Harry Potter: 7 Things That Still Make No Sense About Dumbledore

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is one of the most enthralling franchises of all time, and while Albus Dumbledore isn’t the main character, there are many things that don’t make sense about the prominent wizard. Most fans’ first interaction with the Harry Potter stories begins with Dumbledore, who kicks the story off by delivering baby Harry to his aunt and uncle after the death of his parents at the hands of Voldemort. The powerful Hogwarts professor played a major supporting role in the story of Harry Potter, and then later did the same in the prequel spin-off, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Throughout the character’s story in the franchise, the different versions of Dumbledore in the Harry Potter movies paint a fascinating picture of a complex and powerful figure within the Wizarding World. However, when looking closer at Dumbledore as an individual, elements of his character and his place within the world begin to look pretty questionable, as do the majority of his decisions. He may be an iconic character, but many aspects of Dumbledore don’t hold up when looked at under the sort of logical scrutiny that is lacking within the Wizarding community.

7) He Shouldn’t Have Been A Gryffindor

One of the most popular features of the Harry Potter franchise is the school houses of Hogwarts, each of which labels its students with specific character traits. In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Dumbledore reveals to Harry that he was once a Gryffindor, the house that exemplifies courage. However, Dumbledore’s most prominent character trait is arguably his calculating and occasionally ruthless streak, which would actually make Slytherin a better fit. Failing that, many consider that Dumbledore could easily have been a Ravenclaw due to his highly intelligent nature and magical gifts, making Gryffindor seem like a poor fit for the Hogwarts headmaster.

6) He Allows A Student To Plan To Kill Him

One of the most shocking plot points in the entire franchise comes in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, as it sees Dumbledore killed by one of the Harry Potter movies’ Unforgivable Curses. It is later revealed that Dumbledore knew Draco Malfoy had been tasked by Voldemort, but he simply let the boy plan his murder without intervening. His reasoning for doing so is pretty murky, and he simply lets Draco wander further down an incredibly dark path from which he may never have returned, as far as Dumbledore could have known.

5) His Handling Of The Triwizard Tournament

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire saw Dumbledore feature in one of the most hated Harry Potter movie moments, which has become notorious in its own right. Everything that Dumbledore does regarding the Triwizard Tournament makes no sense at all, though. He admits that it hasn’t taken place for more than a century due to being too dangerous, but decides that, after three years of events hinting at Voldemort’s return, the time was right to bring that danger back into school life. He then breaks the age restriction by allowing Harry to compete, despite other teachers pointing out that he’s using the child as bait for Dark Wizards, making him seem reckless at best, and an outright danger to his students at worst.

4) Employing Snape Made No Sense

Though he’s widely beloved by many fans, Severus Snape is one of the most powerful Death Eaters in the Harry Potter franchise. His story outlines that things don’t always fall into categories as clear as good or evil, but nevertheless, Dumbledore’s choice to employ Snape at Hogwarts makes very little sense. For a dark wizard who sided with Voldemort to offer his services as a double agent is one thing, but to choose to employ him as a teacher for the instruction of young and vulnerable students is another entirely. With no disrespect to Snape, his past should have fully disqualified him from working at Hogwarts.

3) Bringing Dementors To Hogwarts (Then Failing To Protect Students)

Dementors are among the Harry Potter franchise’s scariest monsters, and their inclusion in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was a major plot point. The guards of the notorious Wizarding prison were brought in by Dumbledore to defend Hogwarts from Sirius Black. However, considering Hogwarts is regularly cited as one of the most protected places in the world, it seems a little unnecessary to overload the grounds with soul-sucking creatures who Dumbledore admits could attack the students. What’s worse is that the headmaster also doesn’t see fit to teach any of the students the Patronus charm, rendering them entirely defenseless in any encounter they have with the Dementors.

2) He’s Always Getting Less Experienced Witches & Wizards To Fight His Battles

Albus Dumbledore is the leader and the most powerful member of the Order of the Phoenix, and is often regarded as one of the greatest wizards ever to live. With that in mind, it makes very little sense when he is repeatedly shown allowing less experienced witches and wizards — in some cases, actual children — to fight battles that he could easily win. As well as repeatedly putting Harry in harm’s way, he does the same to Newt Scamander in his earlier years, pitting his former student against the dangerous Grindelwald despite being far better equipped to deal with the threat himself.

1) The Wizarding World Shouldn’t Love Dumbledore

One of the biggest elements of the Harry Potter movies that makes no sense is the reverence with which everyone regards Albus Dumbledore. While he’s an incredibly powerful wizard, he also has a history of being corrupted by dark magic and is potentially responsible for the Unforgivable Curse that killed his sister. Combined with his various eccentricities and his many questionable decisions, it’s strange that the majority of the Wizarding World holds Dumbledore in such high regard. At best, Dumbledore is a liability, and at worst, an actual danger to his students.

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