Health/Psychology: Final Harry Potter Book Offers Double Lesson in Grief, Death

Harry Potter fans will anguish not only over the foreshadowed deaths of main characters, but also the end of a beloved series, says a Purdue University expert on childhood grief and mourning.

Harry Potter fans will anguish not only over the foreshadowed deaths of main characters, but also the end of a beloved series, says a Purdue University expert on childhood grief and mourning.

"We grieve for things that we are attached to, and children, in particular, have gotten attached to these characters," says Heather Servaty-Seib, a counseling psychologist and assistant professor of educational studies. "Readers will grieve for characters who die and that this is the last book. Parents should realize the end of the series is an added factor in how their child might react."

Servaty-Seib says the latest book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, as well as J.K Rowling's other Potter books, are good tools for teaching children about the nature of death. In the final Potter book, characters are expected to die, and in previous books, death has been a persistent theme. Earlier books have explored Harry's feelings after the deaths of his parents, as well as the deaths of other characters, including a classmate.

Servaty-Seib says children often do not have any experience with death until someone they are close to dies, and the Harry Potter books provide teachable moments that can prepare children.

"Parents need to talk with their children," she says. "I encourage parents to start the conversation before children start reading the book. It is not as much about the content of these discussions, but rather about communicating an attitude of openness. Start by asking your children what they have heard about the book and also perhaps about what the title, which mentions death, means to them."

Whenever speaking to children about death, Servaty-Seib recommends parents use the words death, dying and dead. Euphemisms are confusing for children and often cause difficulties.

"Children are curious about death at a very young age. It's like birth, growth, aging and other aspects of human development," she says. "It's something children need to know about."

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