Albus Dumbledore

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore (born ca. 1840) is a fictional character in the Harry Potter series of books by J.K. Rowling. Dumbledore was the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Dumbledore is described as tall and thin, with long silver hair and a long beard. He has blue eyes, a very long and crooked nose (looking as if it had been broken at least twice) and long fingers. He wears half-moon spectacles. He claims to have a scar above his left knee, its provenance unknown, which happens to be a perfect map of the London Underground.

Considered the most powerful wizard in the world, Dumbledore is benevolent and eccentric, an archetypal good wizard in the style of Merlin. It is said that he is the only wizard Lord Voldemort ever feared.

Dumbledore's Chocolate Frog card mentions that he enjoys chamber music and ten-pin bowling. The card also reveals that he has a great affinity for sweets, magical and non-magical, and has frequently set the password for the gargoyle guarding his office door to be the name of various sweets. He tells Professor McGonagall in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone that he is rather fond of sherbet lemon. He dislikes Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans after coming across a vomit flavoured bean 'in his youth'. This notwithstanding the fact that Bertie Bott was born in the 1930s, many years after Dumbledore's own youth. The apparent discrepancy may be due to the fact that, at more than 150 years old, Dumbledore's idea of what constituted his 'youth' may be a bit hazy. However, it is more likely that the anecdote was just that, an anecdote, and not intended to be reliable. He is a fan of knitting patterns and once told Harry that one could never have enough socks. His favourite flavour of jam is raspberry.

In the film adaptations of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001) and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Dumbledore was played by Richard Harris, who died in 2002 of Hodgkin's disease. Michael Gambon took on the role in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), and is filming for the role in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix which is under production for release in 2007. The German dubbing voice in the first four movies was German actor Klaus Höhne. He died in August 2006. It has not yet been decided who will replace him in the fifth movie.

Patrick McGoohan was originally offered the role for the first movie before Harris, but turned it down due to health reasons. All three actors are Irish. It is unknown if there is a reason for this, but it is possibly just a coincidence.

Early life and career

Little is known about Dumbledore's early history or family. According to Rowling he is about 150 years old when the series begins, meaning he entered Hogwarts as a student in the 1850s. His only known sibling, a brother named Aberforth, was once a member of the Order of the Phoenix and was once prosecuted in the Wizengamot for "practising inappropriate charms on a goat". Aberforth is currently the bartender at the Hog's Head Inn in Hogsmeade.

Dumbledore's extraordinary magical talents were apparent from an early age, as later described by the elderly Griselda Marchbanks, Head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority, who personally examined the school-age Dumbledore for his N.E.W.T. exams in Charms and Transfiguration. Marchbanks recalls that the young, talented Dumbledore had "done things with a wand I'd never seen before."^[HP5]

It has been argued by some fans that Dumbledore may have taken part in and possibly even won the last Triwizard Tournament before 1994, based on the information that prior to the events of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the tournament has not been held for over a century. Such theory has never been confirmed.

Albus Dumbledore's house affiliation is uncertain, though according to Hermione Granger "They say Dumbledore himself was in Gryffindor." In the movie version of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Dumbledore states in Harry's Gryffindor dormitory that, when he was in school, he set fire to the same dormitory bed curtains, and "never liked them".

An unknown time after his graduation, Dumbledore returned to the school as Professor of Transfiguration and as Deputy Headmaster, in which capacity he also served in recruiting students for the school.

In 1945 Dumbledore defeated the Dark Wizard Grindelwald. Voldemort was in his final year of school between September 1944 and July 1945.

Dumbledore is a common figure seen on Chocolate Frog Cards. He has held the posts of Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards. He was removed from these posts during his conflict with the British Ministry of Magic under Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge, but was reinstated when the Ministry was forced to concede that he had correctly warned that Voldemort had returned. During his life Dumbledore refused the position of Minister of Magic at least three times. He holds the Order of Merlin, First Class, for Grand Sorcery.

Magical accomplishments and skills

File:Dumbledoreharris1.jpg

Albus Dumbledore as portrayed by the late Richard Harris.

Dumbledore is famous as an alchemist who has worked with Nicolas Flamel, the only known maker of the Philosopher's Stone, and is credited with discovering the twelve uses of dragon's blood. He is known to be able to conjure Gubraithian Fire (magical everlasting fire). His Patronus takes the form of a phoenix, a recurring symbol in the books.

His weapon of choice seems to be fire: In his duel against Voldemort he used a fiery rope; when he displayed his Wizarding powers to a young Tom Riddle, he did so by setting Riddle's wardrobe on fire; in the Cave he also used fire to hold off the Inferi. Dumbledore has devised a method of sending messages using a Patronus Charm, a skill he has taught only to members of the Order of the Phoenix. He has claimed to be able to become invisible without using an Invisibility Cloak (though he may have been speaking metaphorically), and it is generally accepted that he is capable of seeing through Invisibility Cloaks. Dumbledore is also skilled in Occlumency and Legilimency. Dumbledore places great emphasis on memories; he uses them both as a weapon and as a means of research. In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince he uses his Pensieve to show Harry many people's memories that he has collected about the history of Tom Riddle and how he became Lord Voldemort, as well as the events leading up to the creation of the Horcruxes. Also, in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Harry stumbles across the Penseive for the first time. This is where Dumbledore first explains it to Harry and how it works.

Dumbledore can speak Mermish, the language of the Merpeople,^[HP4] as well as a number of other languages. He can recognize Parseltongue, the language of snakes, as he demonstrates in 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' while he and Harry are inside Bob Ogden's memory.^[HP6]

In an interview Rowling agreed with her interviewers that Dumbledore, albeit a genius, is sometimes very reckless, and commented:

Immense brainpower does not protect you from emotional mistakes and I think Dumbledore really exemplifies that. In fact, I would tend to think that being very, very intelligent might create some problems and it has done for Dumbledore, because his wisdom has isolated him, and I think you can see that in the books, because where is his equal, where is his confidante, where is his partner? He has none of those things. He’s always the one who gives, he’s always the one who has the insight and has the knowledge.

However, Dumbledore sometimes seems the opposite of reckless. He often hesitates to act until he is certain: for example, allowing Snape to return unchallenged and teach at Hogwarts.

Rowling has said that Dumbledore is primarily self-taught, although he "had access to superb teachers at Hogwarts." Rowling also said that as far as his education is concerned, "Dumbledore's family would be a profitable line of inquiry".

Dumbledore is reputed to be unusually wise and knowledgable. He admits a number of times to Harry Potter in their occasional meetings in the sixth Harry Potter book of the series that he makes mistakes, and since he is smarter than most men his mistakes tend to be correspondingly "huger".

Dumbledore and the rise of Lord Voldemort

One of Dumbledore's tasks as a teacher at Hogwarts was to find the young wizard Tom Riddle and offer him a place at Hogwarts. Riddle was living in a Muggle orphanage, and while he had discovered some magical abilities, he did not know that his mother had been a witch. At that time, Dumbledore was much younger and had auburn hair and beard, and he wore a plum colored suit, while visiting the orphanage. Dumbledore told Riddle about Hogwarts, and how he is different. While Dumbledore was impressed by Riddle's abilities, he was troubled by the boy's admitted fondness for inflicting pain, and never trusted him fully. Riddle attempted to get a teaching post at Hogwarts, but Dumbledore first persuaded the current Headmaster, Armando Dippet, to refuse Riddle's request, and himself refused a second request several years later. By this time, Riddle had declared war on his former mentors, and adopted the name that would strike fear into the hearts of Hogwarts students and staff alike for years to come: Lord Voldemort.

It was to Dumbledore that Sybill Trelawney, subsequently appointed as Divination teacher, revealed the prophecy regarding Voldemort's fall. The prophecy was partly overheard by Severus Snape, who reported what he had heard to Voldemort. Snape was discovered eavesdropping by Aberforth, the barman of the Hog's Head Inn, who removed him from the building. Voldemort interpreted the prophecy as referring to Harry, and as a result killed his parents, James and Lily Potter, while trying to kill Harry. By acting upon the prophecy, Voldemort marked Harry as his equal. The two tellings of the story however - by Dumbledore and Trelawney - make it clear that, in fact, Dumbledore was partially lying in his version.

Dumbledore has been instrumental in the struggle against his former student, working tirelessly against him with the Order of the Phoenix. When Harry's parents were killed, it was Dumbledore's decision to place the now-orphaned Harry in the home of Vernon and Petunia Dursley, knowing that Harry would be protected by the special magic caused by his mother's sacrifice, after he evoked the magic of the bond of blood and Petunia Dursley sealed it by accepting Harry into her home. This old magic of binding love made touching Harry unbearable for Voldemort.

Dumbledore makes the important discovery that Voldemort is attempting to achieve immortality by making Horcruxes, one of which is Tom Riddle's diary, destroyed by Harry in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets ^[HP2]. Later, Dumbledore destroys a second Horcrux, a ring which was an heirloom of Voldemort's family.

Throughout the series, Dumbledore is portrayed as a wizard with modern/reformist ideas about blood purity and the rights of Muggles, as well as those of part-humans and non-humans. Dumbledore does not give importance to the so-called "purity of blood" and believes that an individual's choices reflect his character, rather than his birth, blood or family, saying "it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be". Voldemort angrily refers to Dumbledore as "that champion of commoners, of Mudbloods and Muggles". Unlike most wizards, Dumbledore is not afraid to refer to Voldemort by name (and attempted to persuade others to call him by his 'proper' name, Voldemort, during the First War), and instead addresses him as "Tom", thus preventing Voldemort from dictating the terms of their relationship.

Dismissal from Hogwarts

Dumbledore is at least twice temporarily dismissed as Headmaster.

The first time is during Harry's second year at Hogwarts, when Lucius Malfoy persuades the school's other eleven governors to suspend Dumbledore as Headmaster in the wake of attacks by a Basilisk in the school, when the Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Dumbledore is reinstated after the Basilisk is killed and Lucius is found to have coerced the other governors into suspending him.

In Harry's fifth year, Dumbledore and Harry fail to convince the Wizarding world that Voldemort has returned, and that he caused the death of Cedric Diggory. Dolores Umbridge is installed as Defence Against the Dark Arts instructor and Hogwarts' High Inquisitor, dictating new rules as she sees fit. Harry and a group of other students secretly organise a club they call "Dumbledore's Army" in order to learn and practise defensive magic. When "Dumbledore's Army" is discovered, Dumbledore chooses to accept responsiblity, lies by claiming that the organisation was his own subversive creation, and allows himself to be removed as headmaster rather than allow Harry to be expelled. Dumbledore is reinstated after Voldemort launches an attack on the Ministry of Magic.

Death

Dumbledore's death is foreshadowed at the start of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, where he first appears with a burnt and blackened hand, a result of his recovery and destruction of a ring that was an heirloom of Voldemort's grandfather Marvolo Gaunt and was serving as one of Voldemort's Horcruxes. On that occasion, Dumbledore is saved from death thanks to his own "prodigious skill" and the intervention of the school's former Potions master, now the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Severus Snape, though the injury shows no sign of improvement throughout the year that passes in the sixth book. No explanation for this fact was ever given. Except when Hermione says "But there are some injuries you can't cure...old curses...and there are poisons without antidotes."

This injury was particularly troublesome as it reduced Dumbledore's previous power. After picking up Harry from his aunt's house, Dumbledore seems unable to complete simple everyday tasks. Such tasks included opening the front door to leave the Dursley's house, instead of using the door handle he opted to use magic to open the door. Later in book six he was unable to point at a street sign without obvious discomfort, exclaiming "ouch". Finally he was unable to uncork a bottle of memories, for his first lesson with Harry, by removing the cork with his hand, instead he was forced to use his wand. That said, it did not at any important point cause him trouble in spell-casting.

Harry Potter repeatedly warns Dumbledore that another student, Draco Malfoy, is working for Voldemort. Dumbledore refuses to take any action against Draco, and instead tells Harry that he already knows more about what is happening than Harry does. Draco makes two ill-conceived attempts to kill Dumbledore during the year, but on each occasion a student is injured instead. The first attempt involves a cursed necklace, the second a bottle of poisoned mead. Both times Harry attempts to warn Dumbledore that Malfoy is responsible.

Malfoy's main plan is to use a magical cabinet already inside Hogwarts to transport Death Eaters into the castle. The attackers enter the castle while Dumbledore and Harry are away attempting to find and destroy another Horcrux. Dumbledore is weakened by drinking a potion left by Voldemort while obtaining a locket. Upon their return to Hogwarts, Dumbledore and Harry are distracted by the Dark Mark floating over the school. Hearing footsteps approaching, he uses the split second of time before he is disarmed by Malfoy to immobilise Harry, who becomes a silent and invisible witness to the events, rather than defending himself. While talking to Malfoy, Dumbledore reveals that he knew it was him behind the two attempts, but recognizes Malfoy's precarious situation. Malfoy finally realizes that he cannot kill him, so instead Snape is obliged to assassinate Dumbledore.

After all, to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure. - Albus Dumbledore^[PS17]

Dumbledore's funeral is attended by students, teachers, members of the Ministry of Magic, giants, ghosts, centaurs, merpeople, and others. Shrouded in purple velvet, he is entombed in a white marble sarcophagus beside the lake at Hogwarts, and is said to be the only Hogwarts Headmaster to be buried on the school grounds. Upon his death, Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix, mysteriously takes flight and departs from the school grounds.

Dumbledore's portrait appears in the current Headmistress's office alongside those of the other former Headmasters and Headmistresses of Hogwarts. Whether or not Dumbledore's portrait will be able to speak to Harry or provide him with meaningful advice as would Dumbledore himself is a matter of debate among the fanbase. At the end of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire when Harry tells Dumbledore that he saw his parents in the duel with Voldemort, Dumbledore responds, "No spell can reawaken the dead," and interestingly enough, the portrait of Dumbledore shows him sitting in a chair sleeping peacefully. It is also interesting to note that while Harry struggled with Sirius's death in the end of Book 5, wondering if he would ever be able to speak to Sirius's possible ghost form, he makes no attempt at trying to reestablish contact with deceased Dumbledore despite there being a portrait of him in the Headmaster's office. This implies that Dumbledore's death may serve to show that Harry has now a firm acceptance of reality and is willing to let go of the past, in turn completing his transition to adulthood as was Rowling's intent in Book 6.

In spite of the weight of the canon of text, a significant portion of the fan base believes that Dumbledore's death was somehow faked, and will emerge as a plot twist in Book 7. Dumbledoreisnotdead.com presents a number of arguments for Dumbledore still being alive. Thus, Dumbledore's death has become a hotly debated topic, which also strongly linked to the question of Snape's loyalty. Some of the fan base believes that Snape is acting on behalf of "the good side", even if he killed Dumbledore - suggesting that Dumbledore's apparent death was planned or required for "the greater good".

Dumbledore's views on death in general begin to appear as early as the first book, where he states that "death is but the next great adventure." Furthermore, in the fifth book, there is the following exchange with Voldemort: "There is nothing worse than death, Dumbledore!" snarled Voldemort. "You are quite wrong," said Dumbledore....

J.K. Rowling confirmed on 2 August 2006 that Dumbledore is, in fact, dead, saying, "you shouldn't expect Dumbledore to do a Gandalf". She also said: "But I see that I need to be a little more explicit and say that Dumbledore is definitely...dead. And I do know - I do know that there is an entire website out there that says - that's name is DumbledoreIsNotDead.com so umm, I'd imagine they're not pretty happy right now. But I think I need - you need - all of you need to move through the five stages of grief, and I'm just helping you get past denial."

Derivation of name

"Dumbledore", which is an old English word for "bumblebee", was picked by the author because she imagines him wandering around the castle, humming to himself. Additionally, Dumbledore is the common name for Geotrupes stercorarius (also known as the Dor Beetle, Clock or Lousy Watchman) an insect which visits the Shire each year, as mentioned in the poem "Errantry" by J. R. R. Tolkien (published in The Tolkien Reader).

The name Albus is from the Latin word albus ("white"), a frequently used symbol for good.

The name Wulfric meaning "wolf-power", is reminiscent of the legendary hero Beowulf ("powerful bear-wolf"), who in his early years slew the monster Grendel (a name oddly reminiscent of Grindelwald, a Dark Wizard whom Dumbledore defeated). Beowulf later became king, but in his old age had to overcome another monster, a dragon, which he only did with the help of one loyal young warrior called Wiglaf, last of his family. Beowulf died from his wounds during the battle.[1]

The meaning of Brian is not known for certain but it is possibly related to the Old Celtic element "bre" meaning "hill", or by extension "high, noble". The name is more likely used just as a comical contrast to his other, more unusual names.

Percival is a name from old French, meaning 'pierce the veil'.[2] It was the name of one of King Arthur's knights, the only one who was sufficiently pure to retrieve the Holy Grail. The oldest recorded version of the story of Perceval is by Chrétien de Troyes from the 12th century. In Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory, Perceval is both hero and narrator of the tale, as is the case for Dumbledore in parts of the Harry Potter books.[3]

External links

• JK Rowling quotes about Dumbledore at Madamscoop.org
• Dumbledore's page at the Harry Potter Lexicon
• Dumbledore's page at The Phoenix Files on MuggleNet
• MuggleNet - quotes by Albus Dumbledore
• MuggleNet - Editorial theories about the potion Dumbledore consumed
• Editorial theories on Dumbledore's "death" at dumbledoreisnotdead.com
• Interview with JK Rowling about book 7 and Dumbledore's Death at The Leaky Cauldron