Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the fourth book in the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. Published in 2000, the release of this book was surrounded by more hype than any other children's book in recent times - outdone only by its successors, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. At 636 pages (hardback British edition) it was fairly large for a children's book. The book attracted a lot of attention owing to a pre-publication warning from J. K. Rowling that one of the characters would be murdered in the book. This started a stream of rumour and speculation as to who the murdered character would be. The publishing of Goblet of Fire caused unprecendented heights of Pottermania to be reached internationally.

Plot overview

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Quidditch World Cup

In this book, Harry Potter spends the end of his summer with the Weasleys in anticipation of the Quidditch World Cup. During the World Cup, a group of Death Eaters attack a number of Muggle bystanders, but flee when the Dark Mark - Voldemort's sign - mysteriously appears above them. The sign is found to have been made by a wand found with Winky, the House-Elf of Barty Crouch, a respected official at the Ministry of Magic. Winky is fired by her master at once. Crouch's treatment of Winky prompts Hermione to start campaigning for elves' rights.

Related Topics:
Harry Potter - Quidditch - Death Eater - Muggle - Dark Mark - Winky - House-Elf - Barty Crouch - Ministry of Magic - Hermione

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Tri-Wizard Tournament

There is a surprise in store for Hogwarts students at the start of the new school year. The new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is famed Auror (a wizard trained to fight the Dark Arts) Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, an old eccentric who manages to simultaneously terrify, awe and amuse the students with his combined paranoia and astonishing knowledge and intelligence. What is more, the Triwizard Tournament, a centuries-old interschool competition that was banned for years due to its increasingly dangerous "tasks" is to be restarted, and to be held at Hogwarts. The names of all intending participants will be put into a goblet - known as the Goblet of Fire - which will shoot out one name from each of the three competing wizarding schools (Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang). After choosing famous international Quidditch player and Durmstrang student Viktor Krum, eerily beautiful Beauxbatons student Fleur Delacour , and Hogwarts Hufflepuff Cedric Diggory , the Goblet spits out Harry's name - although he is too young to have added his name to the Goblet and a Hogwarts champion has already been selected. Harry is forced to participate although he suspects that he has been deliberately put in grave danger. Many students are outraged (particularly as their best efforts to put their names in the Goblet failed) and to Harry's intense dismay, his best friend Ron Weasley is suddenly jealous.

Related Topics:
Hogwarts - Beauxbatons - Durmstrang - Viktor Krum - Fleur Delacour - Cedric Diggory

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The First Task is an unknown challenge, but Hogwarts gamekeeper Hagrid reveals it to Harry as well as to Madame Maxime, the enormous, elegant Headmistress of Beauxbatons Academy. For the First Task, The champions must battle a dragon in order to retrieve a golden egg from among her own eggs. Igor Karkaroff, Headmaster of the Durmstrang Institute sees the dragons, although from a hiding place. This leaves Cedric Diggory as the only champion not knowing what awaits him. Harry feels it is unfair that all the other champions are aware of what awaits them in the First Task, and informs Diggory. He is surprised when, after Diggory walks away, Professor Moody calls Harry into his study and, not only praises him for telling Diggory about the task, but then hints at how Harry can successfully complete the First Task. At the start of the First Task, the champions randomly draw a numbered miniature dragon from a silk bag, which indicates which species of dragon they will face and in which order the champions will complete their task. Harry is number four, and draws the Hungarian Horntail, supposedly the most dangerous dragon of them all. Harry, with the aid of his broomstick, outmanouvers the dragon and manages to steal the golden egg with only one injury in his shoulder. The task is terrifying for Harry's friends Ron and Hermione, and Harry's friendship with Ron is saved once Ron realises just how perilous the Tournament will be for Harry.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The golden egg provides the clue to the Second Task, which takes place in February.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the last part of the Tournament - in which the four competitors have to run through a maze populated by many dangerous creatures - Harry and Cedric arrive at the trophy (placed in the centre of the maze) first and decide, because of the help they provided to each other, to grab the trophy at the same time, since it will be a Hogwarts victory anyway.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Confrontation in the Graveyard

The trophy turns out to be a Portkey, a magical object which transports them to a graveyard - where they find Peter Pettigrew (also known as Wormtail) and Lord Voldemort. Peter kills Cedric using the unstoppable Avada Kedavra curse, then uses Harry's blood as part of a macabre ritual which results in Voldemort being reborn, more powerful than before, and immune to the charm which had prevented him from harming Harry twice before. Voldemort then summons the Death Eaters and attempts to kill Harry, to prove that "the boy who lived" will not be his undoing again.

Related Topics:
Portkey - Peter Pettigrew - Lord Voldemort

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

However, because Harry's and Voldemort's wands are formed from the same core - a feather from Dumbledore's pet phoenix Fawkes - a freak phenomenon known as Priori Incantatem occurs, in which Voldemort's wand begins to produce ghostly echoes of its past victims - including Harry's parents. The echoes hold off Voldemort while Harry manages to escape to the trophy which transports him and Cedric's body back to Hogwarts.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Barty Crouch, Jr. Revealed

On reaching Hogwarts again, Harry lands in the centre of the confusion caused by his disappearance. He is led up to the castle by his Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher and Auror (Dark-wizard-catcher), Professor Moody. Moody reveals himself as a Death Eater, saying that it was he who put Harry's name into the Goblet, and who ensured that Harry made it through the three rounds of the tournament so that he would be delivered to Voldemort. As Moody is about to attack Harry, Dumbledore, Snape and McGonagall barge into the room, and stop Moody. After Dumbledore's interrogation of "Prof. Moody", it is revealed that "Moody" was Barty Crouch's son in disguise. The real Professor Moody had been kept imprisoned in a magical trunk for the entire year.

Related Topics:
Defence Against the Dark Arts - Auror - Professor Moody - Barty Crouch's son

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Having learned that Voldemort had risen again, Dumbledore began proceedings to restart the Order of the Phoenix. Snape and the Durmstrang Headmaster are revealed as ex-Death Eaters. Barty Crouch Jr. has his soul sucked out by a Dementor before he can repeat his story to The Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. The Minister refuses to believe that Voldemort has risen again on the word of Dumbledore and Harry, which results in Dumbledore being removed from several important posts within the wizard community, and the reputation of Harry Potter (and Dumbledore) being trampled judiciously in the next book.

Related Topics:
Order of the Phoenix - Cornelius Fudge

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~