Family v. Friends: How the Harry Potter series tackles them both

If it wasn’t for Harry Potter’s friends, he wouldn’t be where he is today. But how does the series tackle both friends and family and their importance in our lives?

Harry Potter would, unfortunately, not be here if it wasn’t for his friends. Time and time they saved him from peril and kept him in line when he was too lost in himself. But what does friendship in the Harry Potter series represent?

For the idea of family in the series, the only really important family comes in the form of the Weasleys. They’re healthy, they love each other, and they’re great examples of loving each other outside of your means. The Malfoys, while in the end a somewhat decent representation of family, are too lost in their own selfish desires in the beginning and often dismiss their son in ways that the Weasleys would never.

But what the series does a great job of doing is showing that family doesn’t just mean those you’re blood-related to. For Harry, his family is comprised of his friends and those he cherishes. His aunt and uncle hate him, his parents died, and he can’t stand his cousin. They don’t care about him and he shouldn’t have to care about them.

So by having Harry’s “family” be his friends, it shared a beautiful message to fans of the series: that we can choose who our family is. They can be our brothers and sisters, our parents or our cousins…or they can be those friends that we hold close.

How do you think the Harry Potter series handled the exploration of family and friendship? Was it in a positive light or negative? Let us know what you think in the comments below!