ByFurious
The second Beedle the Bard tale, The Fountain of Fair Fortune deals with another topic very important in the world of Harry Potter, that is, the cooperation between and intermarrying of Wizards and Muggles. The characters in the story are healed of their ailments and woes at the end, but not because the fountain did anything magical.
| Category | Information |
|---|---|
| Author | J.K. Rowling |
| Title | The Fountain of Fair Fortune |
| Part of Collection | The Tales of Beedle the Bard |
| Published Date | December 2008 |
| Referenced in Books | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows |
| Referenced in Movies | Not directly mentioned |
| Genre | Wizarding fairy tale |
The Fountain of Fair Fortune is one of the enchanting tales featured in The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a beloved collection of wizarding fairy tales by J.K. Rowling. Published in December 2008, this compilation has garnered much admiration from fans of the Harry Potter series. “The Fountain of Fair Fortune” holds a distinct place, being referenced within the pages of the seventh book in the series, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”. However, it’s essential to note that the tale does not have a direct presence or specific mention in the Harry Potter movie adaptations.
The story unfolds in an enchanted garden, enclosed within high walls and protected by strong magic. Inside the garden lies the Fountain of Fair Fortune, which is rumored to grant good luck and happiness to one person once a year. Many people attempt to reach the fountain, but only a select few manage to find their way in.
On the appointed day, three witches, each burdened with their own misfortunes, find themselves in the garden along with a knight. The witches are Asha, who is sick; Altheda, who has lost her home and wealth due to a robbery; and Amata, who suffers from a broken heart. The knight, Sir Luckless, is also hoping to try his luck at the fountain.
The journey to the fountain is challenging, filled with obstacles that the group must overcome together. They encounter various magical hindrances, but they manage to pass through them by working as a team and relying on each other’s unique capabilities and talents. During this journey, they find solace in each other’s company and their spirits are lifted by the camaraderie they share.
Upon reaching the fountain, they realize that they’ve already found what they were seeking. Asha finds herself cured, Altheda discovers a way to regain her fortune, and Amata realizes that she no longer pines for her lost love. Sir Luckless, who believes that he has no luck, chooses to bathe in the fountain but ends up finding fortune in a different way by marrying Amata.
In the end, the tale teaches that the journey and the companionship they found along the way were more valuable than the magical properties of the fountain. It portrays the message that happiness and fortune can often be found in unexpected places and that the challenges faced in life can lead to growth and eventual success.
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Well I must say I like this one very much too! The message is very clearly that Magic doesn’t always solve everything, but this is a classic.
You it’s like these stories where people or especially a buch of kids find a map leading to a seemingly anciant huege treasure. In the end they reach the “treasure” but they are totally dissapointed because it isn’t what they expected (gold, emeralds, diamonds, and suff). They finally realise that what they cherish the most are the moments they spent together trying to solve this myseries helping each other…This is in fact all about developing human qualites…
Very much like the 3 withches and the knight they had it all in them since the begining, magic was only used to help them relase that potential lying dormant.
Maybe the lesson is that magic should only ever be a “helping hand” from time to time rather that something to be relied-on on a daily basis.
A Squib is not a Muggle. Born to a wizarding family, a Squib has such a low level of magical power that he or she is essentially unable to do any magic at all. However, while a Squib cannot cast spells, he or she can apparently see magical beings such as poltergeists, though not dementors (JKR).
Some Squibs seem to have formed special bonds with cats, whom they refer to as Mr or Mrs. It is possible that these cats function as guides and aides to Squibs as they live in a world in which they don’t really fit. In a sense, these cats may be the wizarding equivalent of Guide Dogs and other animals which are trained to help Muggles with disabilities.
“squib” – Eng. a dud firework that won’t ignite properly
do you think there’s a hidden message in the writing on the fountain (there are some letters on it, not just symbols).
As far as I’ve understood, and I think I’ve understood pretty well, squibs are exactly the same as muggles, except that they know about the magical world…’
Posted by Ariadna from Mexico on March 27, 2009 7:05 PM
In answer to to of your comments, Mrs. Figg is a squib and squibs CAN see Dementors. I believe that squibs are witches and wizards who just have trouble reaching for magic. They still have a little magical ability, but do not know how to use it, or cannot. They still can have all the privileges of a regular witch/wizard, minus the magic part. Also, why would such courses like ‘Kwik Spell’ (Harry Potter 2, Filches office) work if squibs had absolutely no magical ability?
I also agree with the comment of Merope Riddle/Gaunt. She is a witch, but does not wish to be, because Tom Riddle snr. despises her for having such an ‘unnatural’ ability.
Squibs can’t see Dementors. JKR said Mrs. Figg was familiar with the effects of Dementores, but she couldn’t actually see them. What she said at Harry’s hearing isn’t true. Even Harry thinks it sounds like Mrs. Figg had only seen a picture of a Dementor.
I don’t think Squibs have any magical ability. It seems like the Kwik Spell course does not work at all. Filch never learns anything. It just seems like something to draw Squibs in.
if we look closely there is a christian cross on top of the deathly hallows sign, near the brim of the bowl kind of thing…though i couldnt make out what was above other signs.
But if Filch has no magical ability, how can he work in Hogwarts?
I don’t think that Kwik Spell can create any effect on Squibs.
I did some extensive research on all 8 symbols on the fountain. Here they are from top to bottom:
1. (circle with arrow sticking out) Alchemy symbol for Iron, Saturn
2. (crescent connected to a circle with a dot in it): Alchemy symbol for Platinum (Silver and Gold combined), Sun and Moon
Note on #2: The crescent represents Silver, or the moon (Luna); the circle with a dot in it represents Gold, or the sun (Sol)
3. (looks like the number 4): Alchemy symbol for Tin, or Jupiter
4. (I don’t know how to describe it): Omega symbol, probably signifies “the last” or “the end”
5. (circle with plus sign below it and two lines coming out of the top of the circle): Alchemical symbol for Mercury (element) or Mercury (planet)
6. (eye): This one kind of confused me, but I think it represents the all-seeing eye
7. (cross with a curvy line coming out of the bottom, to the right): Alchemical symbol for Lead or Saturn
8. The Deathly Hallows sign
I tried my best to describe the symbols, but you’ll probably understand them better if you lok at them in the book.
I noticed that all 7 of the planetary metals are represented by their symbol on the fountain (silver and gold are both represented as platinum) except for copper. However, the symbol for tin is surrounded by the letters CU, the symbol for copper.
If anyone has any ideas as to what this means, please respond. Some things I noticed:
1. The alchemical symbol for the creation of the Philosopher’s Stone (Sorcerer’s stone, anyone?) is the Deathly Hallows sign, with a square replacing the line.
2. Is the fact that the name for the moon is Luna (Lovegood, anyone?) relevant?
3. Why was Omega not put last, and why was the Deathly Hallows sign the eighth symbol, not the seventh?
In the commentary to this article, Dumbledore points out that there are still people, like the Malfoys, who are predjudiced against non-pureblood wizards.
But more importantly, he comes right out and says to Lucius Malfoy in the reply to his letter that what they believe in isn’t really real to begin with. There are no purebloods, and pureblood families are lying about their purebloodedness, by disowning and/or banishing members of their family that don’t measure up to their standards.
One wonders why more Wizards don’t stand up to people like the Malfoys the way Dumbledore did…
I was reading Tales of Beadle the Bard and couldn’t help but wonder what distinguishes muggles from squibs. I know they (squibs) are born to magic families, but they can see dementors, as Ms. Figg tells us. what else makes them different?
I think that squibs are “weak-wizards”,i think they can do magic but only simple spells and even then they may fail to cast the spell right.In the HBP Morvolo Gaunt calls his daughter a squib but the truth is she can perform magic but not as good as others.
does the fountain of good fortune have any religious symbols?
No religious symbols are there that i know of but there is one familar symbol at the bottom, the deathly hallows symbol.
What this is there for i don’t know but there is also the ohm symbol on the second panel down which symbols resistance, again no idea why this was there. I have no idea about the eye and i can’t really see the symbol at the top.
I had also spotted those two symbols, but there is even more, if you take a good look at the edges of the fountain you will see that there are many more symbols.
We know JKR quite a bit by now, and although i don’t have a clue what the symbols symbolise i know that there is someting behind it.
I think the eye at the top may be the eye of the snake that wraps itself around the fountain
I think that what you call a snake is a dragon, because of the wings.
Let’s see…
As far as I’ve understood, and I think I’ve understood pretty well, squibs are exactly the same as muggles, except that they know about the magical world, since they’ve grown up immersed in it. Squibs CAN’T see dementors; Mrs. Figg just pretends she can, so the Wizengamot will absolve Harry. Obviously, wizards think so little of squibs that they haven’t even stopped to consider if they can or cannot see dementors. Arabella describes the feeling dementors produce as well as a muggle would. Regarding Voldemort’s mother, Marvolo calls her a squib, which does NOT mean she is; please remember she was despised by her father and brother. Dumbledore himself mentions that she probably couldn’t perform decent magic due to the the fact that she was terrified of her father. And he also says that when she stopped performing magic altogether was because she felt dirty, because Tom Riddle had despised her for being a witch. If she had been a squib, she could never had administered a love potion to him.
This story is definitely my favourite out of all of Beedle’s. It’s not because of the muggle/wizard pairings either. What I think Beedle was trying to say in this story, is that not everything needs magic. Asha was cured; no magic, just herbs. Altheda got her money; no magic, just the discovery of a remedy. Amata and Sir Luckless were happy together; no magic, just love. Yes, I think Beedle was trying to tell people that sometimes, magic isn’t necessary to be happy.
P.S. Abby, from Wales, this is a muggle: someone who cannot perform magic, and has no magical blood. This is a squib: someone with magical parents, but cannot perform magic themselves.
kef there is the all seeing eye, a masonic symbol, and a peagan symbol
Ellie from England, I feel you are mistaken, love is VERY magical!