What Harry Potter Would Be Like If It Was In The United States

The Harry Potter series took place in the United Kingdom during the 1990s, and while the story unfolded during the modern era, it would’ve been considerably different if it was set in the United States instead. J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter novels were brought to life in Warner Bros.’ movies, which released throughout the 2000s and early 2010s, and now she and the studio have joined forces once again to bring additional films to fans around the world, with the Fantastic Beasts series.

Unlike the Harry Potter movies, Fantastic Beasts takes place primarily outside the United Kingdom. It began in the United States in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and then moved to France in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Both movies expanded on what fans knew about the wizarding world outside the United Kingdom. But beyond the films, Rowling has helped establish the greater wizarding world through her messages on social media and her website, Pottermore.

The old-world European setting of Harry Potter befits a story brimming with mystery and magic. Fans know and love all of the ancient castles and picturesque landscapes mixed with scenes from metropolitan London, but moving beyond that, what would Harry Potter look like if it was set in the United States? Certainly being set in New England or the Old West would make for a different story altogether.

How the Harry Potter Characters Would Be Different

The Harry Potter timeline takes place during the 1990s in Great Britain and each of the characters are a product of their environments. But the 1990s in the U.S. was a very different place. The excess of the 1980s gave way to a grungier new decade thanks to the likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Likewise, American society has never had that same classiness that British society does, and it would be all the more noticeable during this decade. If this story was set in the United States, Harry, Ron, and Hermione would need to fit the part.

In the books (and movies), Harry seems like a normal boy, despite being thrust into abnormal circumstances. He lives in a quiet, suburban neighborhood and doesn’t have many friends. When not at Hogwarts, he has to rely on himself to keep busy. If Harry was in America, we would probably find him in a similar middle-class neighborhood, sleeping in a basement room with wood-paneled everything. He would be riding around on his hand-me-down razor scooter trying to avoid the kids in the cul-de-sac, while listening to the latest Green Day album. There would definitely be some baggy jeans involved, and maybe even one of those bright, solid colored t-shirts.

Ron, on the other hand, lives in a more rural area with his gigantic and chaotic family. When he’s not fighting with his brothers or lecturing his younger sister, he’s trying to stay out of trouble, lest his mom finds out. Fans remember the howler fiasco, but in the United States, Ron would certainly gravitate towards the grunge aesthetic. Fans would see him in ripped flannels and combat boots, with a silver chain draped over his hip. If he were to sneak out the house at night, it would be to attend the local thrash metal show.

As for Hermione, she comes from an upper-middle class family near London where he parents practiced dentistry. She is incredibly intelligent and always has a new book near by. If Hermoine lived in the U.S., she would probably reside near a big city, like New York or Philadelphia, where she could attend political rallies and town hall meetings. Instead of traveling across the scenic countryside of Scotland and Northern England during their quests, fans might find the trio running across the Appalachian Mountains or even down in the dessert southwest. If they bumped into any bad witches or wizards, viewers might even see a duel that looks more like an old-fashioned western shootout rather than a fancy contest.

What The Schools Would Be Like

J.K. Rowling keeps updating the Harry Potter universe with fun facts about the American wizarding world through Pottermore and the latest Fantastic Beasts movies. Just like Great Britain has Hogwarts and France has Beauxbatons Academy, it turns out that the United States has their very own school of witchcraft and wizardry. Ilvermorny was founded in 1627 and is located in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts. Originally, the building was a small cottage constructed by the witch Isolt Sayre and her no-maj (the American term for muggle) husband, James Steward. Over the years and after their home turned into a school, the cottage kept expanding and transformed into a sprawling castle atop Mt. Greylock.

Much like Hogwarts, Ilvermorny also sorts students into four different houses, but the process is a little different. In this American school, new students stand in the entrance hall and face the statues of each house. Horned Serpent favors scholars, Wampus favors warriors, Thunderbird favors adventurers, and Pukwudgie favors healers. One of the statues will react to their presence, letting the student know which house they belong to. In rare instances, multiple statues will react, in which case the student would get to pick the house they want. Unlike the British magical schooling system, new students don’t buy a wand before they get to Ilvermorny. After they are sorted into a house, the students then go to another larger hall where they pick their wand (or rather, their wand picks them). Also unlike Hogwarts, students at Ilvernorny wear robes with the colors cranberry and blue.

If Harry, Ron, and Hermione found themselves attending Ilvermorny instead of Hogwarts, viewers might see them split into different houses. Harry would perhaps be placed in Wampus for his courage and bravery. Ron would likely go to Thunderbird because he may not fit anywhere else. And contrary to belief, Hermione would to Thunderbird as well. Fans might think she belongs in Horned Serpent for her intelligence, but she wasn’t placed in Ravenclaw at Hogwarts either.

American Wizardry’s Most Interesting Differences

While the core part of the Harry Potter franchise – the main trio along with the school system – would be different, there are several other aspects of the wizarding world that are different in the United States compared to the rest of the world.

Magic

Unlike European wizardry, modern American spell craft is a unique blend of its European ancestry and Native American heritage. This type of magic focuses a great deal on plant-and animal-based charms, and touts a superiority in potion making. During the creation of Ilvermorny, Native American tribes shared their knowledge of plant and animal magic in exchange for being taught how to use European wands.

Sports

When it comes to sports, Quidditch is an international game, but Quodpot is more popular in the United States than overseas. Played with two teams of 11, the players attempt to get the quod into the pot on the opposite side of the pitch before it explodes. A successful drop awards the team one point, but if a player is stuck with the quod while it blows, they have to leave the field of play for the rest of the game.

Government

All wizarding communities have their own forms of government. In America, the Magical Congress of the United States (MACUSA) is presided over by a President while delegates represent their people from across the country. Started in 1693, the congress came together as a direct result of the Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts. While European nations had to deal with Death Eaters, MACUSA focused primarily on rounding up Scourers, wizarding mercenaries and traffickers. After a total of five relocations, the MACUSA headquarter is officially stationed in downtown New York City.

Rappaport’s law

The United States’ segregation impacted the wizarding community as well. In 1790, President Emily Rappaport enacted Rappaport’s law, which created an absolute segregation between the wizarding community and the no-maj. Witches and wizards were banned from interacting with any no-maj unless if it was for quick daily activities. The Statute of Secrecy was always important for magical beings, but this law drove the community even deeper into the shadows, inadvertently causing a huge cultural divide between American and European wizarding worlds. Eventually, in 1965, the law was repealed.

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