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This article contains discussion of death.
The Wizarding Worldfranchise has proved its everlasting magic over the years. Despite the iconic , the original series remains as beloved and popular as ever. While many winning elements worked in the series' favor, the key contributors to its success are the masterful quotes that spoke to audiences, especially the sorrowful ones.
has everything from comedy to romance, but it's the incredibly sad quotes that form the true backbone of the series. From Harry's moments of hopelessness to Dobby's final movie words, 's ability to deliver the most soul-crushing and relatable quotes left a profound impact on readers. Among that mass devastation and pain, some quotes proved to be infinitely sadder than others.
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Draco Malfoy
Draco is about to kill Dumbledore, but only because he has no choice.
"I've got to do it! He'll kill me! He'll kill my whole family!"
-Draco Malfoy
Draco Malfoy initially starts off as a rude and arrogant pureblood. However, as the years go by, Harry's school rival transforms into a much more complex character. Mafloy's complicated family priorities shape him into who he is, as fans see in . He gets tasked with killing Dumbledore but uncharacteristically breaks down once Albus confronts him about his actions.
Draco makes it clear that he must do Voldemort's bidding for the safety of his entire family, not out of Death Eater loyalty or joy. Unlike in the series, this line showcases a much more vulnerable and devastating side to the young Slytherin.
Draco's character isn't easy to feel sad for, but Draco's delivery, his desperation, and the heaviness of his words make this one of 's most heartbreaking quotes.
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Remus Lupin
Tonks is begging Remus to give them a chance, while Remus keeps rejecting the idea.
"And I've told YOU a million times ... That I am too old for you, too poor...
too dangerous..."
-Remus Lupin
Tonks develops feelings for Remus in the second half of the series. However, Remus constantly rejects her throughout e, citing everything from to his volatile nature as a werewolf.
Tonks's confrontation with Remus after Dumbledore's death is truly heart-wrenching to read. Tonks's pain is palpable as she insists she doesn't care about Remus's condition and basically begs him to give them a chance. Remus's response is just as saddening, with his low self-worth coming in the way of the couple's shot at happiness. Remus's reply is also made all the more painful as Harry learns that Tonks's personality shift (from bubbly to somber) is not because of Sirius's death but Remus's rejection.
This quote has all the heartache of a romantic tragedy, made even more sad by the fact that it comes from two of the series's kindest secondary characters.
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Hermione Granger
Hermione tells Harry that she Obliviate'd her parents.
"Wendell and Monica Wilkins don't know they've got a daughter, you see."
-Hermione Granger
In , . She does this to protect them from being found and tortured by Voldemort.
In the movie, viewers see this sacrifice right away, but in the book, Harry learns about it much later on.
While Hermione's selfless act in itself is very saddening, her telling Harry what she did and her immediately tearing up make it a hard moment to read. The quote is made all the more upsetting by how steadily Hermione tries to say it as an obvious course of action — making it clear how unfair the impending Wizarding War is on the people suffering through it, especially the Golden Trio. The disheartening line isn't the most grief-laden one in the series, but the fact that it comes from Hermione, a fan-favorite and important main character, makes it all the more emotional.
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Albus Dumbledore
Harry listens to Dumbledore's pleas as the headmaster drinks the potion in the cave.
"It's all my fault, all my fault. Please make it stop, I know I did wrong..."
-Albus Dumbledore
There are plenty of instances that showcase Albus Dumbledore's selfless intentions for the (actual) greater good. is one of those fine moments. The old headmaster chooses to drink the potion instead of Harry in
, greatly weakening himself and eventually catalyzing his death soon after.
Since Dumbledore was always regarded as one of the most powerful wizards, his desperate pleas for Harry to stop seem all the more harrowing, and each continued whimper pulls on the heart strings. To make matters worse, Harry realizes in the seventh book that drinking the potion made Dumbledore recall the death of his sister, Ariana, for which he blames himself and was often haunted by. This anguish-filled quote turned Dumbledore, one of 's strongest characters, into a pitiful man whose misery felt too much to bear, even through book pages.
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Nearly Headless Nick
Nearly Headless Nick answers Harry about Sirius coming back as a ghost.
"He won't come back."
-Nearly Headless Nick
After Sirius Black's devastating death, Harry hoped that perhaps his godfather would return as a ghost. Having finally gotten a worthy Guardian who loved him, Harry was desperate to cling on to any idea that proved Sirius might still return to him. Nearly Headless Nick quickly debunks this theory, though, crushing Harry even further in his grief.
Nearly Headless Nick's line makes and final, with the blow once again depriving Harry of the love of a parental figure. Nick's own revelation about his ghostly existence as a "" makes the exchange all the more powerful; the line forces readers to ponder which is worse: losing a loved one or never having them gain peace. The sorrowful quote reflects the series's recurring themes of death and grief and is made all the more heartbreaking as it seals Sirius Black's untimely death forever.
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Harry Potter
Dumbledore tells Harry pain is a part of being human; Harry, mourning Sirius's death, breaks down and tells Dumbledore he wants an out and for it all to end.
"THEN I DON'T WANT TO BE HUMAN!"
-Harry Potter
Harry Potter endured much more than anyone deserved throughout the series. By , Harry had faced unimaginable horrors and grief, and Sirius Black's death finally breaks him down.
But while Harry's outburst in Dumbledore's office may have been long overdue, that doesn't lessen its emotional blow. Instead, it amplifies it, with Harry wanting everything to end right then and there.
Potter's rage, his mindless destruction of Dumbledore's office, and the sheer gravity of his hopeless words highlight how much hurt he's going through, with no end in sight. Harry's chaotic breakdown is an alarming change of pace for him, making his character all the more human and relatable as he lets his grief consume him. As the protagonist, Harry's devastating quote is all the more powerful and painful, proving how hard and unfair it is to be the Chosen One.
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Dobby
Dobby's last words in the movie before he dies.
"Such a beautiful place, to be with friends. Dobby is happy to be with his friend, Harry Potter."
-Dobby
Dobby's selfless personality had already made the beloved character's murder incredibly sad. However, it's Dobby's final quote in the movies that makes his death insufferably cruel. The line is exclusive to and showcases a rare moment where a .
Dobby was always a loyal and helpful friend to Harry, who saw him as an equal rather than a house elf.
Harry and Dobby thus shared a deep and beautiful bond that showcased the healing powers of friendship. To have him die abruptly in the hands of Harry feels like a sucker punch for most Potterheads, especially since Dobby grew to be a fan favorite through his hilarity and quirky nature. Dobby died the way he lived throughout the series: protecting and loving Harry Potter, and his emotional goodbye makes any fan reach for the tissues.
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Neville Longbottom
Neville's mom gives him a gum wrapper for the umpteenth time. His grandma tells him to throw it out, but he secretly keeps it.
"Thanks Mum."
-Neville Longbottom
After Harry, , complete with the sad backstory. Although his parents were still alive, Neville never got to live a happy life with them and only got to see them during visits to St. Mungo's. There, his mom frequently handed him Drooble's Best Blowing Gum wrappers, and Neville lovingly kept every one.
Neville's quiet thanks is a heartbreaking reminder that, even with his parents well and alive, his predicament is not much better than Harry's.
The line comes right after Neville's grandmother awkwardly shares the intimate situation with his friends, making his acceptance of the wrapper all the more endearing but also saddening. Neville's resilience, his longing for his parents, and his unshakable love for them make this one of the series's most emotional quotes.
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Harry Potter (inwardly)
Harry stands near his parents' grave and almost wishes he was buried with them.
"... Alive by their sacrifice and close to wishing, at this moment, that he was sleeping under the snow with them."
-Harry Potter (inwardly)
Harry Potter's life was changed irrevocably with the . Despite not having much time with his parents, Harry always felt their absence and longed for the parental love he never got. That longing especially overwhelms Harry as he stands by their grave in .
The quote is upsetting not only because of Harry's yearning but the utterly bleak outlook he has on his own life.
A part of Harry wishes to be buried alongside his loving parents rather than out in the cruel world that takes and expects too much from him. The line combines conversations about helplessness and mental health with the overbearing grief of losing parents. As a result, Harry's moment of reflection is a truly gut-wrenching moment that breaks the hearts of every reader.
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Harry Potter (internally)
Molly Weasley hugs Harry after the Triwizard Tournament, and it breaks him.
"He had no memory of ever being hugged like this, as though by a mother."
-Harry Potter (internally)
Harry spent most of his life being neglected and denied a safe space for his emotions. This is made especially apparent after the Triwizard Tournament. Despite witnessing Cedric's death, seeing his parents again, and being manipulated into reviving Voldemort, Harry's most emotional moment comes after all the nightmare of the final event: a hug from Molly Weasley.
Molly's embrace in
reminds Harry of how much he's missed out on and how little love he has really known, especially from maternal figures. The deeply disheartening quote is made all the more hurtful by how much Harry tries to hold in his tears and how the hug almost overwhelms him. Harry Potter is undoubtedly one of the best characters in the series, and it seems so unfair that the beloved Chosen One never got a chance to just be a kid who gets hugged by his mother. Harry's tragic life, Molly's motherly love, and the hard realization of all that Harry has lost truly make this quote the saddest throughout the entire series.
The Harry Potter franchise follows the adventure of a young boy introduced a whole new world of magic, mayhem and darkness. Traversing the obstacles in his path, young Harry's rise to heroics pits him against Lord Voldemort, one of the most dangerous wizards in the world and all his minions.
