Editing Magic in Harry Potter (section)

== The limits of magic ==
Before publishing the first ''Harry Potter'' novel, Rowling spent five years establishing the limitations of magic – determining what it can and cannot do. "The most important thing to decide when you're creating a fantasy world," she said in 2000, "is what the characters ''can't'' do." In the novels, the character [[Hermione Granger]] explains that food cannot be conjured out of thin air. Wizards can prepare it using magic and even multiply it, but they cannot create it. According to Rowling, money also cannot be conjured from nothing.<ref name="swns">{{cite interview |title=World exclusive interview with J.K. Rowling |publisher=[[South West News Service]] |date=8 July 2000}}</ref>

===Death===
In ''Goblet of Fire'', Albus Dumbledore tells Harry that magic cannot truly and permanently bring dead individuals back to life. However, there are methods of communicating with the dead in a limited way. For example, all Hogwarts headmasters appear in a magical portrait when they die, which allows future generations to consult with them. However, the portrait is a reflection of who the wizard was, and is not a link to their spirit. The [[Deathly Hallows (objects)#Resurrection Stone|Resurrection Stone]] allows the bearer to speak with the dead, but it cannot bring the dead back into the living world.

Likewise, it is not possible to make oneself immortal unless one uses an object of great power to sustain life, such as the [[Magical objects in Harry Potter#Philosopher's stone|Philosopher's Stone]] or a [[Horcrux]]. If one were to possess the three [[Deathly Hallows (objects)|Deathly Hallows]], it is fabled that they would possess the tools to become the "master of death". Other methods of extending life include drinking unicorn blood, which will keep a person alive even if death is imminent, but at the price of being cursed forever. Being magical can contribute to one's longevity, as there are several characters in the series who are unusually long-lived. It is revealed by [[Nearly Headless Nick]] in the fifth novel that all wizards have the choice of becoming [[Ghosts (Harry Potter)|ghosts]] upon dying; however, it is described as "a pale imitation of life". Rowling has stated that death is the most important theme in the novels.<ref>{{cite episode |title=Harry Potter and Me |series=BBC Christmas Specials |network=[[BBC]] |date=28 December 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Anelli |first1=Melissa |title=More About that Veil |url=http://www.harryahistory.com/2008/09/more-about-that-veil.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120023032/http://www.harryahistory.com/2008/09/more-about-that-veil.html |archive-date=20 November 2008 |access-date=8 May 2017 |website=Harry, A History}}</ref>

===Emotion===
As explained earlier, young untrained wizards can trigger uncontrolled magic when they are in a state of intense emotion. But emotions also affect trained witches and wizards and their magical abilities. For instance, in ''Half-Blood Prince'', a heartbroken [[Nymphadora Tonks]] temporarily loses her power as a [[Metamorphmagus]] when [[Remus Lupin]] starts distancing himself from her; the form of her [[Patronus Charm|Patronus]] changes to reflect her depression. Another example is [[The House of Gaunt|Merope Gaunt]], who only demonstrated any magical ability when removed from her father's oppression, but then lost it again when her husband abandoned her.

Several magical spells require the use of certain emotions when casting them. The Patronus charm, for example, requires the caster to concentrate on a happy memory.

Love is depicted as a particularly powerful form of magic.<ref name="HP5"/> Lily Potter's voluntary self-sacrifice on Harry's behalf grants him a magical protection that saves him from Voldemort as a baby, and Harry makes a similar sacrifice to save his friends at the end of ''Deathly Hallows''.<ref>{{HPref|book=7}}</ref> A certain key prophecy in the series describes Harry as having "power the Dark Lord knows not", referencing his capacity for love.<ref name="HP5"/>

True love is impossible to create magically, although love potions can create intense infatuation.