Philosophy for Kids: Harry Potter and the Moral Philosopher’s Stone

This blog post contains (major) spoilers about the Harry Potter series.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that my daughter’s primary school offered introductory philosophy classes, imagining all the stimulating conversations they might spark. She was less enthused and voiced serious doubts about its purpose and utility.

To try to stoke her enthusiasm, I stumbled through a brief definition – something along the lines of “philosophy aims to answer difficult questions for which there is no scientific consensus like ‘what it means to lead a good life’ and ‘the difference between right and wrong’” – but it occurred to me that this explanation might be too abstract, so I tried to make it more concrete using the example of moral philosophy.

Moral philosophy concerns ethics; it seeks to discover if we can establish a subjective framework for right and wrong; it helps us define secular rules about what is good and what is bad. There are three main branches of moral philosophy: meta ethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics.

The branch that interests me most, and which I want to discuss today, is normative ethics, which attempts to determine what actions are good or bad and how we should behave. Normative ethics can in turn be divided into three main frameworks: virtue ethics, deontology, and consequentialism/utilitarianism.

The problem with talking about these terms is that they are very poorly understood, so any discussion inevitably flounders because there is no common understanding of what they imply. For children in particular, who may not be familiar with the words' roots, the underlying ideas must seem terribly opaque. I therefore wanted to retain the theories but explain them in simpler terms with more relatable examples. It suddenly occurred to me that Harry Potter is a masterclass in framing ethics accessibly and, moreover, its main protagonists perfectly illustrate the main frameworks of normative ethics.

Harry, Dobby, and Dumbledore – I argued to my daughter – are archetypes of virtue ethics, deontology, and consequentialism, respectively. In this piece, I want to flesh out my initial insight in a way that (I hope) will be clear for children and adults alike.

Virtue ethics / Harry

According to virtue ethics, one can model the right thing to do based on what a typical “virtuous person” would do. Commonly cited virtues include courage, honesty, loyalty, compassion, generosity, fidelity, integrity, fairness, self-control, and prudence, so a virtuous person would display these characteristics.

Harry is consistently virtuous in his behaviour and attitude. Although an occasionally rebellious character, and not a brilliant student, he is universally respected (outside of Slytherin house) for his virtuous character (admittedly also because of his status as “the boy who lived,” but I would argue not primarily for this reason).

For example, as early as the sixth chapter of the first book, Harry is given a test of character when Draco Malfoy belittles Neville and Ron before offering Harry an implicit invitation to side with him. It would have been easy for Harry – the perennial outsider – to simply accept Malfoy’s overtures of friendship, but his compassion, and sense of fairness (as well as a learned distaste for bullies) leads him to reject this offer.

This scene is also an early taste of the kind of unflinching loyalty he would always show Dumbledore. Towards the end of the very last book, Harry shows great loyalty and courage by following Dumbledore’s plan and making the supreme sacrifice: giving himself up to Voldemort. Of course, we now know that this sacrifice wasn’t so supreme; Harry survives thanks to the sometimes-convoluted wizarding ontology that enables the author to tie-up the just-so story of Harry’s background – but it’s the intention that counts...

Consequentialism / Dumbledore

Dumbledore has a very interesting character arc; in the first books he is a fairly obscure figure, appearing only fleetingly to distill a few pearls of wisdom that help Harry (and the reader) come to terms with the complexities of the wizarding world. Although he initially seems like a kindly grandfather, trying his best to shield Harry from too much trauma, in the later books he is revealed to be a galaxy-brained, calculating, Machiavellian character who manipulates everyone in his orbit in order to reach his higher goals.

Consequentialism holds that one can determine whether an action is good by the outcome (the consequences), and Dumbledore often makes choices based on the long-term consequences they may have on the wizarding world rather than his loyalty to or affection for specific people. He focuses on achieving the greater good and protecting as many lives as possible, even if it means making difficult or morally ambiguous decisions in the process.

This certainly seems to be his rationale for shamelessly using Harry and Snape in particular. Dumbledore recognises and subtly exploits Severus Snape's enduring love for Lily Potter to ensure Snape's loyalty and turn him against Voldemort. When Snape expresses disdain for Harry, who is similar to James Potter (whom Snape loathed), Dumbledore reminds him that Harry has Lily's eyes, invoking Snape's affection for Lily and ensuring he continues to protect Harry. At various points in the series, it is clear that his conflicting feelings for Harry are a cause of much suffering.

In a shocking revelation in the final book, Snape learns that Dumbledore is even willing to sacrifice Harry in order to defeat Voldemort. Of course, Dumbledore was also prepared to put his money where his mouth is by sacrificing his own life so that Snape would gain Voldemort’s loyalty and fulfill his role as a double-agent.

While Dumbledore does value certain moral principles and has a sense of duty, his decisions seem to be primarily based on the potential outcomes and the consequences that will result from his actions.

Deontology / Hermione and Dobby

According to the Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy, “deontological theories are best understood in contrast to consequentialist ones.” That is because, whereas consequentialism judges an action based on what its consequences are, according to deontology, “some choices cannot be justified by their effects… no matter how morally good their consequences, some choices are morally forbidden.” Thus, according to deontological ethics, what makes an action right is if it conforms to certain norms or rules; in other words, following the rules is the right thing to do, no matter what (also known as Immanuel Kant’s “categorical imperative”).

I initially thought of Hermione to illustrate this philosophy; early in the series, Hermione seems like the ultimate "do-gooder," indeed, she frequently berates her classmates for breaking the rules. However, as the series progresses, she increasingly shows a willingness to bend or break the rules when she deems it necessary: whether it be by using the time-turner so that she can take multiple classes simultaneously, stealing ingredients from Snape’s storeroom to make a potion, or punching Draco in the face because… well, because he is such a jerk.

Dobby, on the other hand, is bound by an extreme form of deontology. He is, of course, literally a slave, and as a house-elf the magical laws that govern his race prevent him from escaping servitude from even the most vile, abusive master (Lucius Malfoy).

It is debatable to what extent Dobby can be truly said to follow a deontological philosophy given that his actions are not fully within his control due to external constraints (the magical compulsion to obey his masters), but it does demonstrate the principle quite effectively.

Moreover, at several points during the story, Dobby tries to protect Harry at great personal risk, in particular when he is freed from Malfoy’s servitude and is no longer bound by the aforementioned magical laws, so it could be argued that Dobby's personal philosophy is more aligned with virtue ethics.

This paradox shows that people are complex and do not fit neatly into one box. There are many other characters within the books that exhibit one or more of these different moral frameworks, making the Harry Potter series an excellent choice for introducing children to moral philosophy, literary concepts, and mythological themes, as well as for encouraging critical thinking.