Mistakes from
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
I've been having some complaints about the mistakes pages, saying that it's an insult to J.K. Rowling to have the mistakes she or the editor made plastered all over the page. I know that, if it is her fault, that she has her hands full looking after her daughter etc. and never meant it in that way. What do you think? Should I take off the Mistake pages? E-mail me your comments.
****Mistake... We should all be really mad at Scholastic Books. In the US edition, in Chapter 1, Scholastic changed the word "curse" to "murder," making it sound as if Voldemort wants Wormtail to kill Mad-Eye Moody instead of putting the Imperius curse on him and enabling Crouch Jr. to take his place and go to Hogwarts. A few pages later they also changed "the Ministry need never know that anyone else [that is, Moody] has disappeared" to "anyone else has died." But Moody doesn't die, he disappears as the UK edition correctly states. This misleading error drove me crazy looking for another murder victim until I compared my US copy to the UK edition and found the author's meaning had been changed for NO reason. Shame on you, Scholastic!
Mistake... In book 3, Dumbledore says that he gave evidence at Sirius' trial, but in book four, Sirius says he didn't get a trial.
Mistake... In book 4 it says that they banned flying carpets because they were a muggle thing, but what are brooms? muggle things!
Mistake... At the end of Book 3 Ron recieved an owl, for keeps as a present, from Sirius Black and Harry and Hermione were both there to see it. Then near the beginning of the 4th book Ron sends Harry a letter with the bird and Harry seems as if he had never seen it before!
Mistake... In Book 4 [UK version page 503] Fudge, Dumbledore, and Moody are talking about Crouch. But instead of Fudge yelling to Dumbledore, it says: "said Crouch angrily". He wasn't even in the room... they were talking about him but not with him.
Mistake... Mad- Eye Moody says that Lily and James Potter were killed by "Avada Kedavra". When (others) were killed using that curse they fell to the ground and were just dead. In Book 1 [page 53 US version] Aunt Petunia remarks that her sister got herself "BLOWN UP" and Hagrid said in the same chapter that the house was in ruins. If Lily was killed with Avada Kedavra she would have just died. Myabe J.K forgot how she described the house in Book One?[Possible Answer: When James was trying to hold off Voldemort, spells might have missed and ruined the house.]
Mistake... When Harry recieved his letters from Hogwarts in Book 1 they poured out of the fireplace. But in Book 4 Mr. Weasley was unable to get through it as it was an electric fireplace.
Mistake... On page 606 (UK edition), Harry describes to Dumbledore what had happened after he and Cedric touched the Goblet of Fire. Here Harry tells how the shadow of his FATHER told him what to do, while on page 579 it is his MOTHER who comes to him and tells him what to do. ~Alejandra [Note: in my US edition, Harry says "mother".]
Mistake... Mr. Crouch's son said when he had truth potion that he and his mother switched places in Azkaban and his mother was dying. He said that the Dementors are blind but they sensed 1 healthy and 1 dying person going in and 1 healthy and 1 dying person leaving. How could he be dying too? [Possible Answer: Crouch Jr. could have been mentally ill from being in Azkaban, or ill from not eating.]
Mistake... In chapter two, Harry wakes up with his scar burning in the early morning. That same day he receives a letter from Ron that says they will pick him up on Sunday at 5 p.m. He replies to Ron, saying "see you tomorrow", which means his scar hurt on a Saturday. But he tells Ron and Hermoine at the Burrow that he woke up on Sunday morning with his scar burning, when it was actually Saturday morning!
Mistake... Mr. Weasley says that Portkeys are "objects used to transport wizards from one spot to another at a prearranged time." But the Triwizard Cup (which was supposed to be a portkey) transported people whenever it was touched, there was no "prearranged time."
Mistake... In the beginning of the book it states Dudley threw his Playstation out his window. Since Harry was born in 1980, the year would be 1994, but Sony Playstation was released yet. Note: See bottom of page.
Mistake... When Harry is in the Prefect bathroom. He makes a comment about breathing, and Moaning Myrlte is upset that he talked about breathing in front of her, since she hasn't done so for years. Then it says that she "buried her head in her handkercheif and SNIFFED loudly." Isn't sniffing a form of breathing? [Possible Cprrection: Maybe she sniffed, but that doesn't mean she got any air.]
Mistake... In the UK edition on page 345... 'I suppose there's always Moaning Myrtle,' he said gloomily, referring to the ghost who haunted the girls'toilets on the second floor'... in the UK edition of Book 2 on page 101... 'She haunts the girls' toilet on the first floor,' said Hermione...
Mistake... In Book 4 (British version), pg. 344 Hermione is saying something about a girl named Eloise Midgeon. Then on pg. 348 it talks about her again, and it spells her name Eloise Midgen (no "O" between "E" and "N"). Did J.K. write this by accident or was it a publishing mistake? [Correction: Eloise Midgen is also mentioned on p173 (UK edition), and there it is spelled Midgen. So presumably 'Midgeon' was a typo.]
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Mistake... When the 'echos' of the people Voldemort has killed come out of his wand, Cedric Diggory comes out also. But in the chapter before that, Pettigrew kills Cedric, because Voldemort commands him to 'kill the spare'. [Correction: Wormtail killed Cedric with Voldemort's wand... if you remember in Book 3, Wormtail didn't have a wand to protect himself from Sirius, Lupin, Ron, Hermione, and Harry with because when he faked his death and ran away as a rat he had to leave his wand behind.]
Mistake... When Voldemort's wand releases the spells he has done in reverse order, Harry's father, James, comes out before Harry's mom, Lily, meaning he was killed after Lily. But doesn't this contradict Book 3 when Harry hears his father yelling, "I'll hold him off" and the fact that Lily protected Harry until she was killed and then Voldemort went right on to Harry -- and being immediately defeated?
Mistake... During the year at Hogwarts, they were still giving out and tallying away points for the Inter-House Cup but they never gave a cup! What was the point of the points? [Note: They handed out points during the year because the didn't know Cedric was going to die. If he hadn't died, they would have awarded the house cup as usual.]
Mistake... In Book 2 [US] the password to Dumbledore's office was "Lemon Drop" ("Sherbet Lemon" in the UK edition). In Book 4 they say it is "Sherbet Lemon" in the American edition. Apparently "Sherbet Lemon" was not translated from the UK edition in Book 4 as it was in Books 1 and 2.
Mistake... In book 2, it says that Moaning Myrtle haunts the U-BEND of the toilet. In book four, it says that she haunts the S-BEND of the toilet. [My edition (US) says U-Bend.]
Mistake... When Harry goes back to The Burrow it says that he had never seen Charlie or Bill. But he has seen Charlie in the newspaper article in Book 3! [Note: JKR most likely meant he had never seen them in person.]
Mistake... In Book 2 it was stated that Tom Riddle was poor BUT in book 4, chapter 1, it said that The Riddle Family was a rich and high class family. [Correction: Voldemort and his dad have the same name, Tom Riddle. Once his dad found out that his wife was a witch, he fled to his parents house. They were very rich. Then years later Tom Riddle Jr. (Voldemort) comes along and kills them all.]
Mistake... It clearly states in the first chapter of Book 4 that Frank Bryce was " very deaf," yet he hears that entire conversation. [Correction: JKR clearly states that Frank used his GOOD ear while listening to the conversation in the Kitchen of the Riddle House. ]
Note: How do we know Harry was born in 1980? In book 2, Nearly Headless nick had his 500th deathday party, and that he died on October 31, 1492. Add 500 to 1492 and you get 1992, the year the book takes place. Subtract 12 (Harry's age) from 1992 and you get 1980, the year he was born.BACK HOME