Everyone has different ‘favourites’ when it comes to Harry Potter characters, but one thing the entire fandom – nay, the entire world- can agree on is that Hagrid is the absolute best of the lot.
But, according to the latest Harry Potter conspiracy circling the internet, Hagrid was not as loveable as he appeared.
The theory comes from Reddit user Whoofph, who posted a nearly 10,000-word (!!!) essay providing evidence that Hagrid was secretly a Death Eater working for Voldemort the whole time.
My heart says “let it not be so” but, after reading the theory, my head says “crap, this actually makes sense.”
Allow me to explain:
All seven books include proof that Hagrid is a Death Eater.
The bulk of the evidence is from the first novel, The Philosopher’s Stone, is centred around Hagrid’s ability to use high-level spells and break Ministry of Magic rules about not using magic in front of muggles without being punished for it.
However, as book one probably included some loose ends and was before J.K Rowling finalised all of the magic-related laws in the Harry Potter world, I think this justification of Hagrid being ‘evil’ can mostly be ignored.
However, there are other clues in The Philosopher’s Stone which point to Hagrid’s true nature. These include his disregard to and participation in cruelty to Muggles (he put a pig tail on Dudley like it was no big deal) and was the person to introduce Harry to Professor Quirrell, who is secretly Voldemort’s host.
The theory also casts doubt on Hagrid’s friendship with Harry, Ron and Hermione. According to the post, Hagrid only got close to the trio to get important information and use them to facilitate dangerous and illicit activities such as smuggling a dragon egg and taking trips through the Forbidden Forest.
There’s also the notable fact that Hagrid is (supposedly) one of the only people who knew Tom Riddle while he was a student at Hogwarts, meaning that Voldemort’s longest known relationships are with Dumbledore and Hagrid.
But that’s not all folks, this theory gets deeper.
One of the most convincing sections of the essay argues that Hagrid was the key player in delivering Harry to Voldemort after the Triwizard Tournament in The Goblet of Fire.
Hagrid secretly helped Harry in nearly all of the tournament’s tasks. He warned him of the dragon task and trained Harry in dealing with Acromantulas and Blast-Ended Skrewts in class, two creatures that appeared in the tournament soon after Hagrid’s classes.
Hagrid helped Harry win and get the Triwizard Cup which transported him into Voldemort’s trap. Harry could never have gotten that cup without Hagrid.
It’s a lot to digest and this is only the bare bones of the theory. There is a lot more evidence to back up Hagrid being Voldemort’s ally— such as Hagrid’s sneaky manoeuvres to not fight against the Death Eaters until he was sure they were going to lose in the Battle of Hogwarts — but I’ll leave it up to you to read the original reddit post.
Fair warning: be prepared to have your childhood ruined forever. You’ll question everything you (thought you) know.