The Classical Hero’s Journey in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

Abstract

Although several academic studies have extensively analyzed J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, there might not be many studies examining the traits of the classical hero’s journey in this specific novel. Hence, the aim of this essay is to identify the recurrent stages of a classical hero’s journey in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. In order to accomplish this, this paper will first introduce some basic biographical information about J. K. Rowling as well as a section devoted to the characterization of Fantasy literature. Then, following a psychoanalytic approach, the paper will analyze the main stages that recurrently can be identified in the journey of a classical hero presented in Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces, and subsequently, it will establish a correlation between such stages and J.K. Rowling’s first published novel. Lastly, a conclusion will be presented enclosing all the information presented above and summarizing the key ideas defended throughout this essay.