Lily Evans
![]() | |
Lily Potter (née Evans) | |
---|---|
Biographical information | |
Born | 30 January, 1960 |
Died | 31 October, 1981 (aged 21) Godric's Hollow |
Blood status | Muggle-born |
Marital status | Married |
Also known as | Lovely Lily (by Horace Slughorn) |
Title(s) | Head Girl |
Physical information | |
Species | Human |
Gender | Female |
Hair colour | Red |
Eye colour | Green |
Skin colour | Light |
Family information | |
Family members |
|
Magical characteristics | |
Wand | Willow, 10¼", swishy |
Patronus | Doe [1] |
Affiliation | |
House | Gryffindor |
Loyalty |
- "Your mother was there for me at a time when no one else was. Not only was she a singularly gifted witch, she was also an uncommonly kind woman. She had a way of seeing the beauty in others even, and perhaps most especially, when that person couldn't see it in themselves."
- —Remus Lupin talking to Harry Potter about Lily Evans[src]
After Hogwarts, Lily married James Potter and they had a son, Harry. She, James, and James's friends (Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew) all joined the Order of the Phoenix during the First Wizarding War; she and her husband defied Lord Voldemort himself three times. However, Lily and James were forced to go into hiding after a prophecy was made concerning Lord Voldemort and their infant son. James and Lily were betrayed by Peter Pettigrew to Lord Voldemort. Lily was murdered by Voldemort in 1981, along with her husband, while they were trying to protect their son. Lily briefly appeared again through the Resurrection Stone, along with James, Sirius and Remus in 1998. After the Second Wizarding War, Lily had three grandchildren through her son, Harry Potter; James Sirius Potter, Albus Severus Potter and Lily Luna Potter, who was named after her grandmother.
Contents[show] |
Biography
Early life
- Lily: "I'm not a freak. That's a horrible thing to say."
- Petunia: "That's where you're going. A special school for freaks. You and that Snape boy ... weirdos, that's what you two are..."
- Lily: "You didn't think it was such a freak's school when you wrote to the headmaster and begged him to take you."
- — Lily and Petunia argue before Lily departs for Hogwarts.[src]


Hogwarts years
- Severus Snape: "I never meant to call you Mudblood, it just —"
- Lily: "Slipped out? It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends ... You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine."
- — The end of Lily's friendship with Severus Snape.[src]



This led to a parting of ways between Lily and Snape, as the former had already become dismayed by Snape's fascination with the Dark Arts, and his friendship with his Slytherin house-mates Mulciber and Avery, both of whom were aspiring Death Eaters. Harry would later witness the scene of his father's bullying and his mother's ambiguous intervention twice via a pensieve, as well as other scenes depicting his mother's friendship with Snape.[3]
By Lily's fifth year, James was repeatedly asking her out, but she refused him, calling him an "arrogant toerag" because he bullied other students, particularly Severus Snape. James's best friend Sirius Black later commented that James could not resist showing off and making a fool of himself whenever she was around. Lily did not, however, hate James. While she didn't approve of his bullying, she did admire how James stood up for his friends and other people who were cruelly treated by Snape's aspiring-Death Eater friends.[2]
During their seventh year, James matured greatly, proving himself to be responsible and brave. This led to her finally agreeing to go out with him; and Lily's attraction to him grew into genuine affection and eventually love. The young couple were chosen to be Head Boy and Head Girl.[4]
In late 1977, Lily and James had a disastrous first meeting with Petunia and her then-fiancé, Vernon Dursley,[5] which presumably took place over Christmas break, as they were both still at Hogwarts. When Vernon tried to impress James with his car, the wizard in turn boasted of his own material wealth, and a row ensued.[5] The evening ended with someone storming out of the restaurant and Lily bursting into tears.[5]
Petunia was married by the end of 1977. Though Lily and James were invited to the wedding, Petunia refused to have Lily as a bridesmaid, upsetting her deeply. [5] At the reception, Vernon would not talk to James, but described him as "some magician" within his earshot.[5]
Marriage and the Order
- Severus Snape: "The — the prophecy ... the prediction ... Trelawney... He thinks it means Lily Evans!"
- Albus Dumbledore: "The prophecy did not refer to a woman. It spoke of a boy born at the end of July —"
- Severus Snape: "You know what I mean! He thinks it means her son, he is going to hunt her down — kill them all —"
- — Severus Snape warns Dumbledore of the danger to the Potters[src]
Living off James' family fortune, the Potters became full-time members of the Order of the Phoenix, an organisation dedicated to fighting Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters, along with their friends Sirius, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew.[7] During the war, they defied Voldemort on at least three occasions, the first being when they refused to join his cause when he tried to recruit them.[8]
Life in hiding and death

- Lily: "Not Harry, please no don't kill him, take me, kill me instead —"
- Lord Voldemort: "This is my last warning —"
- Lily: "Not Harry! Please ... have mercy ... Not Harry! Please — I'll do anything..."
- — Lily Potter stands between Lord Voldemort and her son.[src]


In a letter to Sirius dated around Harry's first birthday in July 1981, Lily mentioned that the family had a pet cat, and relayed a story about Harry flying on the toy broomstick Sirius had given him as a birthday present.[3] The Fidelius Charm was placed on their home in Godric's Hollow. Their Secret-Keeper, Peter Pettigrew, was chosen as a less likely choice than Sirius Black, but he betrayed the Potters by telling Voldemort of their whereabouts.[14]
- "The Boy Who Lived. How lies have fed your legend, Harry. Shall I reveal what really happened that night 13 years ago? Shall I divulge how I truly lost my powers? Yes, shall I? It was love. You see, when dear sweet Lily Potter gave her life for her only son...she provided the ultimate protection. I could not touch him. It was old magic. Something I should have foreseen. But no matter, no matter. Things have changed. I can touch you...now!"
- —Voldemort reflecting on his first defeat[src]


Post-mortem
- Lily: "You've been so brave."
- James: "You are nearly there. Very close. We are . . . so proud of you."
- — Lily and James Potter speak to their son through the Resurrection Stone[src]

In Harry's fifth year, he entered Severus Snape's memory of being bullied by James and Sirius via the use of Pensieve and saw his mother standing up for Snape. In 1998, he relived that same memory of Snape's, as well as many others containing his mother.




Lily's only granddaughter was named after her.[3]
Physical description


Personality and traits


- "Lily. Lovely Lily. She was exceedingly bright... your mother. Even more impressive when one considers she was Muggle-born."
- —Horace Slughorn told to Harry Potter[src]
When in a temper, Lily had a sharp tongue, and had no trouble standing up to others. She had strong principles, ending her friendship with Snape when she could no longer tolerate his fascination with the Dark Arts or his devotion to Voldemort's genocidal cause.
Lily and her husband were also brave and self-sacrificing, defying Voldemort three times as members of the Order of the Phoenix, and dying to protect their son. Dumbledore has claimed that she was very much like her son, Harry.
Magical abilities and skills
Lily Potter was an extremely talented and skilful witch. Her skills were such that, Lord Voldemort was willing to overlook her Muggle-born status and asked that she and her husband join him.[8][16]

- Control of under-age magic: Before attending Hogwarts, Lily was revealed to already have a level of control over her magic, which was a rare skill. She was able to slow her descent through the air after jumping off a swing, and control the petals of a flower.
- Potioneer: According to Horace Slughorn, Lily was an excellent potioneer.
- Charms: Her wand was said to have been good for Charms work, which meant that Lily must have been talented at Charms.
- Patronus Charm: Lily could conjure a Patronus in the shape of a doe, which is identical to Severus Snape's Patronus and the female counterpart to her husband's Patronus and Animagus form, as well as her son's Patronus.


- Duelling: Lily, along with her husband, James, was able to defy and escape Lord Voldemort three times. On the fourth encounter, however, she was killed (though it must be noted that she was not carrying her wand at the time).
- Transfiguration: Lily also had at least some skill in Transfiguration. During her youth, she performed some Transfiguration spells in front of her sister Petunia during the holidays, doing illegal under-age magic. She gave Horace Slughorn a present, a lily petal floating in a bowl, and as he witnessed the petal fall towards the bottom of the bowl, it was transformed into a fish that he kept as a pet, until it disappeared on the day she was killed by Voldemort.
Relationships
Family
- "You didn't just lose a mother that night in Godric's Hollow, you know. I lost a sister."
- —Petunia showing her affection for Lily.[src]




Severus Snape
- Lily: "Does it make a difference, being Muggle-born?"
- Snape: "No. It doesn't make any difference."
- — Severus Snape discussing Lily's Muggle-born status as children[src]


Lily's grandson, Albus, has both Lily's eyes (like Harry) and the middle name Severus.
James Potter


- Harry: "How come she married him? She hated him!"
- Sirius: "Nah, she didn't."
- Remus: "She started going out with him in seventh year."
- — Sirius Black and Remus Lupin telling Harry Potter about his parents[src]
The Marauders




Later on, Remus grew close to Lily's son, Harry Potter. He taught Harry the Patronus Charm, and protected him throughout the Second Wizarding War, while Harry ended up becoming godfather to Remus's son Teddy.
Despite Peter Pettigrew's cowardly nature, Lily became more friendly with him as she warmed to James, even affectionately referring to Peter as "Wormy," from his nickname "Wormtail." When James and Lily went into hiding from Lord Voldemort, Lily and James trusted Peter enough to make him their Secret Keeper, though only at Sirius' suggestion to use someone less obvious than himself for the role. By then, however, Peter had already become a spy for Voldemort, and he betrayed his dearest friends out of fear for his own life; the last time Peter saw Lily and James, Lily noted that he "seemed down." After Voldemort killed Lily and James, it is possible that Pettigrew felt some regret for his treacherous, heartless betrayal; in 1998, Pettigrew unintentionally saved Harry from Lord Voldemort, who was trying to kill the boy through Pettigrew's silver hand, by briefly hesitating when Harry reminded him of his life debt. This one, tiny impulse of mercy, however, led to Pettigrew being killed by the same hand.
Harry Potter


- Lily: "You've been so brave."
- James: "You are nearly there. Very close. We are…so proud of you."
- — Harry's parents speaking to him through the Resurrection Stone[src]
The few times he ever saw his parents were in pictures given to him by Rubeus Hagrid, through a vision within the Mirror of Erised, as spectral forms which came out of Voldemort's wand during Priori Incantatem, as stored memories within the Pensieve, and again as spectral forms when he "recalled" them during the Battle of Hogwarts, by using the Resurrection Stone. Lily's spirit was described as looking at Harry as if she couldn't do so enough, and Harry asked his mother to stay close to him as he approached the Death Eaters' camp, and certain doom. Both James and Lily told Harry that they were tremendously proud of him for being so brave and strong despite all the pain and suffering he had endured, and gave him the support he needed to sacrifice himself to Voldemort.
Harry eventually named two of his children after his late parents and godfather, James Sirius and Lily Luna.
Horace Slughorn


- Slughorn: "Lily. Lovely Lily. She was exceedingly bright, your mother. Even more impressive considering she was Muggle-born..."
- Harry: "One of my best friends is Muggle-born, and she's the best in our year."
- Slughorn: "No, no! You mustn't think I'm prejudiced! Your mother was one of my absolute favourites!"
- — Horace Slughorn to Harry Potter in 1996.[src]
Albus Dumbledore

Minerva McGonagall

Order of the Phoenix members


Etymology


Lily's maiden name was Evans. Evans is a Welsh or English surname derived from the given name Evan[21]. As a Welsh name, Evan means "young warrior"; it can also be considered a form of the name John, (named after the apostle John) meaning "God is gracious and merciful"[22].
Lily's married surname is Potter. Potter is a very common surname of English origin.[23] It traditionally refers to the occupation of making pottery. Beatrix Potter was a well-known English children's author. Potter's Field is the name for a burial ground for the unknown or unclaimed dead, particularly soldiers and orphans; It is first mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew, the Potter family had many members that fit that description. The Potter Box is a model for making ethical decisions developed at Harvard University. J. K. Rowling has also commented that she has liked the name since childhood, due to a relationship with two friends called Ian and Vikki Potter.[24]
Behind the scenes


- In the films, Geraldine Somerville plays Lily as an adult, Susie Shinner plays her as a teenager, and Ellie Darcey-Alden plays an even younger Lily in the film adaptations of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows [25] and so is one of the 14 characters to appear in all 8 film adaptions. J.K. Rowling was asked to play Lily in the Mirror of Erised scene of the film version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, but she refused the part because she said that she was "not cut out to be an actress because she'd mess-up somehow."[26]
- In the Harry Potter novels, Lily is mentioned to have died aged 21, yet in the films she appears much older. This could be that she is seen with Harry in the mirror at the age she would be at the time, had she been alive (31), though this doesn't make sense as she still appears to be older than 21 in flashbacks, photographs and during the Prior Incantatem scene. So it's most likely that just like Severus Snape in the films (the character is in his 30s, Alan Rickman is in his 60s) the character herself is still in her 20s, however she merely looks like she is in her 30s.
- In the novels it is often mentioned that Lily had green eyes and that Harry had the same eyes. In the films however, Harry has blue eyes and young Lily has brown eyes.
- In the film version of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Remus Lupin mentions that Lily had been there for him at a time when no one else was. This statement may or may not be canon, as the books never imply that Lily knew Lupin well until after she started dating James. However, considering her high academic standing prior to her appointment as Head Girl, it seems likely that Lily and Remus would have served as Gryffindor prefects together.
- Susie Shinner did not appear as Lily in the film version of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, although a promotional image showed her in costume.
- In the film version of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Voldemort taunts Harry by calling Lily "your filthy Muggle mother" rather than "Mudblood", even though she's a Muggle-born witch. Note that in the film version of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the Tom Riddle coming out of his diary uses the term Mudblood. Although, it should be noted that Voldemort, believing in total blood purity, wouldn't care for technicalities and likely considered muggle-borns as "bad" as muggles themselves
- In European folklore and the infamous treatise on witchcraft, Malleus Maleficarum, the combination of red hair and green eyes was considered the mark of a witch, thus it is notable that Lily Evans possesses this exact colouring.[27]
- In the film version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, there is an additional sequence after Aragog's funeral where Horace Slughorn describes a gift given to him by Harry's mother, Lily. One day, he'd found a bowl in his office with a small amount of water in it, upon which floated a single petal from a lily. As he watched, the petal sank into the water, and just before it reached the bottom, it transformed into a fish. Slughorn was delighted by what he considered a beautiful piece of magic, and kept the fish for many years, naming it Francis. On the night of 31 October, 1981, the night Lily Potter died, Francis disappeared from his bowl, and Slughorn knew right then and there what had happened to Lily.
- Lily's youngest grandson and her son are the only Potter members to inherit Lily's eyes. It is very clear they are Lily's eyes, most people comment that Harry has her eyes, and looks very much like James. Harry, when looking into Albus' eyes, comments they were Lily's eyes.
- Lily and Order of the Phoenix member, Nymphadora Tonks, are very similar. They are the only people who married a Marauder. Lily married James and Nymphadora married Remus Lupin. They both are related to Muggles (Lily's parents and Nymphadora's paternal grandparents) and have one son, Harry Potter and Teddy Lupin, both sons were only babies when their mothers died fighting Dark forces and both sons have inherited something from their mothers: Harry inherited his mother's eyes, Teddy inherited his mother's Metamorphmagus ability.
- Lily and her daughter-in-law Ginny, also are very very similar to each other. They both have red hair, they both married a Potter: Lily married James Potter; Ginny married Harry Potter, they both were very popular in school, both weren't afraid to stand up for their friends: Lily when the Marauders harassed Severus Snape, and Ginny when people ridiculed Luna Lovegood by calling her Looney Lovegood.
- Rubeus Hagrid revealed that Lord Voldemort tried to recruit James Potter and Lily Evans before they left Hogwarts. While this is understandable for James, it was revealed by Rowling that Muggle-borns such as Lily can be permitted to join the Death Eaters, but only in rare circumstances.[28]
- J.K. Rowling said that like Ginny, she was a popular girl.[29]
- Lily Evans's life bears some resemblances to that of the character Lilias Craven in Marsha Norman's stage musical adaptation of Francis Hodgson Burnett's novel The Secret Garden, having died prematurely, been part of an unrequited love triangle, and having passed her eyes on to a young relative.
- Lily's name continues a pattern of flower names in the series. For instance, in the generation during the First Wizarding War, there was her and Petunia Evans. A lily and a petunia are both flowers. In the generation of the Second Wizarding War there was Narcissa Malfoy, Pansy Parkinson, Fleur Delacour, Poppy Pomfrey and Lavender Brown. In the generation after the war there was Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger's daughter, Rose Weasley. There was also Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley's daughter, Lily Luna Potter.
- Lily is the only named Head Girl.
- Though Harry bears a great resemblance to his father, it is often noted that he has Lily's eyes. In a 1999 interview, Rowling stated, "Harry has his father's and mother's good looks. But he has his mother's eyes and that's very important in a future book". That future book was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. In Snape's death scene in that novel, after having passed on his memories to Harry, he whispers to Harry: "Look... at... me..." In one of Snape's memories, it is revealed that Dumbledore persuades Snape to protect Harry after Lily's death by mentioning the fact that he has "precisely" the same eyes as his mother. His last words to Harry were simply a desire to see Lily's eyes before he died.
- Lily's initially negative opinion of James is not shown in the films, and the attraction between them seems to develop much sooner.
- Ellie Darcey-Alden who plays young Lily Potter in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, actually has brown eyes, unlike how Lily's eyes are described, Daniel Radcliffe's eyes or Geraldine Somerville's eyes.
Appearances
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film) (Appears in photographs)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Appears in flashback(s))
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film) (Appears in photographs)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Appears in flashback(s)) (Appears as a ghost or a spirit)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film) (Appears as a ghost or a spirit)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Appears in flashback(s)) (Appears in photographs)
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film) (Appears in photographs)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Mentioned only)
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film) (Appears in photographs)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Appears in flashback(s)), (Appears as a ghost or a spirit)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (Appears in flashback(s))
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (Appears in flashback(s)) (Appears as a ghost or a spirit)
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game) (Appears as a ghost or a spirit)
- Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (Appears in flashback(s)) (Appears as a ghost or a spirit) (Appears in photographs)
Notes and references
- ↑ http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2007/0730-bloomsbury-chat.html
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 4
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 The Dursleys' backstory was shown onscreen during the Pottermore press conference on 23 June, 2011, as seen in this YouTube video from the Telegraph (partial transcription available here).
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 10
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 19 October 2007 J.K. Rowling at Carnegie Hall
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 J. K. Rowling interview on PotterCast #130
- ↑ The timeframe of the prophecy can be determined as late 1979 from J. K. Rowling's statement during her 2007 Carnegie Hall appearance that the Potters went into hiding when Lily was pregnant, and the scene in Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33 where Snape goes to ask Dumbledore to protect Lily, which must have taken place in autumn given the description of the setting ("...the sound of the wind in the branches" and "Though leaves and branches still flew through the night air around them...").
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 25
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 33
- ↑ J.K. Rowling at the 2004 Edinburgh Book Festival
- ↑ 2005 Leaky Cauldron/MuggleNet interview with J. K. Rowling
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- ↑ J K Rowling at the Edinburgh Book Festival
- ↑ 30 July 2007 Bloomsbury Live Chat with J.K. Rowling
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
- ↑ Behind the Name: Lily
- ↑ Flower Facts: Lily
- ↑ Behind the Name: Evans
- ↑ Behind the Name: Evan
- ↑ Behind the Name: Rankings for 'Potter'
- ↑ MuggleNet: Name Origins
- ↑ http://www.hollywoodnews.com/2010/08/22/new-casting-information-for-harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows/
- ↑ http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/rumours_view.cfm?id=11
- ↑ Wikipedia article on red hair
- ↑ http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/news_view.cfm?id=80
- ↑ http://www.accio-quote.org/themes/weaselys.htme
External Sponsor Links
- What To Read After Harry? The Persephane Pendrake Chronicles by Lady Ellen Enter a magical world of mystery and wonder, where fantasy reigns supreme and casual chatter sparkles green. Meet Persephane (or Persy as she prefers), Thaddeus, Benson and P-C as they embark on their enchanted adventures to thwart the evil, black witch Melanthios.
- Click here! Buy a sponsored link and description for your website on this page. Act quickly, the few sponsorship slots sell out fast!

9,227pages on this wiki

14,261photos on this wiki


Recent Wiki Activity
-
Hufflepuff
edited by Rodolphus 2 minutes ago -
Common Welsh Green
edited by Porge 10 minutes ago -
Hungarian Horntail
edited by Porge 23 minutes ago -
Molly Weasley
edited by Prse7 24 minutes ago
Live!
Harry Potter Wiki Chat
Who's here (1)
More from


Spy Kids Wiki Spy Kids 4 unveils "aroma-scope" - smell the action in a theater near you!
See more...LEGO Wiki Your one-stop shop for all things LEGO
See more...Game of Thrones Wiki Revisit and recap Season 1
See more...
Recent Questions
How the shizlo can Wizards do magic
edited by A Wikia contributor 3 minutes agoMore names of squibs
created by A Wikia contributor 11 minutes agoCure for lycanthropy
edited by A Wikia contributor 15 minutes agoWho else died in the Battle of Hogwarts other than Voldy, Fred, Remus, Tonks
edited by A Wikia contributor 39 minutes ago
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar