Described as having the body of a horse and the upper torso of a man, the centaur is featured in Hercules’ fourth labour where he visits his friend Pholus. The Centaurs are also seen within Harry Potter. Whereas the Phoenix in Harry Potter bursts into flames, the Phoenix in Ovid’s account tells of it carrying its nest to the Temple of the Sun. The resurrection of the Phoenix is an important aspect, and fire is strongly connected with the bird. When this has grown up and gained sufficient strength, it lifts its nest from the tree (its own cradle and its parent's sepulchre), and carries it to the city of Heliopolis in Egypt, and deposits it in the temple of the Sun." (Ovid Metamorphoses 15). From the body of the parent bird, a young Phoenix issues forth, destined to live as along a life as its predecessor. In this it collects cinnamon, and spikenard, and myrrh, and of these materials builds a pile on which it deposits itself, and dying, breathes out its last breath amidst odors. The Roman poet Ovid tells of the re-birth of the Phoenix and states “When it has lived five hundred years, it builds itself a nest in the branches of an oak, or on the top of a palm tree. Rowling first introduces the phoenix in the Chamber of Secrets, where he is described to have a “long golden beak” and rather “decrepit” (before his re birth).
The Greeks then transformed this stork like bird into a more familiar image, one not dissimilar to a peacock. The idea of Phoenixes originated in ancient Egypt, where it appeared as a stalk like bird known as a “Benu”. I shall start by discussing the creature in the title of the book. Finally, I shall look at characters that represent, or are extraordinarily similar to ones seen in Greek Mythology. I shall begin by addressing the creatures used in the novel, along with their connotations, and then I shall move onto the names of the characters that relate to Greek mythology. Rowling’s use of Greek mythology in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. During this essay I shall be exploring J.K. It is only when, however, we look deeper that we see hundreds of underlying connections, be it in etymology or merely through re-using a creature or idea from Greek mythology.
Ancient greek harry potter series#
Anyone who has ever read, seen or listened to any of the Harry Potter series can see countless connections between it and the classical world. It is evident from the very first chapter. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
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