Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Quotes
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Source: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Author: J.K. Rowling
"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
"[The sorting hat] only put me in Gryffindor," said Harry in a defeated voice, "because I asked not to go in Slytherin…"
"Exactly," said Dumbledore, beaming once more. "Which makes you very different from Tom Riddle. It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
Context
This quote is spoken by Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002).
This quote pops up at the end of Harry Potter's second year at Hogwarts. He's just defeated Tom Riddle (a.k.a. Lord Voldemort) in the Chamber of Secrets, saved the school, and rescued his future wife (spoiler alert). It's a good day, right? But Harry is feeling kind of sad. He's noticed that he's kind of similar to Tom Riddle. Is he a dark wizard in the making?
Nope, Dumbledore reassures him. You're choosing to do good things, unlike that nasty old Tom Riddle. Voldemort wants to be evil and he wants to hurt people. Harry doesn't. The fact that he's deciding to do the right thing when he doesn't have to means he's not gonna wind up like Voldemort. What we choose to do is way more important than what we're capable of. Wise words from everyone's favorite wizard.
Where you've heard it
Ever get in an argument about destiny versus choice? Then this is the perfect quote to break out. Dumbledore knows that nothing's set in stone, and you should, too.
Pretentious Factor
If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.
The fact that Dumbledore says this ups the pretentious factor just a bit (because who will ever be as great as the Headmaster of Hogwarts?), but otherwise, if you try out this line, you'll see lots of folks nodding their heads. The ones that aren't nodding? Probably Death Eaters.