ALCH-201 Lessons

 Lesson 1 - Introduction to Alchemy

Objectives:

• Learn the basics of Alchemy.
• Get settled with the course and the professor.

Hello everyone! Congratulations on making it to another year at Hogwarts! I am happy to see each and every one of your lovely faces today in class. I am so glad all of you have chosen to take Alchemy as one of your Second Year electives, and I'm looking forward to getting to know all of my amazing students. My name is Professor Serafina Rosenquist and I am the Alchemy professor here at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. If you are having trouble with the course, be reassured that you can always send me an owl or an email. I am also on the Muggle book of faces so feel free to add me and send me a message on there. You may owl my Head Student or my PAs for help as well. The last thing I would want is for any of you to struggle in this class.

Before we begin, I would like to tell you a little bit about myself. I was born in Malmö, Sweden and attended Durmstrang Institute for Magical Learning. My mother was from Monaco, so we would take family trips there during the summer. Shortly after graduating, I traveled the world doing independent research on alchemy in different cultures. I took up a teaching position at Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and taught there for six years before I was offered the job as a co-professor here. Shortly after, I was promoted to a full time professor as well as the head of the Alchemy Department.

Now that you know a bit about me, let's begin! Here are a few rules and guidelines that will help you in my class:

1. Make sure you take notes.

Notes will help you succeed in this class. Please make sure you keep concise notes to help yourself when studying. Everything that I post does not have to be rewritten; it is best to use shorthand or condense your notes so you can summarize the important points in each lesson. If you run out of parchment, see the desk located in the back. It is supplied with parchment to suit your needs. 

2. Always follow the safety guidelines. 

Before we handle any elements, I am required to go over the basic safety guidelines. These are posted to help you minimize casualties. 

3. No cheating on any assignment.

This is an elective class and I intend to make sure students are not bogged down with excess assignments. Respect is given where it is earned. If you are found plagiarizing on any assignment, you will be given a failing grade. Each case of cheating will be followed by detention with your Head of House and professor.

4. In the case of an emergency, contact the professor. 

If there is an emergency, you can contact me via owl or email. I check these multiple times a day and I will reply to each of them. If I fail to answer your question, you may contact a Professor Assistant if it is regarding the course. The fastest way to contact the professor is via owl. However, if you do choose to email me, my email can be found at the bottom of the lesson.

5. Relax.

I am here to help. While teaching you, I want to make this as easy and as informative as possible. This class is not here to test your sanity. If you are to cast a harmful charm, just remember we have amazing professors at Hogwarts who are capable of reversing it.

Now since we have gotten the rules and regulations out of the way, let’s talk about alchemy!

What exactly is Alchemy? 

Many scholars and alchemists have given this definition:

"Alchemy is a branch of magic that assists the Witch or Wizard in transmuting base metals into noble metals." 

We will in fact be discussing how to transmute base metals into noble metals. However, while alchemy is about transmuting elements, there is also a greater purpose behind it. It’s a spiritual adventure - not one relating to religion, but one about finding your spirit. Spirit has quite a lot to do with this course as it not only helps you in your alchemical endeavors, but you will also find it makes it easier to use magic in your other courses. Working with your mind spiritually will help clear out any stray thoughts and emotions that are blocking your concentration and willpower, which as you have learned in Charms, both are extremely important in performing any sort of spell. With spirit, remember that it is crucial that you remain open-minded.

Base metals are any type of element that could easily corrode when oxygen is present. Corroding is when a substance, such as a metal, is deteriorating slowly by a chemical action. They are far less expensive than noble metals and can be found almost anywhere. We will only discuss four base metals in this course; however, we will go more in depth with them in future years. 

Noble metals are the exact opposite of base metals. Noble metals are difficult to find and are highly resistant to corrosion when they come into contact with oxygen. This type of metal is extremely expensive and therefore not many alchemists are capable of working with it extensively without the help of a powerful and wealthy person. 

An element is a chemical substance composed of a single type of specific atom. I won’t get into the logistics of an element until later into the course. Elements are universal. For example, the air we breathe is composed of several elements. 

The Four Aspects is a term used for a basic but important alchemical category regarding the classical elements. They are Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. The aspects correspond with solids, gasses, liquids, and plasma, respectively, in scientific knowledge. While some alchemists believe that there are more aspects that should be added to this group, all agree that these four will suffice for basic knowledge.

The Seven Planetary Aspects are based upon the seven classical planets. This not only embodies the physical planets, but the spiritual presence found in each and every characteristic of the elements. We will discuss this later in the year. 

The Three Primes are also very important to alchemy. While many alchemists believe this to be something that is not needed to study basic alchemy, it's important to understand each of the primes. The Three Primes are what connect us to the rest of the universe. The Three Primes are who we are.

Alchemy is not simply a physical course; it is also a spiritual journey. We will be studying things that delve deep into the very subconscious of your minds and help manifest your spirit. While we will not be attempting such things as creating everlasting life, we will be learning essentials on balancing your spirit that will help ease your magical flow.

It is imperative that you understand these things before continuing on to the next lesson. Each lesson will get progressively harder because each lesson is based on the material discussed in the previous lesson. 

Now that we have finished going over Lesson One, we should be off on our assignments! If you have any questions for me in particular, please do not hesitate to owl or email me.

My email address is serafina.rosenquist@gmail.com.

Now that's it for this lesson! I will see you all next week if you choose to complete this amazing course!