Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

This article covers the novel "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince". For the film adaptation of the same name, see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film) .

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (original title: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ) is the sixth volume in the Harry Potter book series by Joanne K. Rowling . It was published in 2005 and is one of the most successful volumes in the series with an estimated 65 million copies sold to date.

Within the Harry Potter series, the sixth novel fulfills a threshold function: it serves to bring together several storylines and thus set the course for the seventh and final volume in the series.

The book

The British publisher Bloomsbury and the American Scholastic publishing house published the novel on July 16, 2005. With a length of 607 pages, the original edition is shorter than the two previous volumes. Scholastic printed 10.8 million copies for its first edition , of which around 6.9 million copies were sold within the first 24 hours.

The German version was published on October 1, 2005 by Carlsen Verlag with a first edition of two million copies and a number of 656 pages. As with all other German-language Harry Potter volumes, Klaus Fritz took care of the translation and Sabine Wilharm designed the cover.

content

initial situation

The return of Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters , who are now ubiquitous, is increasingly affecting the Muggle world . Enigmatic misfortunes occur; People disappear without a trace or are mysteriously killed. An ominous mist covers the land. In the world of magic, rumors spread of the prophecy describing Harry Potter as the "chosen one", the wizard who alone has the power to defeat Lord Voldemort. Due to the latest events, the - not named - British Prime Minister receives a visit from Cornelius Fudge , who informs him about the background of the current events. At the end of the conversation it becomes clear that Fudge has since been deposed as Minister of Magic. His successor is Rufus Scrimgeour , the former head of the Auror headquarters .

action

Sisters Narcissa Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange visit Hogwarts professor Severus Snape at his home. Narcissa asks Snape to protect her son Draco on a secret mission that Lord Voldemort personally entrusted. She fears that Draco is not up to the job, and after her husband Lucius failed to find out the full text of the prophecy about Harry and Voldemort, the family would completely incur the wrath of Voldemort for another failure. Thereupon Snape makes an Unbreakable Oath to help Draco and, if necessary, to fulfill the task assigned to him in his place.

Albus Dumbledore picks up Harry at the Dursley's and brings him to the Weasley family's home after they have persuaded former teacher Horace Slughorn to return to Hogwarts . After the summer break, Harry returns to Hogwarts with Ron , Hermione and Ginny for his sixth year. There, the security measures have been increased drastically, as an attack by the Death Eaters is feared.

To everyone's astonishment, the jovial, but also selfishly acting Horace Slughorn takes over the position of professor of potions . Professor Snape, on the other hand, is taking on Defense Against the Dark Arts , as rumor has it he has always longed for it. This, at first glance, negative change in the teaching staff turns out to be a stroke of luck for Harry, as it is now possible for him to take Potions as a NEWT course, which is a prerequisite for his training as an Auror . Professor Snape would not have been possible because he only students with a grade (ZAG = spell level) Without equal admitted to his course, Harry, however, only one exceeded expectations had received.

In the first class of Potions , Harry receives a used textbook in which the unknown "Half-Blood Prince" , apparently a former student, has noted useful additional instructions. With their help, he succeeded in preparing magic potions for the first time without any problems, which quickly made him Professor Slughorn's favorite student. In addition, he learns from the book some previously unknown, useful spells that the half-blood prince apparently invented himself.

During the following weeks, the Daily Prophet reported an increasing number of disappearances and some deaths. Even at Hogwarts are Katie Bell out of the house Gryffindor and Ron nearly killed. Panic is spreading. Harry finally comes to the conclusion that Draco Malfoy is behind the incidents in the school and is working with Snape, or at least being covered by him. He learns of Snape's Unbreakable Oath and finds out that this oath kills whoever violates him. In an attempt to uncover Snape's and Malfoy's plans, he turns to Remus Lupine , Arthur Weasley, and finally Dumbledore himself, but all reject his suspicions. Dumbledore also insists vigorously that he continues to trust Professor Snape fully despite all the allegations Harry makes.

During private lessons through Dumbledore, Harry gets interesting insights into the life story and personality of Tom Riddle, who later became Lord Voldemort. It sheds light on Riddle's unhappy childhood in an orphanage , his cruel character traits, his pursuit of power and his inability to develop personal relationships. By studying the memories of various people, Harry learns more about the young Riddle's goals and practices. He had applied for a teaching post at Hogwarts twice, but was rejected both times. As a result, he presumably bewitched the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher : Anyone who has accepted him since then leaves school in the same school year, be it dead or alive.

When Dumbledore gets hold of a previously kept secret memory of Professor Slughorn thanks to Harry, he sees that Voldemort, in his pursuit of immortality , wants to split his soul into a total of seven parts and hide it in various objects, so-called horcruxes . In order to finally defeat Voldemort, the six outsourced parts must first be found and destroyed. Harry has already destroyed one of them, Tom Riddle's diary. Another Horcrux, the ring of Riddle's grandfather Vorlost Gaunt , Dumbledore himself could render harmless. The headmaster further suspects that Riddle hid his soul parts in important artifacts from Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and also Gryffindor.

Harry's hatred of Snape reaches a new height when he learns that it was once Snape who overheard the prophecy of Sibyll Trelawney and passed it on to Lord Voldemort without delay. Snape is thus partly responsible for the death of Harry's parents. But that is precisely why Dumbledore continues to stand by Snape: he was so shocked by the murder of the Potters that he turned his back on the Dark Lord and joined Dumbledore.

Harry and Dumbledore leave Hogwarts together to find and destroy another Horcrux - Slytherin's locket. When they actually find it in an eerie cave, it is at the bottom of a small basin that is filled with an indefinite, impenetrable liquid. Dumbledore decides that the liquid must be drunk and orders Harry to pour the potion into him at all costs and do everything in his power to keep Dumbledore drinking. Dumbledore manages, despite terrible pain, to empty the basin. Harry takes the chain. On their escape from the cave, Harry supports the barely ambulatory Dumbledore.

They apparate back to Hogsmeade . When Dumbledore discovers the Dark Mark, the symbol of an attack by the Death Eaters, over Hogwarts' Astronomy Tower, he gathers all his strength again and flies there with Harry. During her absence, Voldemort's followers have invaded the castle unnoticed with the help of Draco Malfoy. On the astronomy tower, Dumbledore orders Harry to get Professor Snape. Harry, who wants to hide under his invisibility cloak on the way, suddenly becomes immobile and has to watch what happens next. Moments later, Draco appears on the platform, pointing his wand at Dumbledore. He disarms Dumbledore and reveals to him that Voldemort had hired him to kill him. His first two attempts accidentally hit Katie and Ron. But he was now determined to bring the matter to an end in order to rehabilitate his father in Voldemort's eyes. Dumbledore unsettles Draco Malfoy so much that he fails to complete his assignment. When more Death Eaters arrive, they urge Malfoy with increasing impatience to do his job. In this situation, Snape finally appears. Instead of Draco, he kills Dumbledore with the Avada Kedavra curse.

Together with Draco and the other Death Eaters, Snape flees, is pursued by Harry, whose spell has been broken with Dumbledore's death, and embroiled in a duel. The spells from the book of the Half-Blood Prince can easily fend off Snape because he invented them himself: Snape reveals himself as the Half-Blood Prince . His mother was a witch, (English for. Nee Prince Prince ) and married the muggle Tobias Snape - does what Severus to a half-breed. He and Draco manage to escape. The attack by the other Death Eaters is narrowly fended off with the combined forces of the teaching staff, some members of the Order of the Phoenix and members of "Dumbledore's Army".

Professor McGonagall takes over the school management at Hogwarts for the time being. The current school year will be canceled shortly before its regular end. It remains to be seen whether the school will have to remain closed for security reasons after the summer holidays. The funeral of Albus Dumbledore follows, at which many people from the previous novels come to pay their final respects to the deceased.

It turns out that the locket found by Harry and Dumbledore is not a Horcrux, but an imitation. The locket contains a message addressed to the Dark Lord stating that the real Horcrux was stolen by a mysterious RAB . He intends to destroy the original.

Harry decides not to return to Hogwarts for the next school year. Instead, he wants to find the remaining Horcruxes and then kill Voldemort. Ron and Hermione promise that they will fight by his side. Harry wants to avoid that as much as possible.

filming

→ Main article : Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)

The film version of the novel was released in German theaters on July 16, 2009. Production began in spring 2007 and ended in autumn 2008. On May 17, 2008, filming for the film was completed. From November 20, 2008, the film should open in British, US and European cinemas. Warner postponed the date in August by eight months, to July 16, 2009.

The actors of the main characters in the previous parts of the film series can be seen again in their traditional roles. Important roles to be cast for the first time for this film were those of Professor Horace Slughorn, played by Jim Broadbent , Narcissa Malfoy, played by Helen McCrory and Lavender Brown, played by Jessie Cave . The young Tom Riddle is portrayed at the age of eleven by Hero Fiennes Tiffin , a nephew of Voldemort actor Ralph Fiennes , and as a teenager by Frank Dillane . The screenplay is again by Steven Kloves, and the directing work is done by David Yates , as with the fifth film in the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix series . The first teaser trailer for the film was released on July 29, 2008.

useful information

• The content of the book was - as in the previous volumes - kept secret until the day of publication. Joanne K. Rowling herself gave vague references to the plot, but these allowed various interpretations. As concrete information, she published only two sentences from the book and three of the chapter headings on her website. The publishers took legal action against the publication of contents before the publication date: In Canada there was even a preliminary injunction prohibiting people from reading the book before the publication date.

Book editions

English editions

• JK Rowling: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Bloomsbury Publishing , London 2005. ISBN 0-7475-8108-8 . (Hardcover) (Number 1 on the Spiegel bestseller list for 6 weeks in 2005 )

German editions

• JK Rowling: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Carlsen Verlag , Hamburg 2005, ISBN 3-551-56666-6 . (Hardcover) (14 weeks in 2005 and 2006 at number 1 on the Spiegel bestseller list )
• JK Rowling: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Carlsen Verlag, Hamburg 2005, ISBN 3-551-55600-8 . (Hardcover for adults)
• JK Rowling: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Carlsen Verlag, Hamburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-551-55566-3 . (Paperback edition)
• JK Rowling: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Carlsen Verlag, Hamburg 2018, ISBN 978-3-551-55746-9 . (New hardback edition for the 20th anniversary of the German editions)

Audio books

• JK Rowling: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The HörVerlag , Munich 2006, ISBN 3-89940-728-8 . (Audio book, read by Rufus Beck ).

Web links

• Soul in seven portions, faz.net, July 18, 2005 by Felicitas von Lovenberg
• Der Menschensohn , sueddeutsche.de, July 17, 2005 by Thomas Steinfeld
• Evil is approaching, welt.de, July 18, 2005 by Thomas Kielinger

Individual evidence

1. ↑ HowStuffWorks.com Ed Grabianowski: The 21 Best-selling Books of All Time. Retrieved June 9, 2015
2. ↑ bursting the bubble (2008-2009). In: Rupert Grint Biography. Retrieved February 29, 2016 . 
3. ^ Opening dates for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Internet Movie Database , accessed May 22, 2015 . 
4. ↑ 'Harry Potter' to open two days early ( Memento from October 28, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), Variety.com
5. ↑ http://www.filmstarts.de/kritiken/70921-Harry-Potter-und-der-Halbblutprinz/kritik.html
6. ↑ Jessie Cave in the Internet Movie Database (English)