Hermione and Logic

             In all of the novels we have read so far, we have seen the important role that intuition plays in characters and plot. Every character’s thoughts and actions have, at one point or another, been influenced by intuition. It’s quite annoying, actually. This makes me wonder just how fundamental intuition is to fantasy as a genre. Can we have a fantasy story without characters at least partly relying on intuition? I would argue that magic is a major factor in the seeming necessity of intuition. Magic is not exactly a logical, rational “thing.” This is one of the many reasons why I find Hermione to be so fascinating. She’s very Type A, always concerned about rules and being the best of the best. She’s also very logical. In the chapter “Through the Trapdoor,” she picks up the paper next to the row of bottles and read the riddle. She says, “Brilliant...This isn’t magic—it’s logic—a puzzle. A lot of the greatest wizards haven’t got an ounce of logic, they’d be stuck in here forever” (Rowling 285). This is great moment because it challenges the idea that magic and people who use magic have to be irrational, intuition-driven dopes all of the time.