Harry Potter is easily my favorite series in the entire world. The world of magic and fantasy was always there for me during a lot of troubling times in my life. It made me feel less alone in the world when I always felt different than others. There is one odd character that should be recognized as the most helpful and cherished character to anyone who has felt like the odd one out. Luna Lovegood is perhaps the most unappreciated character due to the fact that not only does her character send such a strong message, but helps others with mental or health issues, the biggest example being Evanna Lynch herself.
Luna Lovegood is introduced to the series in the fifth book; Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. A point in Harry’s life where he is exiled because of saying Voldemort was back, and Luna is one of the few people to believe him whole-heartedly after just meeting him that year. Many often say she is their favorite in the series.
Unfortunately few people seem to realize just how much depth there is to Luna Lovegood. According to Carolyn Cox in Harry Potter Actress Evanna Lynch Tells Homophobes to Learn a Lesson from Luna Lovegood, Lynch got some backlash when she showed her support for Ireland’s marriage equality back in late May of this year. What does this have to do with Luna one might ask? Because Lynch was quick to respond to it. She first told them all the reason they probably liked her was because of her role as Luna Lovegood. A girl who Lynch says has “a GOOD kind of love.” Lynch described Luna as her love for people not being “conditional or possessive or needy or demanding.” She describes her abnormal character as “constantly in awe at the diversity, strangeness, and newness” of the world. She says it is good because while we are fussing about fitting in, she is falling in love with a freckle on your nose (Cox).Shouldn’t we all strive to be like that? So few people realize just how intelligent and wise Luna really is, despite being in Ravenclaw, one of the houses in the magic school of Hogwarts. Her intelligence and comprehension of things is proven in a very chilling quote to Harry stating, “If I were You Know Who, I’d want you to feel cut off from everyone else. Because if it’s just you alone, you’re not as much of a threat.” She is so much more than the comic relief everyone makes her out to be.
Evanna Lynch talks about Luna and playing her a lot, and how much it helped her in life. She is now going around and helping people out with their own self esteem issues. In an interview with Western Front, Lynch talks about how at 11 she was suffering from an eating disorder. She felt it was “the one thing she couldn’t fail at.” She just felt too odd around everyone and wanted an exact reason for it. She wrote to JK Rowling saying how much she loved the books and Luna Lovegood and she wanted to thank her because the books helped take her mind off of things. Not only did Rowling reply, they still talk to this day and it helped Lynch overcome the disorder. She always felt honored to play Luna because she had no negativity to her and was just full of self-acceptance and love.
At some point in our lives we have always felt like the odd one out, the freak. That can take someone to a very dark place that they can never come out of. Luna Lovegood embraces the oddness about herself, and tries to help people in any way she can. To have that kind of self-love and acceptance is a feeling we all crave. We can all relate to Luna in our own way and that brings a lot of comfort and hope to someone. Luna is not just comic relief she is a saving grace to a lot of kids and adults worldwide. She is an expert at keeping Nargles away.
Cox, Carolyn. "Harry Potter Actress Evanna Lynch Tells Homophobes to Learn a Lesson from Luna Lovegood." The Mary Sue. N.p., 29 May 2015. Web. 25 Oct. 2015.
Olberding, Morgan. "The magical lessons of Luna Lovegood: Q&A with Harry Potter's Evanna Lynch." The Western Front. Ed. Brandon Stone. N.p., 17 May 2013. Web. 25 Oct. 2015.
