Harry Dresden - Fictional Biography

Fictional Biography

Harry Dresden is a wizard who works as a private investigator of sorts in Chicago (he's in the phone book, the only listing under "Wizards"), dealing with paranormal crimes and consulting for the Chicago Police Department. He is named after three different stage magicians — Harry Houdini, Harry Blackstone, Sr., and David Copperfield. This name was given to him by his father, Malcolm Dresden, a stage magician himself, who raised Harry while still performing his magic show all across the country. The stories are told from Harry's point of view in a hardboiled style.

Harry is considered a magical "thug," lacking fine control of his power, but is one of the strongest living wizards in terms of pure magical strength, as well as factors surrounding the timing of his birth. He originally favored fire and wind spells in battle, but has since evolved towards fire and kinetic force, and has recently started using earth (It's My Birthday Too and Turn Coat), Lightning (Small Favor and Turn Coat), and has used water at least once (Turn Coat). He is also an expert at tracking spells (which he uses in his investigations) along with summoning and entrapment spells to speak to faeries and other supernatural sources of information. Due to his lack of finer control, Harry often must rely on magical items to help focus and channel his magical energy, such as his staff, blasting rod, shield bracelet, and force rings. In Changes, we see the first instances of Harry using wide area war magic, fire and ice combinations, and pure ice magic. He's also gotten much better at using Veils and tighter control of his fire spells because of teaching his apprentice Molly Carpenter.

Harry has also been known to carry around many firearms such as a .38 revolver, a .357, and most recently a .44 revolver and a sawed-off pump shotgun for those times when 'magic just doesn't cut it'.

Harry's traditional arsenal includes a duster (first a canvas model, later replaced with a leather duster received as a gift) enchanted with protective magics (destroyed during the events of Changes), a rune-carved staff, a 'blasting rod' (a wooden stick used to give him finer control over his evocation magic, particularly fire), a shield bracelet (which Dresden has upgraded significantly throughout the series), a silver ring (used to channel blasts of kinetic energy) which has grown from merely one to several on both hands over the course of the series, and his mother's silver pentacle amulet (which receives a nice upgrade in Changes).

Harry also benefits from having a large number of contacts and acquaintances within the different groups of the magical community. Whereas most traditional and hidebound wizards refuse to have dealings with other magical beings, Harry has gained a great deal of respect and infamy that often allows him to pursue other options normally not available to wizards. Of particular relevance is the fact that Harry has met and has some level of interaction with all the Queens of the Summer and Winter Courts of Faerie.

Harry's mother, Margaret Gwendolyn LeFey, was a wizard herself, although Harry knew little of her prior to book six. He has since learned that he is not her only child. He has an older half-brother named Thomas (who just happens to be a White Court vampire). Harry was raised by his father, a stage illusionist, until the age of six, when his father died of a brain aneurysm. He spent some years as a ward of the state before being adopted at ten (shortly after manifesting his magical powers) by Justin DuMorne, a former Warden of the White Council who had turned renegade and become a dark mage. Justin later tried to enthrall Harry as his slave, but Harry fought back and in the process killed Justin. Harry was then entrusted to the care of Ebenezar McCoy, who mentored Harry and helped keep him out of trouble, until Harry was old enough to support himself. In Changes it is revealed that McCoy is his maternal grandfather.