Magic – Harry Potter Lexicon

Magic is what sets folks in the wizarding world apart from their Muggle neighbors. Magic is the heart and soul of the wizarding culture in the same way that science and technology are the heart and soul of Muggle culture. Where a Muggle would pound a stake into the ground using a sledge hammer (a simple machine), a wizard would use a wand. Both the Muggle and the wizard view their choice of tool as completely and utterly logical and ordinary, although each would find the other’s tools fascinating and even mysterious.

The basic concepts of magic are fairly simple — even a two-year-old wizard can do some form of magic — but the inherent power and potential for misuse are great indeed. It is for this reason that promising young witches and wizards are sent off to Hogwarts and other schools of magic to refine their craft and learn the art and responsibility of their power. At Hogwarts, students learn a variety of magical specialties as well as general theory and the history of magic in their world.