No really. This is not a spoiler to Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

I specifically am writing this before I have my grubby little book-devouring hands on this book in less than twenty-four hours.

Carolyn’s Report on the HBP is posted here, and she goes into far more detail about what may (and probably will) actually happen. But that is not what I am about to here describe.

The largest question and therefore most interesting large-concept to look at, is “Will Harry Die?” This is important, for many reasons, it has been foreshadowed, he is the main character, and it is binary. He can only live or die. There is no other option (or is there?).

Carolyn would argue that Harry Potter will die. And she has many valid points which I will attept to do justice to below:

1. Harry Potter and Voldemort’s lives are intimately linked, for the villain to die, the hero must.
2. Harry Potter wants to be with his parents … joining them requires death.
3. Harry Potter is too volatile to be left alive (i mean come on, the kid is crazy).
4. Harry Potter has no purpose if Voldemort were to somehow die before him. What would he do with his time?

Reasons he may live:

1. Harry Potter is a billion-dollar franchise and the only way to make more Harry Potter books is for him to live.
2. Specifically, we are talking three more books about Auror school – already outlined.
3. If Harry Potter dies people will be upset.

But most importantly, I think we need to focus on the fact that if Harry had lived when these books were not popular, they would have never become classics. This is no longer an issue, because they have sold too many copies to not become classics. They outsell every other book in existance, and they will be remembered for that (if little else). So really, in the end, I am saying it doesn’t matter. If JKR needs the money, (she shouldn’t) then she keeps him alive, or in some state of easy revival, so that she can possibly write three more books. (Though anything she writes at this point is an automatic best-seller.) If she wants to try to give these books any amount of reality(?) or possibly metaphorical strength, she has to kill him.

A few other notes, JKR said after book 3 – I think – that she had outlined the entire main plot points of all seven books very very early on in this process. She also said she would remain true to those notes. If she still follows this rule – and granted she said this a few years ago – then he is probably heading straight for the magical wizard coffin. But then we won’t be able to check this until the original plans go up on eBay.

About a week ago I asked the question at JustCurio.us “Will Harry Potter die at the end of book 7?” The responses I recieved are:

1. One can only hope.
2. god willing
3. he’d better die soon
4. I hope so.
5. no
6. He should have died at the beginning of the first book.
7. I sure hope not!
8. No.
9. what is indina’s state flower?

At the end of all this … it seems people don’t really care. And they certainly aren’t unanimous. Harry will either die or he will live. And the Harry Potter books will become some amazing phenomena of the turn of the millenia, where people went crazy over wizards, even though the pope says they are soul sucking books. Harry has secured his fate, he – and we – should not worry about little things like death.