Although we still don’t know Newt Scamander as much as Rubeus Hagrid, we can surely say that both the Magizoologist and the Hogwarts gamekeeper share some particularities.
Who would want a dragon for a pet or call a three-headed dog as Fluffy? Who would sympathize and even love creatures that most people see as ugly and terrifying? Apart from teaching Care of Magical Creatures and trying to show their brilliance to all students, Hagrid’s hut is almost a sanctuary for peculiar beasts. Scamander, in turn, has studied the subject so much that has even written a text-book about it, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”, plus creating – or someone else has done it for him? – an extensible case for his creatures to inhabit. Incredible, isn’t it?
I tell you, that dragon’s the most horrible animal I’ve ever met, but the way Hagrid goes on about it, you’d think it was a fluffy little bunny rabbit. When it bit me he told me off for frightening it. And when I left, he was singing it a lullaby. – Ron Weasley, “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”.
During the first time the Chamber of Secrets was opened, in Hagrid’s third year, he was accused by Tom Riddle of attacking Muggle-borns and even murdering one – Myrtle Elizabeth Warren – with his Acromantula, Aragog. Even though he didn’t do anything, the Ministry of Magic expelled him from Hogwarts and turned his wand into pieces. Years before, Newt Scamander had the same fate ‘for dangering a human life with a beast’. His wand, as far as we know, suffered nothing.
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After Hagrid’s expelling, Professor Albus Dumbledore requested that the half-giant was trained as gamekeeper and been allowed to live on the school ground. Great man, Dumbledore, there’s no denying it. Knowing Hagrid, we are sure Dumbledore was on the right side. But what about Newt? Why does the Professor like him so much? You are not the only one who wonders, Mr. Percival Graves.
When Hagrid was born, in 1928, Newt was 31 years old and had already gone through his adventures in New York, set in 1926 and featured in the first “Fantastic Beasts” movie. Have they met each other during their lives? Just imagine them hanging out in the Leaky Cauldron or in Three Broomsticks for a Butterbeer! Or chatting about beasts in the Forbidden Forest! Jo, please do it for us!
While we imagine all these things, let’s get ready to discover more about the Wizarding World of J.K. Rowling on 18 November through “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”!
See you on the theathers!
Pedro Martins discovered magic through J.K. Rowling’s writings when he was eight years old. This passion turned him into Webmaster of Potterish.com and allowed him to write about Literature for many websites, including the British the Guardian.
