Muggles in Magical Places

[OliveOil_Med]

We all know about charms to keep Muggles out of places where witches and wizards gather, but what if a witch or wizard actually wants to bring a Muggle to one of these places? We already know Hermione brought her parents school shopping her second year. There must be those who want to bring their Muggle girlfriends or boyfriends to these places as well.

How would a Muggle get past all these charms? We saw in book two they do not need to be permanently attached to someone with magic for this to happen, and I doubt Hermione at the age of twelve did not know enough about magic to bypass such powerful charms.

Maybe some mundane object can be enchanted to allow Muggles to pass through these barriors. We already know objects can be enchanted to make Muggles miserable. What do all of you think.

Also, a random thought to attach to this thread as well: can Muggles see ghosts the way witches and wizards can?

[JCCollier]

I would think this would not be only the choice of the individual wizard, but strictly controlled by the Ministry under the Statutes of Secrecy. You use the example of Hermione's parents, and I think any Muggles allowed in such places would be limited to family members. Perhaps when a Muggle-born child is accepted at Hogwarts the Ministry issues/performs an access charm (a wizarding world backstage pass) that for a family member overrides other anti-Muggle protective charms. I believe Squib members of wizard families may require this also. As for them bringing girlfriends/boyfriends, I'm sure this would be strongly discouraged unless the relationship reached the point of marriage and one had to reveal to the other he/she was a wizard/witch.

Since Muggles have legends of ghosts, just as they do of many other mythical creatures that are real in the wizarding world, I would say some have the ability to see ghosts while others completely disbelieve in such nonsense. Perhaps Muggles who have some small amount of wizard blood within their ancestry will have a latent ability to perceive ghosts, though they have no other magic.

[TheBlackSister]

I think that, as long as there is a wizard/witch guiding the Muggle(s), they would be able to cross any magical barriers. I always thought that the protective spells sense magical presence, the way Riddle's boat did. So, as long as there is a magical guide, they are fine.

As for ghosts, I think Muggles do see them...otherwise, there wouldn't be debates over whether they exist or not in RL.

[Inverarity]

I think it depends on the nature of the "barrier." Hogwarts has a Muggle-Repelling Charm which makes Muggles see only a decrepit ruins with "Danger, keep out!" signs. But what would happen if they ignored the signs and continued on? From the description, it's not so much a "Muggle-Repelling Charm" (it doesn't actually repel them) as an illusion that discourages them.

To get into Diagon Alley, you have to tap a certain brick on a wall behind the Leaky Cauldron. We see wizards doing it with a wand, but it's not clear whether it has to be done magically. Presumably there are other ways to get into Diagon Alley, such as by Apparition or Floo. A wizard who knows how to get in behind the Leaky Cauldron could probably bring a Muggle, though, and that's probably how Hermione's parents got in.

Basically, it appears that most of the ways wizards keep Muggles out of magical places is by hiding, with magical illusions if need be. What we have not seen is any examples of an enchantment that forcibly prevents Muggles from doing something or going somewhere. If wizards could put an enchantment over a place that makes any Muggle who approaches promptly remember they have very urgent business somewhere else, they probably would. Likewise a spell that automatically makes a Muggle forget seeing something he or she shouldn't have. You can send wizards to use Imperius or Obliviate afterwards, but you can't just make a place Muggle-proof with a spell that guarantees they won't figure out how to get past whatever illusion or secret entrance is hiding it.

As for ghosts, I think Muggles can see them. There are references in the books to ghosts being "relocated"; apparently, the Ministry can make ghosts haunt somewhere else. I suspect a ghost who hangs around where too many Muggles are likely to see it is a candidate for such relocation.