Meaning when the card is facing away from you: temptation, illusion, diversionary tactics
(Apologies for the lopsided pic of the card. the lighting was weird on the other pictures and this was the best even if it's kind of sideways)
(Also this color scheme reminds me of a bakery in Paris that I went to once with my dad...)
The Mirror of Erised is a very interesting and mysterious object in Harry Potter. We only saw it during Harry's first year, but it played a very big part. It is mentioned a few times later, mostly in the seventh book in reference to Dumbledore but I think its very important and I kind of wish it had a bigger part in the story.
The Mirror of Erised can represent fantasy, wishful thinking, temptation, and imagination. It shows whoever looks into it what their deepest desire is. When Harry looks into it when he stumbles upon it for the first time and all the times after that, he sees his family surrounding him. Ron sees himself proving himself to everyone as Quidditch captain, head boy, etc.- everything his brothers have achieved, who he is/will be compared to. Dumbledore says to Harry when asked that he saw himself holding up a pair of socks because he always gets books for Christmas. It's rather obvious that Dumbledore was not telling the truth but Harry never really thinks about what Dumbledore was really seeing until the seventh book. He thinks that Dumbledore saw his family, just like Harry did, especially his sister, Arianna, based on the information he finds out with the help of Ron's great Aunt and Rita Skeeter.
So this mirror shows what your deepest desires are, but it can be a trap. It's cause for wishful thinking, temptation, and longing. People have sat and watched the Mirror- themselves with the things they desire- until they waste away. Harry himself becomes obsessed with the mirror until it gets moved to a different location and Dumbledore tells him not to go searching for it. It's kind of like the Narcissus story in Greek/Roman (I forget which one) mythology. Narcissus was a beautiful man who saw his reflection in water and fell so in love with himself that he died watching his reflection because he didn't eat, drink, or sleep. That's kind of what would happen to people who get too tempted by what the Mirror was showing them.
It can also represent choices because of the choice that Harry subconsciously makes at the end of the first book. The Mirror was moved to where the Philosopher's Stone was being hidden. It was the last obstacle a person had to get through to get the stone. If he/she looked into the mirror with good intentions, not wanting the stone for their own personal selfish gain, then the stone would come to them. Voldemort makes Harry look into the mirror to try to get him to figure out how to get the stone. Harry's "choice" of not wanting the stone for himself, wanting instead to get it as far away from Voldemort as possible, was what the Mirror saw when he looked into it and he was able to get the stone. Because of this choice, Harry was able to keep the stone from Voldemort, saved the day, and escaped Voldemort for the second time in his life.
purty
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