Lily Evans Potter: Character Analysis

[MadMagic]

Lily Evans Potter is the mother of our hero Harry Potter and the primary reason behind his survival on that infamous night in Godric’s Hollow. She was born to muggle parents who were thrilled to have a witch in the family, although her sister Petunia does not seem to share the sentiment. The sacrifice Lily made that night in which she showed the ultimate act of love, ensured the survival of her young son Harry and brought about the temporary downfall of Lord Voldemort.

Lily Potter was a member of the original Order of the Phoenix, defying Voldemort 3 times along with her husband James. While in school she excelled; she was Head Girl in her 7th year and her brilliance in potions is celebrated years after she leaves Hogwarts by Potion Master Horace Slughorn. In standing up to both her enemies and her friends (or at least fellow housemates), Lily extols the prized Gryffindor traits of courage and bravery.

1. In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?
   
   
   
2. Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?
   
   
   
3. Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?
   
   
   
4. The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?
   
   
   
5. It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?
   
   
   
6. What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?
   
   
   
7. The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?

Please keep in mind that this is a discussion thread. You are entitled to like or dislike the character of Lily, however please provide justification for your opinions and make sure your thoughts contribute to the development of the thread. Thanks!

[Jessica]

In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?

Ineteresting question I wonder who was older? Somehow Petunia seems to have that older sister thing. Their parents must have been more like Lily than Petunia based on their reaction to her being a witch. Maybe Petunia was jealous of Lily who seems to have been prettier and more popular than her sister.

I wonder if Harry gets his Saving People thing from her. Based on what we've seen, it seems more likely that this is Lily's influence than James'

It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?


I've been thinking about this and I think she must also have excelled at DADA in order to defy Voldemort three times. Maybe she was like Hermione and was naturally good at everything? She seems to have brought a flair to whatever she did. She strikes me as a person who enjoyed life and took pleasure in most things.

[Fuchsia]

It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?

Assuming the idea of sacraficing herself for Harry was her idea and not Dumbledore's, I think perhaps charms?

[Jessica]

Originally Posted by Fuchsia

Assuming the idea of sacraficing herself for Harry was her idea and not Dumbledore's, I think perhaps charms?

Didn't JKR say in an interview that this was unplanned? I'd always thought it was intentional but I'm pretty sure JKR said that it was only because Voldemort had been willing to spare her and she chose to save her son.

[MadMagic]

Originally Posted by Fuchsia

Assuming the idea of sacraficing herself for Harry was her idea and not Dumbledore's, I think perhaps charms?

Also I think we should think about whether or not she cast the fidelius charm. From all we know about it, it seems like a very complex spell. And since Dumbledore didn't know who the secret keeper was, I think there is a good possibility that it was Lily who cast it, especially since I think Dumbledore can be ruled out as he didn't even know who the secret keeper was. I guess we can't know what her favorite subject was, but if she did indeed cast the Fidelius Charm then she must have been pretty good at Charms as well as Potions. Maybe she was a bit of a Hermione.

[anabel]

Originally Posted by Jessica

I wonder if Harry gets his Saving People thing from her. Based on what we've seen, it seems more likely that this is Lily's influence than James'

I agree. I think Harry inherited more than just his green eyes from Lily. His heroic tendencies also seem to come from her, eg trying to help Snape in SWM and giving her life for Harry.

[guad]

Originally Posted by Jessica

Somehow Petunia seems to have that older sister thing. Their parents must have been more like Lily than Petunia based on their reaction to her being a witch. Maybe Petunia was jealous of Lily who seems to have been prettier and more popular than her sister.

I agree. In the first book it seems that her parents were quite proud of Lily, and that Lily somehow outshined her sister. I do think that Petunia was jealous.
I wonder how they got along. I always had the feeling that Petunia and Lily had no contact after Lily left her home (presumely to marry James, or to move to a magical area). Do you think that Lily tried to maintain contact? Did she invite Petunia to her wedding?

Originally Posted by MadMagic

The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?

There I am quite sure that Lily disliked show-offs. Sirius says that they began to date when James had defleated his head a bit. So I think that she probably began to like James when he stopped trying to impress her with Quidditch tricks and coolness.
They were both Headboy and Headgirl. Maybe she began to notice that he is indeed more responsable and serious and faithful to his friends, no matter what. I guess this is something that she might have found attractive in James.

Originally Posted by MadMagic

The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?

It is said that the eyes are the reflection of the soul. Harry shows on a superficial level to be more like James (quidditch talent and looks), but his eyes are like Lilys. His kindness, the fact that he stands to people and tries to help people, that he puts his life in danger to help others, this might be more a Lily thing. (I don't mean to say that James was not like this, after all he fought for them and saved Snape but the tolerance and kindness is maybe more from Lily)
Lilys LOVE saved Harry AND made Voldemort vanish once, and LOVE is the power Harry needs to defeat Voldemort. I think that is very important.

[leenielou]

Originally Posted by Jessica

I wonder who was older? Somehow Petunia seems to have that older sister thing. Their parents must have been more like Lily than Petunia based on their reaction to her being a witch. Maybe Petunia was jealous of Lily who seems to have been prettier and more popular than her sister.

I remember having this debate on the Petunia thread - I'm the same as you. I think it would be logical that Petunia is older, and that it was her little sister who got the Hogwarts letter, which was a firm base for the resentment that we see in Petunia.

Originally Posted by guad

I agree. In the first book it seems that her parents were quite proud of Lily, and that Lily somehow outshined her sister. I do think that Petunia was jealous.

Yep, and that too. Petunia spits out that Lily was practically the golden girl (well, words to that effect) and so I think it's pretty safe to say that Lily was the favourite daughter, as well as a possible darling of the school. One of those girls that you love to say "don't you just hate her?" about

[anabel]

Originally Posted by guad

Did she invite Petunia to her wedding?

If so, I hope Jo tells us how it went!!!!! Can you imagine Petunia meeting Albus and Mad-Eye?

Originally Posted by guad

It is said that the eyes are the reflection of the soul. Harry shows on a superficial level to be more like James (quidditch talent and looks), but his eyes are like Lilys. His kindness, the fact that he stands to people and tries to help people, that he puts his life in danger to help others, this might be more a Lily thing. (I don't mean to say that James was not like this, after all he fought for them and saved Snape but the tolerance and kindness is maybe more from Lily)
Lilys LOVE saved Harry AND made Voldemort vanish once, and LOVE is the power Harry needs to defeat Voldemort. I think that is very important.

I agree.

Originally Posted by leenielou

Yep, and that too. Petunia spits out that Lily was practically the golden girl (well, words to that effect) and so I think it's pretty safe to say that Lily was the favourite daughter, as well as a possible darling of the school. One of those girls that you love to say "don't you just hate her?" about

I wonder how much of Petunia's bitterness about all things magical comes from her jealousy of Lily when they were kids? I do think that from what we know of Lily she would have been kind to her sister, but sibling rivalry is a very strong force.

[MHPFAN]

Personally, I love Lily's character. From what I gathered from reading the books, she was a person everybody trusted, liked, and respected. Hagrid and Slughorn (especially) sing her praises. She was someone who I could relate to, and someone who, if she were real, I would respect as well.

Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?

I think she has similar qualities to Hermione and Ginny or vice versa. Hermione is studious, and Ginny is "too popular for her own good." So, in a way, I believe Lily was a bit of both. In SWM, she was with a group of girls, which leads me to believe that she was not a loner unlike some other character. Honestly, I think she had friends from all Houses, including Slytherin. She seems like the type of person who would look beyond pettiness and actually look at the inside of a person. I believe JKR has said that not all Slytherins are bad, so, I'm thinking that Lily, in her Hogwarts years, befriended some of them.


The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?

I think she gave him a chance because he was insistant and because she saw his true feelings. Also, I think that when James matured, he became more like Harry. Harry has wonderful qualities that I believed were inherited as well as self-imposed or in other words were learned by means of survival. I think Lily saw the same qualities we see in Harry. James and Lily compliment each other, IMHO, in much the same way that Ron and Hermione do. We've seen snippets and heard anecdotes from Sirius and Remus that tell us that James was playful, and liked to laugh. I think that from Slughorn's descriptions Lily was studious, and though she may not have taken academics as seriously as Hermione does, I think she put school as one of priorities.



What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?

I think the fact that she lived in a home where there was support and I believe love, those things were instilled in her and therefore, as a mother, came out full-force when her child was in danger. It took bravery and courage to make the decision she made, but most of all, it took love. She had that in abundance for Harry, and push came to shove, she did what I believe only Merope in JKR's world wouldn't have done, and gave her life for her son. I'm not sure why Voldemort gave her the option of moving, but for one, I wouldn't put it past him to want to watch and enjoy someone who defied him thrice suffer greatly for someone she loved (Harry). Second, maybe it was his arrogance that blinded him, and in thinking that he was there to kill a defenseless little boy, he was completely oblivious of the implications or complications his "choice" would make.


The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?


I think that the fact this keeps being mentioned in all of the books, will have something to do with the same sacrifice she made for Harry. I'm not exactly sure what that would entail, but I think it has to do with the love she shed for him as she gave him that protection, or maybe something that she saw in Voldemort that Harry might see in him while he defeats him or is ready to defeat him.

[LouisaB]

Originally Posted by MadMagic

[*] In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?

I get the impression that it is a case of Lily being like her parents but Petunia being the one who grew up differently. I think that the two sisters may have been close until Lily got her letter and went to Hogwart's, and that it was Petunia who changed. I think there may have even been a degree of jealousy there too.

I think that their parents were probably very similar to Hermione's parents in their enthusiasm for the wizarding world. I think that they offered a stable home for their daughters but that only Lily truly learnt from them.

Originally Posted by MadMagic

[*] Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?

I have no idea how she defied Voldemort but believe that she came away alive each time because it was not a face to face defiance. Defiance could have been done without their ever having met before the night at Godric's Hollow.

Originally Posted by MadMagic

[*] Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?

I can't see Lily being much of a jock. If she had been on the Quidditch team I think that Harry would have been told about it in the same way that he was told about James.

I don't see her as being particularly studious either though. I don't think we know enough about her to judge what she was like all round as an academic. And even though we know she was talented in certain areas she may have simply found that lessons came easily to her.

I don't know about her friends, even though we see them in the pensieve as she relaxes with them at the lakeside, they are not mentioned later on at all - there is no mention of whether one of her friends could have been betraying their movements to Voldemort for example. She would therefore appear to have lost touch with them at some point, whether for their safety or not, I don't know.

Originally Posted by MadMagic

[*] The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?

I think it has something to do with firstly, James's heroics in the werewolf incident and the fact that as headboy and headgirl they were working together a lot in their final year.

I think we know too little about James to estimate on what about his character complimented Lily's, though they both appear to be equally brave. If I think of anything else I will add it later.

Originally Posted by MadMagic

[*] It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?

I don't know about the defiance of Voldemort though do wonder if he might have wanted her for her skill at something. Though since he already had a potions expert in Snape I think it would be unlikely he would need another one in Lily. And I don't see that he would have had much use for Charms.

I don't know which subject she preferred or was best at. Just because Slughorn speaks of her talent a lot doesn't mean that she wasn't even more talented at other subjects where the teacher doesn't speak to Harry as much as Slughorn does. It may be that her best subject was DADA but no teacher of that subject is still around to tell Harry about it.

Originally Posted by MadMagic

[*] What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?

I think that her sacrifice was made purely of the love of a mother for her son.

I do have my suspicions on why Voldemort gave her the chance to live but think most people who have already posted on this thread know what my theory is already. Since I know they don't agree I am not going to include it in this post.

Originally Posted by MadMagic

[*] The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?

I think that the important connection will not be the resemblance between the eyes but rather Harry seeing things through Lily's eyes.

[HardtoImagine]

*In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?
I'm not sure, but her being a witch definitley separated her from her sister and singled her out as being special. I don't think she let this get to her head, and she excelled at Hogwarts and was very well liked. Petunia however became jealous and felt the need to downplay Lily's achievements in a negative way. I think they are inherently very different personalities and had she switched places with Petunia would have still been a good person.


*The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?
She made him want to be a better person. She is the first to stand up for people and give them a chance so she gave him a chance to show her he was a good match for her.

*What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?
I don't know why Voldemort would give her a chance like that. It seems to go against his character. This ones a mystery to me.

*The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?
I don't know that it has been revealed to us yet. But people do definitley like to point it out to Harry, maybe just because they are surprised to see her eyes looking out of someone who looks almost identical to James.

[Hinoema]

Originally Posted by MadMagic

What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?

Well, she and Petunia do seem to fit the mold of youngest/oldest sibling types respectively. Petunia wuld be the 'responsible' one and Lily the 'baby'.

I imagine that Petunia was shocked to find out that her baby sister was magically gifted. I think that even then, Petunial liked being the older sister and having authority, if she couldn't be the 'favorite'. She probably expected to continue in this role, with Lily as sort of a 'challenged' child due to her embarassing difference. Instead, however, their parents treated Lily as special, making Petunia feel not only inadequate for not being magical, but robbing her of her authority as older sister. I think resentement and jealousy did the rest.

Lily probably became as feisty and independent as she did while keeping Petunia from smothering her, and making her feel like her magic talent was something to be ashamed of instead of proud of (echoes of Petunia's later treatment of Harry.)

Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?

I think these defiances could well have been times when Voldemort or one of his asked them to join or support him, and she and James refused.

Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?

I see her as a mix of both. She probably enjoyed Quiddich rather than played it, but likely knew it well. She wasn't so much a studious academian like Hermione, afais, but (based on Slughorn's assesments of her talents) intuitively gifted and a natural at figuring things out.

The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?

I think there was probably attraction between them from the beginning. However, Lily made it quite clear that she would not date him, despite this, until he learned to overcome his childish habits and control his ego. Her rant in SWM I see as her taking him to task in the hopes of getting this message across.

It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?

I think she was naturally creative and gifted, and would prefer subjects where innovation and creativity are a bonus- charms, transfiguration and potions, for instance. I htink she was likely best at charms, though, as it seems the most 'creative' and the least bound by set recipes or methods.

What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?

Her love of her family and fierce determination to protect her loved ones at any price would make it natural for her to sacrifice herself like this.

As to why Voldemort gave her a choice- I think the choice itself was important... sort of a test on Voldemort's part. She 'failed' by not choosing to allow him to spare her life in exchange for her son's- not buying into his (magical?) bargain, so to speak- so he killed her instead. Apparently she did not have whatever quality he wanted (obedience? subservience?) which would have been shown had she chosen her own survival and allowed him the right to 'give' her her own life in exchange for Harry's.

The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?

I don't think this literally means her eyes in a physical or magical sense. It is, afais, a resemblance which both keeps her character 'onpage' and allows Harry to benefit from other characters' connections to her- the affections of Slughorn and Lupin being examples.

[vapormist]

In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?

I think that there was a difference in the characters of Lily and Petunia that partially contributed to this - after all, having the same parents doesn't guarantee the same view on life or even the same values (although it sure helps :0)). However, I believe that the main issue was, as many people have mentioned, jealousy. Nice and simple. Lily was pretty, gifted, loved by everyone. From what we've heard, Petunia was none of this. It seems that the parents also gave Lily more attention and affection (perhaps evidence that she was the younger of the sisters?). And to top it all off, Lily turned out to be witch too. Petunia was left in the shade of her shining sister. Quite naturally, this made her jealous, and the envy was also multiplied by Petunia's character traits. It ate her from the inside all the time, making her become nastier and nastier. Lily's experiences, on the other hand, made her stronger, better, more whole. So, the sisters drifted further and further apart.
It is an excellent question, though, how two sisters could turn out so different.

Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?

I actually got the impression that Lily and James had thrice defied Voldemort together from the wording of the prophecy. So, it figures that they would have done it after Hogwarts, or at the very earliest in seventh year. I suppose that with the war raging, the two top students of Hogwarts (which is saying something - they probably went from school straight to the highest layers of the "good" side) would be bound to stumble across the forces of Voldemort rather frequently. Although it is curious why Voldemort would so stubbornly try to get rid of them by himself before knowing about their true threat to him...
As to how Lily and James managed to survive the three encounters with Voldemort - I have in fact no clue.

Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?

Ah...the very question I burn for. Lily and James are probably my favorite couple in the Potterverse, but lately I've completely stopped reading L/J fanfiction because of the way Lily is written in just about all of them. Emty-headed, look-obsessed, individuality-lacking melt-in-the-crowd sickeningly average hyper-popular girl as though pulled put of one of those American high-school movies starring "the most popular girl in school". I think that this is nothing even vaguely resembling Lily as written by JKR.
Sure, Jo herself has described her as "very popular" and "quite a catch". Which most certainly isn't synonym with "having no individuality". Firstly, we know for sure her to be very smart, talented and successful in academic areas. This, already, should rule out the Lily I described above, who is all about the outside and can't even spell "intellect". Then, the Lily we see in Snape's Worst Memory also has a very strong character, and stands for her beliefs - really stands - even if it means going against everyone, including the person she's helping. It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment thing either. It is the only possible way to act for Lily. This shows a great deal of backbone, personality and an independence from the opinions of the crowd. I simply can't see this person being "like everyone else". Or unintelligent, for that matter - this independence requires an ability to actually think for yourself, rather that follow the flock.
I think that Lily's personality in many ways resembles Ginny's, although I can see Lily as a bit more studious and a tad less boy-obsessed (remember Michael Corner? :0)).

The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?

Opposites attract, don't they? :0))
I think that James was one of the very few who could match up to Lily in terms of intelligence, talent, attitude, charisma and, in fact, sense of right and wrong...ah...globally :0)) Hexing first years just really doesn't count :0)) (Actually, when it comes to "right vs. easy", I think James had a very strong sense of that). Then there is the little "bad boy" issue. Lily was a very strong person, and she needed someone who could be in charge, be stronger and allow her to be the weak and feminine one for once. Who could...whatever, it's hopeless trying to explain it :0))) But good girls like bad boys, it's an axiome. And although Lily could never be close to someone really "bad", James did have that mischievous side to him... :0))
My answer to the rest of the, admittedly fascinating questions, is - I haven't the vaguest idea. Really, not even to speculate...

[sulihawk]

Originally Posted by MadMagic

In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?

Keeping in mind the fact that JKR has promised a suprise about Lily, I think she may have at least one squib for an ancestor. (Let me go full out here) Quite possibly coming from a famous wizard lineage and having our favorite number of six sqiubs preceeding her, making her the seventh generation and finally magic reappears in the line! That would indeed make her a Golden Child and cause Petunia to despise her and all magic.

[quote
Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?[/quote]


After graduating Hogwarts she joined the order and likely helped by making useful potions. 1. She may have been asked to join TDS said no. 2. She may have saved someone he poisoned. 3. She may have destroyed a horcrux we dont know about. We dont know the answers, but we can ask; what did Voldemort want? He wanted power, control, and to live forever. So she somehow defied him in reaching these goals.

[quote
Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?[/quote]

Not a joc from what we know so far, but very studious even at home over the summer break. She did have friends, the girls by the lake, but we don't have a fully developed character yet.

[quote
The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?[/quote]

James's strength and confidance are appealing, his patronus is a stag which I relate to strength and for some reason royalty. His devotion to his friends and willingness to risk himself for Snape in the Willow's secret passage say much about his complimentary characteristics.

[quote
It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?[/quote]

Of course, she would have had to be good at all the aurors subjects to defy LV three times. Her best was probably been potions because Slughorn also taught Snape (same year at Hogwarts) and he doesn't go on about him does he?

[quote
What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?[/quote]

Lily is like Harry in this standing up for the underdog. She is a Mom and most of us put the lives of our children before our own. As for giving her a choice, that has me a bit stumped, she must have made an impression on him from before that we are unaware of. This is what gives creedence to my Lily has a magic heritage theory, LV wouldn't give a Mudblood a choice. If she were from one of the Hogwarts founders line then he might show her enough respect to spare her. (Is there a quote in the book somewhere about "green eyed Slytherin"? It is stuck in my mind but i havent found it yet.)

[quote
The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?[/quote][/quote]

Did any of the founders have green eyes? If Roweena Ravenclaw did, Lily could be the desendant and thwarted LV from killing Dorcas Meadowes once, (we know LV finally suceeded) and getting the opal necklace for a horcrux.

One issue I need help with is, if being a prefect is the first step to becoming Head Boy, How did James become one? Lupin was the prefect and I bet Lily was the girl prefect which is why she told James and Sirius off for attacking Snape.

[SKasparRollins]

Lily is one of the most interesting characters in the series right now, even though she is long dead. Very mysterious...

In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?

It was precisely the fact that Petunia was her sister that caused her to stand up for what she believed in. How many times could Petunia have called her a freak, etc? She would have had to stand up for herself constantly around her sister.

Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?

This is a very interesting question. I wish I knew....it is shown since PS/SS that Lily was a very brave woman. This is shown when Dumbledore explains that her sacrifice saved Harry. She chose to die rather than let her son die.

That said, I think that Lily was one of the more...active members of the Order, perhaps, in that she did more field missions. But I know that's not a satisfactory answer...I can't answer this question.

Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?

I think she was probably a bit like Hermione in terms of her, ah, priorities (albeit more popular) and like Ginny in terms of her popularity/friends. What I mean by this is, Ginny is a very popular girl, but she would make friends with less popular people like Luna Lovegood if they were nice enough people. Lily is probably similar in this regard.

The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?

I think she must have realized that there had to be a reason for James to have been Head Boy. I think it's simpler than a lot of people think...it's probably precisely what Sirius said: she went out with him once his head had deflated and she got to know him better. Then again, that seems a bit too simple for me.

It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?

Potions is one of the essential subjects for being an Auror. While this is not a very popular theory anymore - it was a popular theory for a long time that James and Lily were Aurors - it certainly must have helped her in terms of her Order work. I have no idea what she might have preferred, but since I believe in what I call the "Muggle-blood princess" theory, I'd say Potions - allows more creativity. Then again, Charms is supposed to be a subject that allows creativity as well.

I think it is very likely she cast the Fidelius Charm, but I doubt this is of any significance. I don't see the difference it would have made had it been James. But I do see why Potions and Charms would help her defy Voldemort.

What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?

I don't think it is much of a question of why Lily gave her life, it's just how she was given the chance.

I don't believe for a second that Voldemort gave her a chance because of Snape (although I do believe in the Snape-loved-Lily theory, this makes no sense). Remember, though, that the number one weakness of Voldemort - and the central theme of the Harry Potter books - is his immense lack of understanding of the power of love. Somehow, I think he must have thought that she would have made a good Death Eater.

Remember, Voldemort's number one goal on the night of October 31, 1981, was to kill Harry Potter. True, he expected a fight from James, but he knew that he would be able to kill him, and expected no difficulty from Lily. Voldemort also believed fully in the prophecy, and knew that if the prophecy was true, that if he killed Harry Potter he would be unstoppable. Except, the only people who would know of his true omnipotence over the wizarding world would be Lily Potter, Albus Dumbledore, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius Black, Severus Snape, and perhaps Aberforth Dumbledore as well (I'm merely speaking of the people who knew of the prophecy at the time.) True, he would tell his Death Eaters of the prophecy once he had fulfilled it. But my point is, had Lord Voldemort been able to kill Harry Potter on October 31, 1981, then he would be truly all-powerful. I believe he had the intention of turning Lily Potter to the Dark Side after he had killed her son - thinking she would be unprepared to accept death if she did not join, something he believes nobody should be able to accept. I know this theory makes little sense, but it makes more sense than him keeping Lily alive just because his spy was in love with her. It doesn't fit in to the whole "Evil vs Love" theme of the books.

The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?

I wish I knew...I have no clear idea.

[RemusLupinFan]

1. In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?
I agree with those who place Lily as being the younger sister, since I agree that Petunia does seem to have an “older sister thing”. It’s interesting that these two sisters could have turned out so differently, but I think that has a lot to do with nature rather than nurture, although if Lily was the “favorite daughter” that could have helped kindled the jealousy and resentment we in Petunia. In contrast, Lily is kind, tolerant and talented – traits I believe she must have been born with. We don’t know a lot about Petunia’s and Lily’s early childhoods, so there’s still a lot we don’t know about the dynamics between them.

2. Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?
Lily defied Voldemort while she was in the Order, so I imagine she may have been either fighting against the Death Eaters or otherwise thwarting their plans. I imagine Lily must have been quite busy involved in the Order, especially because we are told by Lupin that the first Order wasn’t too well prepared and were being picked off one by one. So Lily must have devoted a lot of her time to Order business. I think she was able to come away alive because she’s such an extraordinary witch. Though we know she was good at Charms, she also must have been good at DADA or she probably wouldn’t have made it.

3. Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts? Was she more of the academic type or a jock?
For some reason, I see Lily as being a more academic type rather than a jock. The reason is that she seems to be very good at most subjects at Hogwarts – we are told her wand is excellent for charmwork and that she excelled at Potions. I’m also assuming as I mentioned above that she was good at DADA as well. So for that reason I think her friends would have been academics rather than jocks, even though she later falls in love with a jock (who is also academically talented).

4. The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?
Like others have said, I believe Lily was attracted to James in the beginning, but she greatly disliked his behavior. I think she gave him a chance once the negative traits he was exhibiting stopped (most likely after he went through the Werewolf incident). Once he stopped behaving like an arrogant, bullying show-off, she was able to embrace the nobler qualities that he was beginning to show. I’m sure when the two of them became Head Boy and Girl they started to connect with each other more. James compliments Lily in his playfulness and engagement in sports. Lily probably provided the more serious aspects of the relationship.

5. It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred? Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?
I was to guess which subject she was best at and which subject she preferred, I’d say Charms since her wand was excellent for Charmwork. If the wand chooses the wizard, then it makes sense that she’d be the best at what her wand was best suited for. I believe her knowledge could have helped in her defiance of Voldemort, especially her knowledge of Charms. I’d always thought she was somehow involved in the casting process of the Fidelius Charm, but I’m not sure what her specific role would have been since I’ve never fully understood the finer points of how it works.

6. What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?
In SWM we see that Lily has enough backbone to challenge the Marauders (who were popular) and stand up for Snape (who was unpopular). This shows evidence of defiance in Lily and the courage to stand up for what is right. With Voldemort, I’m sure this trait must have come into play, but the most influential thing that caused Lily to give her life was her love for her son. As for why Voldemort gave her a choice – perhaps it was because it didn’t really matter to him whether she escaped or not since 1) she was a “mudblood” and 2) because his real target was Harry. Or perhaps he wanted her to stand aside so she could watch Harry die before he (likely) killed her too. Or maybe like Hinoema said, it was a test of sorts to see if Lily would obey his commands.

7. The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a source of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?
I have been wondering for a long time what the significance of Harry’s green eyes really is. It could be that the only significance is to remind the readers that even though Harry looks just like James, he’s still his mother’s son. It may also mean that Harry sees things through his mother’s eyes, or in other words, he views things like Lily would. It’s also possible that the green eyes could imply a deeper connection, or that it could be related to the huge revelation we’re due to get about Lily.

[Katze]

2. Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?

I've always held a theory that Lily was Dumbledore's protege. They both used ancient magic to keep Harry safe, and they both are revered for the magical knowledge and intelligence. So I think she found time and managed to survive because she was with Dumbledore and aiding him in his own quest for V.

3. Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?

I would think she'd be academic, like Hermione.

5. It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?

I think she probably preferred charms, but was equally talented in both. Given that she defied V 3 times, I think it's likely that her knowledge DID help her.

7. The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?

The green color was heredity, but I think when people see her in Harry's eyes, they are talking more about the soul. Throughout the books Harry has heard a little voice inside, helping him and guiding him. My theory is that a piece of Lily is inside Harry, and this is who people see when they look into Harry's eyes. A piece of her is interwined with Harry's soul.

[tupshall90]

Originally Posted by MadMagic

Lily Evans Potter

1. In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia?
   
   
   
2. Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time?
   
   
   
3. Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock?
   
   
   
4. The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily?
   
   
   
5. It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort?
   
   
   
6. What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice?
   
   
   
7. The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important?

!

1. I think Petunia says that their parents always marvelled over how Lily was so smart, and happy to have a witch in the family. I think it can be hard to see someone in your family be so different, that there are going to be people in your family that support you and people in your family that don't know how. If you can think like having your younger sister become a witch, don't you think that maybe your parents will either love her and support her or completely despise her abnormality? And don't you think it would strain your relationship?

2. I'm not sure where Lily found time defeat Voldemort 3 times but I applaud her bravery there.

3. I'm a bit suprised at this question, Almost all of the jocks that know are both academic smart and athletic smart. No one said you can't be both. I definitley think she was nice and kind to everyone, very gentle and poised. As she grew up she became more elegant and charming.

4. We all know the popular guy that even though he seems to be a jerk is really nice. I think James obviously was charming, I mean James had a sense of humour, was athletic, smart, and became an authority figure in his seventh year at Hogwarts. Lily who was a girl that seem to have her head on her shoulders must have seen all that in him, and obvioulsy looked past the fact that he could be a jerk sometimes. I also think he had a sense of respectability towards women and authority figures, which meant that he knew where to draw the line on his pranks. I think he got lighten Lily up a bit and made her laugh more.

5. I think she preferred charms because of how she is portrayed as elegant, and the wand movements would compliment her elegance. I think she was also better at charms for the same reason. Clearly both subjects might have helped against Voldemort, they helped the trio in the first book right?

6. She's a mother! What mother wouldn't sacrifice herself for her child? Assuming that they were in the right mind. I think Voldemort wanted to see love being displayed as he had never seen it.

7. "Being Green" can either mean someone who is new or someone who is overwhelmed and prone to desertion Quote from wikipedia. Lily was deserted by her only family relative left Petunia, and Harry's family had died so he was left to live with Petunia. I think that is where the love connection comes from, and the guilt and envy from Petunia.

[Leslie33]

1. In both her time at Hogwarts and her time with the Order, Lily has shown that she is willing to stand up for what she believes in, no matter what the neighbors may think. What about her background / family could have caused Lily to grow up to have such a vastly different character than her sister Petunia? I have the suspicion their Parents SPOILED Petunia. She is obviously JEALOUS of Lily she puts down everything associated with her. With Lily, she probably could learn things by just reading a book twice or three times at the most. Petunia, on the other hand had to struggle to learn things. Because of her excellent grades, Lily was praised and told how "Smart" she was, etc. Where as Petunia was told her marks were okay, but she "had to study harder" to get better grades, but like some kids, no matter how hard she tried, she could never do better than maybe a C average. Plus I get the idea that Lily was a happy go lucky girl with good looks and a great heart. People magnetized to her and she didn't turn them down because they were disabled, lacking in money, or labelled as the guy who no one should be Friend because "all he does is read Medical Journals,he's so ugly". As Remus said, she saw a person's inner beauty. Petunia is judgemental, wants people to praise her like she's Royalty, etc.

2. Lily defied Voldemort 3 times. When did she find the time to do this and how do you imagine she managed to come away alive each time? I suspect this had something to do with the Prophecy. She may have said "Well, Harry's so young and weak, etc". Maybe trying to delay things. She may have promised to come up with some sort of Healing/Immortality Potion to extend Voldemort's life.

1. Based on the few things we know about Lily, what sort of friends did she have at Hogwarts. Was she more of the academic type or a jock? I suspect she was more inclined to be an Achedmic type, but also befriended the loners at the school and kids who were labelled as being "different" due to circumstances.
2. The origins of Lily’s relationship with James are for the most part unknown. Why do you imagine she gave him a chance? What about the character of James do you think complimented the character of Lily? At first it might have been because of a break up--possibly from Severus--yes, I believe Lily and Severus were friends. I see Severus as being the "feet firmly on the ground" type. Where as James lived life by reckless abandon. He probably showed her things she could only dream of. For some reason, I get the notion, the Evans Family wasn't overly financially rich. So James adored Lily and treated her like a Queen and showed her how fun being "crazy" can be. Yet, her "feet firmly on the ground please" complimented James' Character.
3. It was long assumed, based on her wand, that Lily’s best subject was charms. However, in Half Blood Prince we learn that Lily was a natural potion maker. Which subject do you think Lily preferred. Which do you think she was best at? Did her knowledge in either of these subjects help her in her defiance of Voldemort? I'm not sure of the first question, but I'm leaning toward Potions. From what we can tell, it requires more thought than "silly wand waving" Charms requires. Not that it's a good class or anything. I suspect she loved Potions because it required thought. It presented more of a challenge and she loved that "YES! I did it". Because of her Potions skills, I see her obtaining a job as a Healer/Nurse. THIS is what made Voldemort give a "Mudblood" many chances at Survival. He was striving for immortality. He wanted to defy DEATH. He knew/suspected Lily could get her hands on a Potion/medication which could extend life. He then gave her the chance to give him this Potion for her life. At first she said she was "looking into it" or "working on it" but then saw how dangerous he REALLY was when she became Pregnant with Harry. I KNOW this is a Children's/Adolescent's/Teenager's Series, but we know Voldemort craves Immorality. He is a Half Blood--Neville and Harry are both Half-bloods, but for some reason, Harry is the stronger of the two boys. Voldemort learns of the Boys' birth and Prophecy and sees Harry as his ticket to Immorality--hence he will use Harry to continue his Evil. I KNOW it sounds far fetched, but in a way it makes sense.
4. What about Lily’s personality and character led her to sacrifice herself to save Harry? Why did Voldemort give her a choice in the first place, thus allowing her to make the sacrifice? She LOVED her baby. She saw how beautiful and INNOCENT he was and didn't want him to live a life on the run. She knew of Voldemort's plans and didn't want her Son to live a life in Fear. Lily didn't want Harry to experience the terror of having to constantly move, change identities (which I suspect Lily and James did to protect their Family) and constantly looking behind his back in fear, not trusting ANYONE. This has happened in a way, but she knows he would have been "safe" at her "darling" Sister's house and at Hogwarts until he was 17 and hopefully strong enough to fend off Voldemort.
5. The importance of Lily's eyes has long been a sorce of debate and speculation. It is pointed out by nearly everyone who knew Lily that Harry has her eyes. How and why is this connection between Harry and Lily important? I heard this in the movie "Enough" or some form of it. We know there is no stronger love than that a Mother has for her Child. It goes something like this: A Mother has the devine right to protect her Child's life at any cost, even if it means killing someone else to protect her Child. About her EYES, I'm not too sure. I suspect it had something to do with her inner beauty and her innocense. People looked into them and knew they could trust her. Same goes for Harry. People look at him and they, for the most part, trust him. For the most part, he trusts people, with the acception of Snape. People magnetize towards him--okay, it's mostly because he's Harry Potter, but once they get to know him, they really like him. He's not stuck up, he DOESN'T bully kids who are "differnent" or "just because" and all-in-all people like him. I suspect that LOVE will have a huge part to play. Unless they have some magical powers.