Monday, April 29, 2013

Mistakes I've Found In Harry Potter

What?!?! Ms. Rowling made mistakes (as in plural) in the Harry Potter series?!?! Tut tut. Shame on you.

I'm just kidding. I'm actually kind of glad that she made a few mistakes (yes a few--most of them plot mistakes) in her books, because it shows us that everyone's human, even if they are probably a billionaire and have been on the New York Times Best Sellers list too many times to count on both hands (and feet)! It's good for other writers to see this, too, because it shows us that no matter how many times we edit and look over our books (and no matter how many times our editors do this), we will always miss that one little detail (or maybe even a few), but it'll be okay because everyone will love it anyway.

So without further ado, I give you, "Mistakes I've Found in Harry Potter!"

1. Two Freds or a Mistake?

If you were wondering, it's a mistake. In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, page 35:

"Blimey, I'm tired," yawned Fred, setting down his fork and knife at last. "I think I'll go to bed and--"
"You will not," snapped Mrs. Weasley. "It's your own fault you've been up all night. You're going to de-gnome the garden for me; they're getting completely out of hand again--"
"Oh, Mum--"
"And you two," she said, glaring at Ron and Fred. "You can go up to bed, dear," she added to Harry. "You didn't ask them to fly that wretched car--"

Did you catch the mistake? No?

If Fred was the one who said, "Blimey, I'm tired," Mrs. Weasley should have glared at Ron and George. She said, "And you two," as in, "You two will also help Fred." But Fred can't help himself. George can, though.

It might be a little mistake, but it just proves how many times I've read this book.

2. Double the Daily Prophet.

This one is a slightly bigger mistake. Did anyone else catch it?

In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Hermione tells Harry in a letter on page 11 that she took out a Daily Prophet subscription:

I bought your present by owl-order; there was an advertisement in the Daily Prophet (I've been getting it delivered; it's so good to keep up with what's going on in the wizarding world).

Then in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, page 540 Hermione says:

"I've taken out a subscription to the Daily Prophet. I'm getting sick of finding everything out from the Slytherins."

But didn't she already have a subscription to it?

3. Did Harry Inflate Both Aunts?

On the last page in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, there is a preview for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The first sentence says:

Harry Potter has to sneak back to his third year at Hogwarts after accidentally inflating his horrible Aunt Petunia.

It should say Aunt Marge, who Harry actually did inflate.

4. Missing End Quotes.

In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, page 186, Lupin says:

"They planted the Whomping Willow the same year that I arrived here at Hogwarts. People used to play a game, trying to get near enough to touch the trunk. In the end, a boy called Davey Gudgeon nearly lost an eye, and we were forbidden to go near it. No broomstick would have a chance.

But then it launches right into the next paragraph:

"Did you hear about the dementors too?" said Harry with difficulty.

At first it appears as if Lupin is not done talking, seeing as there were no end quotes.

Did anyone catch these mistakes? Have you found any mistakes other than these four? Leave a comment! :D

14 comments:

Boquinha said...

Wow, what a great post! I especially like the points you made in your introduction - great advice for writers.

She may have a few little errors, but I maintain the woman is a GENIUS. And you're right - she's human. Isn't that great?!? :)

Anonymous said...

I think sometimes end quotes aren't necessary for a paragraph if the next paragraph is the same person talking, but yeah... she messed up.

My favorite "mistake" isn't related to proofreading at all. It's not really even a mistake, maybe more of an oversight. So the twins can see where everyone is in Hogwarts thanks to their map, right? Surely they would've seen Ron on there loads of times since he's their brother and they'd wonder what he's up to. They've probably seen the little dot labeled with "Ron" in the dormitory where he keeps Scabbers.

So why did no one notice a "Peter Pettigrew" on the map until the third book?

The Magic Violinist said...

Yes, now we all know that she isn't some alien or genius cyborg that has a brain unlike no one else!

I never thought about that, but now that you mention it it does seem odd. And wouldn't Harry have seen him, too?

Boquinha said...

Ah, but they'd only see it if they happened to look at the map WHILE he was there. Or am I missing something?

The Magic Violinist said...

If Scabbers had been with Ron (and Percy!) for so long, why hadn't someone seen him by now labeled as "Peter Pettigrew?" I'm sure J.K. Rowling thought of that, but it still seems far-fetched to think that no one had noticed him on the map.

Boquinha said...

Oh, duh. That's true! Ooooh. Interesting!! This is some good Harry Potter super sleuthing! :)

Zelia said...

Kate you Are good. Never in a million years woul i everfind
any of those errors.

The Magic Violinist said...

Thanks, Vavo! :D

Anonymous said...

Ooh, ooh! I forgot another error. This one isn't strictly from the books, though. The "official" ages of some characters don't fit with what she writes - Bellatrix and Andromeda supposedly attended Hogwarts at the same time as Sirius & Co. but they couldn't have. Based on the family tree ages they'd have graduated already.

Emily said...

One that's bothered me for ages is the order in which his parents come out of Voldemort's wand at the end of book 4. It was fixed in the audio books but in my copy his dad comes out before his mom, but if they come out in reverse, his mom should have come first since she died after his dad.

Zoe said...

This is really interesting! I am a huge Harry Potter fan but I think this is really important for struggling writers to note. Thanks for sharing, I had no idea about these before :)

Thanks for stopping by my blog!

The Magic Violinist said...

Nice catch, nevillegirl! :D I hadn't noticed that before.

Good one, Emily! :D

No problem, Zoe! :D Thanks for stopping by my blog, too!

Anonymous said...

Wow...you have the makings of a fantastic editor!

The Magic Violinist said...

Thanks, seventytwofishes! :D