SPOILER WARNING
Beware of potential unwanted info for those who have, somehow, not finished reading the Harry Potter series yet.

By now, we’ve all heard about J.K. Rowling’s recent bout of mouth diarrhea. Did you hear that Dumbedore’s gay?

I’ve been an avid follower of the Potter series for many years now, and I, like most nerds, have read them several times. During my readings, and re-readings, the thought of Dumbledore being gay never once crossed my mind. So I, like many other fans, have tried delving into my own Pensieve of memories. Did I conclude that Dumbledore’s gay? Nope.

There were no real clues given to us along the way to hint at his homosexuality. Was he straight? I wouldn’t necessarily consider that the case of the beloved headmaster, either. So what are some of the big arguments, for and against?

The Harry-Dumbledore relationship, the Dumbledore-Grindelwald relationship and of course, we can’t leave out J.K.‘s own words: “I always thought of Dumbledore as gay.” I guess the author’s opinion counts for something, right?

So some might claim that Dumbledore’s affection toward Harry was a bit on the homosexual side, but I’ve yet to encounter a Potter fan who thought that. The way this relationship has been portrayed for years is more of a mentor-student or grandfather-grandson relationship. Did Dumbledore love Harry? Of course he did. Was it a romantic love? There’s no way. Dumbledore always told Harry that love was the greatest and most powerful magic, and that love was ultimately Voldemort’s downfall. So why shouldn’t Dumbledore love Harry if those were his beliefs?

Another argument for Dumbledore being gay is his youthful encounter with Grindelwald. The manner in which Rowling described Dumbledore’s relationship with Grindelwald has been recently interpreted as more of a loving than a friendly relationship. One of the main arguments is that Dumbledore and Grindelwald were embracing in an old photograph mentioned in the book and they were described in ways a teenage girl might describe some cute guy she likes. I have to disagree here, too. Just because two attractive guys are seen hugging and smiling at the same time and place does not make them gay.

So why might have Dumbledore been attracted to Grindelwald? It was not for his looks. What tempted Dumbledore so much that it caused him to distrust himself? Dumbledore was attracted to Grindelwald’s power and plan of how to achieve it. Yes, his power. Think back to what Dumbledore tells Harry in King’s Cross in the last book. He told Harry of his temptation. Grindelwald laid out plans for them to achieve power. It was power that seduced Albus Dumbledore, not Grindelwald’s golden locks.

So what stereotypical clues were we given to point to Dumbledore’s homosexuality?

He’s a better dresser than a straight man, that’s for sure. Dumbledore was always described wearing robes of lilac, or lavender, or deep midnight blue. Most other characters in the story were nearly always seen wearing the same garments unless the occasion merited differently.

So, if Dumbledore isn’t gay, he must be straight, right? Wrong. Delving into my own vast stores of wisdom (about half an inch down) I came to the conclusion that Dumbledore seems more asexual than homo- or hetero-. He is one that doesn’t seem to need romantic love in the way that most people do. Dumbledore seems to have a better grasp on love than most. He believes in an unconditional love.

I guess it’s somewhat pointless to argue with something that came straight from the author’s mouth; but then again, don’t these college classes tell us to question everything? Why would she blurt out background character info that isn’t relevant to the story?

Most readers would agree that Dumbledore being gay does not really do anything for the story. If it had played a more important role, then it might have been more important to release this information—but by means of relaying it through writing the character, not just spewing it out at a reading.

So I guess he must be considered gay by default of the author’s words. But in the future, if an author wants a character to be gay, straight, or other, then they should write the character that way instead of saying it and expecting us to accept it without question.