Harry Potter and the Application of Game Theory
http://sophia.stkate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1078&context=undergraduate_research_symposium
Though Potterheads laud J.K. Rowling for her fantastical creation of enchantment and wonder, perhaps requiring nearly as much praise is her ability to ground her fantasy in the familiar. Providing us mere muggles with a logical foundation and connections to our reality allows readers to not only better understand the story, but also feel a heightened emotional investment in the wizarding world and its inhabitants.
Take for instance the game theory propelling the decisions made during the Triwizard Tournament. This tradition brings together the schools of Hogwarts, Durmstrang, and Beauxbatons to compete for highly coveted praise and riches. Each school generally provides one champion to participate in challenging magical tasks, forcing them to navigate a veritable maze of possibilities with nuanced strategy both within the area and amongst themselves. Though the competition entails countless decisions with very serious payoffs or losses, in “Game Theory and its Applications,” Kristal Jameson opts to focus on the interpersonal cooperation between players.
Before even the first task of the tournament, we see cooperation between players regarding the exchange of information. In particular, Jameson hones in on the exchange between Harry and Cedric, Hogwarts’ two champions. Hagrid reveals to Harry that the challenge of the first task will involve dragons. Harry deduces that the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons champions must also possess this knowledge, given Hagrid’s relationship with the Beauxbatons headmistress and the fact that he ran into Durmstrang’s headmaster near the place where the dragons were being kept. He then assumes that Cedric is the only oblivious champion, leaving him with a decision: should he warn his co-champion or leave him in the dark?
Of course, Harry would have a great advantage over Cedric if he were to withhold this information. However, one must consider the fact that Harry is motivated not by the 10,000 galleon prize, but rather his own sense of decency. Harry did not enter the tournament, and therefore is not motivated by a desire for fame or riches as his competitors are. Harry is fueled by a sense of good, and throughout the series defines his personal payoff as fulfillment of what is right, not what is profitable. If we then evaluate his decision through a lens of decency rather than profitability, it makes sense that telling Cedric has the greater personal payoff for Harry.
This payoff for Harry is twofold when we consider Cedric’s action in response to Harry later in the tournament. When Cedric discovers the clue behind the dragon egg, he feels obligated to relay this information to Harry due to the good will Harry displayed earlier. Again, the payoff for Cedric is the sense of doing what is right, and thus his actions are fueled by payoff of moral satisfaction.
Thus, Rowling instills logic in a world of the fantastic. By viewing these characters’ actions through a game theory lens, we can more reasonably understand their motivations, furthering the reader’s empathy for Rowling’s creation.