Identity formation matters in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter

ABSTRACT. J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books evolve around the main character and focus on or around the development, the formation and the transformation of his and his fellows’ identity. The chartering of the development of selfhood, the growth and the development within a set, fantastical order fall within the classification criteria of a Bildungsroman, a literary genre in itself, with a well-deserved place in the fictional world. The purpose of this article is to present the notion of identity in accordance with Erik Erikson’s concepts of identity development versus identity formation, adapted to Harry Potter’s case.

Keywords: Identity; adolescent; Bildungsroman; Harry Potter; Erik Erikson