Rubeus Hagrid is definitely one of the most beloved characters from the Harry Potter series. He acted as one of Harry’s most consistent parental figures throughout his years at Hogwarts. While Hagrid might not have always been the professor with the most common sense, he does have a good heart, and he clearly cared a lot about Harry. While many fans love Hagrid, he definitely had some flaws and did some things that haven’t aged well. He has complexities which makes him an interesting character.
Here are ten things about Rubeus Hagrid that haven’t aged well when re-reading the books.
GIVING DUDLEY A TAIL
When Hagrid goes to pick up Harry from the Dursleys in the rock in the middle of the sea, he is understandably frustrated. It’s clear that the Durselys are treating Harry poorly. However, while the Dursleys in many ways are reprehensible, using magic on Dudley isn’t a good thing to do. He was also just a child at the time, and while he might be spoiled and take things that aren’t his, that’s not a good enough reason to permanently disfigure him. It’s definitely a rash action that’s violent in a sense.
HIS INABILITY TO KEEP A SECRET
Hagrid always means well when it comes to keeping secrets, but he’s just not very good at it at all. He spills a lot of information to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but this is especially the case when it comes to the Sorcerer's Stone.
While he definitely isn’t doing any of this maliciously, it’s a flaw that he’s not that good at keeping his mouth shut. Given that he’s often told sensitive, important information by Dumbledore, it’s a skill he should develop more.
BABY NORBERT
Hagrid’s love of animals, even creatures that are considered gross or bad by others, is admirable and one of the most lovable things about him. However, he often takes this too far and puts others at risk. It’s one thing to love and be fascinated by dragons, but trying to raise one is not good. It’s comparable to people having exotic pets in the real world. First of all, it’s not good for the pet, and second, it puts others around Hagrid at risk. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had to put themselves at risk of getting in trouble, as well as getting burned, to get Norbert way without Hagrid getting in trouble.
BREEDING THE BLAST-ENDED SKREWTS
This is another example of Hagrid going way too far with his love of dangerous creatures. When he introduces the Blast-Ended Skrewts to his Care of Magical Creatures classes, it’s assumed they are just a weird creature.
But, the truth is that Hagrid actually bred them. Doing so was obviously illegal. Plus, these creatures are extremely dangerous and often caused minor injuries to the students, and Hagrid didn’t seem to see a problem with this.
ARAGOG
Hagrid’s love of creatures that are dangerous was there from a young age. While Aragog might not ever have hurt Hagrid, he was clearly a danger to all other humans and living creatures. The fact that Hagrid let Aragog live in the woods, and even went so far as to bring him a wife. This allowed for a whole family of giant spiders to be created in the Forbidden Forest. While letting Aragog live might have been one thing, the fact he basically created a whole herd of these things is pretty messed up.
PHYSICALLY ASSAULTING KARKAROFF
Hagrid is known for his extreme loyalty. While this can definitely be a positive trait, it can be taken too far. He’s very loyal to Dumbledore. So, when Karkaroof spits at Dumbledore, Hagrid loses his cool and roughly grabs Karkaroff and pushes him against a tree. While Karkaroof might have been very disrespectful, reacting out of violence is not the right answer in this situation.
THAT HE HAS A DRINKING PROBLEM
This is something that isn’t really explored that in-depth in the Harry Potter books, but it is alluded to many times. There are many instances where the trio goes to visit Hagrid to find him extremely drunk. He seems to get drunk more than the average person. While this isn’t to say this makes him a bad person, it does seem like this is an issue he could use help with. However, the wizarding world seems woefully equipped to handle issues like this.
USING MAGIC ILLEGALLY
One thing about the wizarding world that doesn’t make a lot of sense is how getting expelled from Hogwarts means you can never practice magic again. This seems pretty unfair to put that kind of punishment on students as young as eleven.
So, while there is some satisfaction in the fact that Hagrid goes against these harsh rules, it also could have gotten him into a lot more trouble. If the Ministry knew about this, he likely would have ended up in Azkaban again.
OFTEN PUTTING HARRY, RON, AND HERMIONE AT RISK
While it’s very apparent that Hagrid cares a lot about Harry, Ron, and Hermione, he also doesn’t always seem to know what’s appropriate for them. He often seems to forget how young they are. He put a lot of responsibility on them to help with things like Buckbeak’s case and to get baby Norbert to a safe place. While he definitely means well, he often does things that could have put their safety, and even lives, at risk.
BRINGING GRAWP TO THE FORBIDDEN FOREST
Given that Grawp is his half-brother, it’s understandable that Hagrid had a lot of compassion for him. His compassion is one of the best things about him, but bringing Grawp home to the Forbidden Forest wasn't a great idea. Grawp didn’t even want to be taken away, and it’s clear by how he treated Hermione and Harry that he was quite a danger to humans.