Harry Potter and the Bread He Didn’t Eat

When people remember Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, it’s often for the ending which ends with the fall of Voldemort, for Neville’s arc, the chaos at Malfoy Manor, and Dobby’s burial.

But what sticks with me, after repeated viewings, is a small scene.

The trio need to find their way back to Hogwarts. They find themselves in Hogsmeade, after months of wandering on the run. Harry Potter is spotted and then Abeforth offers them shelter.

At this point in the story, they’ve been on the run for months and are cold, hunted, exhausted. Food has been scarce. When bread and cheese is finally offered, Ron and Hermione jump on it. Harry doesn’t because Harry, unlike Ron and Hermione, grew up knowing what it means to be truly hungry, to go to sleep on an empty stomach. Harry stays focussed on the task at hand.

Harry’s entire lived experience culminates in this one moment.

We like to think of Harry’s time with the Dursleys as cartoonishly cruel. Locked in the cupboard under the stairs. Given Dudley’s old clothes. Spoken to with contempt. But Rowling also wrote a portrait of quiet, routine neglect. One where food was not a given. Where hunger was not an occasional inconvenience.