Why Does the Sphinx Ask Harry a Question?
DURING THE THIRD TASK OF THE
Triwizard Tournament, as he nears the center of the maze, Harry meets a Sphinx—“an extraordinary creature,” part lion and part woman, with “long, almond-shaped eyes.” She tells him, “You are very near your goal. The quickest way is past me” (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling). But instead of fighting her, as he would a dragon, he must
Triwizard Tournament, as he nears the center of the maze, Harry meets a Sphinx—“an extraordinary creature,” part lion and part woman, with “long, almond-shaped eyes.” She tells him, “You are very near your goal. The quickest way is past me” (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling). But instead of fighting her, as he would a dragon, he must
The face on the Great Sphinx at Giza was actually
modeled on a king of Egypt. answer a question.
The Sphinx’s strange form and enigmatic manner make
it the very symbol of mystery. William Shakespeare once asked,
“[I]s not Love . . . subtle as a Sphinx?” Love’s Labours Lost (Act IV, scene iii)
EGYPTIAN ORIGINS
The Sphinx is a creature from Egyptian mythology.
The huge stone sculpture of the Great Sphinx in the Egyptian desert
at Giza, built about 2500 BC, is evidence of the creature’s ancient
origins and importance. Thousands of smaller Sphinxes were built
around Egypt, occasionally with heads modeled on birds of
prey.
In the thousand years after the Great Sphinx was
built, the legends of the creature moved to Greece. There it was
described as having a female body and wings. The Sphinx Harry meets
is the Greek version.
THE SPHINX OF THEBES
A particular Sphinx of Greek legend is especially
well known. It was sent by the goddess Hera to punish Laius, the
king of Thebes, who had kidnapped a young man. That Sphinx
challenged travelers on the road to Thebes with a three-part riddle
similar to the one Harry was asked to solve:
What animal goes on four feet in
the morning,
Two at noon,
And three in the evening?
Any traveler was permitted to turn back without
answering; but the Sphinx killed anyone who answered
incorrectly.
One day it was approached by a young man named
Oedipus. He happened to be Laius’s son and heir. (But, like Harry,
he was unaware of his noble origins.) Oedipus displayed his
exceptional qualities by answering the riddle correctly: “Man
creeps on hands and knees in childhood, walks upright in adulthood,
and in old age uses a cane.” Having been beaten, the Sphinx killed
herself.
Another type of sphinx, with the head of a ram, was
known as the Criosphinx. (Krios is ancient Greek for “ram.”)
The Sphinx questions Oedipus.
See also: Beasts Centaurs
Fluffy Mazes
In another version of the story, the questioner
is not a creature but Oedipus’s sister. They don’t know each other
because Oedipus had left home at an early age. But she has been
told about a secret prophecy that Laius’s son would return to
Thebes, so it was her habit to question all men who came to the
city. Oedipus had been told of the prophecy in a dream, so he
answered her questions correctly and claimed the kingdom.