Dolores Umbridge (Harry Potter)

Dolores Jane Umbridge is a fictional character from the Harry Potter series created by J.K. Rowling. The character is the primary antagonist of the fifth novel Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (as well as its film counterpart) and was stationed at Hogwarts by the Ministry of Magic to take power away from Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore, who were informing the Wizarding World of Lord Voldemort's return.

She is described as a fat, toad-like woman, with a wide, slack mouth, and a large bow.

Why She's A Wicked Toad

 * 1) She is a woman who has always siezed for power no matter what it takes.
 * 2) Although not a Mary Sue, she (alongside the Ministry as a whole) tries to make herself and everyone/everything around her perfect, civil, and in order with no consideration for flaws or drawbacks. The biggest example of this is her spreading propaganda that Lord Voldemort has not returned.
 * 3) She is known to be abusive, greedy, selfish, manipulative, short-tempered, and egotistical.
 * 4) She was ungrateful for her time at Hogwarts as a student due to never being given any positions of power.
 * 5) Fearful that Albus Dumbledore might take the minister's position in the wake of Lord Voldemort's return, she does everything in her power to exile Dumbledore from Hogwarts (which she succeeds at).
 * 6) She constantly tortures Harry Potter (as well as all of the other Hogwarts students and faculty) in order to make his life as miserable as possible. So much so that despite being from the same house as her, even Severus Snape is not too fond of her.
 * 7) *She also expresses extreme disdain for the Weaselys, particulary Fred and George.
 * 8) Despite being appointed as Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, she strictly teaches the theory of Defence Against the Dark Arts, leaving the students potentially defenceless against the Dark Arts.
 * 9) She will expel or fire anyone who dares criticise her in any form or matter. The most infamous example of this is professor of Divination, Sybill Trelawney.
 * 10) Upon appointing herself as the head of Hogwarts, she constantly comes up with rules and tactics that come accross as mean-spirited and even harmful. Examples include...
 * 11) *Refusing to take questions from students during class (unless they raise their hand)
 * 12) *Extremely strict dress codes
 * 13) *Banning all Weasely products
 * 14) *Banning any music during study time
 * 15) *Only allowing broomsticks to be flown during Quidditch practice.
 * 16) *Forcing all student organizations, clubs, teams, societies, and groups to be disbanded and only allowing re-formations under her approval (without approval is an automatic expulsion).
 * 17) **This rule was particularly useless as all student groups of three or more members, including Quidditch teams were abolished by her.
 * 18) *And many, many more (around 30 in the novel and around 100 in the film).
 * 19) She uses Black Quills, which write with the blood of the person using it, as a standard punishment for students (including Harry Potter).
 * 20) She allowed students who had a grudge against others to bust them for any rule breaking as extra credit.
 * 21) She is also racist, as she believes that other species and creatures in the Wizarding World, including half-bloods and muggle-born, are far inferior to pure-bloods.
 * 22) *In Fact, this explains why she fired certain faculty, like Rubeus Hagrid for being a half-giant.
 * 23) Speaking of which, when confronted by Centaurs alongside Harry and Hermione, Umbridge stands behind the two in fear, showcasing her as nothing more than a unsympathetic coward.

Redeeming Qualities

 * 1) Without her impact on Hogwarts, Harry, Ron, and Hermionie may have never formed "Dumbledore's Army".
 * 2) She got her commupance in the seventh novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, for pretty much everything she has done. She was imprisoned for life in Azkaban after the Second Wizarding War.
 * 3) Imelda Staunton did an amazing portrayal as her. In addition, Staunton is a nice person in real life.

Reception
Dolores Umbridge is often cited as being one of the most despised if not the most despised fictional character of all time, due to her authoritarian stance and her dictator-like presence as well as her racist attitudes and torturing of children. Due to her reputation, Umbridge is often considered to be ne of the most hated fictional characters, as well as one of the best literary villains, even occasionally overshadowing Lord Voldemort as the primary antagonist of the series.

Stephen King, known for his books "IT" and "The Shining", hailed Umbridge as one of the best antagonists he has ever read.

Trivia

 * Dolores is a common Spanish name, although it also occurs as an English name. In Spanish and Latin, "dolores" is also the plural form of "dolor", which means pain. In English, the similar sounding word "Dolorous" means causing or expressing grief and suffering. Dolor is the Danish name of the Cruciatus Curse.

Comments
