Character Analysis
(Avoiding Spoilers)
Grew up… with his Muggle father and witch mother. Though his two elder sisters were non-magical like their father, Lockhart took after his mother and received his Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry letter at age 11 like other young wizards. He was sorted into Ravenclaw and, though he was intelligent, his interest in learning was not solely for the purpose of education. Rather, it stemmed from his all-consuming need for attention. He loved being considered the best, and only the best.
Visiting… Hogwarts, as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. After the events of the previous school year, Headmaster Dumbledore needed a new professor who was unafraid of what seemed to be a “cursed” job. Since Lockhart loves to showboat, he was more than happy to take up the “dangerous” position.
Profession… author. Aside from his current teaching position, Lockhart is an acclaimed author who writes about his various adventures. He has penned titles like Travels with Trolls and Gadding with Ghouls, which document the variety of heroic deeds he has accomplished across the globe. He even received an Order of Merlin, Third Class, for all of his efforts. His latest book is an autobiography entitled Magical Me.
Interests… hair care, talking about himself, and interacting with his fans. Gilderoy Lockhart is incredible…just ask him! Because he’s so famous, Lockhart is burdened with the difficult task of answering all of his fan mail; he even makes student Harry Potter help him address envelopes in detention. Lockhart is more than a little vain: During Harry’s first lesson with him, Lockhart administered a 54-question quiz on everything from his favorite color (lilac) to his ideal birthday present. Aside from ridding the world of evil, Lockhart’s life ambition is to market his own line of hair care potions.
Relationship Status… single. Can anyone so self-obsessed maintain a successful relationship? Though more than one witch would gladly volunteer. After all, Lockhart is the five-time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile Award.
Challenge… faking it until he makes it. Lockhart is a lot less macho than he appears, but he wants to keep everyone thinking he’s the most handsome/brilliant/charitable wizard on the planet. Like a peacock, Lockhart struts around and talks himself up. But when the time comes for action, can he also walk the walk?
Personality… charming, but narcissistic and seemingly incompetent. Although he claims to be a great wizard, Harry and the other students never see him do anything even remotely impressive whilst at Hogwarts. In fact, during his first lesson, Lockhart sets loose a bunch of Cornish Pixies and is then unable to control the ensuing mayhem they cause. It’s a bit suspicious that he’s supposedly managed to defeat so many monsters on his travels, but can’t even handle some rogue pixies. What else is he hiding?