The Vanishing Glass
In which ten-year-old Harry accompanies the Dursleys to the zoo and frees a python, then gets in big trouble.
This chapter has less plot-driving action than the first, but there are a few key things that it'd be important to touch on, the first of which is that Harry shows signs of magic at a very young age. He describes these chance encounters as "strange things" that randomly happen to him, but it's obviously very normal for wizards who can't control their magic. Things like being hugged by random strangers in the street, jumping all the way on to the school's roof when being chased, shrinking one of Dudley's awful sweaters, and regrowing his hair top the list of abnormal things that happen to him. "Abnormal" being the key word here, because it's a sure bet the "normal" Dursley's don't approve.
And another one of these unusual occurrences happens when Mrs. Figg breaks her leg on Dudley's birthday. (Pay attention to the Figg, she's important four years later.) Since no one can babysit Harry he's allowed to accompany the Dursley's and Dudley's best friend, Piers Polkiss, to the zoo. The day seems too good to be true, since Harry is rarely allowed to go to places that aren't 4 Privet Drive, Mrs. Figg's, or school—and it is. Harry Potter is punished severely when he lets a python free in the reptile house.
Which brings us to the other piece of magic that he can do. Talk to snakes. When Harry finds out about magic and that he is a wizard, he thinks the ability to talk to snakes is just a part of the package. But he's very wrong—it's unusual even for a wizard—and that'll resurface in Chamber of Secrets.
We should rewind to the beginning of the chapter and talk about the Dursleys again. I can't actually imagine them clearly, because the things they do are so outrageously unreal. Making Harry live in a cupboard and sending him there without meals? Letting their son Dudley use him as a punching bag? Giving him only hand-me-downs to wear? The list goes on and on, but these are things I couldn't imagine happening to someone. I know the Dursleys didn't choose to have Harry living with them but they do, and their behavior is unacceptable.
The last point I would like to bring up is that Harry's strange dreams start way way back in his childhood. From dreaming about blinding flashes of light to dreaming about flying motorcycles, these dreams have some merit to them. His dreams aren't just coincidences, and this is another reoccurring theme throughout the series.
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