Christmas, Quidditch and the Golden Snitch
By Emma Djukic, December 7 2024—
It has always rather amused me whenever I stumble across a subreddit or Quora post discussing the merits — or lack thereof — of Quidditch. With claims that it’s an awful game, completely unfair or how it doesn’t make sense at all; as if the entire world of Harry Potter was otherwise built upon steadfast rules of logic and reason. Not to sound like a terrible bore, but it is a children’s book, at the end of the day, and the rules of a mythical sport are far from integral to the main plot.
But Emma, you may be wondering, why bother writing about the game at all if it is entirely superfluous? Perish the thought! I think Quidditch is a perfect tool in the belt of worldbuilding, magnificently executed and memorably delivered. I argue there are still sports-related merits worth discussing (which I must discuss today, otherwise my poor editor will have to scrap this piece in its entirety).
For those who don’t spend their free time voluntarily reading about fictional sports, let me provide a brief overview of this magical game. Each team “fields” seven players, consisting of a Keeper, three Chasers, two Beaters and a Seeker. They all ride on broomsticks through the air in a field called the Quidditch Pitch. There are three kinds of balls with which the game is played:
- The Quaffle – similar in function to a soccer ball, the Chasers attempt to throw through the opposing teams hoops and gain points.
- The Bludgers – a pair of nasty, animated balls that fly through the air trying to knock players off their brooms, for which the beaters are tasked with hitting at the opposing team with their beater bats. And finally;
- The Golden Snitch – a tiny golden sphere, smaller than a golf ball, impossible to see, worth 150 points, whom only the Seeker is allowed to catch.
There are three hoops on either end of the pitch, guarded by the Keeper, and the objective of the game is to finish with as many points as possible. The Chasers pass the ball back and forth, making plays to throw the Quaffle through the hoops for 10-points per goal. Meanwhile, the beaters do their best to protect their teammates from the bloodthirsty bludgers, and send them flying at their opponents. The game ends only when the Golden Snitch is caught by a Seeker and the team that caught the Snitch is awarded an additional 150-points. This means games can last several days (and even months). I shall direct you here to a more rigorous description of the sport should that interest you.
Many people are bothered by the existence of a Golden Snitch and Seeker. What on Earth is the point of sending six other people flying across the pitch, trying to get points at all, when the whole game comes down to one player and their ability to find a needle in a haystack before the other guy? Aside from the 4th-wall-shattering answer of “it makes Harry Potter look cool”, I do believe there is a rational explanation for why the existence of a Snitch and Seeker don’t break the game.
In each Quidditch league, whether that be in Hogwarts, England or the world at large, the teams are ranked based on their total points in the season. The goals scored in a game go toward a team’s overall standing, dictating who makes it into the semis, finals, etc. So what that means is the Chasers have direct responsibility for racking up as many points as possible for their team, independent of who catches the Golden Snitch.
Think of it this way: two teams compete against one another and the snitch is caught early in the game. The final score is perhaps 30-160. Outrage! Horror! What was JK Rowling thinking? (That was for dramatic effect, but I will discuss the creator herself a little later on). Then let’s say another game is played, but it goes on for much longer and the outcome is 170-300. In the second game, the losing team will place higher than the winning team of the first match in the overall standings by virtue of the fact that they accumulated more points in their game. So while in the moment and the heat of the match, the concept of a Golden Snitch seems unfair, the bigger picture is that there is a strategy for winning the tournament at large. Which, after all, is the entire point — Battle, war, etcetera etcetera.
Another thing to consider is that the top teams don’t lose every match. So the distribution of 150-point “bonuses” evens out among the top contenders over several matches. It is not so much about how many games you win or lose but how well you’ve won or lost them. This does create a steep valley between the top of the league and the continuing losers, however, so perhaps there is room for further criticism that the snitch is simply too punishing for poorer teams, thereby making it impossible for an underdog comeback. To that I say, suck it up. Life is unfair. Fly better.
This opens a realm of tactical possibilities where a Seeker can purposely avoid catching the Snitch too early in the game in order to boost their team’s standing in the league with Chasers racking up goals. The danger with this, of course, is that the opposing Seeker does not have this reservation and ends the game early, much to the chagrin of the first Seeker. When you look at Quidditch for the forest rather than the trees, there is a surprisingly rich field of strategic choices that make it such a beloved game in the Wizarding World (the most popular, in fact).
But we always have to remember that this is a fictional game in a fictional world created by a woman with no great love of sports, but nevertheless a unique talent for the whimsical and bizarre.
Rowling explains in an interview, “Quidditch was invented in a small hotel in Manchester, after a row with my (then) boyfriend… It infuriates men, in my experience (why is the Snitch so valuable etc.)… [And that] is quite satisfying given my state of mind when I invented it.”
So there you have it. The game was invented as a cheeky jab at the very men who take sports so seriously to begin with. Take that, Reddit.
So when you’re in need of a break from all your studying this Christmas season, and you turn on Harry Potter for some nostalgic comfort, just remember that Oliver Wood didn’t haul the Gryffindors out of bed at five in the morning to be murdered by the Scottish winds for nothing.
Good luck to you all with finals, and Merry Christmas!