As one of the three most evil spells ever invented, the Imperius Curse is dark magic at its most powerful. And yet, a fourth-year wizarding student was able to resist it. How?
Throughout the Harry Potter series, the Boy Who Lived performed many magical feats. From being the youngest Quidditch Seeker at Hogwarts in over 100 years to defeating Lord Voldemort time and time again, Harry was able to accomplish many things most witches and wizards had formerly thought impossible.
Among those achievement was his ability to resist one of the darkest curses known to the wizarding world: the Imperius Curse. But how did he do it?
In this article, we’ll take a look at what the Imperius Curse is, when Harry came up against, and how he was ultimately able to resist it. Read on to learn more!
5 Questions About Harry Potter and the Imperius Curse
1. What is the Imperius Curse?
The Imperius Curse is one of three Unforgivable Curses, which also includes the Cruciatus Curse and the Killing Curse. With the incantation of “Imperio”, this curse allows the witch or wizard casting the spell to control the actions of another person.
Alongside the other two Unforgivable Curses, the Imperius Curse was quite popular for many hundreds of years within the wizarding world, until its eventual ban in the 18th century. With the development of the official governing body, The British Ministry of Magic, these three curses were dubbed “Unforgivable” and made illegal in the year 1717.
2. When was Harry introduced to the Imperius Curse?
Harry and his fellow classmates learned about the Unforgivable Curses during one of their fourth-year Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons.
Professor Mad-Eye Moody—who was actually Barty Crouch Junior in disguise—claimed that Professor Dumbledore had asked him to instruct the class on this topic by performing them for the class. Whether this was true or not, perform the curses he did.
While he chose to demonstrate the Cruciatus Curse and Killing Curse on a spider, he actually performed the Imperius Curse on the students. This was Harry’s first introduction to experiencing the spell.
3. What happened when Professor Moody used the Imperius Curse on Harry?
While at first Harry was susceptible to the effects of the Imperius Curse, by the end of the hour-long lesson, he was able to resist it. This is actually quite astonishing, as many witches and wizards of much greater experience and skill are unable to do so. At the time, Harry was only 14 years old!
4. Was Harry always able to resist the Imperius Curse?
From what we know, yes, he was! For example, near the end of the The Goblet of Fire, Harry once again demonstrated his ability to resist the effects of the Imperius Curse. In this instance, it was the Dark Lord himself who cast the spell—one of the best dark wizards of all time.
5. How exactly did Harry resist the Imperius Curse?
There actually may be a couple explanations as to why Harry was able to resist this particular spell. For starters, the Imperius Curse wasn’t the first Unforgivable Curse that he experienced—and resisted.
As an infant, he was the first known wizard not to die from the Killing Curse. So, since he had already evaded one of the Unforgivable Curses—the most deadly of the three—perhaps he was somewhat conditioned and less susceptible to the effects of the other two. Then again, Harry wasn’t able to resist the Cruciatus Curse, so there’s no concrete proof that this theory holds up.
Rather more likely is the simple fact that Harry was a somewhat rebellious young wizard with a distrust in authority. This can be linked back to his upbringing with his abusive extended family—the Dursleys. He was also incredibly strong willed, a characteristic shown throughout the series in how he would stand up for what he believed to be right, fought for his friends, and took on dangers far beyond his skill level. Combined, these characteristics are likely what allowed him to resist the Imperius Curse, a spell meant to bend the will of others and have them blindly submit to the wishes of the caster.
What are your thoughts? Share why you think Harry was able to resist the Imperius Curse in the comments below!