Toxic Masculinity in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
The masculine roles in our society are regularly associated with domination and power. Expressing emotional vulnerability and love is commonly taboo among men and can jeopardize their masculinity. This male stereotype is represented by several characters in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, but J.K. Rowling also develops critical male characters who express their emotions even if doing so is considered effeminate in our society.
Toxic masculinity is comprised of the over-encouragement of men to hold back many intrinsically human emotions. These emotions are most often labeled as feminine. In Language and Gender, it is described how femininity in a man plays a tremendous role in his societal status: “Men deemed feminine (or effeminate) are seen as inferior men. While women deemed masculine may sometimes be seen as inferior women, they are also seen as striving for what is in cast a valued masculine persona. This is one reason that masculine behavior in women is often less stigmatized than feminine behavior in men.” (24, Eckert, McConnell-Ginet). This ideology that men are inferior when expressing feminine characteristics enforces the rejection of love, nurture, and even crying when, in fact, these are all parts of being human. Toxic masculinity forces men to renounce healthy coping mechanisms like talking about emotions and leads them to internalize sadness and express anger instead. Characters like Voldemort, Uncle Vernon, and even young Dudley conform to this ideology; they resort to violence to deal with their problems. In contrast, Rowling establishes other male characters, like Hagrid and Dumbledore, who are good in nature and possess feminine qualities.
Being a “mother figure” is the embodiment of feminine stereotypes, and Hagrid doesn’t hesitate to express his love, care, and concern for others. After hatching his long-anticipated baby dragon, he speaks to it as any proud mother would to her child: “‘Isn’t he beautiful?’ Hagrid murmured. He reached out a hand to stroke the dragon’s head. It snapped at his fingers, showing pointed fangs. ‘Bless him, look, he knows his mommy!’ said Hagrid… ‘I’ve decided to call him Norbert,’ said Hagrid, looking at the dragon with misty eyes. ‘He really knows me now, watches. Norbert! Norbert! Where’s Mommy?'” (page 156, Rowling). Hagrid repeatedly expresses his love, and therefore femininity, not only Norbert but for Harry too. When Hagrid is first introduced, he cries for little Harry as he is brought to his aunt and uncle after his parents were killed. Despite being a large burly man, he still freely expresses his grief. The film uses these same scenes with similar dialogue. Calling himself “mommy” to his new dragon is not only endearing to his personality, but it’s also a significant way viewers recognize his disregard for strict masculinity.
Dumbledore is also willing and open about his emotions, especially when speaking about love. This is not as openly expressed in the film, but nonetheless, he speaks to Harry about the love of Harry’s mother, and how love itself is powerful magic: “‘Your mother died to save you. If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love. He didn’t realize that love as powerful as your mother’s for you leaves its own mark. Not a scar, no visible sign… to have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will give us some protection forever. It is in your very skin. Quirrell, full of hatred, greed, and ambition, sharing his soul with Voldemort, could not touch you for this reason. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good.'” (page 199, Rowling). Dumbledore recognizes how powerful love is, and acknowledges the hatred and ambition that are so commonly linked to the toxic masculinity that is essential to Quirrell’s downfall.
Men are often subliminally taught that to assert dominance, which is highly encouraged in toxic masculinity, fear is usually used to exert control over others. When Harry first learns about Voldemort, Hagrid can’t even bear to say his name out of the terror it causes him: “‘…This — this wizard, about twenty years ago now, started lookin’ fer followers. Got ’em, too — some were afraid, some just wanted a bit o’ his power, ’cause he was gettin’ himself power, all right. Dark days, Harry… terrible things happened. He was takin’ over. ‘Course, some stood up to him — an’ he killed ’em. Horribly.'” (page 35, Rowling). Voldemort stops at nothing to gain power, and he especially doesn’t hesitate killing people who disagree with him. Voldemort cannot fathom the love described by Dumbledore, and would never cry over a child or feel as though he was a mother like Hagrid. He rejects any and all feminine qualities and enforces the toxic hatred and emotional suppression that is instilled in so many men and young boys.
Uncle Vernon, while never having murdered anyone, is still never seen expressing a loving word except when he is proud of his son for hitting Harry or yelling about the number of presents he received. He consistently assumes that brute force will solve problems. Once acknowledging that Harry is a wizard, Uncle Vernon figures that using abuse as a punishment could have solved Harry’s peculiarity a long time ago: “‘Now, you listen here, boy,’ he snarled, ‘I accept there’s something strange about you, probably nothing a good beating wouldn’t have cured…'” (page 36, Rowling). His abuse is his way of creating fear, and it’s comparable to Voldemort’s terrorism. While Uncle Vernon’s toxic expression of masculinity may be hurtful to Harry, it’s taught to Dudley too. Dudley then inherits these traits and uses Harry to express his anger.
J.K. Rowling consistently gives the positive male characters some feminine qualities, or rather, allows them to be men with freely expressed human emotions. In contrast, the ‘bad guys’ of the story are filled with anger and use fear to exert their power. Both the novel and film use these characters’ femininity or masculinity to portray their good or bad intentions (typically concerning Harry). Dumbledore’s speech on love is both in the film and novel and expresses the importance of it regardless. In both versions, Uncle Vernon and Voldemort, despite their differences, thrive on anger. The toxic masculinity present in the book is ever-present in the movie as well, but thankfully, it is understood to be dangerous. Expressing emotions doesn’t make Dumbledore or Hagrid any less masculine. They simply have healthier coping mechanisms, and they are in a better mental state because of it.
Works Cited
Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. New York: Scholastic, 1997.
Eckert, Penelope, and Sally McConnell-Ginet. Language And Gender. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018. Print.
