Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Themes

As the midway point of the Harry Potter series, Goblet of Fire sees Harry on the cusp of coming of age: while he's described as a boy in the early chapters of the novel, by the end of his fourth year at Hogwarts, Harry finally transitions from a boy to a man. While much of this shift has to do with how Harry and his friends mature personally, even more of it has to do…

As Harry, Ron, and Hermione come of age during their fourth year at Hogwarts, they begin to experience many "firsts" of puberty: they tackle romance and romantic jealousy for the first time, both of which seriously strain their friendships. However, as Harry progresses through the Tournament tasks, watches Hermione and Ron bicker, and learns important information about his classmates, he begins to realize that, in terms of emotional maturity, developing a sense of…

When Hermione discovers that Hogwarts functions thanks to a small army of house-elves--small elves that secretly perform all the domestic labor at the school but aren't paid for their work--she immediately jumps into action and forms S.P.E.W., or the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare. She does this without consulting the elves themselves, however, and the elves are much less excited about her crusade for their liberation than Hermione is. However, the novel also…

Though Harry has certainly grown up in unfortunate circumstances with the Dursleys and has suffered more than his fair share of abuse at their hands, the fact remains that he's still very fortunate in terms of finances and fame. Whether or he realizes it or not, this gives Harry a great deal of power to influence others. By comparing how Harry uses his fame and fortune to the ways in which other characters use theirs…