The Order and Its Discontent

“Oh, know the perils, read the signs,

The warning history shows

For Hogwarts is in danger

From external, deadly foes

And we must unite inside her

Or we’ll crumble from within,

I have told you, I have warned you….”

—J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix, 206-7

Through Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix, along with other episodes, J. K. Rowling gave a graphic description of the world of magic. Her story deals with not only the cruel Voldermort and death-eaters with evil ambitions, but also the loving, daring army of Albus Dumbledore, from whom Harry Potter receives unyielding supports that have come a long way.

In the story, we can see a panicking world of magic, within which live the doubt-striken people who believe in a tragic truth from the Ministry of Magic—that Voldermort, the one “who must not be named,” who never seems to scruple to kill innocent people, has returned for vengeance, posting a threat that neither the Ministry nor anyone in or of power could stand in his way. The Ministry’s urge in this defining moment that “progress for progressive sake must be discouraged, pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited” evidently shows the Ministry’s determination to interfere in Hogwarts’s internal affairs (Rowling, 214). They fear that any piece of dissembled truth about Voldermort’s return, the truth spread by Harry Potter, might be considered real.

Harry Potter and his followers are aware that they must stand up for their rights and react against the reform conducted by the Ministry, a reform to which they will never surrender. Undoubtedly, they run into setbacks. One of their professors, Doleres Umbridge, who is appointed by the Ministry and has their patience exhausted with all her effort, constitutes the greatest among all. She denies Harry Potter’s claim, which she entices other students to ridicule. Apart from slandering Potter for making him a swindler, she intimidates him with detention and improper disciplines that severely violate his rights as a freeman, and disbands all “student organizations, societies, teams, groups, and clubs,” illegalizing the union of Potter and his friends. At first, Potter and his friends are at their wit’s end. Nevertheless, they realize that they must pluck up their courage to take the risk of fighting against the Ministry, who tries to falsify the truth about the rise of the dark force and punishes Potter’s party for righteous disobedience.

I was impressed when finished reading this episode. News of social movements hits headlines almost every day, along with grand spectacles in which people with high spirits, people protest against governments or enterprises, manage to promote themselves to a better life. I identify with what Harry Potter and his friends did, as I see several demonstrations have made significant changes through history. Take homosexual marriage for instance. Our nation has not yet made homosexual marriage lawful, which is taken as a discriminating act. Therefore, dissatisfied homosexuals head to the streets to plead that both heterosexual and same-sex couples should be endowed with equal treatment. Any couple that love each other, hoping to take care of each other, should be blessed, no matter what their gender identity is.

As a responsible and participative citizen, I deem that it is important to stand up for what one believes in. It is pitiful that some people may not concern public issues as much as they should have. Social movements, on the other hand, appear irrelevant and too complex to be involved in. It is feared that, even if they participate, their effort may lead to nowhere. However, collective voice is louder that single and sporadic ones, and therefore is easier to be heard and taken serious of. As the saying goes, “United we stand; divided we fall.” It is people’s right, as well as obligation, to fight for a better life, and to fight together.