An Issue of Death: Thestrals

An issue of Death: Thestrals

The subject of Thestrals is an intriguing one. The magical creatures are only visible if one has seen death. The introduction of Thestrals occurred within The Order of the Phoenix [HP5]. This has produced many questions about them, namely starting with 'Why could Harry not see them after Cedric was killed at the end of The Goblet of Fire' [HP4]? To this end, JKR has issued a statement on this topic. The news article quote is included at the end of this essay as an appendix but the gist of it is that Harry was still processing that it had actually happened and was in a state of disbelief. Her main reason outside of the magical schematics was literary license; introducing a new creature at the end of a book is not a good plot device, especially as she was going to use them in the rescue mission [HP5]. JKR did what is 'right' in literary terms.

Because the series of books is about Harry Potter, it is sensible to focus this essay in context with Harry's experiences. As such, there have been several instances before the beginning of HP5 in which Harry 'sees' death. It is the purpose of this section to classify the experiences and prove that JKR is right about the timing.

Harry's first experience of death is that of Voldemort killing his parents and failing to kill himself. At the time Harry was fifteen months old. JKR has said in a separate interview to the one mentioned before (also included as an appendix) that Harry was in a cot at the time and subsequently did not witness the entire event. Harry doesn't really remember his parents dying. He can hear their last moments because of the Dementors, but doesn't have any visual representation other than the Green Light. Incidentally, he only found out the significance of that in his fourth year. For ten years he believed his parents died in a car crash - if he couldn't distinguish between the lie and the reality then I think it is safe to assume he doesn't remember witnessing them die. Even his mother protecting him. Of course, the light that Harry remembers could also be the failed curse directed at himself and not that of his mother's death.

The second incident in the books that is a possible sighting of death is that of Professor Quirrell in the Philosopher's Stone [HP1]. Harry was the one who drove Voldemort's presence from the professor's body by using the gift of his mother's love as a weapon. However, Harry was in pain whilst utilizing it and subsequently passed out. Quirrell died after Harry was unconscious and Voldemort fled. Remember, Dumbledore had to tell Harry when he was in the Hospital Wing that Quirrell was dead. Harry hadn't seen what had happened to him. I suppose he was too busy trying to keep the stone away from Quirrell and was in too much pain to notice exactly how he was keeping Quirrell at bay. JKR, in the second quote provided in the appendix, summed this up in much the same fashion.

Finally, there is Cedric. This is the controversial death that many are confused about. Harry saw Cedric die. Harry had learned how to recognise the Avada Kedavra curse and what it did (cause death, obviously). So when Cedric was killed Harry actually knew and had seen it. After this event, he left Hogwarts on the carriages pulled by the invisible creatures. Surely JKR made a mistake and he should have been able to see them then. However, if you look at the two quotes given by the author there is a clear line of argument that as well as literary license, a death must sink in before the Thestral becomes visible. Using the facts of the book a three-piece criteria can be applied for the sighting of a Thestral:

When applying this formula to the three deaths above, the question of Harry's experience with Thestrals is solved, as it were. As a baby, Harry did not see a death through being shielded by his cot. This would make the first factor a moot one. The same reasoning applies for Quirrell's death. Harry was unconscious so did not see it. With these instances, because Harry never gets past the first stage of Thestral viewing, the others would not come into play.

Cedric's death meets all the criteria. Harry saw him die. He is old enough to understand the situation. A baby might have seen someone die but they don't understand that the person is gone forever, so it is doubtful that it would see a Thestral. Harry also knows the Avada Kedavra curse is used to kill people. Therefore, he has seen and understood the death. The part that most people seem to be having trouble with is the accepting part. JKR states that the death must be allowed to sink in before Thestrals can be seen. Harry evidently has not allowed this to happen by the time he is leaving Hogwarts. The text shows examples of this as well.

"And then, without warning, Harry's scar exploded with pain. It was agony such as he had never felt in all his life; his wand slipped from his fingers as he put his hands over his face; his knees buckled; he was on the ground and he could see nothing at all [1], his head was about to split open.

From far away, above his head, he heard a high, cold voice say, 'Kill the spare.'

A swishing noise and a second voice, which screeched the words to the night: 'Avada Kedavra!'

A blast of green light blazed through Harry's eyelids, and he heard something heavy fall to the ground beside him [2]; the pain in his scar reached such a pitch that he retched, and then it diminished; terrified of what he was about to see [3], he opened his stinging eyes.

Cedric was lying spread-eagled on the ground beside him. He was dead.

For a second that contained an eternity, Harry stared into Cedric's face, at his open grey eyes, blank and expressionless as the windows of a deserted house, at his half-open mouth, which looked slightly surprised. And then, before Harry's mind had accepted what he was seeing, before he could feel anything but numb disbelief [4], he felt himself being pulled to his feet."

[GOF [HP4], Chapter 32, Flesh, Blood and Bone, pg 553/554, UK Hardback]

The numbers in brackets are added in for future reference to the selected parts of the text. For the moment, drawing your attention to point [4], it is clear that JKR had spent a lot of time justifying the Thestral situation. It clearly states that Harry has had no time to accept what he has seen. This means that Harry is excluded from the criteria for the present. This is only allowed to happen when Harry has a lot of free time to truly think about what has occurred; this period would be when he is, in effect, alone at the Dursleys.

This section of the essay concludes that the timeline as set out in the books is correct and that JKR is justified in letting Harry see them at the beginning of his fifth year.

The real reason behind this essay is to summate all the excellent points brought up in a forum on Fiction Alley (fictionalley.org). The thread was entitled 'How come Harry couldn't see the Thestrals until fifth year?' and there has been a lot of to-ing and fro-ing amongst the users as to how Thestrals were viewed; what would constitute a death, was Harry's situation correct.

One of the best points in that thread was that the quote from GoF (given above) states that Harry could, in fact, not see as Wormtail killed Cedric (point [1]). This is a marvelous point as it conflicts with the criteria detailed above required for Thestral viewing. Blinding light, hearing a thump (point [2]). Is this really a 'seeing death' situation? Some lenience is perhaps needed in the rules of Thestrals. For example, what would happen if someone were to blink on the point of another being dealt a killing blow? Surely it is natural to cringe at brutality, especially if you are seeing it up close and personal. Would that not be counted, then, as seeing death? Harry knows what Avada Kedavra does, he hears Wormtail saying those words, he knows the green light couples the spell and he knows what he is going to see when he opens his eyes (point [3]). Why shouldn't Harry have seen death? Do his eyes have to be wide open, following the spell, seeing it hit the victim, seeing the light drain from their eyes?

Semantics could be taken into play here. Does 'to see death' literally have to be taken as seeing? What about witnessing? There is a subtle difference here. To witness is to "to see, hear, or know by personal presence and perception" (dictionary.com). Personal presence fits for Harry. He has the knowledge, he was there. That can be taken as seeing death. JKR has specifically said that she put a lot of thought into the Thestral problem. This is not something she would make a silly mistake over.

The final point of the above quote is that which has been explained before; the acceptance point ([4]). It is an important one so it bears reiterating. Before Harry could take everything in, he's being forced into the Resurrection Ritual and a duel with Voldemort. He isn't given time to assimilate himself to Cedric's condition or what it means before he has to worry about his own. Everything is life or death and he isn't given a chance to think. Therefore, he cannot see the Thestrals on the way out of Hogwarts. Harry has been thinking about his position most of all and only with the lengthy summer holiday can he come to grips with Cedric as well. So, he can see them on the way in.

Another point raised was that of belief. What if you thought you had seen someone die but they had not? Would you see Thestrals then? The answer is hypothetical but reasonable; no. If you thought someone was dead, the first point wouldn't be true. Even if the second two were. All the criteria must be met before you can see a Thestral.

There is an issue surrounding Barty Crouch Jr as well. He was kissed by a Dementor. It has been asked whether this would constitute a death. Again, the answer would be no. A Dementor removes the soul from the body. The body still functions; it is the essence of the person that is missing. They can breathe but not think. They are alive but for all intents and purposes they are dead. An empty shell, a husk. It is a dreary fate and one that Barty Crouch Jr experienced but it would not enable any of those people present to see a Thestral.

What about creatures? Is Dobby a person? If he died (ignore that he has) would you be able to see the Thestrals? Whilst we would all like to think it, truthfully he is a wizarding creature. It is doubtful whether unicorns or dragons etc. would enable people to see Thestrals, in the event of their death being witnessed. However, humanoid creatures (for example house elves, goblins, giants) could be a different case. An interesting point brought up was that of perspectives. For example, Lucius Malfoy and Hermione Granger have very different views on magical creatures. Malfoy disregards house elves but Hermione campaigns for their rights. Would this mean that (theoretically) if both Malfoy and Hermione had never witnessed death before but they both witnessed the death of Dobby Hermione would be able to see Thestrals whilst Malfoy would not? From perspectives, let's say if Dobby died, it would be a 'creature death' rather than a human. And for the sake of argument, creatures cannot provoke Thestrals being seen. Both Lucius and Hermione would not be able to see a Thestral because, even though Hermione thinks of Dobby as a person, he isn't. Is it a case of a human seeing a 'human death' that triggers the significance?

A more pedantic point was that of bugs. Yes, bugs. The imposter Defence Against the Dark Arts professor killed a spider with the Avada Kedavra curse in front of Harry's whole class. Would they all then be able to see the Thestrals? The answer here would again have to be no. A spider is not a human being. The impression the books give is that a Thestral could only be seen if the viewer had seen someone die - not something. Practically everyone in the world has seen a bug squashed or a pet die or something along those lines. Its sad, but not significant. A person dying is a huge event. The human race is above all others. We are not animals. Therefore, it's logical to assume that the death of a human triggers the Thestrals coming into focus, as it were. Also, just because the spider was killed by an Avada Kedavra, it doesn't mean that form of death was 'better' (for lack of a better word) than being stood on.

And finally, Neville. Neville can see the Thestrals in Hagrid's Care of Magical Creatures lesson on them. People are intrigued by his situation and want to know why his story was never brought up. The answer is simple: the books revolve around the Trio. Neville is an important character but not central to the plot. Therefore, why should he talk about his experiences? He and the Trio are friends but not confidants. They would have no reason to talk about personal matters. Like his parents; Neville is shy and does not want to divulge such personal information in the books. He is not going to up and say, "Hey, can you see those scary black things out there that only appear once you have seen death? Well I can and this is why..."

Death is a very intimate topic. No one likes to talk, or even think, about it. A thing like that is not going to randomly pop up in conversation and no one is going to want to start a conversation pertaining to that in a public setting. Neville would not want to talk about seeing the Thestrals, even if he could, in the earlier books.

So to sum up, Thestrals need three conditions to be seen: to see, to know and to accept death. Harry has had personal experience with all three areas but can only see the Thestrals at the beginning of his fifth year because at the end of his fourth, he had not as of yet accepted Cedric's death. The topic of Thestrals is very intriguing with many points left open for discussion. The second part of this essay is full of open ended questions that anyone could seize and expand upon. So if you feel like analysing, there is a whole forum waiting to rip your arguments to shreads!

Reference List

[HP1] Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

[HP4] Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

[HP5] Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Fiction Alley: www.fictionalley.org

Dictionary: www.dictionary.com

Appendix

JKR Quote (1)

Email: "Harry saw his parents die so why hasn't he been able to see the Thestrals before?"

JK Rowling: I knew I was going to get that one...that is an excellent question. And here is the truth. At the end of Goblet of Fire we sent Harry home more depressed than he had ever been leaving Howarts. I knew that Thestrals were coming, and I can prove that because they're in the book I'd produced for Comic Relief (UK) "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them".

These are lucky Black Winged Horses. However, if Harry had seen them and it had not been explained then it would cheat the reader. So, to explain that to myself, I decided you had to have seen the death and allowed it to sink in a bit... slowly...these creatures became solid in front of you. So that's how I'm going to sneak past that one.

JKR Quote (2)

Q: In the fifth book, Harry can see the Thestrals. Can you?

A: Yes, I can, definitely. That is a really good question, because it enables me to clear up a point. The letters that I've had about the Thestrals! Everyone has said to me that Harry saw people die before could see the Thestrals. Just to clear this up once and for all, this was not a mistake. I would be the first to say that I have made mistakes in the books, but this was not a mistake. I really thought this one through.

Harry did not see his parents die. He was one year old and in a cot at the time. Although you never see that scene, I wrote it and then cut it. He didn't see it; he was too young to appreciate it. When you find out about the Thestrals, you find that you can see them only when you really understand death in a broader sense, when you really know what it means.

Someone said that Harry saw Quirrell die, but that is not true. He was unconscious when Quirrell died, in Philosopher's Stone. He did not know until he came around that Quirrell had died when Voldemort left his body.

Then you have Cedric. With Cedric, fair point. Harry had just seen Cedric die when he got back into the carriages to go back to Hogsmeade station. I thought about that at the end of Goblet, because I have known from the word go what was drawing the carriages. From Chamber of Secrets, in which there are carriages drawn by invisible things, I have known what was there.

I decided that it would be an odd thing to do right at the end of a book. Anyone who has suffered a bereavement knows that there is the immediate shock but that it takes a little while to appreciate fully that you will never see that person again. Until that had happened, I did not think that Harry could see the Thestrals. That means that when he goes back, he saw these spooky things. It set the tone for Phoenix, which is a much darker book.