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Onomastic Schemes in Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows

By Alleen Pace NilsenAnd Don L. F. Nilsen

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Alleen Nilsen and Harry Potter

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Don Nilsen and Harry Potter

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Part I: Surface Structure Schemes

• Alliteration• Assonance• Cacophony• Deconstruction• Ethnicity• Euphony• Poetic Scansion

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ALLITERATED HOUSE FOUNDERS:

• Godric Gryffindor

• Helga Huffenpuff

• Rowena Ravenclaw

• Salazar Slytherin

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ALLITERATED TEACHER NAMES:

• Filius Flitwick

• Minerva McGonaggal

• Alastor (Madeye) Moody

• Severus Snape

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ALLITERATED STUDENT NAMES:

• Cho Chang

• Dedalus Diggle

• Viktor Krum: Note k spelling

• Luna Lovegood

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ALLITERATED OTHER PEOPLE’S NAMES:

• Bathilda Bagshot

• The Bloody Baron

• Dudley Dursley

• Gellert Grindelwald

• Ted Tonks: Nymphadora’s Father

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ALLITERATED GHOST NAMES:

• Moaning Myrtle

• Nearly Headless Nick

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ALLITERATED PLACE NAMES:

• Borgin and Burkes Store

• Forbidden Forest

• Hog’s Head Tavern

• Room of Requirement

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ALLITERATED THING NAMES:

• Decoy Detonator• Fiendfyre• Nosebleed Nouggats• Polyjuice Potion• Puking Pastilles• Skiving Snackboxes• Headless Hats• Weasley’s Wildlife Whiz-Bangs

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EYE ALLITERATION:

• Caterwauling Charm

• Stan Shunpike (Director of the Knightbus)

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ASSONANCE OF PEOPLE’S NAMES:

• Hannah Abbott

• Fleur Delacour

• Vernon Dursley

• Gray Lady: Ghost of Helena Ravenclaw

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ASSONANCE OF OTHER NAMES:

• Godric’s Hollow

• Potterwatch

• Snargaluff Pods

• Sword of Gryffindor

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CACOPHONOUS TEACHER NAMES:

• Hagrid

• Severus Snape: Snake + Hissing Sound

• Dolores Umbridge

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CACOPHONOUS STUDENT NAMES:

• Crabbe: cf. Crab

• Goyle: cf. Gargoyle

• Viktor Krum: Crumb

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CACOPHONOUS OTHER PEOPLE’S NAMES:

• Dudley Dursley

• Mundungus (Dung) Fletcher

• Grawp

• Rufus Scrimgeour: Minister of Magic

• Kingsley Shacklebolt

• Horace (Slug) Slughorn

• Nymphadora Tonks

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CACOPHONOUS THINGS:

• Blibbering Humdinger• Dung Bombs• Flourish and Blotts Store• Mudbloods• Muggles• The Quibbler• Snargaluff Juice• Spattergroit (Ron’s fake illness)• Splinching (what Ron does)• Squibs

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DECONSTRUCTION I: PARAPHRASE

• The One Who Lived/Undesirable No. 1/ The Chosen One (Harry Potter)

• R.A.B. (Regulus Arcturus Black)

• You Know Who, He Who Must Not be Named, The Dark Lord, Tom Marvolo Riddle (Lord Voldemort)

Death Stick, Wand of Destiny, Elder Wand

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DECONSTRUCTION II: GOOD-GUY NICKNAMES (IRONIC)

• Dogbreath (Elphias Doge)• Dora (Nymphadora Tonks)• Moony (Remus Lupin): Werewolf• Padfoot (Sirius Black): Dog• River (Lee Jordan)• Rodent/Rapier (Fred Weasley)• Romulus (Remus Lupin)• Prongs (James Potter): Stag• Royal (Kingsley Shacklebolt)• Witherwings (Buckbeak)

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DECONSTRUCTION III: BAD-GUY NICKNAMES• Cissy (Narcissa Malfoy)

• Vernon Dudley (false name for Harry Potter)

• Dung (Mundungus Fletcher)

• Slug (Horace Slughorn)

• Scabbers (Peter Pettigrew): Rat

• Tuney (Petunia Dursley)

• Wormtail (Peter Pettigrew): Rat

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DECONSTRUCTION IV: The Scar on Harry’s Forehead

• Whenever Harry’s forehead hurts Voldemort’s thinking is entering Harry’s mind.

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ETHNICITY I:

CHINESE:

Cho Chang

FRENCH:

Beauxbatons Academy

Fleur Delacour

Bellatrix LeStrange

GERMAN:

Durmstrang Academy

Gellert Grindelwald (Gellert is Hungarian)

GERMANIC:

Nurmengard Prison

Wizengemot

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ETHNICITY II:

IRISH:

Seamus Finnegan

ITALIAN:

Firenze: Palomino Centaur

SCOTTISH & WELSH:

McGonnaggal & Gellert

RUSSIAN AND EAST EUROPEAN:

Dolohov

Gregorovich: Wand Maker

Igor Karkaroff

Viktor Krum (Hungarian)

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• EUPHONY:– The Order of the Phoenix

– Phoenix Rising Conference

• EYE RHYME:– Viktor Krum

• SLANT RHYME:– Rita Skeeter

• POETIC SCANSION: – Helena Ravenclaw (same scansion as Rowena

Ravenclaw, her mother)

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SPELLING INNOVATION:

• Diagon Alley• Floo Powder• Knight Bus• Kreacher• N.E.W.T.• O.W.L.• R.A.B. (Regulus Arcturus Black)

• QUESTION: What is the answer to the “Tom Marvolo Riddle?”

• ANSWER: “I am Lord Voldemort.”

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Parody Book TitlesNote Phonetic Similarities

The Philosopher’s Stone (The Sorcerer’s Stone in U.S.)

The Chamber of Secrets

The Goblet of Fire

The Order of the Phoenix

The Philosopher’s Scone (The Magic Biscuit in U.S.)

The Chamberpot of Secrets

The Acne of Fire

The Order of the Penis

(Chang 10)

(Gerber 11, 86, 112-113)

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Parody Spells:Note that they are more contemporary than the

originals

• Anorexianervosa!: Changes a person into a rail-thin person.

• Arsenio: Turns a person into an African American

• Aveda Neutrogena! A death-by-moisturizing spell

• Openadoora!: Open the door!

• (Gerber 55, 111, 125-126)• (Chang 19-20)

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Schemes in a Parody of Harry Potter

Albus Dumbledore

Hermione Granger

Minerva McGonnagle

Madame Pomfrey

Harry Potter

Severus Snape

Voldemort (the Dark Lord, he who must not be named)

Ron Weasley

Alpo Bumblemore

Ermine Cringer

Professor McGoogle

Madam Pommerfritte

Barry Trotter

Professor Snipe

Valumart (the Dork Lord, he who smells)

Lon Measley

(Chang 8-9)

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Other Names Include:

• Basil Basingstoke• Brainless Bill• Chi Ching• Flatulent Fanny (like Moaning Myrtle)• The Forsaken Forest (like the Forbidden

Forest) • Buggering Birch (like the Whomping Willow)

• (Gerber 11, 21, 31, 34, 136)• (Chang 21)

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Alliteration and Assonance ofParody Places & Games

Griffindor

Hogwarts

Hufflepuff

Ravenclaw

Slytherin

Grittyfloor

Hogwash

Pufnstuf

Radishgnaw

Silverfish

(Gerber 9, 21, 130)

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Quidditch Quiddit (Quit it!)

• In a Quiddit game, Lon Measley suffers an accident in which a Basher “whiffed on a Brainer, causing it to lodge in Lon’s noggin at great speed.”

• When the school nurse tried to pull it out it became further imbedded, eventually penetrating Lon’s head and leaving a “peephole.”

• With the Brainer gone, Lon became a “no brainer,” both physically and intellectually.

• (Gerber 13)(Chang 13-14)

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Onomastic Anagrams

• Just as “Tom Marvolo Riddle” transforms into “I am Lord Voldemort.”

• Art L. Valumord transforms into Art Valumart, and “Valid Tumor Alarm” transforms into “I am Lord Valumart.”

• (Gerber 111)(Chang 18, 24)

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Harry Potter Web Sites

*HARRY POTTER LEXICON:http://www.hp-lexicon.org/

*HOW HARRY POTTER SHOULD HAVE ENDED:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsYWT5Q_R_w

*INFORMATION FOR MUGGLES:www.Mugglenet.com

*J. K. ROWLING:http://www.jkrowling.com/

*TERMINUS:www.terminus2008.org