The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for Muggles (Blackwell Philosophy & Pop Culture)

Is it always wrong to use a love potion? Is death something to be feared . . . or "mastered"? What can Severus Snape teach us about the possibility of redemption? Is love the most powerful magic of all?

J. K. Rowling's wildly popular Harry Potter books may appear to be simple children's tales on the surface, but like Hogwarts, they conceal many hidden chambers, trapdoors, and perplexing secrets. Drawing on all seven books in the Harry Potter series, The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy offers a powerful brew of insights about good and evil, love, death, power, sacrifice, and hope. Is it true, as Dumbledore says, that our choices reveal far more about us than our abilities do? Is there an afterlife, and what might it be like? Here's a Pensieve for your thoughts. So take a healthy slug of Baruffio's Brain Elixir and join Bassham's Army of talented philosophers in exploring the mind-stretching deeper questions of the Potter books and films.