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| Harry notices that whilst the potion tips are written without alterations, the jinxes and hexes contain numerous revisions and corrections, leading him to believe they were created by the Prince. In particular, the spell ] contains many changes and seems to have caused the Prince some trouble, although Harry succeeds the first time he uses it on Ron. | Harry notices that whilst the potion tips are written without alterations, the jinxes and hexes contain numerous revisions and corrections, leading him to believe they were created by the Prince. In particular, the spell ] contains many changes and seems to have caused the Prince some trouble, although Harry succeeds the first time he uses it on Ron. | ||
| Harry learns other new and sometimes dangerous spells from the notes, including ] and ]. |
Harry learns other new and sometimes dangerous spells from the notes, including ] and ]. Curious about the Prince's identity, ] does some research. Based on the textbook's publication date, she believes the Half-Blood Prince may be ], a Hogwarts student about 50 years ago. An old ] article says Eileen was once the Captain of the Hogwarts ] Team. Harry, however, believes the Prince was a male student. When Hermione searches archived marriage and birth announcements, she discovers that Eileen Prince married a ] named ], and they had a son, Severus. | ||
| ] tells Harry that the Levicorpus spell Harry learned from the potions book was popular at school during Snape's fifth year. Indeed, it was used on Snape by James Potter |
] tells Harry that the Levicorpus spell Harry learned from the potions book was popular at school during Snape's fifth year. Indeed, it was used on Snape by James Potter, although how James learned the spell is unknown. It is finally revealed that the spell was created by Severus Snape, who is said to have known more curses and jinxes when he arrived at Hogwarts than most did when they left. The 'Half-Blood Prince' was thus a literal description of Snape, a combination of his father's Muggle side and mother's maiden name of Prince. When Harry tries to use Snape's own spells against him during the ], Snape confirms that ''he'' (Snape) is the Half-Blood Prince. Following these climactic events, Hermione searches through the library's archived marriage and birth announcements and discovers that Eileen Prince married a ] named ], and they had a son: Severus. | ||
| A comparison can be drawn with Tom Riddle, who dubbed himself ], which is a partial ] of his original name. ''Prince'' is also a title, but the term ''half-blood'' is used derogatively by some in the wizarding world, particularly amongst ] or in ] house, and it is unclear why he adopted such a name. | A comparison can be drawn with Tom Riddle, who dubbed himself ], which is a partial ] of his original name. ''Prince'' is also a title, but the term ''half-blood'' is used derogatively by some in the wizarding world, particularly amongst ] or in ] house, and it is unclear why he adopted such a name. | ||
Revision as of 18:23, 10 January 2007
The Half-Blood Prince is an alias of a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's sixth Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Harry's investigation of the true identity of this person is one of the major plotlines of the book, and the mystery is solved at the conclusion.
Harry returns to Hogwarts for his 6th year believing he will be unable to take NEWT-level Potions, a course he needs to eventually become an auror. However, Potions teacher Professor Snape is now the new Defense Against the Dark Art instructor. His vacant position has been filled by former Hogwarts Potions professor, Horace Slughorn, whom Dumbledore persuaded to return. Professor McGonagall informs Harry that Slughorn allows students to advance to NEWT classes with lower OWL exam grades than Snape required. Both Harry and Ron Weasley are now eligible to take the course.
Slughorn loans Harry and Ron old copies of Advanced Potion-Making by Libatius Borage. Harry's copy contains the previous owner's handwritten margin notes, revising many potions and making them easier to brew. The book also contains a collection of jinxes and hexes and an inscription saying it is the property of the Half-Blood Prince.
Harry's performance in Potions improves greatly when he uses the Prince's modifications, so much so that Slughorn compliments him for having inherited his mother's outstanding Potions ability. When Harry brews the best Draught of Living Death in the class, Slughorn awards him a prize. Harry believes the Prince is a better Potions teacher than either Snape or Slughorn.
Harry notices that whilst the potion tips are written without alterations, the jinxes and hexes contain numerous revisions and corrections, leading him to believe they were created by the Prince. In particular, the spell Levicorpus contains many changes and seems to have caused the Prince some trouble, although Harry succeeds the first time he uses it on Ron.
Harry learns other new and sometimes dangerous spells from the notes, including Sectumsempra and Muffliato. Curious about the Prince's identity, Hermione does some research. Based on the textbook's publication date, she believes the Half-Blood Prince may be Eileen Prince, a Hogwarts student about 50 years ago. An old Daily Prophet article says Eileen was once the Captain of the Hogwarts Gobstones Team. Harry, however, believes the Prince was a male student. When Hermione searches archived marriage and birth announcements, she discovers that Eileen Prince married a Muggle named Tobias Snape, and they had a son, Severus.
Remus Lupin tells Harry that the Levicorpus spell Harry learned from the potions book was popular at school during Snape's fifth year. Indeed, it was used on Snape by James Potter, although how James learned the spell is unknown. It is finally revealed that the spell was created by Severus Snape, who is said to have known more curses and jinxes when he arrived at Hogwarts than most did when they left. The 'Half-Blood Prince' was thus a literal description of Snape, a combination of his father's Muggle side and mother's maiden name of Prince. When Harry tries to use Snape's own spells against him during the battle at Hogwarts, Snape confirms that he (Snape) is the Half-Blood Prince. Following these climactic events, Hermione searches through the library's archived marriage and birth announcements and discovers that Eileen Prince married a Muggle named Tobias Snape, and they had a son: Severus.
A comparison can be drawn with Tom Riddle, who dubbed himself Lord Voldemort, which is a partial anagram of his original name. Prince is also a title, but the term half-blood is used derogatively by some in the wizarding world, particularly amongst Death Eaters or in Slytherin house, and it is unclear why he adopted such a name.
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