Boggarts (Metaphor)
Boggarts are a metaphor for fear. They are particularly difficult to dispose of because they change their physical form to mimic a person's greatest fear. This ability to mimic is what makes them a perfect metaphor for fear; they look differently to everyone because no one's fears are the same. This becomes a problem for Mrs. Weasley when she needs to dispose of a Boggart while decontaminating Grimmauld Place.
Grimmauld Place/Prison (Metaphor)
Grimmauld Place is a metaphor for prison for Sirius. He is trapped in Grimmauld Place and cannot leave, confined to the home of a family he despises. He is trapped in a reminder of everything he hates. In many ways, Grimmauld Place is a harsher prison for Sirius than Azkaban.
The Sorting Hat's Song (Metaphor)
The song contains the simile: "The Houses that, like pillars four, Had once held up our school, Now turned upon each other and, Divided, sought to rule..." (96).
This simile occurs in the middle of the Sorting Hat's song. The song is a warning: although students must be sorted into separate houses, they must unite like the four founders did when they created the school. The Sorting Hat urges students not to remain divided like they did in error.
The Effects of Dementors (Simile)
When the Dementors encroach on Harry and Dudley, Rowling describes the scene as "total, impenetrable, silent darkness, as though some giant hand had dropped a thick, icy mantle over the entire alleyway, blinding them" (8). The image of a giant hand evokes divine intervention and omniscience, which cues the reader that there are higher powers at play; whether they be governmental/institutional or coming from a singular Dark wizard like Voldemort has yet to be determined.
Binn's Class, the Standard of Boring (Simile)
Rowling describes the first week of the term as seeming to "have dragged on forever, like one gigantic History of Magic lesson" (131). The simile marks an instance of self-reference, which is a testament to Rowling's worldbuilding. Her similes start to point to a closed system of references that are unique to her world.
