She Persisted - Blog Posts
Professor McGonagall
Today is the birthday of Professor McGonagall, our stern but motherly figure while attending Hogwarts, especially for those in her house, Gryffindor. While off topic, as JK Rowling stated she wanted English actors only to portray the Hogwarts students, she also stated that she always wanted Maggie Smith to portray Professor (Minerva) McGonagall who not only played the part but held it as dear to her heart as we do, as she continued to film both Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part II.
Professor McGonagall was always a great mother figure to me as she was clearly an independent woman; she was also strict and fair: important qualities for someone who is going to need to guide young wizards, teach, and be a guardian at a boarding school. She was also a role model, maybe not directly as Hermione Granger was, but she taught all of her students (readers included) to stand up for themselves, believe in themselves, and be honest and truthful about yourself, to yourself, and your surroundings.
Some of my best moments with her will always be in regards to Neville, who throughout his years as a students at Hogwarts she repeatedly told him that all he needed was confidence. She further pushed this when after the O.W.L.S. she stood up for him to himself, reminding him that he should be proud of his accomplishments and not base his happiness on his grandmother. With these developments, and her change from guardian to friend as our Hogwarts friends grew older, there was much to admire and adore and want in a personal relationship with Professor McGonagall, all before getting to her history and heartbreak pre-Hogwarts years and her odd relationship with Dumbledore. She was force to be reckoned with, her and her Maggie Smith, and I encourage all to re-read the books and explore her history more to understand how truly Brave, Clever and Kind she was.
OH MY GOODNESS and her AND her patronus was a Cat!!! <3
