Prof Responds: The Shawls, Sherry, and Shenanigans of Sybill Trelawney
If Sybill Trelawney was wrong all the time, how is it that she keeps being right? From crystal balls to crystal-clear prophecies, shawls to sherry, this episode asks: what happens when a woman tells the truth, but no one wants to hear it?In this spirited and sharp Prof Responds episode of Critical Magic Theory, Prof. Wamble dives deep into the post-episode reflections on Sybill Trelawney, inviting listeners to reconsider everything they think they know about Hogwarts’ most theatrical professor. From the double standards around the subject of Divination to the gendered dismissal of women labeled “hysterical,” listeners explore how performance, patriarchy, and pedagogy collide in the magical world. Drawing on listener insights, Prof Wamble unpacks the legitimization (or lack thereof) of Trelawney’s craft, comparing her treatment to McGonagall’s and even to modern-day weathermen. What emerges is a compelling portrait of a woman whose “shenanigans” may be survival tactics in a world that denies her power even when she speaks the truth. Her relationship with alcohol, often used as punchline or proof of her instability, is reframed as a coping mechanism for living with a gift no one respects—and one she herself may not fully understand.
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48:38
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48:38
Sybill Trelawney: Seeing, but Not Believed
What happens to a seer in a world that refuses to see her?In this episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble opens the third eye and dives deep into the divisive, eccentric, and often-dismissed figure of Professor Sybill Trelawney. With guest insights from "Chronic Overthinker" Emma, this episode interrogates the nature of belief, legitimacy, pedagogy, and perception in the wizarding world.What does it mean to possess a gift no one respects? Can a teacher still be good if the subject itself defies instruction? And what do we owe people whose truths make us uncomfortable? From dragging Hermione’s imagination to launching crystal balls in defense of Hogwarts, Trelawney’s story reveals how magical society weaponizes credibility—and how survival becomes performance.
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1:06:49
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1:06:49
Prof Response- Bigger than the Box: the Rubeus Hagrid Story
In this Prof Responds episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble returns to the larger-than-life figure of Rubeus Hagrid, unpacking the rich, complicated responses listeners shared in the post-episode chat.This episode explores the paradoxes that make Hagrid both beloved and deeply flawed—his tenderness and his trauma, his loyalty and his lack of boundaries, his fierce love for magical creatures and his failure to respect the sovereignty of others.
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49:41
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49:41
Caretaker, Friend, Scapegoat: The Rubeus Hagrid Story
This is not just a story about a lovable half-giant. It is a story about the monsters society teaches us to see—and the people we discard because they fit that image.In this episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble unpacks the complicated legacy of Rubeus Hagrid, part giant, full heart, and perhaps the most beloved yet overlooked character in the series. We follow Hagrid through the lens of his contradictions: too old to be their friend, too kind to be safe, too visible to ever truly belong.Drawing on survey responses and the brilliant minds of some of the Chronic Overthinkers, we explore whether Hagrid is a good teacher, a good friend, and a good Gryffindor. But most powerfully, we reframe Hagrid not just as a gentle presence, but as a case study in how society scapegoats those whose bodies do not conform to the norms of safety and power.A special thanks to Mayelin and Callie for joining the ranks of our Patreon Deep Divers
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1:21:40
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1:21:40
Prof Responds- The Umbridge Trap
On this Prof Responds episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble returns to the woman in pink—Dolores Jane Umbridge—to unpack the powerful and sometimes uncomfortable insights raised in the post-episode chat. Why do we hate her so much? Why do we enjoy hating her? And more importantly, what does our hatred reveal about how we understand femininity, power, and punishment? From the now-infamous “Umbridge vs. Voldemort” debate to the cultural thrill of watching a woman fall, this episode explores how systemic evil rewards obedience, how white womanhood can become a weapon, and how JK Rowling might’ve set a trap we were all too happy to walk into. As always, Professor Wamble gets personal, gets political, and yes—gets musical. The BOP is back. And so is the reflection you did not see coming.
O Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter Podcast
Instead of seeing criticism as an indication of not liking something, Professor Julian Wamble invites listeners of Critical Magic Theory to explore the things about the characters, plot points, and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter broadly that have always given them pause or made them smile without knowing why. It is in this navigation of the positive and the negative aspects of a world that we find true magic.
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