Hey everyone,
Welcome to another installment of Harry Potter Theory. In today’s video, we’re going
to be discussing Fred Weasley, George Weasley and the Marauders Map. George and Fred Weasley
were the closest of brothers- identical in every way, and by far the most mischievous
members of the Weasley family. They were the kind of twins that would spend every waking
moment with one another, and tackle any obstacle together. The obstacle that I’m going to
be discussing today, however, pertains to the famous Marauder’s Map - a magical map
used by the Marauders- Sirius Black, James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew,
during their time at Hogwarts.
The Marauder’s Map is described as follows:
"The magic used in the map's creation is advanced and impressive; it includes the Homonculous
Charm, enabling the possessor of the map to track the movements of every person in the
castle, and it was also enchanted to forever repel (as insultingly as possible) the curiosity
of their nemesis, Severus Snape."
George and Fred came in to possession of the map after stealing it from Filch’s office
during their first year at Hogwarts. The pair had gotten in trouble for setting off a dungbomb
and noticed a drawer marked ‘confiscated and highly dangerous- which obviously caught
their attention. Their curiosity got the better of them, and while George dropped another
dungbomb, Fred was able to search the drawer and steal the map.
This was a GREAT find- especially for a mischievous pair like Fred and George. The map allowed
them to see every inch of every classroom, hallway, nook and cranny of the castle- which
allowed them to get up to all sorts of mischief undetected. Not only that, but the map showed
PEOPLE in real time- this allowed them to easily escape the likes of Snape and Filch.
With all of that being said - the Marauder’s Map gave the holder, or in this case holders,
a lot of power.
"This little beauty's taught us more than all the teachers in this school."
However, one thing that I’ve always wondered is- HOW Fred and George were able to use the
map. If you didn’t know already- the map itself is actually password protected. This
was a preventative measure to ensure that not just anyone could take advantage of its
capabilities. To the layperson, the map wouldn’t appear as magical at all-in fact, it would
just look like a blank piece of parchment. When Harry is first given the map by Fred
and George, he has no idea what to think of it:
George Weasley: "This, Harry, is the secret of our success."
Fred Weasley: "It’s a wrench, giving it to you, but we decided last night, your need’s
greater than ours." George Weasley: "Anyway, we know it by heart.
We bequeath it to you. We don’t really need it anymore."
Harry Potter: "And what do I need with a bit of old parchment?"
But the question remains- how on earth did Fred and George figure out the password to
the Map in the first place? There’s no way that they would have gotten it from one of
the original Marauders-so..how’d they do it?
“I solemnly swear that I am up to no good” - how’d they work that one out?
It turns out that JK Rowling was actually asked this exact question in an interview
with Mugglenet.
INT: How did they figure out how to work the map?
JKR: Don't you - well. This is how I explained it to myself at the time, and this does sound
glib. Don't you think it would be quite a Fred and Georgeish thing to say in jest, and
then see this thing transform? INT:: Yeah.
JKR: Can't you just see them? INT:: But the exact word combination? Is that
just a lot of luck, or Felix Felicis - JKR: Or, the map helped.
INT:: Yep, yeah. You can see them sort of answering and joking with each other -
JKR: And the map flickering into life here and there when they got closer and closer,
and finally they hit upon the exact right word combination and it just erupts.
What JK Rowling explains here is that Fred and George figured out the password with a
little luck, some playful effort, and perhaps a little help form the map itself. Through
prodding and probing- they were able to analyze feedback from the map, eventually figuring
out the exact word combinations necessary to reveal it’s secrets. Trial and error,
their playful nature and a little bit of luck worked out for them in the end.
And that’s it for this video! Did you guys ever WONDER how those two actually figured
it out? Did you suspect a different answer? Let me know in the comment section below
Until next time
I solemnly swear that I am up to no good