her endless boxes of notes. She flashed up a page with a brief comment, “This is a list of all the students… Read More
• Incantations Serpensortia is the incantation for a spell which causes a large serpent to burst from the end of the caster’s wand. Read More
• Event Snape is intensely curious about where Remus Lupin goes each month. Sirius jokingly suggests that Snape follow Lupin through the passage beneath the Whomping Willow. James Potter, realizing that Snape would encounter a full-blown and very dangerous werewolf at the end of the passage, stops Snape from going through, thereby… Read More
• Event On the last night of winter break, Severus Snape arrives at Grimmauld Place, headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. Mrs. Weasley tells Harry to go to the kitchen where he finds Snape and his godfather, Sirius Black, sitting in awkward silence because they are old rivals from school days. Read More
• Character Horace Slughorn is a teacher at Hogwarts. He served as Potions Master until 1981, then again from 1996. He was also Head of Slytherin house for the school year 1997-1998. At the beginning of Harry’s 6th year at Hogwarts, Dumbledore and Harry convince a genial wizard named Horace Slughorn to come… Read More
• Hogwarts castle and grounds • Rooms, chambers, and floors The Slytherin common room is a long, low-ceilinged, dungeon-like room filled with skulls and the like. There are high-backed chairs and a carved mantelpiece on the fireplace. The walls are rough stone. The light is green from the green hanging lamps and because it’s located under the lake (… Read More
• Hogwarts castle and grounds The Slytherin dormitories are the rooms where students who are in Slytherin House sleep at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, located in the dungeons of the castle. Read More
• Hogwarts Slytherin House is one of the four houses into which students are Sorted when they start their first year at Hogwarts. Slytherin House was founded by Salazar Slytherin around 990AD. His personal belief in the superiority of Pure Blood wizards still influences the attitudes of Slytherin members today. Head: Professor… Read More
• Quote Slytherin has become diluted. It is no longer the pureblood bastion it once was. Nevertheless, its dark reputation lingers, hence Albus Potter’s fears. Read More
• Dark magic items A heavy gold locket carrying Salazar Slytherin’s mark (an ornate serpentine S). Inherited by Merope Gaunt Riddle, pawned during her pregnancy to Borgin and Burkes, purchased by Hepzibah Smith, and subsequently stolen by Tom Riddle upon her murder (HBP20).  It was made into a Horcrux by Voldemort. At some… Read More
• Sports teams The Slytherin Quidditch Team of Hogwarts is drawn from the students of Slytherin House. The team wear robes of green. The Slytherins field a very strong Quidditch team. They won the Cup for seven years in a row until Gryffindor finally took it away from them in 1994. Slytherin… Read More
• Event Because Slytherin did not beat the Ravenclaw team by a large margin in their Quidditch match, Oliver Wood tells Harry Potter that it means that Gryffindor will be in second place for the Quidditch Cup if they also beat Ravenclaw in the next match (PA12). Read More
• Character Salazar Slytherin was the founder of Slytherin house and one of the co-founders of Hogwarts, described as one of “the four greatest witches and wizards of the age” (along with the other three founders) (CS9). He believed that only pure-blood witches and wizards should be allowed… Read More
• Titles, nicknames, and honorifics Rude nickname given to Albus Potter by fellow-First Year Karl Jenkins during their first flying lesson when Potter’s broomstick refused to rise from the ground when ordered “Up!”  (CC1.4). Karl was implying that Albus did not have magical ability, like a Squib. Read More
• Magical objects Slytherin’s wand contained a fragment of Basilisk horn. It was passed down through the generations to Gormlaith Gaunt, from whom it was stolen by her niece Isolt Sayre. Slytherin taught it to ‘sleep’ when given a certain command in Parseltongue, rendering it inactive; this secret… Read More
• Event The Slytherin Quidditch Team “flatten” Gryffindor in their Quidditch match the previous year, according to McGonagall (PS9). The new Gryffindors are reminded of the history during their first evening by Nearly-Headless Nick: “Gryffindor have never gone so long without winning. Slytherin have got the cup… Read More
• Character Hepzibah Smith was an immense, “very old, very rich witch” who collected magical antiques antiques and befriended Tom Marvolo Riddle in his role with Borgin and Burkes. She was distantly related to Helga Hufflepuff. Hepzibah lived in a grand house filled with so many possessions that it was difficult to walk… Read More
• Creature Snakes are reptilian creatures. Below is a list of snake and snake-like creatures found in the magical world: ashwinder basilisk boa constrictor – Harry accidentally released from the zoo, frightening Dudley half to death and resulting in a severe punishment from Uncle Vernon (PS2) dragon Nagini occamy runespoor sea… Read More
• Plants The Snakewood Tree is an unknown species which grew from the buried remains of Salazar Slytherin’s wand at Ilvermorny School in Massachusetts. Read More
• Hogwarts castle and grounds • Rooms, chambers, and floors If one follows the narrow stone staircase leading from the Entrance Hall to the dungeons, the entrance to Snape’s office is halfway down the cold passageway leading from the foot of that staircase (CS5). Snape’s office is adjacent to the Potions classroom, or at least close enough that Hermione… Read More
• Character Severus Snape was Potions Master, Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and Head of Slytherin House at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; he succeeded Albus Dumbledore as Headmaster. He was personally killed by Lord Voldemort and his snake, Nagini. Snape… Read More
• Quote Well, that is Snape’s tragedy. Given his time over again he would not have become a Death Eater, but like many insecure, vulnerable people (like Wormtail) he craved membership of something big and powerful, something impressive. He wanted Lily and he wanted Mulciber too. He never really understood Lily’s aversion; he… Read More
• Hogwarts Each year when the First Year students arrive at Hogwarts, they undergo a ceremony to sort them into one of the Four Houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, or Hufflepuff. It is done through the use of the famous Hogwarts Sorting Hat (PS7). A stool is placed in front of the… Read More
• Character The Sorting Hat is an ancient wizard’s hat which is used at the beginning of every school year to sort incoming students into their Houses. The hat resides in the Head’s office at Hogwarts. Originally the pointed wizard’s hat of Godric Gryffindor, the Sorting Hat was bewitched… Read More