Dobby

From Harry Potter Wiki

Dobby was a house-elf who served the Malfoy family. During Harry Potter's second year at Hogwarts, he tried to warn the boy of the plot to have the Chamber of Secrets reopened. The same year, Harry freed Dobby from the Malfoys'. Dobby then went on to work in the Hogwarts kitchens. He went on to save the lives of Harry and his friends Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Dean Thomas, Mr. Ollivander, and Griphook from Death Eaters at Malfoy Manor, though was killed in the process.^[1]

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Malfoy family house-elf 1.2 The Chamber of Secrets plot 1.3 Working in the kitchens 1.4 The Triwizard Tournament 1.5 Friendship with Aberforth Dumbledore 1.6 Dumbledore's Army 1.7 Rescue at Malfoy Manor 1.8 Funeral of the free elf 1.9 Aftermath 2 Physical description 3 Personality and traits 4 Behind the scenes 5 Appearances 6 Notes and References

[edit] Biography

[edit] Malfoy family house-elf

Dobby was the resident house-elf of the Malfoy family, serving Lucius Malfoy, his wife Narcissa, and their son Draco. They treated Dobby with unkindness and cruelty , often reminding him to do extra punishments to himself when he does something disagreeable to them. Dobby also told Harry Potter that he was used to death threats as he received them frequently by the Malfoys. Though he always did as he was told, he longed to be free of the Malfoys. ^[2]

[edit] The Chamber of Secrets plot

Dobby knew of the plan to reopen the Chamber of Secrets during Harry Potter's second year at Hogwarts. Presumably this was because the Malfoys saw Dobby as an insignificant slave and because they knew that house-elves were not able to break the commands of their masters. Dobby went to the Dursley House to warn Harry not to go back to school, though he was unsuccessful. Still, Dobby managed a few visits to Harry, including one visit while Harry was in the hospital wing at the school.^[2]

Near the end of the year, Lucius Malfoy came to the school with Dobby to see Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Here, realizing that Dobby belonged to the Malfoys, Harry tricked Mr. Malfoy into giving Dobby one of his used socks. From this point on, Dobby was a free elf.

[edit] Working in the kitchens

After becoming a free elf, Dobby struggled to find work, as he wanted to be paid. Eventually, he was hired by Albus Dumbledore to work in the kitchens of Hogwarts for a Galleon a week and one day a month off. Hermione Granger was initially indignant at the amount of pay, but Dobby explained that he requested the amount, and Dumbledore had offered more. It was around this time that Hermione formed the organization called S.P.E.W.^[3]

When Winky, the house-elf of Barty Crouch Sr, was given clothes to be freed of her servitude^[4], she didn't accept it as a reward, as Dobby had, but rather as a punishment and a shameful failure. She took up work at Hogwarts as well, but when she became a heavy drinker, Dobby took care of her. For a time, Dobby was the only one who would clean the Gryffindor Tower because Hermione had hidden woolen hats and socks in with the rubbish with the intent of freeing them. The Hogwarts house elves refused thereafter to clean the common room, as they viewed the hidden clothes to be insulting. ^[4] This was a delight for Dobby, though, because it allowed him to see Harry Potter and his friends, including Ron Weasley, who he called Harry Potter's "Wheezy."

[edit] The Triwizard Tournament

Barty Crouch Jr, disguised as Alastor Moody, tricked Dobby into stealing a helping of gillyweed to give to Harry Potter for the second task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. This allowed Harry to breathe underwater and retrieve Ron Weasley and Gabrielle Delacour from the lake.^[4]

[edit] Friendship with Aberforth Dumbledore

Dobby continued to work in the kitchens at Hogwarts, but was an outsider among the other elves in the castle. Over the course of his employment at Hogwarts, Dobby became close friends with Aberforth Dumbledore, and spent much time at Aberforth's home in Hogsmeade, getting to and from the school through a secret tunnel.^[1]

[edit] Dumbledore's Army

In 1995, when Dolores Umbridge banned all clubs at Hogwarts, Harry Potter asked Dobby for a secret place in which they could have meetings for Dumbledore's Army, half-heatedly. Dobby, however, told him of the Room of Requirement and how to get into it. Harry Potter successfully made use of the room and thus was able to start Dumbledore's Army meetings.^[5]

When Marietta Edgecombe revealed Dumbledore's Army to Professor Umbridge, Dobby immediately warned Harry that the Inquisitorial Squad was going to attack.

[edit] Rescue at Malfoy Manor

Captured by a group of Snatchers led by Fenrir Greyback, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Dean Thomas, and the Goblin Griphook are taken to Malfoy Manor. There, Bellatrix Lestrange sees that they are carrying the Sword of Gryffindor, and for some reason stops Lucius Malfoy from summoning Voldemort. Keeping Hermione upstairs for questioning, Bellatrix has the others sent to a locked room in the cellar, where they encounter Luna and Ollivander who are also being held prisoner there. Though the new arrivals are tied up, Luna has found a nail with which she is able to cut their bonds.

Desperate at hearing Hermione's cries of pain from above, Harry is nervously fidgeting with the fragment of the magic mirror Sirius had given him years before, and sees a sky-blue eye looking out of it at him. Harry pleads for help from the owner of the eye, and shortly Dobby, sent by Aberforth, apparates into the cell. As he was able to disapparate to and from the Manor, Harry instructed him to first take Luna Lovegood, Dean Thomas, and Mr. Ollivander from the cellar, then return. He did so, bringing the three to Shell Cottage, the home of Bill Weasley and his wife Fleur Delacour. From upstairs, where she is now torturing Griphook, Bellatrix hears the noise of Dobby Disapparating, and sends Wormtail to investigate. Harry and Ron manage to overpower Pettigrew when he hesitates, reminded of his life debt to Harry, and his own magical silver hand strangles him to death.

Attempting to rescue Hermione and Griphook, Harry and Ron are forced to surrender when a disarmed Bellatrix threatens Hermione with a silver knife. Dobby announces his return by causing a chandelier to fall on Bellatrix. Harry seizes the wands Draco Malfoy is holding, and stuns Fenrir. Ron collects Hermione and Disapparates to Shell Cottage, while Harry similarly collects Griphook. As Harry Disapparates, Bellatrix throws her knife at him. Harry, not knowing where he is heading, is relieved to find, in the midst of his Disapparation, that he can feel Dobby alongside. Arriving at Shell Cottage, Harry discovers that Dobby has been fatally wounded by Bellatrix' thrown knife. Dobby dies moments later, his final words being "Harry Potter".^[1]

[edit] Funeral of the free elf

Main article: Funeral of Dobby

Harry was deeply grieved and decided to dig Dobby's grave by hand without using magic. Ron and Dean Thomas join Harry and labour with him. They place Dobby's body in the grave and give him socks, shoes and a hat. Standing over Dobby, Luna thanks Dobby for rescuing them and the others follow. Harry fills in the grave and carves: "HERE LIES DOBBY, A FREE ELF" on a flat rock he places on the burial mound.

[edit] Aftermath

Griphook was positively affected by Harry's display of humility and love for the house-elf, aiding him in his decision to help Harry Potter retrieve a horcrux from Gringotts Wizarding Bank.

Kreacher, Harry Potter's own inherited house-elf, led the house-elves of Hogwarts in the Battle of Hogwarts, moved by Harry's good treatment of house-elves.^[1]

[edit] Physical description

Dobby was a house-elf, much shorter in stature than humans, standing only about 3 and a half feet. He had large, tennis-ball-like eyes and long, bat-like pointed ears. Before he was given freedom, he wore a body-covering pillowcase, and was very fond of socks^[3], especially if they did not match each other.

[edit] Personality and traits

Dobby was a brave, loyal house-elf, willing to put himself in dangerous situations when he knew it to be the right thing to do. He was also very loyal to the few friends he had. He considered himself to be a good house-elf, though other house elves seemed to find his desires and proclamations of being a free house-elf to be shameful. Despite this, he is still a hard worker. When he goes to work at Hogwarts he only asks for a Galleon a week and one day off a month as opposed to ten Galleons a week and weekends off, which was Albus Dumbledore's original offer.

Dobby's favourite gift to receive was socks, and he would get confused when he would get two of the same style. He would often give socks as gifts as well.

Dobby refers to himself in the third person ("Dobby must punish himself most grievously for coming, sir") and tends to get his verb tenses mixed up ("I has seven now, sir"). Dobby refers to Ron as Harry's "Wheezy."

[edit] Behind the scenes

• Dobby has been removed from all movie adaptations except the Chamber of Secrets and Deathly Hallows^[6]. Perhaps not coincidentally, in both films Neville Longbottom does everything important that Dobby did in the books (giving Harry the gillyweed and informing him of the Room of Requirement).
• David Heyman has stated that Dobby will be returning for the seventh and eighth films and because of his last cuts will have more screen time.
• Dobby was voiced by Toby Jones in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and will be voiced again by the same actor in the upcoming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows films. ^[7]

• Dobby shares his birthday with Mark Russell.
• Dobby's favourite article of clothing appears to be socks. This may be because Dobby was freed when Harry tricked Lucius Malfoy into giving Dobby a sock.

[edit] Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (film)^[7]

[edit] Notes and References