Spoiler/speculation Occlumency poll

Harry Potter polls Forum

Will Harry ever learn Occlumency?

Yup. Sure will.

I don't think he'll need to, or at least not as much anyway... Voldmort has closed his mind to Harry, and even though it can be used both ways, any opening up to Harrys mind could also allow Harry to enter voldys again. I think that voldmort has too many important secrets to want to risk it. Although I think that if Harry did get into voldmorts mind again.. it may even be able to help him finding the horcruxes.

I think that the duel with Snape will finally motivate him enough to learn it as best as he can, and he will become good at it. He wants revenge with Snape and he can't get it unless he becomes good at Occlumency, now can he? There is atleast one duel in store between Harry and Snape.

M.

I think he will learn it for this reason: he wants to get Snape. There is enough of his father in him to want to make Snivilus pay.

James and Snape just hated each other, it was a rivalry, but Harry wants revenge. It will be a very strong motivation.

I would love to see Snape being hung by his ankles again. Or how about Sectusempra? Atleast a crucio.

M.

Yes, imagine his horror if little Harry pulls a James on him. He will be reliving the worst times of his life. GO HARRY!

On a sidenote, now we know what was the spell Snape used that caused James' cheek to get a slash.

M.

he slashed harry under his eye at the end of HBP

I think he will learn it. Now he knows that it was Snape that caused his parents to die (telling Voldemort that the prophecy exists) he will want revenge on Snape

At the end of the book I don't think Snape really needed to see into harry's mind to know what spells he was casting. Remember in the first DADA lesson where snape tried to cast a spell, and Harry caught him quickly enough and knocked him off his feet. Harry was definetly not reading snapes mind. I think snape heard Harry say the beginnings of the spells he was trying. This is where wandless magic will help harry.

First off, in the first DADA lesson, the reason Harry was able to block so quickly was because he reacted on instinct and used "protego" verbaly, when they were practicing nonverbal spell work.

Harry wasn't expecting Snape to all of assudden turn his wand on him and say "..here--let me show you--" and Snape wasn't expecting a verbal response. I believe Harry got in a lucky shot is all.

As for Snape hearing Harry saying the beginnings of the spells he was trying... Harry wouldn't have to worry about people anticipating what and when he was going to cast if he could manage to do it nonverbally, so I assume he will become quite good at this too. So I agree with you there.

But... Snape also tells him while they are fighting that he needs to learn both. "Blocked again and again and again until you learn to keep your mouth shut and your mind closed, Potter!" he says. Harry will be determined to get his revenge, so I'm sure he'll take this advice to heart.

In the end, Harry being able to Occlude would protect him from falling victim to any internal attacks from Voldemort, like what happened in book 5. When Dumbledore and Voldemort were duelling at the end, and Voldemort takes over Harry's body to make Harry say "Kill me now, Dumbledore..." "If death is nothing, Dumbledore, kill the boy...". All Harry can think about at the time is wanting it to end, and that "...death is nothing compared to this..." when he couldn't stand the pain.

I think he must learn both.

That's a yes. He'll need it, I think.

And it's not a case of "yes, he'll learn it, but wont be any good"... I mean, either he learns it or he doesn't..... there is no try

And just in case wandless is what you meant to say... I'm not sure wandless magic will be a deciding force in the defeat of Voldemort since it wasn't brought up in book 6, like "wordless" magic was. Who knows, I guess it could happen.

I know of accidental magic in the series, but I don't remember any intentional wandless magic being preformed. Can anyone confirm that?

No I definitely meant wordless magic.... don't know why i kept making that mistake... oh actually i do probably because i hadnt slept for 4 days when i was posting...

and no i don't see anything in wandless magic, except for the fact that it could come in handy for someone who was in dumbledores position when he died.. if they had enough strength to do a wandless spell.

In OOP when Harry is in the alley with Dudley his wand is knocked away, he says lumos and his wand lights up on the ground away from him.

That just shows that hes a powerful wizard ... i was confused about that part and had to re read it after people said about that, i might have noticed it first time

We know that Dumbledore, Lupin and others could do small magic without wands, but I don't think they could cast spells or curses. Even Voldemort can't do that.

M.

... that we know of ...Voldemort has learnt lots from his trips around the world ... i think might have tried magic without a wand, bacause after all the wand just focus' magic

but Snape always underestimates Harry's power. He keeps saying that Harry is not very powerful, yet how many wizards can produce a patronus so strong that it can chase away 100 dementors?

I think he was just saying that to get Harryto bring out his poential ... like calling someone a coward makes them want to prove that they aren't

I think that would be Snape's undoing in the end. His hatred of James always makes him underestimate Harry and that would cost him.

M.

Well then, why didn't he do that? He has the most resourceful mind and I am sure with someone as smart as him, he would undoubtedly try to get rid of the wand.

M.

But you cant do strong magic without a wand, the wand focus' the magic, and more powerful spells need that focus, otherwise it wouldn't be very stong at all, other wise you could just point your finger at someone and say "avada kedavra" and the person dies ... not that interesting

JK does say in one of her interviews that someone will come into their powers quite unusually late in their life. Perhaps it will be Harry. Perhaps even Neville. Who knows. I'm not exactly sure how she worded that comment. I'll look around for it.

------found it!

Q: Will there be, or have there been, any "late blooming" students in the school who come into their magic potential as adults, rather than as children? By the way, I loved meeting you, and hearing you speak, when you came to Anderson's in Naperville. I can hardly wait until you tour again.

A: Ahhh! I loved the event at Anderson's. It was one of my favorites. That is completely true. No, is the answer. In my books, magic almost always shows itself in a person before age 11; however, there is a character who does manage in desperate circumstances to do magic quite late in life, but that is very rare in the world I am writing about.

Possibly aunt patunia ... or Dudders ... perhaps they pick up harrys wand and do some magic, glance in one of Harry's book or something

I dont think she was talking about any student there now ...

I don't think the Dursely's will be showing up much in the last book. Harry will make a token visit for his 17th birthday because Dumbledore told him to, but that's probably it.

JK already said that Petunia wasn't a squib.

I brought this up to say more like... maybe Harry or Neville's powers will grow stronger late in life. I wasn't thinking along the lines of someone without any suddenly popping up with them.

Well thats what that statwement of JK's sounded like to me, that someone would come into there powers late in life ... as in someone who didnt know they had any magical power ever, even after 11. and its out of desperation

I think that the one motivator that Harry needed to learn occlumency was Snape murdering Dumbledore, in front of his eyes, and then the 'attack' between the two of them on the grounds. Harry now has a very strong hatred for Snape... before, it wasn't hatred. Now, he's found that Snape was the one who told Voldemort of the prophecy, and caused his parent's to lose their lives. And, Snape has taken away the only Grandfather figure that Harry has ever known, in the death of Dumbledore.

So, he will learn it, and use it to his greatest advantage...

I think that the biggest deterrant in OotP for Harry not learning Occlumency was his curiousity to see what was behind the door at the end of the corridor. Now that that's come to pass and he realizes how easy it was for Voldemort to gain access to his mind, I think that he will be much more inclined to protect his thoughts, dreams, and memories.

Very true, bjb... by the way... nice to see ya made it to the board!!!