Abstract of Paper to be Presented at Accio 2008

'Impaled on its own sword': The self-destructiveness of evil in the Harry Potter series

Lauren Berman

In accordance with the message imparted in Bruno Bettleheim's seminal work, The Uses of Enchantment, 'that evil intentions are the evil person's undoing',(141) I explore Rowling portrayal of evil as inherently self-destructive. The self-defeating nature of evil is illustrated in the novels through the actions of nefarious characters, who consistently err in favour of good due to their own miscalculations, and are therefore ultimately responsible for their own downfall.