Albus Dumbledore Character Analysis in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

The Headmaster at Hogwarts. Dumbledore is an old wizard with a long white beard and half-moon-shaped glasses. He is revered in the wizarding world as one of the greatest wizards in the modern era. Throughout the book, Dumbledore serves as a parental figure and a guide for Harry, making the crucial early decision to send him to live with Vernon and Petunia so that he wouldn’t grow up surrounded by fame, which would most certainly inflate his ego. When Harry arrives at school, Dumbledore helps him learn crucial lessons about the Mirror of Erised and gives him some implicit encouragement to break the rules in passing down James’s Invisibility Cloak to him. As Harry surmises by the end of the book, Dumbledore gives Harry enough information to help him figure out how to get to the Sorcerer’s Stone and to face Voldemort, rather than simply stopping him. In this way, Dumbledore encourages Harry to do what is right and to put others above himself, even if it means breaking the rules. At the end of the book, Dumbledore helps Harry to understand more fully why he was able to survive Voldemort’s curse ten years earlier, and why he was able to get to the Sorcerer’s Stone. Dumbledore’s answers give Harry some sense of clarity, but also imply that there is a lot Harry has yet to understand about his and Voldemort’s intertwined fates, which are gradually unthreaded in the subsequent books.

Albus Dumbledore Quotes in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

The Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone quotes below are all either spoken by Albus Dumbledore or refer to Albus Dumbledore. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

Magic, Difference, and Belonging Theme Icon

“He’ll be famous—a legend—I wouldn’t be surprised if today was known as Harry Potter Day in the future—there will be books written about Harry—every child in our world will know his name!”

“Exactly,” said Dumbledore, looking very seriously over the top of his half-moon glasses. “It would be enough to turn any boy’s head. Famous before he can walk and talk! Famous tor something he won’t even remember! Can’t you see how much better off he’ll be, growing up away from all that until he’s ready to take it?”

Related Characters: Albus Dumbledore (speaker), Professor McGonagall (speaker), Harry Potter, Lily Potter, James Potter, Vernon Dursley, Petunia Dursley

Related Symbols: The Sorcerer’s Stone

Page Number and Citation: 13

Explanation and Analysis:

“I don’t know, sir,” said Harry.
Snape’s lips curled into a sneer.
“Tut, tut — fame clearly isn’t everything.”

Related Characters: Harry Potter (speaker), Professor Snape (speaker), Albus Dumbledore, James Potter

Page Number and Citation: 137

Explanation and Analysis:

“It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts. You, who have never known your family, see them standing around you. Ronald Weasley, who has always been overshadowed by his brothers, sees himself standing alone, the best of all of them. However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge or truth. Men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible.”

Related Characters: Albus Dumbledore (speaker), Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Voldemort / You-Know-Who, Lily Potter, James Potter

Related Symbols: The Mirror of Erised

Page Number and Citation: 213

Explanation and Analysis:

“Your mother died to save you. If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love. He didn’t realize that love as powerful as your mother’s for you leaves its own mark. Not a scar, no visible sign… to have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will give us some protection forever. It is in your very skin. Quirrell, full of hatred, greed, and ambition, sharing his soul with Voldemort, could not touch you for this reason. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good.”

Related Characters: Albus Dumbledore (speaker), Harry Potter, Voldemort / You-Know-Who, Professor Quirrell, Lily Potter

Related Symbols: The Sorcerer’s Stone

Page Number and Citation: 299

Explanation and Analysis:

“You see, only one who wanted to find the Stone — find it, but not use it — would be able to get it, otherwise they’d just see themselves making gold or drinking Elixir of Life.”

Related Characters: Albus Dumbledore (speaker), Harry Potter, Voldemort / You-Know-Who, Professor Quirrell

Related Symbols: The Mirror of Erised, The Sorcerer’s Stone

Page Number and Citation: 300

Explanation and Analysis:

Albus Dumbledore Character Timeline in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

The timeline below shows where the character Albus Dumbledore appears in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...the house, a very old man with a long beard and long robes appears: Albus Dumbledore. Albus flicks open a cigarette lighter and clicks it, causing all of the nearby streetlamps... (full context)

Dumbledore wonders why Professor McGonagall hasn’t been celebrating. She says that people have been too careless... (full context)

Professor McGonagall explains to Dumbledore that Lily and James Potter are dead, and that Voldemort tried to kill their son,... (full context)

Dumbledore tells McGonagall that Harry will be entrusted into the care of his Aunt Petunia and... (full context)

Dumbledore assures McGonagall that the Dursleys’ home is the best place for Harry, and he will... (full context)

Dumbledore then lays Harry gently on the Dursley’s doorstep and tucks a letter inside Harry’s blanket.... (full context)

...pulls out an owl from one of his giant pockets and writes a note to Dumbledore, saying that he has given Harry his letter and is taking him to buy his... (full context)

...finally be with people like him, learning from the best headmaster Hogwarts has had: Albus Dumbledore. Vernon again says that Harry will not be attending, arguing that he won’t pay for... (full context)

...from Harry’s safe, handing him a key. Hagrid adds that he has a letter from Dumbledore about the “You-Know-What” in vault 713. Harry asks what it is, but Hagrid only says... (full context)

...open the Chocolate Frogs, which have collectible cards inside. Harry gets a card with Albus Dumbledore on it. The card says that Dumbledore is the Hogwarts headmaster, most notable for his... (full context)

Dumbledore then stands to say a brief welcome and a “few words” (literally, “Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment!... (full context)

...the table where the teachers are. Hagrid is there; Professor McGonagall is talking to Professor Dumbledore. Professor Quirrell, whom Harry met in the Leaky Cauldron and who is now sporting a... (full context)

After dessert, Dumbledore stands once again to address the room. He notes a bit of housekeeping: the forest... (full context)

Professor McGonagall tells Wood that she’ll ask Dumbledore to bend the rule saying that first years can’t have their own broomsticks; she knows... (full context)

...terror, gasping that there’s a troll in the dungeon. Quirrell faints. Chaos breaks out, and Dumbledore instructs prefects to lead students back to their dormitories. Harry and Ron start to follow... (full context)

...was guarding on Halloween. Hermione argues that a teacher wouldn’t try to steal something from Dumbledore, but Ron says he “wouldn’t put anything past Snape.” Harry goes to sleep wondering again... (full context)

...to intervene, and that what the dog is guarding is strictly the business of Professor Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel. The kids’ ears perk up at this new piece of information, and... (full context)

...Mirror, knowing that nothing can prevent him from staying there all night with his family. Dumbledore appears quietly behind him, noting that Harry has discovered “the delights of the Mirror of... (full context)

Dumbledore tells Harry that the Mirror will be moved to a new home the next day,... (full context)

...gives him the card from the Chocolate Frog, knowing that he collects them. It’s the Dumbledore card again, but Harry notices something: Nicolas Flamel’s name. The card says that Dumbledore worked... (full context)

...favor Hufflepuff too much. Fred notes that the whole school is in the stands, including Dumbledore. This makes Harry feel relieved, as he knows that Snape wouldn’t try to hurt him... (full context)

...in triumph. The stands erupt: no one can remember the Snitch being caught so quickly. Dumbledore congratulates Harry, saying it’s nice to see that he’s “keeping busy.” The Gryffindors lift Harry... (full context)

...doesn’t tell them, but he does tell them who is helping protect the Stone, including Dumbledore, Quirrell, and Snape. The students think to themselves that if Snape is helping to protect... (full context)

...tell him how to get past his enchantment. Hermione says that they should go to Dumbledore, but Harry argues that they have no proof, and that Dumbledore will think that they... (full context)

...Harry. Hermione tries to comfort him, saying that Voldemort wouldn’t try to kill Harry with Dumbledore around. Harry goes to bed exhausted, but when he pulls back his sheets, he finds... (full context)

...Stone. They try to comfort him again, saying Snape won’t go after the Stone with Dumbledore there, and they still have no proof that he can get past Fluffy. (full context)

...have been the hooded stranger. When they see Professor McGonagall, they ask to see Professor Dumbledore. McGonagall reveals that he left ten minutes prior to fly to the Ministry of Magic... (full context)

When McGonagall leaves, Harry figures that Snape sent the owl summoning Dumbledore, and that he’s going to try to steal the Stone that night. Harry resolves to... (full context)

...back, so that she can take care of Ron and then send an owl to Dumbledore. Worried that Voldemort will be waiting for Harry, Hermione throws her arms around her friend... (full context)

Harry awakens in the hospital wing, with Dumbledore in front of him. Dumbledore explains calmly that Harry’s been out cold for three days,... (full context)

Harry continues, wondering what happened to Voldemort. Dumbledore says that Quirrell has died, but Harry merely delayed Voldemort’s return to power. Harry then... (full context)

Harry then asks who left the Invisibility Cloak for him; Dumbledore reveals that it was him, and that he thought it would be useful. Harry’s asks... (full context)

After Dumbledore leaves, Ron and Hermione visit Harry, relieved to see that he’s okay. Harry explains what... (full context)

...Slytherin’s colors, silver and green, as Slytherin has the most points in the House Cup. Dumbledore arrives and begins a speech, saying that he has a few last-minute points to award... (full context)

Dumbledore awards Harry sixty points for “pure nerve and outstanding courage.” Gryffindor students give a roaring... (full context)