#1: Harry Potter: Always

          J.K. Rowling continually introduces new and revises old expectations in her reader’s minds throughout her Harry Potter series, particularly in the first two books. To begin, Rowling presents certain expectations to her readers based on the mere appearance and personality characteristics of her characters. Her description of characters such as Draco—severe, pointed face---, Professor Quirrell—stuttering, nervous man---, and Professor Snape—cold black eyes—all place expectations in the reader’s mind as to what we can expect from them. For example, everybody suspects Professor Snape is after the Sorcerer’s Stone and Harry in general because of his demeanor. His black eyes, black cloak, and overall appearance of a “large bat” make him seem evil and untrustworthy. However, we find out he is not only trying to protect the stone but is also trying to protect Harry. As for Draco, he pretty much plays into the reader’s expectations of him with his remarks against Hermione, superior attitude, and attempts to get Harry expelled from Hogwarts.

Aside from Rowling’s character descriptions, there are several instances where we think the trio—Harry, Ron, and Hermione—are going to be in trouble, but instead they are rewarded with house points. For example, Harry and Ron both receive 10 points for Gryffindor House when they defeat the troll in the Sorcerer’s Stone. Even though they broke nearly “a thousand school rules” finding the Sorcerer’s Stone and the Chamber of Secrets, they are rewarded a total of 560 points in books one and two for their bravery and services to the school. Lastly, in both The Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets, Rowling leads us to believe Professor Snape is the culprit attempting to steal the stone and that Harry may actually be the heir of Slytherin. Throughout the first book, all clues point to Snape: his damaged leg, his comments about Fluffy, and his attitude and suspicion toward the trio, who are trying to reveal him. However, we discover in the last two chapters that the villain is actually Professor Quirrell, who is hiding the remaining bit of Voldemort under his turban. Total shocker there! Nobody would have ever suspected “poor, stuttering, Professor Quirrell.” In the Chamber of Secrets, we are led to believe first that Malfoy is the Heir of Slytherin. When Harry and Ron reveal he is not, clues begin to point to Harry. He is a Parselmouth and the Sorting Hat did try to place him in Slytherin. However, we discover that the mayhem stems from none other than the memory of Voldemort himself, preserved in a diary for 50 years.

Even though Rowling raises these expectations, she does not disappoint the readers by not fulfilling them. A large part of the allure of the Harry Potter series is the fact that it is a mystery, one that keeps you guessing throughout. It’s not that she fails to fulfill the expectations she raises because almost all of the questions readers ask are answered in the end; rather, she helps readers connect their own thoughts and beliefs to the story itself. These expectations keep the readers on their toes and pull them into a phenomenal story.