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Mental Illness and Harry Potter

Harry Potter series was a retreat into the world of wizards, witches and magic. Our muggle world seemed too ordinary in contrast to it. There was absolutely nothing similar about these two worlds. However, on closer reading, we realize that there are various astonishing similarities between the worlds of magic and mundane. 

When J.K.Rowling was writing the Harry Potter series, she was suffering from clinical depression. She introduced the character of “dementors” in her books which is from two words dement and torment, both feelings one might experience during a depressive episode.

Depression (major depressive disorder) is a common and serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act. Depression causes feelings of sadness and/or a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed (American Psychiatric Association, 2013).

These exact symptoms affect the characters when they receive a  dementor's kiss. A dementor being described as a dark creature consuming human happiness. A common feeling is that they will never be happy again, which is a representation of one's state of mind during a depressive episode.

Stressful life events play an important role in depression.  The protagonist, Harry, had a history of trauma, abuse due to the death of his parents, which is why it is shown that the dementors targeted and affected him constantly. 

The Patronus charm which repels the dementors, is loosely inspired by cognitive behavioral therapy. CBT works by changing people’s attitudes and their behavior by focusing on the thoughts, images, beliefs, and attitudes that are held (a person’s cognitive processes) and how these processes relate to the way a person behaves, as a way of dealing with emotional problems.  CBT is customized by the psychologist to fit the patient’s needs. (Martin, 2019)

Drawing inspiration from this, a Patronus charm is unique to every individual and can only be conjured after many sessions with a trained individual where the person has to think of their most positive memory to be able to produce the charm. 

This is not the only instance J.K.Rowling has represented mental health in her magical world.

Generalized anxiety disorder involves persistent and excessive worry that interferes with daily activities. This ongoing worry and tension may be accompanied by physical symptoms, such as restlessness, feeling on edge or easily fatigued, difficulty concentrating, muscle tension or problems sleeping and panic attacks. (“Anxiety Disorders”, n.d.)

In the fifth book of the series, Harry is possessed by Voldemort, and he has control over Harry’s thoughts and feelings. Harry tries to fight off these thoughts, and feelings that Voldemort is putting into his head. We can see it from the first few chapters, Harry keeps having these mixed feelings here and there, not knowing how to control them. He doesn’t know where these feelings are coming from, and later it gets worse and affects him physically and mentally. At some point, Harry tells Sirius “I just feel so angry all the time,” along with panic attacks, sleeplessness, beating heart and feelings of doom which are all symptoms of anxiety. Voldemort is cleverly used as a personification of Anxiety. 

The representation of mental illness in such forms have given rise to superhero therapy. This is done by incorporating examples from books, movies, and TV shows to allow the client to better understand what he or she is experiencing. Often when someone is struggling with a mental disorder, it might be difficult to make sense of the present situation at a given point of time. Besides, painful emotional experiences, such as depression or trauma, can potentially be alienating, creating false beliefs that they are the only ones going through this or that no one else will understand. Sometimes recognizing that some of their favorite heroes have been through a similar experience can potentially be healing (“Superhero Therapy” ,n.d.) Seeing Harry struggle with anxiety, depression, and trauma at various points in the series and make it through can make the viewers build a personal connection with him which can be used in therapy sessions. 

CITATIONS

Martin, B. (2019, June 19). In-Depth: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Retrieved from https://psychcentral.com/lib/in-depth-cognitive- behavioral-therapy/.





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