Insanity

Warning! At least some content in this article is derived from information featured in:Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery &Harry Potter: Magic Awakened &Hogwarts Legacy. As such, spoilers will be present within the article.

"Is this all real? Or has this been happening inside my head?" The topic of this article is of a real-life subject that has been mentioned "in-universe" in acanon source. TheHarry Potter Wiki is written from the perspective that all information presented in canon is true (e.g.,Hogwarts really existed), and, as such, details contained in this article may differ from real world facts.

Insanity

Insanity, also known asmadness, is a general term for certain abnormal behavioural patterns, typically associated with those suffering from serious mental illness.^[26]

Description[]

Those suffering from insanity often could not interact with normal society, and frequently required long-term treatment in a medical facility such asSt Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.^[4] Prolonged exposure to certaincurses, such as theCruciatus Curse^[4] orImperius Curse,^[2] may have caused this condition.

It could also be inflicted by certain types ofpotions, either temporarily or permanently, such as theDrink of Despair^[11] and possiblyEssence of Insanity.^[12][13] Listening toFwooper song for a sufficiently long period could also cause insanity.^[16]Shock Spells may have been a treatment for this condition.^[19]

History[]

Manywizards turned mad from looking into theMirror of Erised, incapable of admitting that what the mirror showed them—their deepest and most desperate desire—was a mere image.^[14]

Theportrait curse unleashed uponHogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the1988–1989 school year due to theCursed Vaults, would turn students insane long after they remained trapped inportraits, the longer they existed outside of the real world.^[5]

InJuly1991, asVernon Dursley wildly drove theDursley family andHarry Potter to various locations in the hope of shaking off followingwizards,Dudley Dursley ventured the suggestion that he had gone mad.^[27]

In his earlier years atHogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,Ronald Weasley, particularly in the early stages of their association, often claimed thatHermione Granger was insane because she was clever, read excessively and for pleasure, and retained information which was never of adequate interest for him to notice.^[28] He also once claimed she was mad for not initially realising how to combatDevil's Snare in theUnderground Chambers with magic.^[29]

Starting in the summer of1995, theDaily Prophet, under pressure from theBritish Ministry of Magic, ran asmear campaign claiming, among other things, that Harry Potter's assertion thatLord Voldemort hadreturned was a sign that he had gone insane, which only ended when Voldemort's return was proven following theBattle of the Department of Mysteries.Albus Dumbledore, who was also a prime factor in an attempt to spread Harry's claim, was also considered insane for the duration. When Harry gave an interview toRita Skeeter regarding these events onValentine's Day1996, he wondered how people would react to it, suspecting that for many people it would simply confirm that he was completely insane, "not least because his story would be appearing alongside utter rubbish aboutCrumple-Horned Snorkacks."^[19]

Peeves made this claim ofRemus Lupin with a tune to match. He sang: "Lupin! Loony, loony, Lupin!"^[30] However, this may have been a joke, as Peeves is known to make this, and he may just have been comparing the sound of Lupin’s name to the sound of the word “loony”.

Insanity commonly affect one's perception on reality, making them believe in things that do not exist. As such,Truth Serums may be diluted in effects when used on such individuals, as what they believe to be the truth may be fabricated. For this reason,Cornelius Fudge chose not to believeBartemius Crouch Junior's testimony under theVeritaserum, believing the man's insanity to be affecting the words coming out of his mouth. It was also for this reason he refused to believe Harry's claim that Voldemort has returned, as Skeeter made Harry seem to have moments of insanity.^[31]

Sometime in2020, a member of theStatute of Secrecy Task Force visitedSt Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries to see for themselves the medical impact of theCalamity, and discovered that repeated experiences of becoming aFoundable could drive the victim mad.^[32]

Known insane individuals[]

• Ekrizdis, theDark wizard who constructedAzkaban, was believed to have been insane.^[22]
• According to Albus Dumbledore, people had been driven to insanity attempting to realise the visions provided by theMirror of Erised.^[14]
• Morfin Gaunt had much mental instability due to hisfamily's practice ofinbreeding, leading to violent outbursts periodically.^[17] Coupled with losing the family'ssignet ring to hisnephew, Morfin lost his sanity, and he kept muttering, the only words for the remainder of his life, how his father would kill him for losing the last heirloom (despite knowing his father already passed away years ago).^[33]
• According toRemus Lupin andSirius Black, manyAzkaban prisoners were driven insane from just a few weeks of exposure to theDementors' negative influence,^[6] talking and screaming in their sleep,^[7] and some even stopped eating and chosedeath.^[8]
• According toYusuf Kama, thedeath of his motherLaurena in childbirth as a result of her abduction and rape byCorvus Lestrange (IV) caused his fatherMustafa to go insane from grief.^[25]

• AsUric the Oddball was known to have listened to theFwooper's song for several months non-stop, as well as to have engaged in various eccentric behaviours, he was most likely insane.^[16] The look on his face and his oddjellyfish-hat led to this belief as well.
• According to legend,Snickerton became insane following an attempt to have rival tailorDelfina Crimp arrested for being awitch. He found himself unable to make clothing without it being torn to shreds, and held the delusion that he was being stalked by a giant pair of invisible scissors, though it is more likely that Crimp followed him throughout his life and shredded his clothing with herSevering Charm.^[20]
• The tyrannicalEarl of Paunchley lost his mind after slamming into aShield Charm cast byHannah Cockleford whilejousting on hishorse, causing him to think to he was adonkey called "Hairy Cyril" for the rest of his life, apparently caused bybrain damage.^[21]
• There was amad wizard fromVersailles who possibly created thejewel-encrusted tortoise shell.^[23]
• Apollonia Black grew delirious in her old age, and eventuallydied after consumingbelladonna, apoisonous plant, mistaking it forelderberry.^[24]
• Frank andAlice Longbottom were driven insane due to prolonged exposure to the Cruciatus Curse byBartemius Crouch Jnr and theLestranges.^[3] They were permanent residents of theJanus Thickey Ward ofSt Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, and no longer seemed to recognise theirson.^[4]
• An oldMuggle trampHarry Potter saw when shopping with theDursleys apparently was insane, as he was talking to a person who was not there.^[18]
• Bartemius Crouch Snr became insane after continual usage of theImperius Curse on him byLord Voldemort.^[1] When Harry Potter andViktor Krum found him on the edge of theForbidden Forest in1995, he wildly shifted back and forth between coherence and statements to his surroundings, and believed it was several months earlier and he was dictating instructions to his assistant,Percy Weasley.^[18]
• Bartemius Crouch Jnr was considered insane byCornelius Fudge, and therefore his testimony was not deemed credible.^[31] Though his confession was true, Crouch demonstrated mental instability with his deranged look throughout his interrogation, as well as his extremely skewed perception of reality and morality, and Harry proclaimed him mad for showing glee at killing his father.^[1]
• Having drank theDrink of Despair,Kreacher,Regulus Black andAlbus Dumbledore all became tortured by hallucinations of their worst fears, driving them temporarily insane.^[9][10][11]
• Broderick Bode wasbewitched to steal theprophecy made bySybill Trelawney regardingHarry Potter andLord Voldemort, but only those about whom aprophecy was made could remove it from its shelf in theHall of Prophecy without suffering madness.^[15] Nevertheless, Bode's madness was apparently temporary and he apparently would have recovered had he not been assassinated byDevil's Snare disguised as aFlitterbloom to prevent him from revealing what he knew.^[34]

• It appearedGilderoy Lockhart went insane after becoming amnesiac from hisbackfiredMemory Charm,^[35] as he was shown wearing a straitjacket and looking madden while humming to himself in the front cover of his final book,Who Am I?.^[36]
• Herbert Chorley was aMuggle politician and a Minister in theBritish government, who in1996, was subjected to a poorly doneImperius Curse by aDeath Eater, which subsequently caused him to go insane, with him acting like aduck and was placed in St Mungos for treatment. It is unknown if he recovered.^[2]
• TheCrazed Capybara ofSouth America was known to become somewhat crazed when angered.^[37]
• Mason Tremblay went mad and started attacking theMuggle community.^[38]
• Niko Nenad, aBeater for theRomanian National Quidditch team, was known for being mentally unstable and erratic, performing several acts that drew concern from his teammates (most notably setting fire to his own feet out of frustration) and capping in his infamous (and final) act, theAttack of the Killer Forest, an act that in the aftermath was insisted as being impossible to predict unless one was "as mental as he [Nenad] was".^[39]

Appearances[]

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone(First mentioned)
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)(Referred to as 'Mental')
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)(Appears on aFamous Wizard Card)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets(Mentioned only)(Possible appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)(Possible appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)(Appears on aFamous Wizard Card)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)(Appears inportrait(s))
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire(First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows(Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - The Original Screenplay(Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald(Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them(Mentioned only)
• The Tales of Beedle the Bard(Mentioned only)
• J. K. Rowling's official site(Mentioned only)
• Pottermore(Mentioned only)
• HarryPotter.com(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter Trading Card Game(Mentioned only)
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
• Wonderbook: Book of Spells
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened(Mentioned only)
• Hogwarts Legacy(Mentioned only)

Notes and references[]