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Professor Minerva McGonagall is the head of Gryffindor House at Hogwarts. Readers first meet Professor McGonagall in cat form as she observes the Dursley family before she, Dumbledore, and Hagrid leave Harry with his aunt and uncle. She is a stern teacher who is quick to discipline students when she deems it necessary. However, she is also a compassionate individual who has a soft spot for Harry. For example, in the novel’s opening chapter, she is horrified that Dumbledore wants to leave Harry with the Dursleys and cries, “You don’t mean — you can’t mean the people who live here?” Professor McGonagall’s instant defense of baby Harry indicates that she is a woman with a strict moral code. After all, she does not want to leave an innocent child with people that she neither likes nor trusts. Furthermore, when Harry arrives at Hogwarts, she does not get him into trouble when she catches him flying without adult supervision. Instead, impressed with his natural broomstick-riding abilities, she overrides the rule that first years cannot try out for Quidditch teams. She does so because she wants the Gryffindor team to finally win the championship. She also warmly tells Harry that he must have inherited his late father’s Quidditch skills and arranges for the school to pay for Harry to get the latest racing broom. Her commitment to Harry joining the Gryffindor team is crucial for our understanding of Professor McGonagall’s character—we learn that she is not as strict nor as cold as we are initially led to believe.
