From a slap to a punch: preparing Hermione Granger for postfeminist Hollywood

ABSTRACT

This article analyses corresponding scenes from the Harry Potter books and films to assess how the character of Hermione Granger, one of the three protagonists in the Harry Potter universe, changed through the adaptation process from book to film. Our analysis uncovered three interrelated themes. The theme Emotional Hermione shows that the emotions displayed by Hermione shift from more feminine-coded in the books to more masculine-coded in the films. In the process, she becomes a more powerful and independent character. This is also the case in the theme Girl Power, which is not present in the books but appears in the films from the third instalment onwards. Hermione is awarded more opportunity in the films to display both her intellectual and physical strengths. Through the Reallocation of Lines she also becomes a more fully-fledged character. As she takes lines in the films that were allocated to Harry and Ron in the books, Hermione gains more of a voice, even though this voice is not authentically hers. These changes arguably occurred as the Hermione from the books was not seen as an appropriate representation of a girl in postfeminist Hollywood at a time where Girl Power had just gained ascendance.

KEYWORDS:

• Harry Potter
• Film
• Children’s media
• Postfeminism
• Girl power

Introduction

The Harry Potter (HP) series, written by J. K. Rowling, is a collection of seven children’s books and eight films which follow young, orphaned wizard Harry Potter as he attends the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. In each consecutive instalment he battles the dark wizard Voldemort with the help of his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. In the final instalment, Harry vanquishes Voldemort forever, restoring peace to the Wizarding World. The HP book series (1997–2007) has been translated into 80 languages and is reputedly the best-selling book series of all time, with 500 million copies sold worldwide (Charlotte Eyre 2018). The HP films (2001–2011) have also been immensely successful, grossing a total of $7.73 billion globally (Scott Mendelson 2020).

Hermione Granger, protagonist Harry Potter’s close friend, is a central character in the HP universe and the only female among the three main leads. Over the course of the seven books and eight films she consistently aids as well as grows alongside Harry on his hero’s journey. When the books were adapted into films, screenwriter Steve Kloves and author Rowling worked closely together as the films were produced before all of the books were published. Kloves, who worked on seven of the eight films, has expressed on several occasions that Hermione is his favourite character (Richard Brehm 2012; Lizo Mzimba 2003; Rowling 2011). In an interview with Mzimba (2003), Kloves frames her as entertaining and praises her “fierce intellect” yet lack of social skills and understandings, mentioning how this makes her “charming and irresistible to write.” Both Kloves and Rowling boast about her usefulness in the same interview for introducing readers to new information, claiming this makes her a valuable tool for writing the stories.

There is little to no academic literature on how the character of Hermione was adapted from the books to the films. Research which focuses on Hermione typically refers to her representation in the books and not the films, certainly not together. This gap in research on changes to Hermione’s representation across the two media perpetuates misunderstandings of her, framing her as unchanging between the original book and adapted film versions.

The incredibly active HP fan community have collectively discussed changes made to characters throughout the adaptation process, with particular attention for Hermione. The most notable topics of this fan discourse centre on Kloves’s favouritism of Hermione. Several forums have assessed this, with focus on how this may have influenced the represented relationship dynamics between the three main characters (headcanonsandmore 2018; pynki 2018; Vivian Onim 2019a) and changed audiences’ character favouritism across the media in relation to Hermione and Ron (Jonathan Homafar 2019; Onim 2019b; Rita Karpati 2018; vivithefolle 2018). Fans have also debated how different the films would have looked if the book series had been completed before production on the film series began (Onim 2019a; pynki 2018; vivithefolle 2018).

While changes which occur in adaptations may be pinned on individuals who are part of the process, like some HP fans view Kloves as being responsible for changes to the character of Hermione, it is more likely these changes are crafted through collaborative efforts. Furthermore, the cultural ideologies of the time can influence changes. By paying attention to the shifting dynamics of gender and postfeminism in Hollywood at the time when the HP films were produced we can better understand the context within which they were created.

Based on an analysis of corresponding scenes from the HP books and films, this article argues that Hermione’s representation was altered significantly as a result of the adaptation process from book to film. The findings of our analysis show how the film character Hermione was prepared to fit within the dominant cultural ideologies of postfeminist Hollywood, which rendered the original representation of Hermione in the books as outdated. Our findings also illustrate the benefits of analysing specific scenes from both media when studying adaptation, and integrating observations about production context, intertextuality and ideological climate into understandings of differences between media as a result of adaptation.

Postfeminist hollywood and girl power

Postfeminism asserts that we live in an era where gender equality exists and activism is no longer necessary, thus empowerment should be sought in women self-monitoring to reach an idealised state through independent choices as the institutional systems themselves already offer equality for women and men (Angela McRobbie 2008; Catherine A. Rottenberg 2018; Elias 2013; Elisabeth Prügl 2015; Rosalind Gill 2016; Rachel Wood, Benjamin Litherland, Elizabeth Reed 2020). As Judith Butler 2013, 44) states, “it appears that the only thing postfeminism requires is that women ‘be who they want to be’ - just as long as it is not a feminist.” In other words, there is a dismission of traditional feminism in which empowerment is approached collectively through activism and alternatively an embracement of empowerment via independent and individualised means.

Other authors have analysed the impact of postfeminism on popular film and television. Janella Paris and Joshua Uyheng (2021) state how television shows such as Ally McBeal (1997–2002) and Sex and the City (1998–2004) foregrounded postfeminist discourses at the turn of the century by representing financially and sexually independent women characters. They emphasise the influence of neoliberalism on postfeminism and conclude that “all these texts fundamentally remain beholden to neoliberal tenets by centralising the importance of individual hard work irrespective of persistent structural inequities” (Paris and Uyheng 2021, 3). Following this, postfeminism developed and spread to popular media culture targeted to children and young people (Peter C. Kunze 2021; Wood, Litherland, and Reed 2020). Examples are popular music stars like the Spice Girls, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift and Hollywood films such as Beauty and the Beast (2017) and Cinderella (2021), which as part of a larger media landscape normalise representations of strong and confident girls and women. In response to the cultural ideologies of postfeminism, media and cultural industries crafted an idealised woman, or girl, to connect to youth audiences (Emilie Zaslow 2009).

As part of the rise of postfeminism in Hollywood, the notion of Girl Power was conceived. As Sarah Banet-Weiser (2004) expresses, the most economical way power connects to girls is in the recognition that they are an important consumer group, and media were quick to adopt new idealised representations with that understanding. Marnina Gonick (2006) defines Girl Power as the representation of a “new girl” who is confident and not attached to the ideologies of passive femininity. An example of Girl Power is evidenced in feminist heroine and protagonist Rey from the new Star Wars trilogy, described by Amy Ratcliffe (2016, cited in Wood, Litherland, and Reed 2020, 547) as a “girl who can do anything.” Rey represents Girl Power and offers girl and woman audiences, in typical postfeminist fashion, the idea that they can embody her in their own lives to overcome obstacles, such as inequality. Encouraging girls and women to have fluid identities, where they can shift from traditional femininity to powerful feminist, gives them “a sense that they can choose when to be girls and when to be powerful, when to be mother and when to be professional, when to be sexy for male pleasure and when to be sexy for their own pleasure” (Zaslow 2009, 3), expressing a sense of power in girlhood via the ability to play with one’s individual self-representation.

The rise of Girl Power in media targeted at children and young people is connected to ethical cultural consumption and the belief that one could consume media which are morally “right.” Parents would encourage their daughters to identify with idealised characters to demonstrate they are “the right kind of girls” and the “right kind of family” (Wood, Litherland, and Reed 2020, 548). This form of parental determinism works well within postfeminism as it implores individuals to maintain their own sense of empowerment through media consumption.

As our analysis in the second half of this article will show, the ascendance of postfeminism and Girl Power in Hollywood at the time of HP’s adaptation is likely to have had influence on the representation of Hermione as the only main female character in the HP series.

Hermione Granger

The gender representation of the HP character Hermione Granger has accumulated ample academic discussion. She has been explored as an inevitable mother (Elizabeth E. Heilman, Trevor Donaldson 2009; Margaret S. Mauk 2017), as a role model for young girls and women (Michele Fry 2001; Madhurai Gangopadhyay 2015; Annette Wannamaker 2017), as someone young readers connect with (Ranjana Das 2013, 2016 Sarah Ann Beach and Harden Willner 2002), and, alternatively, as a bad representation of a feminist character (Melanie J. Cordova 2015; Meredith Cherland 2008; Heilman and Donaldson 2009; Christine Schoefer 2000). However, all of these explorations only consider her representation in the HP books rather than the HP films.

Hermione has been viewed as invaluable to Harry Potter and his successes (Kate Behr 2005; Fry 2001) and there is agreement that her character evolves over the series (Gangopadhyay 2015; Wannamaker 2017). Meredith Cherland (2008), however, notes Hermione’s lack of credibility as she is positioned to embody many different roles. She has largely been understood as a plot mover and enabler who does not receive the same agency as other characters, whilst consistently being undermined through Harry’s gaze in the books and the negative gendered language he employs (Cordova 2015). Some of the labels which surround the women closest to Harry are descriptors such as “hysterical,” “irrational,” “emotional,” “gossipy” and “annoyingly chatty.” Harry deems the women in his life to be less capable or perhaps more embarrassing in effort, with Hermione receiving the brunt of this (Cordova 2015; Gallardo-C and Jason Smith 2003; Heilman and Donaldson 2009).

Maeve Eberhardt 2017, 236) identifies examples of gendered language used in relation to both Hermione and Ron, who have unique verbs used for them exclusively. Hermione’s behaviour is characterised with verbs like “squealed,” “whimpered” and “squeaked,” whereas Ron’s is with terms like “bellowed,” “grumbled” and “roared.” According to Eberhardt (2017, 235) Hermione’s verbs are “extreme [in how they] evoke stereotypes of normative femininity” and Ron’s are much the same, but with masculinity. Hermione also undermines herself, for instance in the first book where she belittles her “cleverness” in relation to Harry’s bravery, stating that his traits are more important than hers and elevate him to being a “great wizard” (Heilman and Donaldson 2009, 146). Similarly, Hermione is often opted out between the three leads in the books when adventures or danger are present (Cordova 2015; Heilman and Donaldson 2009). In this respect, the HP series is not unlike other children’s literature which, according to Jennifer Earles (2017, 373), persistently reveals “patterns of gender inequality and the ‘symbolic annihilation’ of girls and femininity.”

To explore how scholars have analysed Hermione in the films is difficult due to the scarcity of sources available. One of the most notable changes to Hermione in her adaptation in the films is the removal of Harry’s gaze. As Melanie Cordova (2015) highlights, by adapting the books into films the masculine and childlike perspective of Harry is removed, allowing for women characters like Hermione to develop and become more complex. With this freedom she is given more empathetic moments and choice, dependent on her own intentions rather than her perceived ones. She is afforded the most agency from the third film onwards, which may also be related to the first two films being the most faithful to the books (Philip Nel 2003).

Analysis of scenes

To explore the changes made to Hermione from the books to the films we selected scenes for analysis based on previous scholarly work which focuses on the HP series and Hermione in particular (Cordova 2015; Fry 2001; Gallardo-C and Jason Smith 2003; Heilman and Donaldson 2009; Meri Weiss 2013). Our aim was to develop insights from these existing studies about Hermione further, so others can differentiate the character between the books and the films. The number of scenes was narrowed down to one per book, bar the third instalment which has two scenes. The Deathly Hallows (DH) book was adapted into two films, but one scene was used from these two collectively. The only book and film which did not get an analysed scene is the fifth, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. This was because the literature on gender representation in HP, as well as sources centred on Hermione specifically, does not focus on moments from this instalment. As we wanted to focus on what has been previously covered by academics to highlight the changes in Hermione’s representation, this instalment was unnecessary to analyse. The list of scenes analysed can be found in the Appendix.

Our analysis was focused on four clusters that David Leon Higdon (2002) argues are central to literary research: the text and the creative process that was used to craft it; the text in relation to its medium; the text and its cultural contexts; and the text in relation to other texts. We aimed to explain differences we found between corresponding scenes from the HP books and films in relation to these four clusters. Some differences could be explained by the dissimilar logic of books and films as distinct media, others by the unique context in which the books were written and the films were produced. Other media texts (including texts that feature Emma Watson, the actor who plays Hermione) may have influenced what kind of representations of Hermione were seen as appropriate for the HP films, but we argue that most importantly the postfeminist ideologies that had just gained ascendance in Hollywood at the time played a role.

Changes to the character of Hermione from book to film were clustered into three interrelated themes. Emotional Hermione represents moments when Hermione exhibits emotional reactions or mannerisms, with a notable change from feminine-coded emotions in the books to more masculine-coded emotions in the films. Girl Power symbolises moments when Hermione had power over a situation or character. Reallocation of Lines encompasses changes made to Hermione’s spoken lines and subsequently to other characters’ lines. This theme represents moments in the films where Hermione is given spoken lines from other characters in the books. We first discuss each of these themes in turn and then ground them in a broader analysis of the films’ production context, other relevant texts and postfeminist sensibilities in Hollywood.

Emotional Hermione

Emotional Hermione is the theme which highlights moments when Hermione demonstrates emotional responses. According to Cherland (2008), Rowling often depends on philosophies of humanism in the HP books to interpret big topics into binary understandings, and gendered emotions are one example of this. Feminine-coded emotions are mostly recognised as relating to awe, disgust, fear, guilt, happiness, love, sadness, shyness, surprise and sympathy; and masculine-coded emotions to anger, pride and contempt. The gender binary constructs femininity as weak and masculinity as strong (Penelope Eckert 2014; Rhea Ashley Hoskin 2020) and is described by Erving Goffman (1977) as well as Judith Butler (1990) as a cultural fiction which requires constant reproducing and coercion to be maintained. It is produced through many years of gendered coding (Eckert 2014; Hoskin 2020), which frames aspects of life, personality, emotions and more as being exclusive to men and women (Cherland 2008).

This binary of the genders is supported in the books with Hermione presenting many feminine-coded emotions, typically portrayed with minimising, gendered language via Harry’s gaze. This is juxtaposed with the male central characters, who are written as having more control over their emotions and are often not weakened by gendered language (Eberhardt 2017). However, in the films Hermione’s emotions exist across the binary and are framed as occurrences to empathise with, undeserving of ridicule and negative judgements.

A scene which exhibits the theme Emotional Hermione is in the first instalment, The Philosopher’s Stone (PS), in which Harry, Ron and Hermione are venturing through magical challenges to stop their antagonist from reaching a powerful magical tool, the Philosopher’s Stone.¹ Each of the challenges they face appeal to their individual strengths, starting with Devil Snare, a vine-like plant which traps and buries victims who fall into it. In the book, Hermione is the only one of the trio free from its clutches, and the only one who identifies the plant. She acts flustered in this moment, trying to recall information she was told about but unable to piece it together alone. Harry manages to figure out the solution and tells her to set it on fire. In response to this, Hermione frets over not having any wood, to which Ron yells at her incompetence, reminding her that she is a witch. Hermione then frees her two friends with a fire spell before they progress to the following challenge. Throughout these scenes Harry and Ron handle everything without emotional outburst, bar irritation at Hermione’s initial incompetence, whereas Hermione remains emotional and sensitive. She shrieks, her lip trembles, she is worried and she delivers an emotional speech on Harry’s departure as he endeavours on alone. Her speech expresses her admiration for Harry’s bravery and friendship, as she belittles her own strengths such as being intelligent and hard-working. Following this she insists he should be careful in what is to come, showing her considerations of his wellbeing (J. K. Rowling 1997, 277–278, 285–287).

In the film, while the progression of these scenes is similar, the Devil Snare becomes a challenge Hermione solves on her own. She also finds herself trapped within it but holds no moments of unsurety in this scene, even when she receives no help from the boys. In this version of the scene, relaxing frees you from the plant so that one does not need to resort to more violent measures. After freeing herself by relaxing, she demonstrates masculine-coded behaviour when yelling at the boys to trust her and relax as well. While Harry listens to her and frees himself, Ron continues to ignore her, resulting in her attacking the plant with a fire spell. Once she saves Ron she displays her annoyance at him for not listening to her via her facial expressions, before Harry voices these frustrations (PS, 2:03:49–2:04:32). Later, when she delivers her emotional speech to Harry, it is represented word-for-word from the book, as she attempts to care for an unconscious Ron (PS, 2:12:53–2:13:14).

Due to the changes in her emotionality, the inclusion of her emotional speech in the film, where she praises Harry for traits she shares with him such as bravery and friendship, while belittling herself, appears contextually strange.

Hermione: You’re a great wizard, you know.

Harry: Not as good as you.

Hermione: Me! Books! And cleverness! There are more important things, friendship and bravery, and—oh Harry—be careful.

(Rowling 1997, 287; PS, 2:12:53–2:13:14)

In the book, Hermione struggles to calm herself down, behaves carelessly, makes mistakes and depends on Harry to help her with spells, yet this is all absent in the film. Her speech of self-belittlement in the face of Harry in the book makes sense, but in the film appears conflicting. Her feminine-coded emotions in the book are portrayed as a weakness, earning her this declaration of appreciation for Harry’s strength at lacking these emotional weaknesses; however, in the film she is not framed as weak and her emotions are coded more masculine. In this instance, Hermione’s transition to a more confident and emotionally stable character is not complete because the scriptwriters copied over lines from the book.

The theme Emotional Hermione is present in the books through feminine-coded emotions and minimising gendered language. In the films, however, Hermione’s feminine-coded emotions are reduced or simply not framed with negative connotations, and additionally Hermione is endowed with masculine-coded emotions. These adjustments establish a quick-thinking and calm Hermione in the films who is capable of expressing emotions across the binary, namely sadness and concern as well as anger and aggression. In moments where her emotions are the same in the films as in the books, the gendering and minimising gaze that Harry uses to deem her feminine-coded emotions as weak is removed, allowing for a more empathetic and positive representation of her responses. This new representation of Hermione feeds into the postfeminist notion of Girl Power, as she holds more agency over her emotions, shifts across the gender binary and is not minimised through critical gendered language.

Girl power

The theme Girl Power connects with the postfeminist representation of confident and strong girls and women which became popular in mainstream media at the end of the 1990s and started spreading to media for children and young people shortly after. The first film’s release in 2001 thus corresponds with the rise of Girl Power. While the books’ releases also align with this time, Rowling (2016) has shared she conceptualised her series from 1990 to 1995. While there is evidence to suggest the HP films may have influenced the representation of Hermione in later books due to their close releases, which would likely result in more Girl Power in the last few instalments, there are still many overall differences in Hermione’s representation worth noting. In the books, Girl Power is not really present, if anything it is demonstrated by rare moments when Hermione has any type of power over a situation or another character. In the films Hermione has been reshaped to be more inviting for girl audiences by possessing much more power, often exceeding the boys’ capabilities and being more personal to her emotions and character rather than the progression of the plot.

Emma Watson spoke on her character during the filming of the third instalment, The Prisoner of Azkaban (PoA), and stated that in this film “she’s rock ‘n roll. She’s girl power. She’s out there doing everything” (David Heyman 2009, 26:00). This is embodied in a scene from this instalment where Hermione and Harry travel back in time to save their friend Sirius and a mythical creature called Buckbeak.² In the book Hermione’s agency is summed up in her academic efforts and achievements which earns her the privileges of the Time Turner, a device which allows wearers to go back in time. This privilege is gifted only to her in recognition of her intelligence and dedication to learning, with the condition that she only use it to further her studies. However, even though she has this tool because of her intellect, she lacks understanding in the scene where headmaster Dumbledore asks Harry and her to rescue their friends. This puzzle is left for Harry to make sense of, figuring out that they will not only save Sirius, but their friend’s pet Buckbeak as well. When they embark on the adventures which make up this section of the book, Hermione offers no physical help in rescuing Buckbeak and simply acts as a protective figure for Harry. She does this by consistently explaining how to maintain his safety while time travelling, as well as directing him and stopping him from acting carelessly (J. K. Rowling 1999, 389–401).

In the film, however, Hermione is not simply a protective mother-like figure to Harry, but an active character. She deciphers Dumbledore’s instructions without Harry’s help and instigates several important events through her forward thinking. Furthermore, she physically aids in saving Buckbeak by leading him away with food. Girl Power comes to the fore as she becomes physically involved as well as the main problem solver. The camera clearly shows Hermione’s control and level-headedness contrasted against Harry’s confusion and unsurety, not only in their facial expressions but in how Hermione is directing Harry physically. This change from the book to the film suits the new construction of her character in the films as a strong character and exhibits her ability to be as quick-thinking, physically involved and instigative as Harry and Ron, if not more so. In this role, she exemplifies many strengths, and no real weaknesses. This expresses more of her character and crafts as someone who is not simply traditionally feminine, but, as Girl Power describes, a confident and powerful girl.

Another scene which shows Hermione’s Girl Power, and an exemplary one for our analysis, is from the same instalment. In this scene, Hermione physically assaults school-bully Draco Malfoy after he teases the trio of friends about the execution of Buckbeak. In the book, this moment is conveyed as a relatively powerful one for Hermione. She slaps Malfoy across the face as Harry and Ron stand by in shock, having never physically laid hands on the bully themselves at this point. Even with the power this scene asserts for Hermione, she still does not earn a real response from Malfoy and he remains aloof. Moreover, after this confrontation Hermione immediately defers further action to Harry, requesting that he win in his next Quidditch³ match opposing the bully. Furthermore, her emotions and actions are feminised in this moment, with her words of aggression asserted with the term “shrilly” and her act of violence being a slap (Rowling 1999, 293–294).

In the film the events are similar, but Hermione’s slap turns into a punch. She also earns a bigger emotional response from Malfoy in the face of her attack, including whimpering and a half-hearted threat as he stumbles away. When she punches him, Harry and Ron watch on in awe (PoA, 1:23:17–1:23:52). The framing of the scene changes as well, with an emphasis on Hermione’s dominance in the scene. The camera follows her steps using an upwards shot to show her authority, and she has much more directiveness in the scene as she presses her wand at Malfoy’s throat and backs him up against a rock. This change gives Hermione more power and control over the situation.

In the seventh book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (DH), Hermione destroys a Horcrux⁴ with the support of Ron. This scene holds the largest change between media, as this moment occurs off-page in the book, only retold to Harry as a means of relaying news.

Hermione: It was Ron, all Ron’s idea! Wasn’t it absolutely brilliant? There we were, after you left, and I said to Ron, even if we find the other one, how are we going to get rid of it? We still hadn’t got rid of the cup! And then he thought of it! The basilisk!

Harry: What the-

Ron: Something to get rid of Horcruxes.

Harry: But how did you get in there? You need to speak Parseltongue⁵!

Hermione: He did! Show him, Ron! (…) He was amazing! Amazing!

Harry: So … So …

Ron: So we’re another Horcrux down. Hermione stabbed it. Thought she should. She hasn’t had the pleasure yet.

Harry: Genius!

Ron: It was nothing.

(Rowling 2007, 622–623)

This marks the extent of the interaction between the three protagonists in the book, with Hermione barely able to express her achievement, and Ron receiving much of the praise by both Harry and Hermione. However, with the change in the film, the audience gets to witness the destruction of the Horcrux by Hermione’s hand. Ron is still present and expresses she should be the one to destroy it, however, witnessing Hermione’s strength in this moment changes the interpretation of the scene. With the removal of retelling, Hermione gets to execute the blow, rather than Ron sharing it as a story he instigated where he is commended.

Ron: You do it.

Hermione: I can’t.

Ron: Yes, you can.

(DH, 51:17–51:22)

After this moment, Hermione stabs the Horcrux and it has a dramatic death, with her and Ron both being drenched in water. This cuts to showing Harry in shock, feeling the loss of the Horcrux alongside the villain, Voldemort. Contrasting Hermione’s physical act with the shock and pain of the main protagonist and main antagonist represents her power in this moment. This change in framing attaches more power to her actions and as a result represents an adapted Hermione who is as capable as the boys and deserving of that recognition.

The theme Girl Power highlights just how much more power and control Hermione is afforded in the films, with her agency exceeding both Harry’s and Ron’s in many cases as well as being more personal to Hermione’s unique character. In the books her agency is limited by the inconsistency in her intellect, which is often used as a tool by the boys. In the films this inconsistency is removed, and she is afforded complete control. Her presence in the films often make her the most useful of the three main characters, not only through her characteristic knowledge, experience and understanding but also her physical strength and capabilities. The postfeminist notion of Girl Power which was popular in Hollywood at the time seems to have strongly influenced Hermione’s representation in the HP films.

Reallocation of lines

This theme represents moments in the films where Hermione is given spoken lines from the books, but lines that were originally allocated to other characters. This involves changes made not only to Hermione’s spoken lines, but subsequently also to other characters’ lines. This theme is related to the other two, particularly Girl Power, as while Hermione is changed from a traditional to a more powerful role, she adopts lines from male characters to enrich her character and boost her new persona. While she is often undermined by feminine-coded language in the books, and typically via male characters, the reallocating of lines from these characters results in a more balanced personality and a larger presence for Hermione.

An example of Reallocation of Lines is in The Chamber of Secrets (CoS), when the audience is introduced to a form of racism from the Wizarding World in which wizards and witches born from non-magical parents are viewed as inferior. In a scene where Hermione is called a Mudblood by bully Malfoy, Ron comes to her rescue. Due to Ron having been raised in the Wizarding World it makes sense for him to engage with this moment the most of the three protagonists. He reacts angrily to Malfoy’s use of the slur but fails in attacking him and gets bespelled by his own hex, which makes him vomit slugs. After this altercation, Ron explains the meaning of the slur to Harry and Hermione alongside their friend Hagrid.

Harry: Malfoy called Hermione something—it must’ve been really bad, because everyone went wild.

Ron: It was bad … Malfoy called her “Mublood,” Hagrid-

Hagrid (teacher): He didn’!

Hermione: He did. But I don’t know what it means. I could tell it was really rude, of course-

Ron: It’s about the most insulting thing he could think of … Mudblood’s a really foul name for someone who is Muggle-born—you know, non-magic parents. There are some wizards—like Malfoy’s family—who think they’re better than everyone else because they’re what people call pure-blood.

(Rowling 1998, 115–116)

Through the adaptation process, Hermione ends up taking Ron’s lines in this moment. In the film, Hermione explains the slur to Harry as well as to the audience. Her adoption of Ron’s lines allows audiences to view the scene more empathetically towards Hermione, as she delivers the lines with tears in her eyes. Through this change, Ron is reduced to only throwing up slugs and assumes a comedic role in the background of the scene.

Harry: Malfoy. He called Hermione … well, I don’t know exactly what it means

Hermione: He called me a Mudblood.

Hagrid (teacher): Uh—He did not!

Harry: What’s a Mudblood?

Hermione: It means dirty blood. Mudblood’s a really foul name for someone who was

Muggle-born, someone with non-magic parents, someone like me. It’s not a term one

usually hears in civilised conversation.

(CoS, 46:08–46:39)

Another example of Reallocation of Lines is when Hermione and Harry go back in time in the book PoA, Hermione is unsure of what is expected and Harry must direct them accordingly.

Harry: Where did you get that hourglass thing?

Hermione: It’s called a Time-Turner, and I got it from McGonagall on our first day back. I’ve been using it to get to my lessons … [McGonagall] had to write all sorts of letters to the Ministry of Magic so I could have one. She had to tell them that I was a model student … Harry, I don’t understand what Dumbledore wants us to do. Why did he tell us to go back three hours? How’s that going to help Sirius?

Harry: There must be something that happened around now he wants us to change … what happened?… Dumbledore just said—just said we could save more than one innocent life … Hermione, we’re going to save Buckbeak!

(Rowling 1999, 394–396)

This moment displays Hermione’s occasional lack of understanding as if when placed in situations where she needs her knowledge, she cannot access it due to her worrying nature. In moments like these Harry or Ron use Hermione’s smarts as if they were a tool. In the film, this plays out differently and Hermione is the one in control. Harry may offer insight to the situation, but she progresses that into action. Through this process, she takes Harry’s lines.

Harry: This is not normal!

Hermione: This is a time-turner Harry. McGonagall gave it to me first term, this is how I’ve been getting to my lessons all year.

Harry: You mean we’ve gone back in time?

Hermione: Yes. Dumbledore obviously wanted us to return to this moment. Clearly something happened he wants us to change. (…)

Harry: Look, Buckbeak’s still alive.

Hermione: Of course, remember what Dumbledore said, if we succeed, more than one innocent life could be spared.

(PoA, 1:48:52–1:50:17)

Through Reallocation of Lines Hermione becomes more fully-fledged, but also, Harry, much like Ron in previous examples of this theme, becomes less. He is more of an exposition tool or embodies the “chosen one” simply through his nature and not through his choices.

The theme Reallocation of Lines identifies changes in Hermione’s spoken lines, and how these changes alter scenes from the books to shape a more rounded Hermione in the films, and subsequently, minimise other characters. Across the scenes analysed Hermione becomes more capable than the boys, receives more empathy towards her emotional responses than she did in the books and becomes less of a tool and more of a powerful agent. Additionally, Ron becomes more of a comedic relief character across multiple scenes, and Harry on occasion appears to fulfil his hero role simply in essence and not through consistent agency. While giving Hermione more agency, this creates a more nuanced and valuable character which young girls and women could aspire towards. However, it is worth noting that Hermione is not given lines that were originally written for her, she simply receives other characters’ lines. This points to some lost opportunities for including a unique girl’s voice in the films.

Conclusion

The analysis of the three themes Emotional Hermione, Girl Power and Reallocation of Lines demonstrates how the character Hermione has shifted through the process of adapting the HP books into films. The theme Emotional Hermione shows that the emotions displayed by Hermione change from more feminine-coded in the books to more masculine-coded in the films. In the process, she becomes a more powerful and independent character. This is also the case in the theme Girl Power, which is not present in the books but appears in the films from the third instalment onwards. Hermione is awarded more opportunity in the films to display her intellectual and physical strengths, resulting in the representation of a confident and powerful girl. She thereby embodies the postfeminist archetype of the “girl who can do anything” (Wood, Litherland, and Reed 2020, 547) prevalent in Hollywood at the time. Through the Reallocation of Lines she also becomes a more fully-fledged character. As she takes lines in the films that were allocated to Harry and Ron in the books, Hermione gains more of a voice, even though this voice is not authentically hers.

In the adaptation of the HP series various layers of creative agency were involved. This kind of collaborative adaptation process in which multiple voices and perspectives are considered alongside the desire to create an artistic product has the ability to reshape the text (James Russell 2012). It allows more perspectives and insights to be threaded through the story and characters, while production corporations also set expectations for success based on trends at the time. The HP films were shaped through the interactions between original author Rowling and screenwriter Kloves in particular. Moreover, as not all books had been published before the series was adapted into films, it could be argued that the collaboration between Rowling, Kloves and others led to changes in Hermione’s representation in the final HP books. While film adaptation typically does not hold influence over the original text, due to the closely knit releases of the HP books and films there may have been an effect in this case.

A renewed Hermione was necessary for the film character to be accepted by Hollywood audiences. With Girl Power’s connection to the idea of ethical cultural consumption and parental determinism, her character in the films became a role model suited for these ideals. Her ability to shift from traditional femininity to powerful girlhood demonstrates the “right kind of girl” (Wood, Litherland, and Reed 2020, 548) which is not only appreciated by girls but also by parents. The impact of postfeminism on children’s literature, on the other hand, is less clear. Based on a historical analysis of children’s books Janice McCabe et al. (2011, 198) conclude that change toward gender equality has been “uneven, nonlinear, and tied to patterns of feminist activism and backlash.” This at least in part explains the different expectations for Hermione in the HP books versus the HP films.

Actor Emma Watson, along with other media texts that feature her, may also have influenced Hermione’s representation. Watson’s portrayal as Hermione launched her career as a global movie star and she used her fame to help the United Nations launch the HeForShe campaign which urged men and boys to support and advocate for gender equality (Kunze 2021). After the release of the final HP film, Watson took the lead role of Belle in the 2017 remake of the Disney classic Beauty and the Beast. She requested changes to the rather traditional characterisation of Belle in the original Disney animated version (Schwartz, cited in Kunze 2021). This illustrates that as an actor Watson is invested in issues of gender representation and not shy to ask for changes to the characters she plays. While her position in the HP films was different since she started playing the role of Hermione as a child, it is possible that she had more agency to influence Hermione’s representation in the later HP films. The synergy between character and actor is in alignment with a broader development in Hollywood where actors are not just chosen for their acting abilities but also for the celebrity value that they bring as an “ingredient brand” to the production of a film, including its marketing and promotion (Kay Hofmann 2021).

The HeForShe campaign that Watson spearheaded has been criticised for its emphasis on individual choice and elective participation as the way of addressing social injustice, rather than advocating for structural change (Kunze 2021). The same criticism could be levelled at the representation of Hermione in the HP films. While our analysis shows that Hermione is a stronger character in the HP films than in the HP books, the changes made to her character are largely informed by postfeminist sensibilities and the notion of Girl Power. The alterations to gender representation in the HP films all play out on the level of the individual. This is in line with postfeminist ideologies that assume that gender equality can be achieved if girls and women simply change their attitude and behaviour. The more specific notion of Girl Power works in a similar fashion, by instilling in girls that they can solve gender inequality through their own actions.

Following Higdon’s (2002) model for literary analysis, our research illustrates the benefits of studying processes of adaptation at multiple levels, analysing specific examples with reference to general structures and trends. Our analysis of corresponding scenes from the HP books and films unearthed notable shifts in gender representations from the books to the films. These can be explained by several factors: differences between books and films in media logic and societal expectations, the context in which each medium is produced, the circulation of other relevant texts in the contemporary media landscape and, perhaps most pressingly, what are seen as appropriate representations amidst the changing cultural ideologies of the time.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Imogen Wara

Imogen Wara graduated with a Bachelor of Arts with Honours (First Class) in Media Studies from Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington in Aotearoa/New Zealand in 2022.

Joost de Bruin

Joost de Bruin is Associate Professor in Media and Communication at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Notes

1. A ruby stone used to make the drinker immortal or to transform any metal into pure gold.

2. The name of a characterised Hippogriff, which is a mythical creature with the body of a horse, and the wings and head of an eagle.

3. A popular sport played in the Wizarding World by witches and wizards riding flying broomsticks.

4. An object formed by dark magic that is used to achieve immortality by splitting one’s own soul into separate pieces.

5. The language of snakes, which only some wizards/witches can speak, without necessarily being aware of it.

Appendix

List of Analysed Scenes

Table

Instalment			Location		Scene	Brief Description
No.	Name	Abbrv.	Page(s)	Time-Stamp
1	Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone	PS	277–278, 285–287	2:02:50–2:04:32	Devil Snare	Harry, Hermione and Ron have to pass through challenges to stop an antagonist.
2	Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets	CoS	111–116	44:06–47:22	Mudblood Introduction	School bully Malfoy calls Hermione a Mudblood, a racist word about her family.
3	Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban	PoA	293–294	1:23:00–1:23:52	Slap/Punch Draco Malfoy	Hermione retaliates to bully Malfoy by slapping (book)/punching (film) him in the face.
			389–401	1:45:51–1:49:21, 1:50:08–1:51:14	Time Turner	Hermione and Harry have to go back in time to save their friends Buckbeak and Sirius.
4	Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire	GoF	404, 414–432	1:11:24–1:12:00, 1:16:51–1:22:14	Yule Ball	A traditional ball where Hermione and Ron argue, foreshadowing their eventual romantic relationship.
6	Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince	HBP	300–302	1:03:40–1:05:56	Bird Attack	Hermione sees Ron kissing Lavender, and in a jealous rage, attacks Ron with magical birds.
7	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows	DH	622–623	51:03–52:34	Horcrux	Hermione destroys a Horcrux (a device needed for villain Voldemort to remain immortal).