What is the purpose of using dunder methods in Python classes?

Dunder methods, also known as magic methods or special methods, in Python are used to define special behaviors and operator overloading in classes. These methods are named with double underscores before and after the method name (e.g., __init__, __str__, __add__). They allow you to customize how objects of your class behave with Python’s built-in operations, such as printing, adding, or comparison.

class Point:
    def __init__(self, x, y):
        self.x = x
        self.y = y

    def __str__(self):
        return f"Point({self.x}, {self.y})"

    def __add__(self, other):
        return Point(self.x + other.x, self.y + other.y)

# Creating objects of Point class
p1 = Point(2, 3)
p2 = Point(5, 7)
p3 = p1 + p2
print(p3)  # Output: Point(7, 10)

In this example, the __str__ method defines how the object is represented as a string, and the __add__ method allows for adding two Point objects using the + operator.

Dunder methods are essential for creating classes that integrate smoothly with Python’s syntax and built-in functions, making your objects behave more like native data types.