Ginny Weasley

Ginny Weasley
Gender	Female
Hair colour	Red
Eye colour	Brown
House	Gryffindor
Parentage	Pure-blood
Loyalty	Harry Potter / Dumbledore's Army
Film portrayer	Bonnie Wright
First appearance	Harry Potter andthe Philosopher's Stone

Ginevra "Ginny" Molly Weasley (born 11 August 1981)is a fictional character in the HarryPotter book series. She is the youngest of ArthurWeasley and Molly Weasley's seven children, as well asbeing their only daughter. She is small, with vivid red hair(trademark of her clan) and bright brown eyes, and is occasionallylikened to a cat. She is a talented witch, especially noted for herskill with the Bat-Bogey Hex.

Ginny is a descendant of the Weasley family, one of the oldestpure-blood wizarding families in existence, and isalso a descendent of the Prewett and Black lines through marriage (her mother was aPrewett before marriage). She is sister to Bill,Charlie, Percy, Fred and George and Ron. Sheis also good friends with Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and LunaLovegood and is soon to become sister-in-law to FleurDelacour.

According to author J.K. Rowling, Ginny is also the firstfemale born into the Weasley line in "severalgenerations".

Behind the Name

Ginevra is the Italian form of the name 'Guinevere',which comes from the even older Welsh name: Gwenhwyfar. Gwenmeaning 'fair' or 'white' and hwyfar meaning 'smooth'.Guinevere was also the Queen consort of thelegendary King Arthur; there seems to be somewhat of arunning theme of Arthurian legend with the family'snames.

Ginny in the Books

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Ginny is introduced in Harry Potter andthe Philosopher's Stone. She is one of the first girls ofabout Harry's age seen in the series. She makes only twoappearances in Philosopher's Stone, both at King's Cross. The first is ascene where Harry and her brothers are leaving for Hogwarts; Harrysees her interacting with her family and then watches her run downthe platform, chasing the train as it leaves the station. In thisfirst scene, her connection to Harry is established with Harryoverhearing a scene in which Ginny begs her mother to be able to goon the train and see the famous Harry Potter. The second is a briefappearance at the end of the book where she is excited to catch aglimpse of Harry when he returns from Hogwarts.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Ginny becomes more involved in the storyline when she startsattending Hogwarts in Harry Potter andthe Chamber of Secrets, a year after Harry and her brotherRon. While she appears to play a mostly behind-the-scenes role inthe book — looking mysteriously ill and providing light humour withher obvious crush on Harry, Ginny turns out to be the key to theyear's biggest mystery, a series of unexplained attacks that leaveseveral Muggle-born students petrified.Harry eventually discovers that a magical school diary made by Tom Riddle (the youngLord Voldemort) had been taking advantage ofher insecurities, possessing her in order to access theChamber of Secrets and unleash a Basilisk onthe school.

It turns out that Lucius Malfoy was responsible for makingsure that Ginny got the diary; he hoped to use her actions todiscredit her father, who had proposed a Muggle Protection Act thathe opposed, and to have Dumbledore thrown out of Hogwarts. AfterGinny tells "Tom" about Harry's survival and the destruction ofVoldemort, Riddle puts his own twist on the plan. Instead of usingGinny to attack Muggle-borns, he decides to bring her down to theChamber and kill her by absorbing her life energy, restoringhimself to full life in the process. More importantly, he, alreadyunderstanding Harry's hero-complex from the information which Ginnyhas unwittingly provided him with, knows that her abduction willlure Harry into the Chamber as well. Riddle is very curious abouthow Harry "defeated" him, and wishes to kill him. Harry does infact enter the Chamber, but with help from Fawkes and theSorting Hat manages todestroy both Riddle and the Basilisk and thus saves Ginny's life.Following this, he expressed a strong concern over Ginny's notbeing expelled - showing that in the matter he finds her entirelyblameless, as he himself is all too familiar with Voldemort's powerand control.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and HarryPotter and the Goblet of Fire

Ginny is not involved in the main storylines of Harry Potter andthe Prisoner of Azkaban and Harry Potter and the Gobletof Fire, and she only directly interacts with Harry threetimes. In book three, she catches Harry's eye and laughs overPercy's typically pompous behaviour at the train station. In bookfour they exchange grins and speak freely in each others' presence(though not to each other). A few months later, she honours apromise to attend the Yule Ball with Neville Longbottom despite Ron asking herto attend with Harry - whom she still fancies. She appears in thebackground in these two books, however, minimally interacting withother characters or just being mentioned in passing. She is badlyaffected by the Dementors on the train in Prisoner of Azkaban(remembering her experiences of being possessed by Riddle theprevious year), and on another occasion she stands up for Neville,demanding that Ron and Harry stop laughing at him, a demand the twohad no qualms in ignoring.

In the first four books, Ginny's overall portrayal has a streakof a damsel in distress to it, an impressioncreated chiefly from her role in Chamber of Secrets, wherethe adhesion to this formula goes as far as her heroic rescuerslaying the proverbial dragon to save her (see princess and dragon).

Her background appearances, however, give the reader glimpses ofher personality when she isn't hamstrung by her crush on Harry. Inbook two, Ron remarks to Harry that, "You don't know how weird itis for her to be this shy, she never shuts up normally." Althoughthe reader doesn't get to see it, it is made clear that around herfamily and those she is comfortable with, she has quite thepersonality - lively, and talkative. She is shown to enjoy laughterand standing up for her beliefs, as well as being adverse toviolence (her reactions during the World Cup). These glimpses seemto contrast to the "damsel in distress" stereotype, and foreshadowthe more active, intense character she becomes in book five andbeyond.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter andthe Order of the Phoenix begins to show Ginny's truecharacter in ways only hinted at previously. No longer letting acrush affect her behaviour around Harry, she starts to emerge as aforceful personality with considerable magical ability, a sense ofhumour similar to her twin brothers, and a talent for Quidditch.

Ginny is shown to be one of the very few characters who canaddress him calmly during his worst moods. Others confront Harryduring these moods, but do not take the 'cool' tone that Ginny anda few adults (like Phineas Nigellus and Albus Dumbledore) are able to employ. In onescene, Harry wallows in miserable thoughts of himself being aweapon Voldemort might use to attack people, feeling "contaminated"and unworthy of the company of his friends. After Ginny fiercelyreminds him of her own experience in Chamber of Secrets, hesincerely apologizes to her for not remembering and she helpsassure him that he could not have been possessed by Voldemort.Ginny is also involved in another notable scene in which she joinsHarry in the library, notices how down he looks and listensintently as he confides that he wishes he could talk to Sirius. Sheresponds that she's sure that there is a way, leaving him relievedand hopeful.

When Dolores Umbridge gives Harry a "lifetime"ban from playing Quidditch, Ginny replaces him as Gryffindor'sSeeker.She is quite successful, though everyone (including herself andHarry) admits that she is not nearly as good as Harry. She alsojoins (and suggests the name for) Dumbledore's Army, a group started byHarry, Hermione, and Ron to provide students with practicalinstruction in Defense Against the Dark Arts.She is one of the few DA members who join Harry's attempt to rescueSirius Black from the Department of Mysteries.During the fight she breaks her ankle but it is mended instantly byMadam Pomfrey, back at Hogwarts.

Hermione tells Harry in Order of The Phoenix that Ginny"used to" like him, but "gave up" on him "ages ago". She metMichael Corner at the Yule Ball and isdating him at the end of Goblet of Fire. They remain acouple for most of the fifth book, but Ginny breaks up with himwhen he becomes really sulky over Gryffindor beating Ravenclaw atQuidditch. He goes on to date Cho Chang,Harry's recent ex-girlfriend. She tells Ron in the ending scenethat she has "chosen" Dean Thomas as her next boyfriend, in a waywhich makes it ambiguous as to whether she is truly dating Dean, ormerely saying it to ruffle the feathers of her overprotectivebrother.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

In Half-Blood Prince, Ginny is indeed going out withDean Thomas. Also,it is revealed that by her fifth year, she has become one of themore popular girls at Hogwarts, and is being recognized as anattractive girl. She does not become a prefect but she isconsidered to be a talented witch and the Potions professorHorace Slughorn respects her magicalabilities enough (after seeing her bat-bogey hex Zacharias Smith) to invite her to join his"Slug Club", an exclusive group of students handpicked by him aspromising young achievers or students from influential families(Harry and Hermione are also reluctant members). She also becomes aChaser for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, alongside Katie Belland DemelzaRobins, and excels at it, though she returns to playing Seekerfor the last match of the year, while Harry is stuck in detentionwith Snape.

As Harry witnesses Ginny repeatedly refuse his company in favorof Dean's (although sometimes reluctantly), he starts feeling odd,unexplained twinges of annoyance. During Professor Slughorn's firstPotions lesson, Harry notices the scent of "something flowery hemight have smelled at the Burrow" coming from a love potion (onewhich smells different for each person, according to what attractsthem). Later in the chapter, he notices the same flowery scent whenGinny joins them in conversation - though he again fails to makethe connection.

Harry finally realizes his feelings for her during an incidentin November where he and Ron find Ginny and Dean kissing in acorridor. Ron is outraged because he feels overprotective of hissister, while Harry is seized by the urge to "jinx Dean into ajelly." Afterwards, Harry initially tries to convince himself thathis feelings are just brotherly, but eventually accepts that he isattracted to Ginny as a romantic interest and struggles with amajor crush on her from then on, alternating between fantasizingabout her kissing him in the same abandoned corridor andworrying about Ron bursting into said corridor, shouting aboutbetrayal.

Ginny and Dean's relationship turns sour after Christmas, andthey finally break up in April (with a helpful "nudge" from Harry'sFelix Felicis lucky potion). Though stillworried about Ron's reaction, Harry can't help but take advantageof the chance to spend more time with her. After Gryffindor winsthe Quidditch Cup, Harry spontaneously kisses her during thepost-match celebration, to almost everyone's surprise. Hermionebeams with approval and Ron is stunned, but he gives them hisreluctant blessing. Ginny's reaction is not noted, but afterwardsthey take "a long walk in the grounds" and the two are assumeddating.

When the Death Eaters attack Hogwarts with the aid ofDraco Malfoy, Ginny joins the fight alongsideRon, Neville, and Luna. She is more effective in combat than shewas the previous year, able to distract the Death Eaters for a timewithout injury, though this can be partly credited to the dose ofFelix Felicis that she and the others took just before thebattle.

After the death of Hogwarts headmaster and Harry's belovedmentor Albus Dumbledore, Harry decides to break offtheir relationship, as he believes Lord Voldemort would target herif he learns they are a couple. Ginny accepts this decision, notingthat given Harry's priorities she expected something like that tohappen. She indicates that his "hero complex" is a part of why shelikes him so much, and confesses that she never truly gave up onhim. In the end, Ginny also hints at resuming their relationshipafter Harry will have (hopefully) defeated Voldemort. She alsofinally says Voldemort's name, becoming the second of Harry'sfriends at school who willingly says the name aloud.

Ginny in the Films

Ginny is played by Bonnie Wright in the film adaptations.She makes only a brief appearance in Harry Potter and thePhilosopher's Stone at the beginning of the film when Harrywants to know how to get onto platform 9 ¾.

Ginny's role in the secondfilm is considerably larger, although many elements found inthe book, such as her crush on Harry and most of the hints abouther involvement with the Chamber are given considerably lessattention in the film version. Since Ginny doesn't play a majorrole in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, she onlyappears in the thirdfilm as an extra, though she has one line.

After those sporadic appearances in the first three films, Ginnybecomes much more visible in the movie adaptation of Harry Potterand the Goblet of Fire. She still only has a handful oflines, but she is a frequent presence in the background (andsometimes the foreground) through most of the movie. While sheseldom deals directly with Harry, she spends quite a bit of time inthe company of Hermione, Ron, Fred and George, and NevilleLongbottom (her date to the Yule Ball), and both her friendshipwith Hermione from the books and her relationship with her brothersare clearly shown for the first time in the films. Subtly, she alsodisplays some of the qualities that Ginny shows in the fifth andsixth books, and it has been suggested that SteveKloves was steadily building up both Ginny and Neville fortheir larger roles in the fifth film.

Ginny in the Harry Potter Fandom

Fan reaction to Ginny has always been mixed. Many fans liked herprior to The Order of the Phoenix, while many others eitherdismissed her as unimportant or were quick to label her as beingsimply a fangirl. Her portrayal in The Order of the Phoenixand especially The Half-Blood Prince has further inflamedopinions on both sides.

Those who dislike Ginny argue that she is a Mary Sue,played up as being beautiful, popular, and athletically gifted withgreat magical talent while her unsympathetic flaws are deliberatelyglossed over by the author. Ginny fans, in contrast, laud her as anexample of a strong female character, one who has overcome bothpossession by Voldemort and a debilitating crush on Harry. Onecommon complaint from fans on both sides of the debate is that toomuch of her character development, especially the growth of herrelationship with Harry, is told rather thanshown.

Some fans find Ginny's actions to be unnecessarily callous,while others find them to be justified. Her actions speak of ahot-headed temper and a forceful personality: calling herprospective sister-in-law 'Phlegm', tripping her brother toembarrass him, smashing into a Quidditch commentator for giving acommentary biased against her team, taunting her brother about hislack of experience with girls and cursing a fellow student forasking about Harry's role in the fight against Voldemort.

Still others point out signs which seem to indicate a softerside. She is shown to be caring about her family and friends invarious instances: when her father is attacked by a serpent, whenRon is poisoned, when Dumbledore dies, and when her eldest brotherBill is savaged by a werewolf. Ginny also cries in Chamber ofSecrets when expecting to be expelled. Ginny has also been kindto the social outcasts Neville Longbottom and LunaLovegood.

It was fanon for many years that Ginny's full namewas Virginia, as the name Ginny is usually short for Virginia, but Rowlingeventually revealed on her website that Ginny's given name is actuallyGinevra.

J.K. Rowling on Ginny

"The plan was, which I really hope I fulfilled, is that thereader, like Harry, would gradually discover Ginny as pretty muchthe ideal girl for Harry. She's tough, not in an unpleasant way,but she's gutsy. He needs to be with someone who can stand thedemands of being with Harry Potter, because he's a scary boyfriendin a lot of ways. He's a marked man. I think she's funny, and Ithink that she's very warm and compassionate. These are all thingsthat Harry requires in his ideal woman. But, I felt — and I'mtalking years ago when all this was planned — initially, she'sterrified by his image. I mean, he's a bit of a rock god to herwhen she sees him first, at 10 or 11, and he's this famous boy. SoGinny had to go through a journey as well ... I feel that Ginny andHarry, in this book, they are total equals. They are worthy of eachother. They've both gone through a big emotional journey, andthey've really got over a lot of delusions, to use your word,together. So, I enjoyed writing that. I really like Ginny as acharacter."