Hey everyone,
Welcome to another installment of Harry Potter Theory. In today’s video, we’re going
to be discussing Albus Dumbledore and Transfiguration. More specifically- we’re going to be honing
in on one particular branch of transfiguration- the branch surrounding becoming an Animagus.
An animagus, simply put, is a witch or wizard that is able to transform themselves into
an animal and back again. Animagus is a combination of the word "animal" and the Greek word “magus”,
which together form "animal wizard”. ‘Animagus’ should not be confused with ‘Metamorphmagus’
which refers to witches or wizards who are born with the ability to change their form
at will.
There are quite a few known Animagi exhibited throughout the series, including James Potter-
a stag, Sirius Black- a dog, Peter Pettigrew- a rat, Rita Skeeter- a beetle, and Minerva
McGonagall- a cat, just to name a few.
Now you might be thinking- that’s not a lot of people, surely there are MORE witches
and wizards that are animagi, right?
But here’s the thing- it’s not that simple. Becoming an animagus is actually an extremely
rare and difficult ability to master. In fact, so few people have actually achieved this
magical feat that the Ministry of Magic requires all animagi to register their animagus status.
"— the Ministry of Magic keeps tabs on witches and wizards who can become animals; there's
a register showing what animal they become, and their markings and things... and I went
and looked Professor McGonagall up on the register, and there have been only seven Animagi
this century, and Pettigrew's name wasn't on the list."
Ok- so all animagi have to register- that is, unless they want to circumvent the ministry
and hide their ability- an offense punishable by imprisonment in Azkaban. With so few registered
animagus it really makes me wonder- what other characters are SECRETLY hiding this ability?
Well- one of the first people that comes to my mind is the POWERFUL Albus Dumbledore.
Let’s look at the facts here.
Yes- becoming an animagus is DIFFICULT- but this is Dumbledore we’re talking about here,
he definitely had the skill, and there’s no just reason WHY he wouldn’t pursue this
magical ability. And if we look at history, Dumbledore has all sorts of ties to transfiguration-
including serving as a columnist for Transfiguration Weekly, and at one stage acting as HEAD OF
THE TRANSFIGURATION department at Hogwarts. JK Rowling even once revealed on Pottermore
that Dumbledore had helped Minerva McGonagall become an animagus when she was his student.
He helped MCGONAGALL- a transfiguration EXPERT.
Are you really telling me this man DIDN’T BECOME ONE?
To add to this- Hermione’s research on the subject only showed Animagi that registered
in the twentieth century, and- provided that Dumbledore was alive before then, born in
1881 during the 19th century- it’s very reasonable to deduce that he had become one
but never registered, or just registered much earlier on. He didn’t HAVE to register when
he learned the ability, and- why would he WILLINGLY register later? I’m sure that
being able to transform in to an animal undetected certainly has its perks, and the complicated
Dumbledore would have surely capitalized on this.
So- yes, I think that Dumbledore was an Animagus. Now the question is- what was his animagus
form? Well, this question can be fairly reasonably answered.
The first thing I want to mention is that your animagus form is not something that you
can choose. If you were destined to be a rat (**Cough** Pettigrew), then tough luck. Next,
it should be stated that there is a distinct relationship between your animagus form and
your patronus form. The animal into which one turns, if an Animagus, seems always to
be that which becomes the Patronus. And what is Dumbledore’s Patronus? Why- a Phoenix
of course.
And that’s it for this video! What do you guys think? Was Dumbledore a SECRET animagus?
Or is this a bogus, unjustified theory? Comment down below
Until next time
Remember
Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on
the light