The Essential Defence Against the Dark Arts
written by Gaby
This book will teach you the essentials to Defense Against the Dark Arts.
Last Updated
05/31/21
Chapters
7
Reads
2,802
Boggarts
Chapter 5
A Boggart is an amortal shape-shifting non-being that takes on the form of its observer's worst fear. Because of their shape-shifting ability, no one knows what a Boggart looks like when it is alone, as it changes instantly upon encountering someone.
When facing a Boggart, it is best to have someone else along, to try to confuse it, since facing more than one person at once makes it indecisive towards determining what form it should take, usually resulting in a not frightening combination of the victims' fears.
Boggarts would, at least before the Battle of Hogwarts, very commonly appear as Lord Voldemort, since he represented the worst fear of many wizard kinds.
Eye colour
Varies
Skin colour
Varies
Hair colour
Varies
Related to
Bogeyman (possibly)
Native to
Worldwide
Alternative names
Bogeyman (potentially)
Boggle
Mortality
Amortal
Distinction
Transforms into the worst fear of the nearest observer(s)
Affiliation
Fear
Ministry of Magic Classification
Non-being
Status
Extant
Physical appearance
Nobody knows what a Boggart looks like if nobody is there to see it, although it continues to exist, usually giving evidence of its presence by rattling, shaking or scratching the object in which it is hiding. Boggarts particularly like confined spaces, but may also be found lurking in woods and around shadowy corners.[2]
Nature
"A Boggart is a shape-shifting creature that will assume the form of whatever most frightens the person who encounters it. "
—A boggart's basic nature[src]
Much like Poltergeists, Boggart are non-beings, who, although they resemble living creatures, are not considered magically "alive" and are as a result amortal (a Boggart can be made to disappear, but it will inevitably reappear, with several more by its side at times). Much like Poltergeists with mischief and Dementors with gloom and depression, Boggarts seem to embody the human emotion of fear, and consequently feed on other beings' fears.
Boggarts' ability to shape-shift shows remarkable speed and fluidity, but has several limitations. Firstly, being confined, if nothing else, by the size of the room it inhabits, the Boggart will scale down an otherwise-gigantic form (as seen when a Boggart turned into the Moon). Secondly, though a Boggart who transforms into a magical being or object can replicate its abilities to an extent, this will be a weaker facsimile of the real thing; thus, a Boggart transformed into a Dementor has weaker magic than a real Dementor (according to Professor Lupin, who exploited this effect to simulate a Dementor attack in Harry's presence to help him perfect the use of the Patronus Charm at no serious risk to Harry Potter's soul.)
Additionally, when a witch or wizard has multiple fears that tie for their "worst," the Boggart will typically cycle through those fears, presumably randomly. For example, in 1995, when Molly Weasley was attempting to destroy a boggart that had taken up residence in 12 Grimmauld Place, the Boggart took the form of the freshly dead bodies of her family, as well as Harry Potter, whom she loved like a son. Since she feared the deaths of all her loved ones equally, the Boggart cycled through all the corpses randomly.
The extent of Boggarts' intelligence is unclear; though they sometimes take the forms of sentient beings as part of their fear-inducing transformations, those false "people" appear to be little more than caricatures, acting out the motions of the victim's fear involving said people, heedless of their surroundings. It is worth noting however that one Boggart once settled into the form of a human killer, foregoing individual transformations, and successfully posed as this man for a long period of time; and Boggarts' closest-known "relatives", Poltergeists and Dementors, both possess sapience.
Though they cannot see other non-beings like Dementors, Muggles can sometimes see Boggarts; however, as most Muggles refuse to acknowledge anything that might even be considered somewhat magical, the glimpses they catch of Boggarts are usually dismissed as mere hallucinations or figments of the viewer's imagination. This denial is helped by the fact that Muggles rarely see Boggarts plainly, due to their favoured haunts being dark places away from the public eye.
Defence against a boggart
The Boggart-Banishing Spell is Riddikulus. The charm requires a strong mind and good concentration. The incantation and wand movement alone will not affect a Boggart. The spell can be tricky, because it involves making the creature into a figure of fun, so that fear can be dispelled in amusement. If the caster is able to laugh aloud at the Boggart, it will disappear at once. The intention is to force the Boggart to assume a less-threatening and hopefully comical form.
In 1993, this charm was taught by Remus Lupin during a third year Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Having multiple people facing one Boggart may reduce its effectiveness of frightening its victims, since it would not be able to determine which form to take.
A Boggart also gains the weaknesses of whatever they transform into. For example if it transforms into a Dementor, it can be repelled by a Patronus Charm like a normal Dementor.
Hiding places
Boggarts are particularly fond of inhabiting dark, confined spaces, such as in wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, and the cupboards under sinks and desks. On at least one occasion, a boggart was found hiding in a grandfather clock. They also like shadowy corners.
When facing a Boggart, it is best to have someone else along, to try to confuse it, since facing more than one person at once makes it indecisive towards determining what form it should take, usually resulting in a not frightening combination of the victims' fears.
Boggarts would, at least before the Battle of Hogwarts, very commonly appear as Lord Voldemort, since he represented the worst fear of many wizard kinds.
Eye colour
Varies
Skin colour
Varies
Hair colour
Varies
Related to
Bogeyman (possibly)
Native to
Worldwide
Alternative names
Bogeyman (potentially)
Boggle
Mortality
Amortal
Distinction
Transforms into the worst fear of the nearest observer(s)
Affiliation
Fear
Ministry of Magic Classification
Non-being
Status
Extant
Physical appearance
Nobody knows what a Boggart looks like if nobody is there to see it, although it continues to exist, usually giving evidence of its presence by rattling, shaking or scratching the object in which it is hiding. Boggarts particularly like confined spaces, but may also be found lurking in woods and around shadowy corners.[2]
Nature
"A Boggart is a shape-shifting creature that will assume the form of whatever most frightens the person who encounters it. "
—A boggart's basic nature[src]
Much like Poltergeists, Boggart are non-beings, who, although they resemble living creatures, are not considered magically "alive" and are as a result amortal (a Boggart can be made to disappear, but it will inevitably reappear, with several more by its side at times). Much like Poltergeists with mischief and Dementors with gloom and depression, Boggarts seem to embody the human emotion of fear, and consequently feed on other beings' fears.
Boggarts' ability to shape-shift shows remarkable speed and fluidity, but has several limitations. Firstly, being confined, if nothing else, by the size of the room it inhabits, the Boggart will scale down an otherwise-gigantic form (as seen when a Boggart turned into the Moon). Secondly, though a Boggart who transforms into a magical being or object can replicate its abilities to an extent, this will be a weaker facsimile of the real thing; thus, a Boggart transformed into a Dementor has weaker magic than a real Dementor (according to Professor Lupin, who exploited this effect to simulate a Dementor attack in Harry's presence to help him perfect the use of the Patronus Charm at no serious risk to Harry Potter's soul.)
Additionally, when a witch or wizard has multiple fears that tie for their "worst," the Boggart will typically cycle through those fears, presumably randomly. For example, in 1995, when Molly Weasley was attempting to destroy a boggart that had taken up residence in 12 Grimmauld Place, the Boggart took the form of the freshly dead bodies of her family, as well as Harry Potter, whom she loved like a son. Since she feared the deaths of all her loved ones equally, the Boggart cycled through all the corpses randomly.
The extent of Boggarts' intelligence is unclear; though they sometimes take the forms of sentient beings as part of their fear-inducing transformations, those false "people" appear to be little more than caricatures, acting out the motions of the victim's fear involving said people, heedless of their surroundings. It is worth noting however that one Boggart once settled into the form of a human killer, foregoing individual transformations, and successfully posed as this man for a long period of time; and Boggarts' closest-known "relatives", Poltergeists and Dementors, both possess sapience.
Though they cannot see other non-beings like Dementors, Muggles can sometimes see Boggarts; however, as most Muggles refuse to acknowledge anything that might even be considered somewhat magical, the glimpses they catch of Boggarts are usually dismissed as mere hallucinations or figments of the viewer's imagination. This denial is helped by the fact that Muggles rarely see Boggarts plainly, due to their favoured haunts being dark places away from the public eye.
Defence against a boggart
The Boggart-Banishing Spell is Riddikulus. The charm requires a strong mind and good concentration. The incantation and wand movement alone will not affect a Boggart. The spell can be tricky, because it involves making the creature into a figure of fun, so that fear can be dispelled in amusement. If the caster is able to laugh aloud at the Boggart, it will disappear at once. The intention is to force the Boggart to assume a less-threatening and hopefully comical form.
In 1993, this charm was taught by Remus Lupin during a third year Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Having multiple people facing one Boggart may reduce its effectiveness of frightening its victims, since it would not be able to determine which form to take.
A Boggart also gains the weaknesses of whatever they transform into. For example if it transforms into a Dementor, it can be repelled by a Patronus Charm like a normal Dementor.
Hiding places
Boggarts are particularly fond of inhabiting dark, confined spaces, such as in wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, and the cupboards under sinks and desks. On at least one occasion, a boggart was found hiding in a grandfather clock. They also like shadowy corners.
