It has been quite some time since I have written anything involving the wizarding world, but with Harry’s birthday around the corner I decided to revisit Hogwarts by ranking the classes held in the castle.
15. Muggle Studies
As a muggle, having a class in a magic school about the society that lacks magic does not sound interesting in the least bit. It is said that the purpose of the course was to aid witches and wizards in assimilating amongst muggles. Muggle Studies also has off-shoot extracurricular of Muggle Music and Muggle Art. It still doesn’t sound very interesting but maybe if I was in the universe as a pure blood witch, it could be.
14. History of Magic
History of Magic is simply what the title says: the history of the wizarding world. In theory, this could be interesting, but Professor Binns was said to be very boring, even falling asleep during his own lectures and he is a ghost who doesn’t need to sleep. The boring factor is what sets it so low.
13. Astronomy
Astronomy in general can be interesting, but Astronomy is not unique to the wizarding world which is why I’ve listed it low. I don’t blame the films for removing the course from them despite it being a required class in the books because it is ultimately inconsequential to the overall story.
12. Arithmancy
Arithmancy is the magic of numbers, using complex charts to make predictions. It was said to be a very difficult class and Hermione’s favorite. While the premise does sound interesting, it also reminds me of mathematics and how while some people thrive and enjoy it, others struggle and find it too challenging. I was of the latter, which is why I list it lower than other classes.
11. Ancient Runes
The Study of Ancient Runes is essentially a language course, learning how to read and translate runes which are the magical world’s equivalent of hieroglyphics. We know very little about this class since it is an elective that our protagonist never took, so it is hard to rank it much higher than this even though it sounds interesting.
10. Divination
Divination is the art of predicting the future via different methods like reading tea leaves, crystal balls, and palmistry. I feel like the idea of being able to predict the future is appealing, but when it comes to divination in the wizarding world, it seems like you need natural talent to do well. So with that in mind, I did rank it lower on my list, but higher than others because it is quite the iconic course in the series.
There is also an extracurricular course known as Xylomancy, which is the “often overlooked” method of divination that relied upon twigs. We don’t know anything else about it, thus why I just lump it with Divination.
9. Apparition
Apparition is the magical form of teleportation, which sounds awesome, but it is also supposedly very dangerous. The danger factor, plus the fact that the magical world has numerous transporting methods, is why I have it in the lower half of my rankings.
8. Flying
Speaking of transportation methods, there is also flying! Flying may not be as practical as apparating, but it is safer. Plus in order to have Quidditch, we need the ability to fly. So that is why it outranks apparition.
7. Potions
Potions, in general, is an interesting subject. Admittedly it doesn’t rank very high because of Snape making it almost unbearable to take. We don’t really get to see any positives of Potions because of Snape, and Slughorn doesn’t necessarily change that.
6. Herbology
Herbology and Potions are about equal for me based solely on the subject matter. But Professor Sprout makes it seem more enjoyable, even when Mandrakes are shrieking.
Honorable Mentions
Before we get to the top 5, there are some honorable mentions. The first is Magical Theory, which seems to only be referenced on Harry’s schedule in the first film. The second is Ghoul Studies, which is listed as a room on the Marauder’s Map. It is theorized that it is extracurricular since it is never mentioned as a required or elective course. And third is Music, also an extracurricular course which has the Frog Choir. Since we know next to nothing about these classes, I couldn’t properly rank them thus they are honorably mentioned instead.
5. Alchemy
I feel like some people will be surprised that either alchemy is this high or that alchemy is even an option. But yes, Alchemy is a subject at Hogwarts. It is an elective open for the 6th and 7th years and is the study of nature’s four basic elements (fire, earth, air, and water), as well as the transmutation of substances. It sounds really interesting and I wish we could have learned more about it within the series.
4. Transfiguration
Transfiguration is one of the most prominent subjects in the school and with both Albus Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall having taught the class. Learning to be an animagus is part of the subject as well. It’s an interesting course but I personally don’t gravitate towards it as a subject which is why it is below the other three.
3. Care of Magical Creatures
I’ll admit, my enjoyment of Care of Magical Creatures is largely because of Hagrid who is one of my favorite characters in the entire franchise. But there are also many fascinating creatures in the wizarding world that are interesting to learn about.
2. Defense Against the Dark Arts
Defense Against The Dark Arts is admittedly my favorite subject and would have ranked higher if it wasn’t for the revolving door of professors. The content is interesting and has some of the best spells in the series that are clearly very practical for witches and wizards to know.
1. Charms
Charms, in my opinion, is the most useful subject in the wizarding world. Charms are spells that add certain properties to objects or individuals. Accio, Expelliarmus, Immobulus, Legilimens, Wingardium Leviosa, Obliviate, and Expecto Patronum are just a few charms that we see in the series and their benefits. Plus Professor Flitwick is great, so not only is the subject useful but also taught well. 10 out of 10 course in my opinion.
What are your thoughts? What would your number one subject be? Let me know in the comments!