Tools of Characterization

Characterization in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Clothing

They don't give out fancy film awards for costume design for nothing. Clothes are an important way to express something about your characters and that's definitely true in Order of the Phoenix.

Dolores Umbridge is actually an interesting example. Even though she's always dressed in frilly pinks, she's a total sociopath. Her clothes, like her mannerisms and style of speaking, are meant to fool you into thinking she's not a cruel, ruthless, toad bent on amassing complete control of Hogwarts. Charming.

Luna Lovegood's clothes match her character perfectly though. Luna is a bit eccentric (even by wizards standards) and so are her fashion choice. She wears earrings made of radishes and a butterbeer cork necklace that "keeps away the Nargles." Don't ask.

Family Life

What's a poor orphaned wizard to do?

The fact that Harry has no family (except for his awful Muggle relatives) is constantly on his mind. Dudley makes fun of Harry for having a dead mom. Classy. Snape insults his dead father…then Harry finds out exactly why Snape hates his dad so much. The guy was kind of a bully. Hey, parents aren't perfect.

Maybe that's why when Hagrid asks Harry to look after Grawp because Hagrid's "the only family he's got," Harry can't help but feel a little bad for the bumbling giant. Family is all Harry's looking for from his godfather, Sirius, and then he has to go and die.

Wow. Harry Potter can't catch a break (or find a family) in these movies.

Names

Names have always been significant in the Potterverse. We'll focus on a few of the new characters here.

Dolores Umbridge has a great name. Her first name actually means "sorrows," which is a bit on the nose. Her last name is close to the word "umbrage" which means to be offended or annoyed by something. Professor Umbridge is constantly taking umbrage at what people around her are doing with sorrowful consequences. We'd say she didn't stand a chance with that on her birth certificate.

Bellatrix Lestrange is cousin to Sirius Black and her parents followed the tradition of naming her after a star (in the constellation Orion) as well. Her first name means "female warrior" in Latin, which fits pretty well. The last name (which is her married name) works, too, because after spending fifteen years in Azkaban, Bellatrix is more than a little lestrange.

Hermione accidentally introduces Luna Lovegood as "Looney Lovegood," which makes sense since other Hogwarts students see her a little bit wacky. Luna means "moon" in Latin and some believe that the moon can make you a little crazy. But Luna's last name is all about feelings. She "loves" and she's really "good" at it. Luna is a lot more empathic than other characters in the book and not afraid to express her feelings. Maybe that's why Harry connects with her so quickly. Hey, she's as sane as he is.