Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Summary: Plot, Characters and Ending
In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry's fourth year at Hogwarts, the school hosts the Triwizard Tournament and Harry is mysteriously entered as a fourth champion. The final task turns out to be a trap: the trophy carries him and Cedric Diggory to a graveyard where Voldemort rises again in a new body.
It is the book where the series turns darker and the second wizarding war truly begins.
| Character | Who they are |
|---|---|
| Harry Potter | Fourth-year student forced into the tournament |
| Ron and Hermione | Harry's best friends |
| Cedric Diggory | Hogwarts' official champion, from Hufflepuff |
| Mad-Eye Moody | New Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher |
| Barty Crouch Jr. | Death Eater in disguise |
| Wormtail | Peter Pettigrew, Voldemort's servant |
| Voldemort | Dark wizard seeking a new body |
| Fleur and Krum | Champions from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang |
What happens at the Quidditch World Cup?
The book opens with Voldemort and Wormtail plotting in an old house, a scene Harry sees in a dream. Harry then goes with the Weasleys and Hermione to the Quidditch World Cup. After the match, masked Death Eaters terrorize the campsite and someone casts the Dark Mark into the sky. Winky, Mr. Crouch's house-elf, is found with Harry's wand and is dismissed.
↑ Back to the topHow does Harry become a champion?
At Hogwarts, Dumbledore announces the Triwizard Tournament with students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. The Goblet of Fire chooses Fleur Delacour, Viktor Krum and Cedric Diggory, then spits out a fourth name: Harry Potter. He is too young and did not enter, but the contract is binding. Ron believes he cheated and they stop speaking for weeks. Mad-Eye Moody, the new teacher, keeps a close eye on Harry.
↑ Back to the topWhat are the three tasks?
In the first task each champion must take a golden egg from a dragon. Warned by Hagrid and helped by Moody's hint, Harry summons his broomstick and outflies a Hungarian Horntail. Ron makes peace with him afterward.
The egg's clue leads to the second task: rescuing something precious from the bottom of the lake. Harry uses gillyweed to breathe underwater, frees Ron and also rescues Fleur's little sister, earning points for moral fiber. Along the way come the Yule Ball, Hermione's date with Krum and the strange disappearance of Mr. Crouch.
The third task is a maze full of creatures and spells. Harry and Cedric reach the cup together and agree to take it at the same moment.
↑ Back to the topWhat happens in the graveyard?
The cup is a Portkey. It carries them to a graveyard, where Wormtail kills Cedric on Voldemort's order. Using Harry's blood, the bone of Voldemort's father and his own severed hand, Wormtail restores Voldemort to a body. Voldemort summons his Death Eaters and forces Harry into a duel. Their wands connect, and echoes of Voldemort's victims, including Harry's parents, pour out of his wand and shield Harry long enough for him to grab Cedric's body and the cup and escape.
↑ Back to the topWho put Harry's name in the Goblet?
Back at Hogwarts, Moody hurries Harry to his office and reveals that he served Voldemort. He is really Barty Crouch Jr., the escaped son of Mr. Crouch, disguised with Polyjuice Potion while the real Moody was locked in a trunk. He entered Harry in the tournament and guided him to win so that the cup would deliver him to Voldemort. Before he can testify, a Dementor brought by Cornelius Fudge, head of the Ministry of Magic, destroys his mind.
↑ Back to the topHow does Goblet of Fire end?
Fudge refuses to believe Voldemort has returned, and Dumbledore breaks with him. He sends Sirius and Snape on secret missions to prepare for the coming war. At the leaving feast he honors Cedric. Harry gives his prize money to Fred and George to start their joke shop, saying everyone will need a laugh.
↑ Back to the topMore about Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
This summary reveals the whole plot, including the ending.