A noise in the corridor alerts them that Death Eaters
have gained entrance to Hogwarts. They go to help the defenders
of Hogwarts, and in the ensuing battle, Fred Weasley is killed.
Analysis: Chapters Thirty–Thirty-One
In these chapters, Harry and his friends return to the
halls of Hogwarts, which is of course the setting for all of the
other books in the series, but which has long been absent from this
one. Hogwarts is much more than just a setting for the action, having
been one of the chief attractions for readers of the series, and
almost a character in its own right, with its living walls, statues,
and portraits and its secrets that not even Dumbledore knew fully.
By moving the climactic ending of the book back to Hogwarts, the
author allows the school to resume its fascinating role as a character
once more, and also raises the stakes of the battle between Harry
and Voldemort, as the school itself, and everyone and everything
in it, come under attack. For Harry to fight to save the wizarding
world, or the world in general, is very abstract. For him to fight
to save Hogwarts is something we can picture in detail and care
about.
When Harry leaves the Room of Requirement and explores Ravenclaw,
we see more reversals in relation to the previous novels. Now Harry
walks through the school as an intruder and an adult rather than
a student, and the crowds of sleeping Ravenclaw students seem like
children in comparison to him. Professor McGonagall, who had always
kept him in his place by being the strict disciplinarian, is now
seen by Harry as a friend, and he lashes out at Amycus to protect
her. She herself views Harry in a different light, for once not
trying to order him around for his own good.
Plot developments come very quickly in Chapter Thirty-One, with
Harry’s discovery of the diadem’s history and his recovery of it, his
final confrontation with Draco, Ron and Hermione’s collection of
the basilisk teeth, the mobilization of virtually every remaining character
in the book, and the death of Fred Weasley. The book’s focus swings
wide in this chapter, encompassing everything and everyone who matters
to Harry, so that we can see that everything is to be decided this
night.
