Why doesn't Harry have Contacts?

[leena]

maybe they don't exist in the wiziding world

[Grymmditch]

But why doesn't he just find a spell to correct his eyesight ?
Or have Madame Pomfrey do it ?

[Lillbet]

This is a little OT, but how would they market Harry Potter contacts? Seriously.

After SS came out some opticians were marketing HP style round glasses. Fair enough, but if at some point Harry had started wearing contacts can you imagine how contacts would have been marketed?

You could get green ones and look like Lily (although we're not positive her eyes were green) or blue to look like Dan Radcliffe. Maybe have little sparkles in them, or something equally fancy...

[Rappy28]

The Dursleys probably never bothered enough to get him contacts. How about laser eye surgery while we're at it ?

And glasses are cute.

[Keakealani]

Harry's glasses are definitely a plot point - they allow Hermione to show off her magic skills in the beginning of book one, for example. If you ask why Harry doesn't get contacts, you might as well ask why JKR put them there at all. She could have made Harry with perfect vision, but that's not what she did, and we know from experience that pretty much everything about any character has a purpose in the book, so there's no reason his glasses are an exception.

I wonder if Harry's glasses have something to do with the significance of Lily's eyes, which I remember as being mentioned somewhere...

[xhanax315]

Maybe he just didn't want them or perhaps JK didn't want to get them to him. Or maybe the Dursleys were just too cheap to but him contracts. Didn't he have his glasses taped together before he came to Hogwarts, wouldn't that give some idea as to why they would've never bought him contacts? Why would it be significant for him to have contacts?

[mrsronweasley27]

I think it has to with the Dursley's, and probably JKR never wanted him to have them. I like Harry's glasses anyways, even if they tend to get in the way.

[SarmotiQuaxo]

Could be a plot device-we've seen it as such in the second book. Hm. Voldermort's death by broken eyeglasses.

[161581]

I think they're cute on him- add character. It also makes him easily identifiable to readers who feel like "misfits" or "outcasts" in their own lives: the nerdy kid with glasses happens to be the guy destined to save the Wizarding World from peril? Count me in!

Side note: Maybe he just doesn't feel like sticking his finger in his eye all the time. I've got contacts- they're lousy. ):

[WeasleyGirl101]

I think it does add to his charater, but during Quittich games, wouldn't be easier to wear contacts?

[branwall]

I dont know.... maybe ginny likes the glasses

[okkid]

Speaking as someone with glasses sometimes contacts are unpractical and not really needed.Glasses are so much easier.

[Hippogriff1]

I remember JKR said in an interview that having glasses was a sign of vulnerablity in Harry and that he would always have some sort of imperfection. I guess that's why. Besides, glasses are worn by some very wise wizards...Dumbledore...McGonagall.

[Grymmditch]

DD's and McGonagall's glasses are more like reading glasses though, typical of old age. Not much you can do about the eye's inability to switch focus.
Harry, on the other hand, is young and myopic.

Again, I ask, why isn't there a spell to correct his vision ? Doesn't this bug anyone, from a logic consistency point of view ?

[Lash Dresden]

Originally Posted by Grymmditch

Again, I ask, why isn't there a spell to correct his vision ? Doesn't this bug anyone, from a logic consistency point of view ?

Probably because Jo wanted him to wear glasses.

[Rappy28]

Originally Posted by Grymmditch

DD's and McGonagall's glasses are more like reading glasses though, typical of old age. Not much you can do about the eye's inability to switch focus.
Harry, on the other hand, is young and myopic.

Again, I ask, why isn't there a spell to correct his vision ? Doesn't this bug anyone, from a logic consistency point of view ?

I've often wondered about that too... It does seem like healers can do a lot of things, but maybe fixing the retina requires excessively hard and very precise work.

[thegreatlake]

I like Harry with glasses. It's just a trademark of his, like his scar. Could you really imagine Harry Potter without the round black glasses? Sure, if you look at it from a logical point of view, it's a good question, why doesn't he have contacts? But really, he's better off without them.

[Montse]

well.no one who uses glsses has contact in hte wizarding world,DD mc gonagall they alll use themmaybe they dont believe they are useful

[magicalmysteryg]

they are definitly there to show his vulnerability, and place emphasis on his eyes. i'm sure the wizarding world has solutions to vision problems. a lot of powerful wizards like dumbledore, mcmonagal, harry, have glasses, so its interesting that none of these people fixed them. i think for dumbledore, its not something she thought of in terms of contacts, and just thought the half moon glasses would add to his mystique.

[cris]

Maybe JKR has a thing for men in glasses...