GREGORY BASSHAM is chair of the Philosophy Department and a professor of philosophy at King's College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He is coeditor of the forthcoming The Hobbit and Philosophy and has coedited The Lord of the Rings and Philosophy, The Chronicles of Narnia and Philosophy, and Basketball and Philosophy. WILLIAM IRWIN is a professor of philosophy at King's College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles, including Batman and Philosophy, House and Philosophy, and Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy.

Foreword by Tom Morris. Acknowledgments: Some House Points I'd Like to Make. Introduction: Harry Potter and the Enchantment of Philosophy. PART ONE The Horcrux of the Matter: Destiny, Identity, and the Soul. 1 The Soul in Harry Potter (Scott Sehon). 2 Sirius Black: Man or Dog? (Eric Saidel). 3 Destiny in the Wizarding World (Jeremy Pierce). PART TWO The Most Powerful Magic of All. 4 Choosing Love: The Redemption of Severus Snape (Catherine Jack Deavel and David Paul Deavel). 5 Love Potion No. 9 (Gregory Bassham). 6 Harry Potter, Radical Feminism, and the Power of Love (Anne Collins Smith). PART THREE Potterwatch: Freedom and Politics. 7 Patriotism, House Loyalty, and the Obligations of Belonging (Andrew P. Mills). 8 Dumbledore's Politics (Beth Admiraal and Regan Lance Reitsma). 9 Dumbledore, Plato, and the Lust for Power (David Lay Williams and Alan J. Kellner). PART FOUR The Room of Requirement: A Potter Potpourri. 10 Is Dumbledore Gay? Who's to Say? (Tamar Szabo Gendler). 11 Choices vs. Abilities: Dumbledore on Self-Understanding (Gregory Bassham). 12 The Magic of Personal Transformation (S. Joel Garver). 13 Just in Your Head? J. K. Rowling on Separating Reality from Illusion (John Granger with Gregory Bassham). 14 A Pensieve for Your Thoughts? Harry Potter and the Magic of Memory (Amy Kind). 15 A Hogwarts Education: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (Gregory Bassham). PART FIVE Beyond the Veil: Death, Hope, and Meaning. 16 The Real Secret of the Phoenix: Moral Regeneration through Death (Charles Talia). 17 Beyond Godric's Hollow: Life after Death and the Search for Meaning (Jonathan L. Walls and Jerry L. Walls). 18 Why Harry and Socrates Decide to Die: Virtue and the Common Good (Michael W. Austin). Contributors: The Hogwarts (for Muggles) Faculty. The Marauder's Index.