| Similarity | 
Harry Potter | 
Lord of the Rings |
| Evil sorceror referred to as "Dark Lord" who desires to regain physical shape | Voldemort | Sauron |
| Wise old mentor with a long gray beard and a wizard hat | Dumbledore | Gandalf |
| A birthday sets off events | Harry's 11th | Frodo's 33rd and Bilbo's 111th |
| Inherited invisibility device | Cloak | Ring and Cloak |
| Dog named Fang | Owned by Hagrid | Owned by Farmer Maggot |
| Evil, creepy hooded creatures | Dementors | Ringwraiths, Nazgul |
| Dead Parents | Harry's parents were murderd | Frodo's parents drowned |
| Taken to live with uncle | Harry lives with his Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia | Frodo lives with his Uncle Bilbo |
| Giant Spider | Aragog | Shelob |
| Bad guy with a "wormy" name | Peter Pettigrew (Wormtail) | Grima (Wormtounge) |
| Name Longbottom | Neville Longbottom who excels at Herbology | Todd Hornblower from Longbottom who knows much about herbs |
| Fight with a troll | Harry, Ron and Hermione fight a troll on Halloween | The Fellowship of the Ring fight a troll in the movie |
| Dark forest | Forbidden Forest | Old forest just outside of the Shire and Fangorn Forest |
| Elves | House elves act as servants | A race of peoples from Middle Earth |
| Small, pitiable creature who talks in third person | Dobby | Gollum |
| Goblins | Run wizarding bank Gringotts | One of the evil races of middle earth |
| Holder of the keys | Hagrid (Keeper of the Keys) | Hurin (Warden of the Keys) |
| Mischievous pair | Fred & George Weasley | Merry Brandybuck and Pippin Took |
| Forbidden language | Saying "Voldemort" | Black Speech of Mordor |
| Dangerous willow tree | Whomping Willow | Old Man Willow |
| Basin of seeing | Pensieve | Galadriel's Mirror/Water basin |
| Powerful, life-saving swords | Godric Gryffindor's sword | Anduril |
| Scar on forehead | Harry | Merry |
| Do not disturb water because of... | The giant squid | Watcher in the Water |
| Longed for safe-haven | During the summer Harry wishes he was back at Hogwarts | On their quest, the hobbits long to be back in the safety of the Shire. |
| Have a scar from an enemy | Harry has a scar on his forehead from Voldemort | Frodo has a scar near his shoulder from the Morgul blade. |
