The Half Blood Prince

An original editorial by Sarah Parks

Now that we know the title of the sixth book, it has given all HP fans another mystery to consider, whom is the title referring to? J.K. Rowling stated it was going to be the title of the second book at first but she then changed it. I believe this is the most important clue about the person's identity. I mean if the second book was going to be named after them then surely they would be a major character in the second book. I have therefore narrowed my list of candidates to characters in the second book. Now lets take a look at my six finalists.

1. Lockheart- I hope not, but he did make the list mainly because we know so little about him. He could possibly be a half blood and even though his memory was damaged we did see evidence in OotP that he was recovering. Will he make a full recovery and come back? Wwhose side would he be on? His own, most likely. Brainless git.

2. Hagrid- We all know he is a half blood. What we don't know is the ancestry of his mother. She could possibly have been of noble descent in the giant community or daughter of the gurg. Unlikely, but better Hargid than Lockheart.

3. Snape- scary thought. We really don't know much about his past or heritage. He seems to be a powerful wizard and a central character to the plot. Possibly?

4. Slythern- Even though he is no longer alive the actions he took in his time have greatly affected the modern day Wizarding World. He could have done something else to affect the plot. He could also be used as a symbol.

5. Griffindor- Same as above.

6. Tom Marvolo Riddle- I know of course that Mrs. Rowling said the HBP was not Harry or Voldemort but Riddle and Voldemort could be seen as essentially two different people. Riddle, a misguided teen with an uncertain future vs. Lord Voldemort, an evil psychopath who has undergone so many dark and dangerous transformations that he is almost unrecognizable as the head boy he once was. Furthermore, Lord Voldemort is the only royal reference to anybody that I have picked up on in the books. Riddle being the younger version of him could be considered a prince. Voldemort could find a way of bringing his younger self back to life again too, essentially making him more terrible than ever before because there are now two of him!

Keeping this is mind I still have to admit the HBP could be someone else. Maybe we haven't met him yet b/c he was going to be in the second book but was cut. Also, just b/c he is called a prince doesn't necessarily mean he is of royal birth. One of the definitions of a prince in Webster's dictionary `is - a person in high standing (as in class). So it could basically mean anyone who is deemed important in the public eye. As always we can't stop ourselves from speculating but will have to wait to see if we guessed right.

7/18/04