The Spectrum of the Human Condition: A Character Analysis of Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter Series

Abstract

This thesis focuses on the morally gray nature of Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series. Using secondary scholarship, the literary theories of Edward Forster and Vladimir Propp, and my own definitions and thoughts, this paper examines the choices and motivations of Dumbledore and Snape. Based on those, I analyze how the two of them fit or do not fit the idea of literary heroes and villains. The research within this thesis is important because this representation of humans as non-perfect beings ensures that we accept ourselves and others as who we are rather than the sum of our parts.