The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling is beloved by millions in part because of its fantastical nature, but also because the books allow Harry to face very adult decisions that allow him to grow. In the sixth novel, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry has to work with his mentor, Albus Dumbledore to piece together Lord Voldemort’s past. A majority of their decision making can be connected to the utility theory. Using the utility theory, Dumbledore makes life-changing decisions that helps Harry fulfill his quest to destroy Lord Voldemort.

The utility theory connects the decision making process to monetary values; which of these results will give me the most money in return? In real life, not every decision is based on economic factors. The utility theory states that people will pick whichever event will benefit most in the long run. In some cases, people will choose an event that is not the highest value. This could be because the losses of the decision outweigh the gains of the outcome; if one has to choose a lottery ticket that guarantees them $20, they are more likely to deny a lotto ticket that has a fifty percent chance of them losing $20 but gaining $40.

During the events of Half-Blood Prince, Harry and Dumbledore must find a horcrux, which is a fragment of Voldemort’s soul. In order to get the horcrux, one must drink a poisonous potion from a chalice until the horcrux is visible enough for them to grab it. For this obstacle, Dumbledore chooses to drink the poison. He reasons that Harry is the most valuable asset in their quest, and he must be protected. As a result, Dumbledore becomes very ill and can barely walk. However, Harry does attain the horcrux. When Harry and Dumbledore travel back to Hogwarts, Dumbledore is tragically murdered by Severus Snape, which is a part of an even bigger plot to save the world; Dumbledore had to choose between death and turning Harry over to Voldemort.

With the utility theory in mind, Dumbledore calculated that Harry’s safety outweighed his own safety. Even though he got really sick from the poison from the chalice, Dumbledore reasoned that it was worth being poisoned to keep Harry safe enough to get a hold of the horcrux. When it came down to a face-off, Dumbledore reasoned that being a martyr for the greater good outweighed giving Harry up to Voldemort’s followers.

Although the Harry Potter series is a book written for children, there are a lot of grown-up themes in the books. Decision making can be very difficult for anyone, let alone a teenage wizard. The choices made by those in Harry’s world define who they are as people. Their choices can be analyzed further by using the utility theory.