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I'm specifically talking about the first three. One was from Barty Crouch Jr. (disguised as Moody) in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Chapter 15:

Harry moved forward into the middle of the classroom, into the space that Moody had cleared of desks. Moody raised his wand, pointed it at Harry, and said, “Imperio!” It was the most wonderful feeling. Harry felt a floating sensation as every thought and worry in his head was wiped gently away, leaving nothing but a vague, untraceable happiness. He stood there feeling immensely relaxed, only dimly aware of everyone watching him.

And another one was from You-Know-who after Harry had reached the Graveyard in Chapter 34:

“I asked you whether you want me to do that again,” said Volde- mort softly. “Answer me! Imperio!” And Harry felt, for the third time in his life, the sensation that his mind had been wiped of all thought. . . . Ah, it was bliss, not to think, it was as though he were floating, dreaming . . . just answer no . . . say no . . . just answer no. . . .

The book specifically mentions that this was the third time Harry was feeling the effects of Imperius curse. I've tried searching for the second time he was cursed, but couldn't find it anywhere in this book.

Was Harry cursed before this book? Or did I miss it somewhere?

2 Answers 2

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You missed it further down the page in chapter 15, just after the first time.

Moody Imperios him and tries to get Harry to jump on the desk. He fails and Moody praises him. He then does it again (this time off-camera).

‘Look at that, you lot … Potter fought! He fought it, and he damn near beat it! We’ll try that again, Potter, and the rest of you, pay attention – watch his eyes, that’s where you see it – very good, Potter, very good indeed! They’ll have trouble controlling you!’

As has been noted, Moody performs the spell another four times. It's possible that because this was done in close succession that Harry is counting them as a single (second) occasion.

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    A few lines later it states Moody cast Imperius on him four times, so still not consistent. Either incident in graveyard is 5th time, or the class is meant to be grouped as one occasion, and there's another occasion missed between the two.
    – Michael
    Nov 15, 2020 at 14:36
  • Perhaps it's four times working the same spell?
    – Valorum
    Nov 15, 2020 at 15:30
  • Crouch (moody) had repeatedly asked harry to jump. That is what that line is saying about I think. Nov 15, 2020 at 20:42
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This is a particularly notorious mistake in the books. I don't have the text in front of me, but the Wikibooks summary tracks with my memory:

Professor Moody is going to use the Imperius curse on each student to teach them how to resist it. Hermione objects, saying it is illegal. Moody responds that Dumbledore wants them to know what this curse feels like and offers to excuse her from class; she decides to stay. Moody puts each student under the curse. Harry feels euphoric while he is cursed. When a little voice breaks in telling him to jump on Moody's desk, Harry thinks, "But why?" As the command gets more forceful, Harry both jumps and tries to prevent himself from jumping and smashes into Moody's desk. Moody is overjoyed and repeats the process four times, until Harry is able to cast off the curse perfectly.

So by all accounts, this is the sixth time Harry's been placed under the Imperious Curse. If we're generous and assume that all of the times in Moody's classroom are one "time" that he's been placed under the curse, it's the second. But there's really no way to make it three unless there was another classroom session that the book never mentions.

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    The actual text in the book is: “Moody had insisted on putting Harry through his paces four times in a row, until Harry could throw off the curse entirely”. I would think that means four times in total, not four times in addition to the first time.
    – Alex
    Nov 15, 2020 at 17:32
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    Either way, Voldemort isn't number 3.
    – Michael
    Nov 15, 2020 at 18:20
  • Voldemort must be so disappointed that he isn't #1. Dec 5, 2022 at 2:38

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