As I've written before, I don't think Harry's scar is a horcrux. Basis? I think horcrux creation involves some kind of spell, and when Voldemort zapped Harry and his family, he didn't perform any spell; however, I don't remember where I read that or if I read it at all. I'll have to re-read the portions of Book 6 that discuss horcruxes.
Travis over at Sword of Gryffindor has an interesting theory. In his quest for horcrux clues, he references a passage in Book 1, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
Travis takes us all the way back to Harry's first night at Hogwarts. He'd just finished eating a generous meal after having been sorted into Gryffindor House. Just after the sorting, Harry makes eye contact with the Potions Master, Professor Severus Snape, whose ominous presence even this early in the game portends shadowy, creepy, and mysterious things. When Harry's scar begins to hurt, he thinks it has to do with Snape. Professor Quirrell, sitting beside Snape, is the reason. More precisely, Lord Voldemort is the reason.
Let's look at the passage:
Perhaps Harry had eaten a bit too much, because he had a very strange dream. He was wearing Professor Quirrell’s turban, which kept talking to him, telling him he must transfer to Slytherin at once, because it was his destiny. Harry told the turban he didn’t want to be in Slytherin; it got heavier; he tried to pull it off but it tightened painfully - and there was Malfoy, laughing at him as he struggled with it - then Malfoy turned into the hook-nosed teacher, Snape, whose laugh became high and cold - there was a burst of green light and Harry woke, sweating and shaking. (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Scholastic, 130)
At this point, no one knows that Voldemort is inside the turban. Travis surmises that this dream is very significant. He believes it may be a clue that the scar on Harry's forehead is a horcrux.
We know that Voldemort has possessed Quirrell and is hiding inside his smelly turban, waiting for a chance to steal the sorcerer's stone so he can gain immortality. Why would Harry just happen to dream the turban is talking to him, when near the end of the book, the turban actually does "talk" to him? Coincidence? No such thing.
We know there's a connection between Harry and Voldemort, so I believe Harry was reading V's thoughts the way he's been able to throughout the series.
Travis and I agree on the connection between the two, but here is where we diverge. I don't believe the connection necessarily means the scar is a horcrux. The dream was foreshadowing Voldemort's plans as well as the fact that he used the Avada Kedavra curse on Harry and his parents. We learned for the first time in Book 4, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (correct me if I'm wrong), that Voldemort used this killing curse, which explains why Harry had faint memories of seeing green light as a baby and why he sees the same light in this dream.
In Book 5, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, we learn that Voldemort is an accomplished Legilimens (mind reader) and that Harry "inherited" this trait from him. He was able to read Voldemort's thoughts then, and he's doing the same in this dream.
Travis says the dream is a clue that the scar is a horcrux, and the horcrux is the reason the two have a connection. I say the dream is only foreshadowing the ending of Book 1 and Harry's ability to practice legilimency, as revealed in a future book.
That was fun. 
This is kind of silly, but since I'm a newly out-of-the-closet fan of Harry…and it's Friday…
If I were at Hogwarts, I'd want to be sorted into Ravenclaw House. Not that I'm particularly clever or smart. I just don't want to be in Griffyndor (brave) with the "stars," although it's the coolest house. And Hufflepuff (just, loyal and true) sounds boring. And I definitely don't want to be in Slytherin (ambitious and cunning), a Dark Arts haven. (Incidentally, Hufflepuff and Slytherin are in the dungeon, while Gryffindor and Ravenclaw are in the towers.)
So what's left?
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw
If you've a ready mind
Where those of wit and learning
Will always find their kind.
Have a joyous weekend!
I found a blog called Quoth the Maven several months ago when I was surfing for Harry Potter theories. The blog is written by Janet Batchler, a faculty member at Act One, a scriptwriting workshop, and a Harry Potter fan. She's written a series of set-up/pay-off posts about the books so far.
Back in September she wrote:
As a screenwriter, I know the importance of set-ups and payoffs, of setting up everything that I as the writer want to have any kind of emotional punch later, of paying off anything that I may have set up, and of avoiding inadvertent set-ups that lead an audience to expect something that I'm never going to give them. I teach the importance of getting your set-ups and payoffs straight in Act One, using movies like Groundhog Day, Aliens, and Back to the Future. But this year I found myself referencing Harry Potter, for those enlightened students who had actually read the books…
Now, of course, we can't know all the payoffs without Book 7 in hand. But that's part of what makes it fun — after Book 7 is out, the exercise will just become a final exam question for Children's Lit 101. Now we get to speculate, see what the payoffs could be, try to guess which are the real set-ups deserving of payoff, and which are the red herrings.
Here are the most recent posts:
If you have the time, I encourage you to go all the way back to July 2005 in her archives.
Tomorrow marks the 33rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade. In what was hailed a "victory" for women, the Supreme Court wrote a new law, giving us the "right of privacy" to have our babies slaughtered in the womb without fear of prosecution for homicide for ourselves and the abortionists.
This "right" is so dear to feminists, they demonize any person or organization that dares insinuate that protecting unborn life should take precedence over convenience or the so-called right to do with our bodies whatever we want. On Monday, there'll be plenty of people saying it directly and even going beyond it: abortion is murder, and no one has a right to commit murder.
The annual March for Life rally will begin on Monday, January 23, at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., at 12:00 p.m. After the rally, participants will walk to the U.S. Capitol. This will be my first year in attendance. Before the rally, I'll attend the first annual Blogs4Life Conference at the Family Research Council. If you're hanging out in DC that day, swing by.
Pro-life Blogger Stacy Harp of Mind and Media talks about Justice Sunday III with Sharon Hughes.
Listen to Part I and Part II (RealAudio) of Christian apologist abd debater James White's sermon on abortion. White is a dynamic, engaging, and knowledgeable speaker, so I encourage you to listen.
Related posts:
(Cross-posted at La Shawn Barber's Corner)
Will I see you at Lumos 2006? From July 27 through July 30 in Las Vegas, Nevada, I'll be surrounded by Harry Potter fans and talking and writing about Harry Potter. It's six months away, and I'm excited already.
People are serious about Harry Potter.
Lumos 2006: A Harry Potter Symposium is a three-and-a-half- day conference packed with Harry Potter-related workshops and presentations. Featured topics are Literary Criticism, Education, Social Sciences, Legal, Film, and Fandom Culture. John Granger, various writers, and academics will make presentations and offer in-depth discussions and a lot theorizing.
The symposium will take place at the JW Marriott, which will be decked out like Hogwarts, with House common rooms and everything…and all the rooms are sold out. Figures. I had to settle for a nearby (lesser) Marriott. It won't be the same, but I'm not complaining. Much.
The trip to Las Vegas will be business and pleasure. I'm a member of Pajamas Media and will cover the symposium as a member of the press. I hope to meet and interview all you die-hard HP fans.
Even if you can't attend, you can get free publicity for your blogs by signing up for the banner exchange.
Related news: As you may know, filming for Book/Movie 5 "Order of the Phoenix" begins next month. More than 15,000 girls between the ages of 13 and 16 auditioned for the role of Luna Lovegood, the otherworldly blonde with the "protuberant" eyes. Four hundred girls were selected for the second round. Can you imagine how excited they must be?
Well fans, it's almost over. J.K. Rowling will spend 2006 writing the seventh and final book of the Harry Potter septology. The final chapter, she says, is already written and locked in a safe. After the book arrives in 2007, we'll read and discuss it for months on end while waiting for the sixth movie, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," to hit the scene. The series is almost complete, but the fandom will continue reading the books, watching the movies, and theorizing (yes, even after it's all over) for years to come.
Melissa Anelli of The Leaky Cauldron interviewed Arthur Levine, publisher of the American version of Harry Potter. I wonder if she got on him (as I would have) about changing the title of Book 1 from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone…
Later…Oops! Just read the post on TLC. Melissa did ask about the title change.
I didn't have time for substantive blogging this week, but here's an interesting idea: list your favorite Harry Potter books and movies in order of most to least favorite, and tell us why. My lists:
HP Books
1. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Book 6) - Must I explain?
2. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) - The book is thick, the plot is complex. I loved the introduction of foreign wizards and admired J.K. Rowling's skill at making me feel just as nervous as Harry before each tournament task. The Voldemort-is-back hype was very cool, and international Quidditch star Viktor Krum's totally unexpected crush on the bookworm-ish Hermione was classic.
3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Book 3) - I was torn between this book and Order of the Phoenix as third favorite, but I chose this one because it introduced pivotal characters: Sirius Black (although briefly mentioned in Book 1), Remus Lupin, and…Buckbeak. 
4. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5)- The "dark" Harry was intriguing, and his impulsiveness and stubbornness, which contributed to his godfather's death, were frighteningly interesting. And that mysterious prophecy…
5. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1) - The first Harry Potter book is short, tightly plotted, and sets the stage for our favorite boy wizard's coming-of-age journey in a new world. I was disappointed that the American publisher changed the title from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone because he thought American kids wouldn't read a book with the word "philosopher" in the title. Rowling has some serious alchemical symbolism going on, and some of it is missed because of the initial title change.
Additionally, the word sorcerer in the title is what initially riled up Christians. Perhaps the reaction would have been less fierce if…well, no point in dwelling on it now.
6. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - (Book 2) Why is this book last on the list? Well, some of the excitement about the first book wore off. Also, I didn't like the "petrified" storyline at all.
HP Movies
1. "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" (Movie 3)- This was a beautiful movie visually, and the soundtrack was excellent.
2. "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" (Movie 1) - You've probably heard this story before. I was an anti-Harry Potter person who watched the ABC premiere of this movie to find out what all the fuss was about. (Also see Part II) An hour into it, I was hooked.
3. "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" (Movie 4) - I saw this movie only once, and I have a feeling I'll it enjoy more the second time around. Why? I went to see it with someone who's never read a Harry Potter book or seen a Harry Potter movie. Although the person said it wasn't necessary, I felt compelled to explain certain scenes and what the movie left out. In other words, I talked too much during the movie.
Director Mike Newell, bless his heart, did his best but left out too much stuff! I think I feel this way because "Goblet of Fire" was the first HP movie I saw after reading the books. With the first three movies, I hadn't read any of the books, so I was unaware of what was left out.
4. "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" (Movie 2) - The "petrified" subplot was even worse onscreen! And that snake. Gross. But the actor playing Tom Riddle was cute, wasn't he? And the scene with the car and the Whomping Willow was hilarious. And so was Kenneth Branagh as Gilderoy Lockhart.
I'd read that J.K. Rowling's mother died of multiple sclerosis, but it didn't occur to me how strongly it influenced her books:
"I know I was writing Harry Potter at the moment my mother died," she says. "I had never told her about [him].
"Barely a day goes by when I do not think of her. There would be so much to tell her, impossibly much."
…The death left her "a wreck", she says, and was the inspiration for Harry's orphan status. (Source)
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