The Patronus Charm
written by ภครђ ק๏ttєг
This book will show you how to conjure a patronus.
Last Updated
05/31/21
Chapters
5
Reads
3,182
The Patronus
Chapter 4
A successfully conjured Patronus can take two forms: non-corporeal or corporeal, and both types vary greatly in their appearances and strength.
Incorporeal
"A thin wisp of silver escaped his wand and hovered like mist before him. "
—Description of an incorporeal shield Patronus[src]
An incorporeal[23] Patronus is one which does not resemble any living creature and has few distinguishing features (if any). Incorporeal Patronuses resemble a burst of vapour or smoke without any clearly defined form shooting from the tip of the wand. While they may be partially effective at halting dementors (but not repelling them) and shielding the caster from them, incorporeal Patronuses are not "fully-fledged" Patronuses, and are regarded as a more primitive or weaker version of the true Charm.
Corporeal
Harry Potter: "What does a Patronus look like?"
Remus Lupin: "Each one is unique to the wizard who conjures it."
— Harry and Lupin discussing corporeal forms a Patronus takes
A corporeal Patronus is one that is fully-formed, taking the shape of bright-white, translucent animal. The specific animal forms that corporeal Patronuses take vary from person to person and reflect each individual's personality.
Patronus forms, however, are subject to change if the caster goes through an emotional upheaval of some sort, including falling in eternal, unchanging love.[24] For example, Nymphadora Tonks's Patronus changed from its previous form to that of a four-legged creature which others guessed was a werewolf because then it would reflect her love of Remus Lupin, himself a werewolf.[20] Another example is Severus Snape, whose Patronus was that of a doe, the same as Lily Evans, though this may have been the case all along rather than a change from its original form, as Snape was in love with Lily for most of his life.
Harry Potter's stag Patronus, a reoccurring Patronus form within the Potter family
Based on the fact that Patronuses are conjured by recalling happy memories, it stands to reason that a Patronus might change its form after one falls in love and the memories used to conjure the Patronus largely revolve around the person the caster is in love with. In addition, it seems that some couples have "complementary" Patronuses (male and female forms of the same animal), such as Lily and James Potter. It is, however, unknown if this is a coincidence or not. If a wizard is an Animagus and can summon a corporeal Patronus, the two may take the same form, as was the case for Minerva McGonagall and James Potter.[21] Remus Lupin's Patronus takes the form of a wolf, rather than a werewolf; whether or not all werewolves would generate a similar Patronus is unknown.
Most Patronuses take the form of an ordinary animal. Magical creatures, such as Albus Dumbledore's phoenix Patronus, are uncommon. It is extremely rare for Patronuses to take the form of extinct animals.[6] Hedley Fleetwood's woolly mammoth Patronus is a notable exception.[6] Andros the Invincible was the only wizard capable of casting a Patronus the size of a giant, although whether it was a giant or not is unknown.
The corporeal Patronus is also better at repelling Dementors than the non-corporeal form.
Uses
There are two known uses for the Patronus Charm. The first and main use of the Patronus is to drive off certain Dark creatures such as Dementors and Lethifolds, and is the only known charm that will work against them. As Dementors feed on happy memories to render humans to drown in sorrow and sadness, the Patronus acts as a shield of sorts, of which the Dementor would try to feed off instead — the Patronus is comprised exclusively of positive feelings and cannot comprehend negative emotion, so the Dementor's influence cannot harm it.
The other use was devised by Albus Dumbledore, who invented a way of using the Patronus (corporeal and non) as a means of communication. They can deliver messages, speaking with the voice of the caster. This source of communication is believed to be exclusive to the members of the Order of the Phoenix. Using the Patronus for communication offers great advantages in security, as Patronuses identify the caster and are Dark Arts-proof.[20] A good example of this was when Minerva McGonagall used her feline Patronus to call for help to the other heads of houses in 1998 when she found out Harry Potter had returned to Hogwarts in search of Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem. Multiple Patronuses can be cast for communication, as McGonagall was able to create three. Another is when Severus Snape used his Patronus to lead Harry Potter to a pool in the Forest of Dean in 1997, where he had laid Godric Gryffindor's Sword for Harry to retrieve. It is unknown if Snape had conjured the Patronus with instructions or if he was hiding and controlling it for this task. Harry's was able to follow both oral and physical commands. They also only remain active whilst the caster is focusing on them. If they are not protecting anyone, Patronuses seem to take on the traits of the creature they resemble and generally follow their caster around. This makes it unsure whether or not they are sentient.
Incorporeal
"A thin wisp of silver escaped his wand and hovered like mist before him. "
—Description of an incorporeal shield Patronus[src]
An incorporeal[23] Patronus is one which does not resemble any living creature and has few distinguishing features (if any). Incorporeal Patronuses resemble a burst of vapour or smoke without any clearly defined form shooting from the tip of the wand. While they may be partially effective at halting dementors (but not repelling them) and shielding the caster from them, incorporeal Patronuses are not "fully-fledged" Patronuses, and are regarded as a more primitive or weaker version of the true Charm.
Corporeal
Harry Potter: "What does a Patronus look like?"
Remus Lupin: "Each one is unique to the wizard who conjures it."
— Harry and Lupin discussing corporeal forms a Patronus takes
A corporeal Patronus is one that is fully-formed, taking the shape of bright-white, translucent animal. The specific animal forms that corporeal Patronuses take vary from person to person and reflect each individual's personality.
Patronus forms, however, are subject to change if the caster goes through an emotional upheaval of some sort, including falling in eternal, unchanging love.[24] For example, Nymphadora Tonks's Patronus changed from its previous form to that of a four-legged creature which others guessed was a werewolf because then it would reflect her love of Remus Lupin, himself a werewolf.[20] Another example is Severus Snape, whose Patronus was that of a doe, the same as Lily Evans, though this may have been the case all along rather than a change from its original form, as Snape was in love with Lily for most of his life.
Harry Potter's stag Patronus, a reoccurring Patronus form within the Potter family
Based on the fact that Patronuses are conjured by recalling happy memories, it stands to reason that a Patronus might change its form after one falls in love and the memories used to conjure the Patronus largely revolve around the person the caster is in love with. In addition, it seems that some couples have "complementary" Patronuses (male and female forms of the same animal), such as Lily and James Potter. It is, however, unknown if this is a coincidence or not. If a wizard is an Animagus and can summon a corporeal Patronus, the two may take the same form, as was the case for Minerva McGonagall and James Potter.[21] Remus Lupin's Patronus takes the form of a wolf, rather than a werewolf; whether or not all werewolves would generate a similar Patronus is unknown.
Most Patronuses take the form of an ordinary animal. Magical creatures, such as Albus Dumbledore's phoenix Patronus, are uncommon. It is extremely rare for Patronuses to take the form of extinct animals.[6] Hedley Fleetwood's woolly mammoth Patronus is a notable exception.[6] Andros the Invincible was the only wizard capable of casting a Patronus the size of a giant, although whether it was a giant or not is unknown.
The corporeal Patronus is also better at repelling Dementors than the non-corporeal form.
Uses
There are two known uses for the Patronus Charm. The first and main use of the Patronus is to drive off certain Dark creatures such as Dementors and Lethifolds, and is the only known charm that will work against them. As Dementors feed on happy memories to render humans to drown in sorrow and sadness, the Patronus acts as a shield of sorts, of which the Dementor would try to feed off instead — the Patronus is comprised exclusively of positive feelings and cannot comprehend negative emotion, so the Dementor's influence cannot harm it.
The other use was devised by Albus Dumbledore, who invented a way of using the Patronus (corporeal and non) as a means of communication. They can deliver messages, speaking with the voice of the caster. This source of communication is believed to be exclusive to the members of the Order of the Phoenix. Using the Patronus for communication offers great advantages in security, as Patronuses identify the caster and are Dark Arts-proof.[20] A good example of this was when Minerva McGonagall used her feline Patronus to call for help to the other heads of houses in 1998 when she found out Harry Potter had returned to Hogwarts in search of Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem. Multiple Patronuses can be cast for communication, as McGonagall was able to create three. Another is when Severus Snape used his Patronus to lead Harry Potter to a pool in the Forest of Dean in 1997, where he had laid Godric Gryffindor's Sword for Harry to retrieve. It is unknown if Snape had conjured the Patronus with instructions or if he was hiding and controlling it for this task. Harry's was able to follow both oral and physical commands. They also only remain active whilst the caster is focusing on them. If they are not protecting anyone, Patronuses seem to take on the traits of the creature they resemble and generally follow their caster around. This makes it unsure whether or not they are sentient.
