Gender Roles In Harry Potter By J. K. Rowling

Anne Collins works to interpret the writings of J.K. Rowling and thus prove that the novels within the Harry Potter series are indeed not sexist. It is argued that Rowling works to reimagine every day terms such as love and power and consider such topics in new and exciting ways that in fact do not reflect a world filled with sexism. Within the wizarding world, while there is a representation of traditional and modern women in the sense of gender roles, in no way do Rowling’s characters reflect such women to be weak or powerless. Instead it is the love placed on Harry Potter by Lily Potter that proves to be the most powerful spell throughout the entire series. Of course, there are other characters that redefine the image of a traditional feminist,
such as Ginny Weasley. Such a definition of a traditional feminist can be further defined by Collins in order to further understand the concepts of radical and liberal feminism within the world of Harry Potter. These concepts can then be seen through various scenes within the books as well as each highlight Rowling going against the grain in making characters the redefine the use of masculinity and femininity within specific gender roles. Within the wizarding world of Harry Potter there are multiple female characters that work to represent the real world.
In doing so, Rowling understands that women who choose to take on a more traditional role within the household, do indeed exist and should therefore be represented. In doing so, Rowling still showcases those characters in ways that work to further define such a role. For example, Molly Weasley does choose to stay home with her seven children and raise them. However, she in no way is a traditional housewife. Molly is involved within the Order of the Phoenix and demands absolute respect from all around her. This is interesting in comparison to her husband, Arthur Weasley, who is easy going to the point that it is clear that without Molly, he really wouldn't know the difference between the wizarding world equivalent of a rubber duck or “eckeltricity”. Within the Weasley family, Molly truly is in charge. This is in comparison to families like the Dursleys or the Malfoys. It is Petunia Dursley that so often appears in support of her husband, only after Dudley of course. And yet, Petunia on multiple occasions is seen as powerful enough within the relationship in order to take a stance and have it be respected within her family. One of which takes place within the Order of the Phoenix as she receives a letter from Dumbledore stating that Harry must leave Privet Drive. Her stance is respected by the entire household and Harry does stay. Beyond this, the Dursleys
are not shown as a role model in any sense of the word. Narcissa Malfoy on the other hand, appears subservient until the end of the Deathly Hallows in which she is struck with the opportunity of declaring Harry dead and instead chooses to put her love for her son first and be the one to basically save the entire wizarding world with her one act of love. These roles of powerful women within the traditional sense can be compared to modern feminists within the novel that are regularly praised. After all, at Hogwarts, no professors appear to be married. McGonagall nor Trelawny ever appear to be chastised for such a situation and are indeed treated as equals in comparison to Snape, Flitwick, etc. Furthermore, it is specifically Ginny that is praised for her feminist actions. It is Ginny after all that catches Harry’s eye due to her stark abilities in quidditch as well as mentally. Ginny has vast academic standing and is rather popular due to her likable personality as well. Furthermore, she is in no way judged for her history of dating multiple people, especially at a young age, except perhaps by Ron in a protective manner. Ginny is constantly praise instead by those around her. She could have taken a dark path due to being possessed by Tom Riddle and yet her power within led her to become a rather talented witch. Talented enough to be invited into the Slug Club on sheer talent, same as Hermione. It must also not be forgotten that she ends up famous as well within the wizarding world as a very talented professional quidditch player. Characters such as Ginny as well as the interpretation of traditional women within the series can be further analyzed through the understanding of radical versus liberal feminism.
Liberal feminism as presented by Collier through the work of many other writers, argues “Liberal feminism… holds the once-controversial view that women are people-that is , intelligent, autonomous beings-and should be treated as such” (Collier, pg. 83). She then continues in distinguishing this as “first-wave feminism” as it came to being first in the 18th century in part due to the teachings of the Enlightenment. The concept of individual rights were rightfully argued to be applied to women as well as men. In contrast is the view of liberal feminism, in which Collier appears to be less taken with. While it does argue that women should be considered as equal beings, and can in turn obtain equal success if given the opportunity, it also ignores the concept of some aspects of life being different than that of men. This can include interests as well as strengths (Collier, pg 83). However, It would seem that Rowling generally takes on the idea of liberal feminism in order to paint all characters as equal.The wizarding world has women headmistresses, healers, etc. Furthermore, Slytherin was even chastised for not having a woman on their team. While there are other ways of being in the world, strictly as a female that liberal feminism cannot explain, Rowling rarely experience this. Perhaps examples
include the use of veelas, a situation entirely female. Even still, multivasited characters bring to light the use of masculine and feminine traits within the series. There are specific traits according to Collier that are belonging traditionally to either one gender or the other. Masculine traits include, but are not limited to: independence, competition, aggression, and control. On the other hand, feminine characteristics include: ove, cooperation, compassion, and interdependence (Collier, Pg.85). These traits do not necessarily doom the novels. Instead, Rowling uses these traits to tell a story of resistance of gendered traits. Afterall, it is Harry that is redeemed through the power of love and is only successful through interdependence as well as by experiencing emotions such as friendship. Voldemort instead sees as his downfall his inability to love. Voldemort is killed after all by himself as he continues until the end to fight only for himself in an effort to control all around him through unspeakable violence. Therefore, such masculine traits are not valued within the wizarding world and by Rowling.
Other instances in which such values are ignored include when Hermione chose to ‘doll herself up’ at the Yule Ball. She knows that she is capable of looking like that all the time, but chooses instead to use the time it takes to make one appear appealing to the opposite sex, instead to study and be the mastermind behind most of Harry’s success. Furthermore, in the last novel, while she does indeed do most of the cooking it is only for the reason as she is the best at it, as she is most things. Lastly once can look to Umbridge on a rather larger scale to understand Collier’s gendered traits. While Umbridge appears to always wear pink and bows, which are traditionally feminine, her actions of control and manipulation prove her to act in a more masculine manner. Umbridge is often hated far more than Voldemort. It would not be unreasonable to argue that this is due to the fact that she takes on traits outside of her gender role. Rowling likely does this to showcase not only the varying types of women in the world, but also to highlight the bias of society against powerful women in a sense in which women must often act like men in order to gain success. In doing so, women are often judged for lacking empathy and femininity.
In conclusion, the wizarding world of Harry Potter is not sexist as it works to be a piece of literature outside of sexist stereotypes and instead highlight traditional traits of women to be the underlying advancements of the novels. It is Rowling that makes masculine traits the downfall of Voldemort. She works to highlight all forms of true societal women and praise each in their own way. We know this to not be an exact replication of current society of course as women are constantly working toward equality. Still such writings such as the Harry Potter series all help to push for such equality.