Why did Sirius Black have to die?

Out of the three questions I have been asking since I first read the books in second grade (for what probably was the worst and longest book report my teacher ever had and will ever have to read) is “Why did Sirius Black have to die?” Black has been my favourite character, tied with Remus Lupin, since I first read the books. The reason I’m not screeching about Lupin’s death is because he died in the battle of Hogwarts with his wife, while his son was guaranteed a home. It was also established throughout the books that, to someone who suffered as much as Lupin, death wasn’t necessarily a relief, but something that he was acquainted with the possibility of. Black, on the other hand, died seemingly randomly and, supposedly, at the metaphorical hands of his beloved godson, Harry Potter. This unintentional betrayal makes his death so much more heartbreaking. Throughout the books, all Harry needs is a father figure. People constantly compare him to James, and every time they do, it is a reminder that his father is gone. Black’s presence gives him that comfort- he knew James, was his best friend, and understood Harry as not as the chosen one, but as a son.

Since everything was going so well between Black and Harry, his death was not only a tragedy, but a shock. This raises the question: Why did he have to die? And, subsequently: What did this do to the story? What were the causes of his death? i.e, did Harry actually accidentally kill his godfather?

I do not believe Black’s death was Harry’s fault. In the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore completely ignores Harry for a majority of the plot. Harry is forced to suffer through the tyranny of Umbridge, discussed in the first article, with very limited adult guidance. Black was forced into hiding by Dumbledore (being hidden in the childhood home where he was routinely abused by his violent parents) which isolated Harry from further guidance. Lupin was on an order mission, conveniently away from both Harry and Black. Although Harry has minor contact with these individuals, they can’t do much to help him due to possible conflicting interests of Dumbledore, who I’ve often considered the “Voldemort of the good guys” not because of the fact that he is the ideological opposite of Voldemort, but because he is just as controlling and power hungry. By declining a position as minister of magic, he maintained his control over the wizarding youth, allowing him to brainwash all of the students except for the Slytherins, who he openly hated and most likely turned away and, as a result, turned them against him. I digress. Anyways.

By isolating Harry from the only adult influences outside of the oversheltered and controlled environment of Hogwarts (and simultaneously forcing Harry to be mentally enslaved by one of his abusers, Snape, who is also discussed in a previous article), Dumbledore creates an emotionally strained, hormonal teenager with no outlet for the aggression present. Thus, when presented with the possibility of his godfather’s death through mind control (Occlumency on Voldy’s part), Harry understandably freaks out. Long story short, Sirius dies when Harry takes his gang of outcasts to “rescue” him, and everything goes south when they realise Black wasn’t even there to begin with.

Dumbledore blames Harry for the situation; he says he wasn’t prepared enough and didn’t pay attention in Occlumency. How was Harry supposed to pay attention when the teacher was his abuser who didn’t stop ripping on his father? It’s an unrealistic expectation. By raising him “like a pig for slaughter,” Dumbledore doesn’t treat him like a boy and instead like an object, which is no way to treat a child. It’s damaging. Yes, Harry may have called the initial shots, but what led him to make that decision can’t be ignored.

All of this leads to the question: Why did Sirius Black have to die? His death seems senseless; if anything, it’s a means to an end to make Harry seem more young and more foolish. However, going beyond the basic storyline, I think his death means so much more. For starters, the loss of a second father figure for Harry really just piles on the trauma, which adds to the tragic hero elements of his character. By killing Black in a senseless, unavoidable manner (which was not Harry’s fault), the futility of life and war is demonstrated. Quick note: Rowling is a Dumbledore apologist, so my depiction of Dumbledore as a total mess is entirely based on personal interpretation of the books. Black’s death adds further tragedy to the story and increases sympathy for Harry, and makes Voldemort even more evil because he added another important character to the list of those he killed. This highlights Harry’s innocence as well. He’s just a child and should be treated as such. If he isn’t, then there are consequences, and one consequence is death.