Welcome to this week’s installment of Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week. Every week, we will highlight an awesome female character from, or a creator of, geeky media.
Hermione Granger
Fast Facts:
Hermione Granger (played by Emma Watson in the Harry Potter film series and by Noma Dumezweni in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) is the muggle-born wunderkind witch who saves Harry’s life at least a hundred times between the ages of 11 and 17. She later marries a man who isn’t good enough for her (Ron) and becomes Minister for Magic, making her the ultimate chick in charge of all British magic.
The Real Deal:
The Real Deal:When we first meet Hermione Granger in the book Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (I refuse to succumb to the American title’s popularity – I’m a purist) she’s portrayed as an insufferable know-it-all whose only purpose is to provide exposition about the magical world. In her early days as a character, she references Hogwarts: A History in almost every sentence and she’s the butt of Ron’s jokes (he really honestly doesn’t deserve her). She becomes inseparable from Harry and Ron pretty quickly after helping save them from a troll and a three-headed dog. Some readers might want to point out here that Ron and Harry saved Hermione from the troll. Nope. Wrong. How do they know the correct pronunciation of wingardium leviosa, the spell that saved them all from the troll? Hermione.
Why Does She Matter:
I’m always going to champion intelligent women. Always. But Hermione matters for so much more than her unparalleled smarts. She is a symbol of meritocracy in action. When you look at the golden trio of Harry, Ron, and Hermione you have three young people who are not equally primed for success at Hogwarts and the magical world beyond its walls. Harry is a rich celebrity and Ron, while not wealthy, has a long, pureblood, family history in the magical world. Hermione, by contrast, is a young woman (in the 1990s when the feminist movement didn’t have as much traction as it does now) who has no magical support. She not only rises to the top of her class but does so without any previous magical knowledge, while doing activist work for house elves, while saving Ron (who doesn’t even a little bit deserve her) and Harry constantly, while taking a course load that is so advanced it requires government intervention, and while filling in the gaps in her classmates’ education through the DA.
It was through Hermione’s hard work, not her magical history or privilege, that she ended up holding the highest magical office in her country. And despite her fierce intelligence (or, I’d like to think, because of it) once people stopped being intimidated by her, she made friends. Hermione is a role model for magical and muggle young women alike: If you follow your passion and your talents, you’ll gain success and true lifelong companionship.
RELATED: Last Week’s Geek Girl Authority Crush – UHURA
RELATED: Read about all Geek Girl Authority crushes here!
- Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: KENZI - May 9, 2018
- Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: LIV MOORE - March 28, 2018
- Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: SANSA STARK - March 21, 2018
