'The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore'

Throughout seven books, five movies and billions of dollars, J.K. Rowling forgot to disclose one important little detail; "Dumbledore is gay."

"Falling in love can blind us to an extent," Rowling said of Dumbledore's feelings, adding that Dumbledore was "horribly, terribly let down."

Dumbledore's love, she observed, was his "great tragedy."

Hold on - love was Dumbledore's greatest tragedy? What happened to the depth of his character that extended into resisting the temptation of power and the dark arts?
We had to research it on a dozen different news sources before believing that Rowling had ever said anything of the sort.

Die-hard fans of the Harry Potter book series, most of whom are still suffering from Post-Potter Depression (PPD), usually love to get their hands on any new insight into their beloved books that might further their understanding of the masterpiece. However some fans aren't sure what to make of the latest insight shooting through the Internet faster than a Nimbus 2000.

When Rowling was questioned by a fan Friday night at Carnegie Hall about whether or not Dumbledore ever found true love, the author casually responded; "Dumbledore is gay," and revealed his unrequited love for fellow wizard Gellert Grindelwald.

As reported by the Associated Press, Rowling told the audience that while working on the upcoming Potter film, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," she noticed a reference in the script to a girl who was "once an interest of Dumbledore," and that a note was passed on to the director informing him of the truth about the character.

Of course, this tidbit of information could only elicit the most passionate responses from both Potter Party Poopers and avid fans alike. Concerned soccer moms fighting to ban the books from schools now have more ammunition. Some gay rights activists are left wondering why this wasn't a more prominent aspect of Dumbledore's character before.
If we didn't know any better, it would seem that the author simply conjured this out of mid-air.

It seems an odd time to reveal such a detail, after 10 years of silence on any reference to Dumbledore's sexuality. The timing brought Harry Potter back into the spotlight after months of mediocre media coverage, and makes one wonder - is this truly relevant to the epic story, or simply a publicity stunt?
More importantly, why didn't Rita Skeeter catch onto this while researching "The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore?"

Dumbledore himself admits that his greatest tragedy was his lust for power, and not for a certain dark wizard.

"I had proven, as a very young man, that power was my weakness, and my temptation," Dumbledore confided to Harry on Page 718 of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."

If love was his weakness, and not power, wouldn't he have said so?
We think this love should have been referenced in the book if it were the real motive behind Dumbledore's actions. Then perhaps we could have drawn the appropriate meaning from the situation, rather than being left to wonder about the truth three months after the last Potter book was published.

The issue here is not homosexuality itself, but consistency. It's possible that Rowling thought of Dumbledore as gay all along, but we can't find the relevance of, or evidence for, this detail.
For the past 10 years many people have been enchanted by Harry Potter and the world that Rowling weaves around him with her masterful storytelling. Now that the story is over, some things should be left to speculation; matters of this level of complexity only take away from the story, rather than add to it.
If there was an answer for every detail concerning the world of Harry Potter, the stories wouldn't be nearly as bewitching. We believe that Rowling, and fans everywhere, should remember that sometimes the best part of any masterpiece is the mystery.


Editors note: This article is an unsigned editorial issued by the East Tennessean staff. The editorial incorporates the opinion of the East Tennessean editorial board and therefore is not attributed to any one person.