The Burrow: The Implications of Love

by Bryan Alvarado

In the Harry Potter septology, the power of love (now confirmed by the veil at the Ministry of Magic, Department of Mysteries) is the one thing that can defeat all evil, and “…is at once more wonderful and more terrible than death…” Dumbledore explains this sufficiently at the end of Ootp, although leaving out the minor detail of what this force is, exactly. The power of love is apparent in each and every one of the characters throughout the story (with the possible exception of Lord Voldemort), and it comes in many shapes and sizes. One of these loving relationships, albeit slightly distorted by family feuds, is the relationship of the Weasley siblings.

Throughout the Harry Potter series, we know the Weasleys basely through Ron. Although we come into contact with his brothers and receive input from them, Ron is our main source of information for his family. The importance of his love for his family is becoming clear after the aforementioned explanation offered by Dumbledore, strengthened also by his statement from Book 4: “We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.” It seems that Voldemort’s gift of spreading enmity and discord is even seeping into the Weasley family, as we see Percy misguided by the M.O.M.’s perception of events in June. Even though Ron states he believes Percy to be the world’s biggest git, his love for his brother will not allow him to forsake him unto Lord Voldemort.

The Weasley family is living through a very difficult time, and as Mrs. Weasley states in the first few chapters of OotP, it will be a miracle if they all live through it. If we look critically at evidence from other statements similar to this, such as Ron’s claim that “We have about as much chance as winning the Quidditch Cup as Dad has of becoming Minister of Magic…”, we can come to the conclusion that Molly Weasley’s simple, distraught statement may be an omen of things to come for the Weasleys.

Now, looking more strictly at the importance of love between the siblings of the Weasley family, we can see many connections and lines of respect: Ron is constantly looking out for Ginny, who is always looking up to Fred and George, who are always making fun of Percy, who is always trying to set an example. If the love in the Weasley family diminished after Percy left, perhaps it is all the more reason to believe the notion that something terrible may befall the Weasley’s in the time to come.

On a side note, this is just something that is bothering me now: both Harry and Hermione have become able to tolerate saying the name Voldermort, whereas Ron still can’t cope with saying it. Now, most people in the wizarding world are only afraid to say his name because they remember the terrible things he did while he still had power. What did Ron witness (or hear from his parents) that caused him to feel that same fear? It’s kind of trivial to the topic, but I think the relationship between Ron and Percy will be tested and strained even more once we learn more about Ron’s motives for fearing the name as he does. We don’t know if Percy has such a high fear for sure, but Ron’s comment about how Percy might do anything for a bit of power, including betraying his family, might prove to be the final straw between the two of them. That notion is especially likely since Ron so openly fears Voldemort, and he worries that Percy might betray their family to him.

Okay, aside from that little tangent, the implications of love between the Weasley siblings are simple: lack of love could prove their downfall, and strengthening their bonds could save them. If we look closely when Mrs. Weasley says, “…what if something dreadful happens and we never made up…” (speaking about Percy), we can safely assume that Percy is feeling slightly (understatement of the century) hostile towards the rest of his family. This obviously opens up a rift that should be easily played upon by Lord Voldemort, and is likely already being played upon. We can still tell, though, that Percy does care about his family, voicing his concerns through the letter he sends Ron (mistakenly warning him against the dangers of associating himself with Dumbledore). His way of showing concern for Ron may be represented poorly, but it is there nonetheless.

So, overall, the love (or lack thereof) shown by the Weasley siblings could prove a pivotal point in the possible dividing of the Order, a very frightening prospect considering the advantageous positions the Weasleys hold amongst themselves. If anything should happen to one of them, the family would likely be torn apart even worse than it already is. The Order can only hope that the Weasleys will be able to reconcile their differences before the rift between the siblings becomes a severe danger to their anti-Voldemort efforts.