Harry Potter and the title of The Boy Who Lived: The legacy thrust on him

Before going to Hogwarts, Harry Potter was just a normal kid but let’s talk about the legacy of his “Boy Who Lived” title and what it did for him as the series went on.

The Boy Who Lived is a title the wizarding world gave to Harry Potter after he “defeated” Voldemort as a baby. That title isn’t something he really earned or something he fought for. But it was thrust on him and gave him a legacy that Harry wanted whether he liked it or not.

So how did that hurt him in the long run? Well, it gave him a sense of heroism for the wizarding world that he probably wouldn’t have otherwise. When Harry finally was able to go to Hogwarts, he was told that he was the reason the wizarding world was free from Voldemort and it wasn’t until his second brush with the dark lord that he really understood what that meant.

Finally, someone explained how his mother and father sacrificed themselves for him and that, in turn, saved him from Voldemort. Information that would have made his “Boy Who Lived” fame different because, without James and Lily Potter, Harry would have probably met their same fate.

All that title did was give him a sense of responsibility to this world that all but left him behind when he defeated Voldemort. It forced him to think he had to constantly save him and that isn’t something that ever went away for Harry.

So much responsibility was given to this child and no one was there to guide him and so being the “Boy Who Lived” isn’t really a good thing.

What do you think about the Boy Who Lived and the struggles the title put onto Harry Potter? Let us know in the comments below!