The jig is up!
The assembled guests have just been informed by Kingsley’s Patronus- ‘The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour dead. They are coming.’ Words to cause dread if ever there were. And sounding like Mene Mene Tekel Parsin to me.
The adrenalin dumps into Harry’s system and time dawdles. Like true warriors, Harry and Hermione reach for their wands and prepare for the inevitable. Hermione reveals her her first thoughts by calling for Ron. She wants the trio together and has a plan for getting out of there – disapparate ASAP!
Death Eaters appear hot on the heels of Kingsley’s message showing how prepared they were. A rich haul for Voldemort if they can bag the lot.
Ron and Hermione’s hands meet and they are whisked away to Tottenham Court Road, London. One of the few real-world locations described in the series. Click here if you’d like a look at it on Google Street View.
It is a pretty furious start to the chapter followed by a visit to muggleland. Ron is way out of his league here. Wanting to back-chat a group of drunken louts who give Hermione the come-on, girls laugh at his outragous appearance and he manages to offend the cafe waitress. They’re trying to hide and Ron can’t keep his head down. Maybe he’s just upset my an attack on his family and his home. He’s an impetuous fellow and perhaps feels chagrined at having to flee when his instincts told him to stay and defend.
Hermione’s level of preparedness seems a little contrived. She has EVERY item they need and Ron and Harry hadn’t noticed that she’d been through their stuff? I’m not sold on that.
The all-night cafe with the dirty coffee sounds like somewhere Rowling has attended in real life. When the disguised Death Eaters show up, even this dreary place of apparent safety is denied to the trio. You or I might think we’d be safe in a public place with people about us. But that doesn’t mean much if an aggressor doesn’t care about such things. And Death Eaters don’t.
The fight in the cafe brings up a problem about wand duelling. I did a little experiment and found I’d be able to cover about 10′-15′ and solidly punch, hit, kick or push someone by the time they could yell “Petrificus Totalus!” Now, imagine if the witch or wizard’s target was armed with a staff, rock, chair or even a sword (like Godric Gryffindor). It seems that the wizarding world has locked itself into a reliance on magic and perhaps forgotten what they are physically capable of. Maybe that’s why there is a total absence of Physical Education at Hogwarts. I’d put my money on an active muggle over a witch/wizard at close range.
Anyway, Ron, Harry and Hermione decide on 12 Grimmauld Place as a place to lie low for a time. No place is safe, but it is the safest they can think of. The spectre of Albus Dumbledore is part of the Snape welcoming committee. Moody must’ve been furious at loosing Dumbledore. He did a good job on the Snape defences. Though one wonders if Snape would’ve been overly bothered…
At the end of the chapter we’re given a picture of the uses that Draco is being put to. It is interesting that Voldemort seems to find more pleasure in forcing others to perform torture than to do the torturing himself. Maybe he feels he’s getting a “two-fa.”
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{ 50 comments… read them below or add one }
Totally cool post Korg. Feels like a news flash. There’s even video footage via the Google link. Love the use of the present tense. Good observation on Ron as well as the other editorial comments. Love the sidebar on the relative effectiveness of magic vs physical self-defense. And the Aramaic quote.
You’ve got either a background or a future in journalism.
On another matter, have the skies turned red yet?
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/09/22/australia-sydney-dust-storm-outback.html?ref=rss
Hermione may be divine, but she isn’t perfect. She didn’t pack any food, and she didn’t pick the right jeans for Ron. Her response when Ron complained is rather unHermioneish and the last humor for a long stretch.
The Trio may be warriors, but they didn’t kill or permanently disable two of the most formidable Death Eaters when they had the chance. How much tragedy would have been later averted if they had? I’m not really saying this would have been the correct move for untrained 17 year olds, I’m just throwing this out for discussion.
I can’t help but giggle as I picture you and two friends, one with a stopwatch yelling, the other bound in pillows, and you launching yourself at your pillowed friend as they yell Petrificus Totalus… it’s a truly BEAUTIFUL image!
Nice analysis though–I agree that the preparedness of Hermione when her friends have been completely caught off guard is a little contrived. I love the adrenaline of this chapter though–and actually WENT to Tottenham Court Road when I was in the UK specifically because of the scene! (the Leaky Cauldron on Charing Cross was WAY too difficult to pin–every other freaking store is a book store, and record stores are now obsolete!)
Deacondon–I totally agree they may have saved a fair amount of grief by offing the DEs there and then. Rowling does this a few other places too–most noticeably, Harry asking Sirius and Lupin not to kill Peter (which brought about the re-rise of Voldemort)–sure Morty probably would have risen again somehow, but this act sped up the timeline possibly by years.
I feel like she is drawing a line about morality. The theme of choices is important all through the books, and I think she doesn’t want any of the good guys to make a choice that is bad for their soul, even recognizing sometimes there is a price for that.
A very nice post, Korg!
I was torn by feeling Hermione’s overpreparedness was just too much to believe, and being really, really impressed at how prepared she was — because if anyone *would* prepare this thoroughly, it would be Hermione.
A few moments that made me believe her preparedness: Deacondon caught a couple of them: The fact that she packed the wrong jeans for Ron, and that she didn’t pack food, given her intimate knowledge of Gamp’s Law of Elemental Transfiguration. (Though I do expect that if they’d left in a non-emergency situation, she would have at least packed a few sandwiches.)
I was also helped to believe it by having seen her sorting through books (should she take Hogwarts, A History? Her ancient runes textbook?) earlier. If we hadn’t been given this glimpse of her planning, everything she pulled out of the magic evening bag would have been cause for much eye rolling.
However, I would have liked to have seen a limit on what the evening bag could carry — Even a line from Ron asking why she didn’t bring something, and a snapped response from Hermione about the limitations of the bag and after all, she *did* fit a tent in it! would have been nice. (If it’s there, I’m just not recalling…)
I do think they should add something like this for the movie, because actually *seeing* all that stuff come out of the bag is going to be cause for great laughter — either that, or we need some humorous reactions from Ron and Harry when we first see the bag in action, so we can laugh with them and not at them — or that eye-rolling will indeed ensue…
Your descrption of the difficulties encountered with wizards in tight spaces made me think of two of the great duels in cinema – the Elle/Bea smash-up in the tiny trailer in Kill Bill 2 (Elle had great difficulty pulling out her Hanso sword due to the low ceiling to great comedic effect) and Terminator 2’s very vicious fight between two terminators – when terminators fight in close quarters there is A LOT of property damage. But yes, Deacondon, I was impressed with the Trio’s lack of killer instinct for the Deatheaters as they debated how to dispense with them. Standing back from the book I see why, however, in the moment of a murderous pursuit of my friends and family, I had to wonder to myself if I would have been so easy on my would-be murderers. (an uneasy confession)
Korg, great post! I love the tone and pace – matches that of the chapter.
janet, regarding your comments about the movie reaction to pulling all that stuff out of the bag, I just wanted to add that this will probably be another moment where Harry can look in wonder and amazement at what magic can do. I’m sorry, but I hate the line in GoF when Harry says something like “I love magic” as he enters the tent.
Regarding the Trio’s lack of killer instinct as it were, I think if they were to do such things, it would, one, go against Harry’s nature throughout the books. Even in OOTP, he cannot bring himself to kill Bellatrix or even hurt her for very long with the cruciatus curse because as Bellatrix rightly points out what he’s feeling is righteous anger & not true hatred. Harry always talks & acts like he’s going to act vengefully against his enemies but usually ends up showing mercy to them or at least feeling pity for them. Two, if the Trio had killed the two Death Eaters in cold blood, it would’ve stripped away much of their moral authority & it would make them more like their pursuers rather than less like them.
In regard to the Trio’s preparations, we need to remember that these are three 17 year olds who have only the barest idea of what’s coming. They think they know what to expect, Hermione more than the others, but they really don’t. They can’t truly prepare because they have no real prior experience as to what war is truly like. The Death Eaters have been steeped most of their lives in fighting battles, killing people without a thought, & operating in secrecy. They know what to do. The Trio don’t. Harry has a vague idea of what needs to be done, find the horcruxes, destroy them, then try to kill Voldemort. That’s how he operates throughout a greater part of the book. The Trio reacts mostly instead of attacking, & this starts off right at the end of the wedding. Maybe Hermione was planning on including food but didn’t realize they’d be on the run so fast. Maybe they didn’t think the Ministry would fall but would be only an obstacle rather than a real opponent. Not even Hermione can account for every possible eventuality.
Life on the run has to include some inconveniences. Makes it seem a bit more realistic if the trio has to suffer some creature discomforts.
Also, they can’t be killing Death Eaters because they’re not killers. I’ve just been reading the third of the Sookie Stackhouse novels, where Sookie “stakes” a vampire in self-defense. She is a good person, driven by her nature to help and to protect. Her reflections after she kills are very interesting: nausea, satisfaction, shame at her feeling of satisfaction, disbelief, horror. Any member of the trio would probably have gone through a similar reaction. Not only was there no time left in the plot to deal with such a major life-altering event, but it would have taken the story in a direction that was not a part of the story JKR wanted to tell. In fact, if you think about it, it’s almost 180 degrees in the opposite direction: saving the world through self-sacrifice vs murder. So she leaves the children innocent, with unblemished souls.
We could, of course, debate the morality of a decision to kill someone knowing you will prevent more suffering in the future. If you could travel back in time, would you kill Hitler? Stalin? Pol Pot? I can think of two stories which deal with that dilemma: Philip K. Dick’s Minority Report and Stephen King’s The Dead Zone. Interesting stories.
Red Rocker,
Thanks for the kind comment.
I don’t live in Sydney any more. I’m in Tasmania and we’ve had about 8 dry days in the last 3 months. 36 wet weekends in a row. My friend sent me some pictures of Sydney yesterday- amazing. He said it looked like the world was on fire.
I would question the veridicality of your friend’s picture: far as I know, Godzilla never visited the Southern Hemisphere. That is, if that is what that is. Looks like Vegas to me.
And yes, I’ve finally figured out you don’t live in Australia. But the report I read said that winds were expected to carry the dust to New Zealand. So I figured Tasmania might be in their path as well.
Revgeorge and Red Rocker I am in complete agreement with you on why the Trio did not strike back with lethal force. Yes, it would have invalidated the one single Rowlingian trope that sweeps through all the books – to love is to live, to kill is to die. However, this is where it gets tricky. Harry in fact does kill. Does he actually say the AK curse? No. But, he knows that LV is going to use it against him and it will rebound. Killing by ommission? if there is even such a thing. Also, he does use the cruciatus curse (and means it this time) – in protecting the honor of Minerva in a subsequent chapter. I was a teeny-tiny bit shocked at that, but not too much.
But overall Red Rocker is right – too much baggage too soon in the plot. And actually I think it shows a huge amount of courage, cool technique and restraint to be able to disable a Death Eater rather than just blast away.
Interesting comments about going back in time and getting rid of Hitler/Stalin/Evil-doers everywhere – always wondered why no one at the Ministry ever did that with all the time traveller things to LV before they got destroyed in OotP. But just like the Muggle world, maybe it would turn into a bloodbath – there have been so many evil despots. Maybe even worse ones would crop up.
Korg – that’s one angry Japanese tourist!
Hart Johnson,
You’re keen to actually go to Tottenham Court road! Did it help to get a feel of the situation in the book?
Rowling has set up a code against killing for her protagonists and to slay the unconcious Death Eaters would be murder- soul splitting murder. That’s not ground Rowling wanted to cover in this book. She’s already set out the consequences for that kind of act. But, I wonder if they did decide to kill them would they have used magic or used a knife from the back of the cafe or done the old curb-side stomp. The use of magic gives one a bit of a buffer between the killer and tthe killed, I imagine. Avera Kadavera being the cleanest of the lot- no marks at all.
I also meant to write something about Hermione’s bag being like a Bag of Holding from Dungeons and Dragons. Handy bit of kit, that.
revgeorge,
I think Bellatrix doesn’t understand cruciatus properly either. Harry is able to use it on Amicus when he spits in MacGonagal’s face. And, I reckon that is righteous anger if ever there was- not hatred.
Red Rocker you funny thing. Most of the locals around here wouldn’t be too happy if they heard that Tasmania was not part of Australia. It is the island state hanging off the bum of the mainland. I’m a little too far South to get the prevailing winds from the mainland. Though bush fires in Victoria can make it smokey here.
Joivre,
It is an interesting question that Red Rocker poses. But even though the rule of horrible people and war can bring out the worst of humanity it also allows the brightest and most radiant moments of humanity. So, even though by killing horrible rulers a lot of people may be saved many, many people wont have the opportunity to love, self-sacrifice, struggle for freedom and triumph over great evil. One allows the other but never condones it.
Nice writeup, Korg! I think you’ve captured its mood well. You mention Ron’s impetuousness and his wish to have stayed and fought, and I think you’re right, but it’s interesting that when they first apparate, he agrees with Hermione that they shouldn’t go back. This is something I’ve noticed in this book, namely that Ron and Hermione are aware of Harry’s hotheadedness and his motivations and so they try to present a unified front against him if they feel he needs to not do what he’s itching to do.
I didn’t feel Hermione’s preparedness was contrived. She had been sorting books, waiting for laundry to finish, and making allusions to being prepared for the past couple chapters. Also, special attention had been given to her handbag before this chapter to suggest that maybe all was not what it seemed with it.
Also, I realize it’ll be a little anachronistic and not at all the description given in the book, but if the movie could have the cafe fight happen in a Starbucks, I will laugh and laugh.
So the jinx is in effect already. The DEs sure move fast. Total time from Ministry falling to first mention of LV’s name by the Trio has got to be less than 2 hours, probably less than 30 minutes. But it’s a great scene. Gives the story that on-the-run feel, like the BSG episode “33″, and we the readers have no clue as to why yet. But the House of Black is stronger than the jinx, since Hermione says LV’s name and nothing happens. As much as DEs start to congregate around the house, I don’t think it’s because LV’s name is being said, but just because they think it’s a likely place.
It seems like there should be something to say about Dustydore; his eyes are holes whereas the real DD’s eyes are piercing. Pierced and piercing?
So yeah, Hermione worries that Harry has the trace. Harry says if that’s the case then Ron and Hermione can’t be around him, and they don’t contradict him. Given the discussion two chapters ago, the best interpretation here is that Harry is wrong and just getting confused by the Dobby incident. Still it would’ve been nice to have had that said at some point.
And lastly I’m confused by Hermione’s worry over Harry seeing into LV’s mind. I thought that the last two books had established that the link was not something LV was ever going to pursue again. DD told Harry that Occlumency was no longer necessary. Clearly, then, any insights into LV’s mind was not something LV intended and thus could be used as intelligence for the Trio.
One thing that I have always wondered about is how Voldemort can keep the loyalty of his DE’s if he tortures them when they disappoint him. Here, he is torturing not only Rowle, but also Draco by making Draco do it for him. Of course they are afraid of him and they hope to gain if LV ultimately triumphs. But the incentives of fear and greed can only go so far, or am I being naïve.
In the post I was impressed by the use of Mene Mene Tekel Parsin. I had no idea what that meant, so I spent some time with Mr. Googol and found that it was the handwriting on the wall from the Book of Daniel. See Daniel, 5:25-26. In short, it means “The jig is up”.
Sorry, should have said “Mr. Google”, not “Mr. Googol”.
Charlie,
It is interesting to consider the limits that Voldemort’s style of leadership engenders. When he has followers like Bellatrix, who truely believe the leader and seem to exist only to please him, other followers will toe the line. They won’t muck-up because of the dobbers.
Snape, on the other hand… And the Malfoys. Maybe they are a part of it only because it allows them to live their greed and prejudices more freely.
Matthew, your post is brilliant. I see your point about Muggle fighting. Sometimes it seems like you can get in a punch quicker if someone is trying to jinx you. And nice reference to Daniel, by the way.
Korg20000bc: re: visiting Tottenham Court Rd.
It’s funny, because London is both bigger and smaller than you imagine it will be, and there was definite ambience that gave a feel to the books (I actually bought all the UK versions, too, while there) but without more information in the books, it made it really hard to orient. I’m sure Jo had a spot in her head, but figuring out what that spot was as a tourist was a whole nother matter!
I, like some, had some issues with the trio and their unforgivables (Harry and the cruciatus, but also Hermione and the Imperius). I guess maybe it was to make it clear that in desperate times, we sometimes let go of our morality a little in order to do what needs to be done, but I argued with the book in those spots quite extensively.
Harry killing Voldemort though… that was on Voldemort–if he’d not attempted to kill Harry, nothing would have happened to him. And as a mom, Molly killing Bella with the AK seemed more reasonable–I think we do things for our children we would never otherwise consider.
Derek D–good spotting that Grimmauld Place seems to be safe from the Voldejinx! A point I’d never considered, but must be true. That Orion was surely a paranoid man (though first DDs then Moody’s reinforcements can’t have hurt)
On the Occlumency/mind thing though–the reason they dropped it for Harry was they thought VOLDEMORT was maintaining Occlumency against Harry because he didn’t want to give his own stuff away, but Harry seeing stuff meant that block was down (I suspect because with the horcrux destruction, the link with Harry is taking a larger and larger percentage of his soul)–so the fact of seeing, makes her worry Harry is vulnerable to it too. or that’s my take.
On Morty’s leadership: I think it’s a combination originally: greed for what they GET when he takes over, and fear of what happens to them if they don’t cooperate. I LOVED that Narcissa seemed to see through at the end, that Voldemort would NOT do for them, so she needed to do what was necessary to keep safe what was most valuable to her. Most of Rowlings villians are fairly one dimensional (by necessity, or this would have been a 40 book series) but i thought this was a nice nod.
[trying to use some coding, forgive me if I mucked it up]
Great post, Korg. That Godzilla, he gets around.
I always thought it funny to contemplate Hermione riffling through Ron and Harry’s underwear–and they don’t notice what’s missing, or seem to mind about it, when they find out.
Hermione’s bag is one of the high points of the book. And I agree, she was obvious about her preparations.
And I agree about Rowling wanting her characters to remain whole and pure, conduits for love.
“It seems that the wizarding world has locked itself into a reliance on magic….” this is a very good point and I believe Dumbledore would agree with you. They certainly haven’t gone far with that room in the Department of Mysteries, have they? And I too have wondered at points if a good haymaker wouldn’t be quicker. One thing I noticed, particularly in the Ministry battle in OotP, was that the jinxes/curses didn’t last very long. Once an enemy was stunned, why not put a restraining curse on them?
I thought Moody’s curses in the Black house seemed silly, like something kids would do–too carnival haunted house. Did Moody think Severus was too stupid to say “I’m not Snape,” etc.?
Bad guys always have their goons do the dirty work while they command and sadistically enjoy; I think it’s a rule of Fictional Villains, Inc. I was sorry to see Draco used like this though; you can bet he never bullied anyone again. So…was he a coward in obeying? When I think of Hermione’s courage, I wonder….
I wrote above in comment #22, “‘It seems that the wizarding world has locked itself into a reliance on magic….’ this is a very good point and I believe Dumbledore would agree with you.”
Actually they have the same blind spot, snobbery about, and dependence upon magic that rivals Vernon Dursley’s “There is no magic!” Wizards–magic; Muggles–technology. Both can be beneficial, yet can keep one from exploring other avenues of personal empowerment.
Great post, Korg! The Death Eaters coop and breaking up the wedding festivities reminded me of the scene in “Fiddler on the Roof” when the police make their anti-Jew stand by terrorizing Model and Tzeitel’s wedding. Hmm, not disimilar at all, in Fiddler it’s about religious bigotry and racism against the Jewish people, and at the beginning of this chapter, the Death Eaters are pureblood racists, attacking an Alchelmical Wedding (all alchelmical reference are thanks to John Granger of course) symbolizing the union and reconciliation of different nations and the transcendence of concerns over things such as blood-status.
And yes, I also think Rowling did not have the young ones kill the Death Eaters because that is what sets them apart. If Harry’s soul was maimed by murder he couldn’t have faced Voldemort. The issue of whether or not it’s ethical to kill someone in order to prevent their causing many deaths is a tough one. My boyfriend and I recently had a disscussion on, if it was possible to travel back in time, would we go back in time and kill Hitler, or I believe he worded it, “save a child Hitler from drowning”? I said that ultimately I don’t believe I would, because if time travel is possible, alternate futures are as well, and there was no guarantee that Hitler would become what we know him as and come to power, and that further, somebody else’s evil does not justify me being evil, and going back in time to kill someone, or not saving a thus far innocent child that I knew I could save was evil. Of course knowing all the atrocities Hitler was responsibile for, I’m glad I don’t have to make such a difficult decision.
*Waves to Hart Johnson* Great to see you commenting! I know I owe you comments at your story on HPANA. Everyone, this woman is a great writer! She writes originals as well as fanfic, I’ve been meaning to go over to the fanfic thread and promote her stuff.
diva_alex, we just watched Fiddler on the Roof (hadn’t seeen it since it came out), and I like the comparison; very apt.
Your “save kid Hitler” dilemma (demonstrate the best or worst of our humanness?)–this same storyline was used in LOST last season. Save the gunshot child Ben, who will grow up to be monster/persecutor? Or try to save him because it’s murder to let him die? It was quite a riveting storyline, with all arguments covered. Then, in a twist, in being saved, he will not remember it and must become an Other–thus beginning the development of monster/persecutor Ben. Stay tuned….
*waves back at Alix* Thanks for the promo, my friend!
The Hitler issue is so fascinating, an Arabella, I LOVE you bringing in LOST here–sometimes when we think we are reversing things, we are actually bringing them about.–Just like Voldemort acting on the partial prophecy, ne? Sayid thinks killing Ben will stop it all from happening, but in reality it sets it ALL in motion. I loved that irony from a plot twist standpoint. Jack too played his role, by refusing to save the wounded Ben.
Alix, I think with somebody like Hitler, I side with you. I probably would have saved him, but part of my thinking is that Hitler is as much a product of timing as personal evil. Had Germany not been in the dire straights it was in, Hitler never could have come to power, so chances ARE, had Hitler not been the man, we would have just gotten a different Hitler.
Jo’s world is a little more dependent on the straight cult of personality, probably because this is a 7 book series, not a 47 book series. It would be WAY too hard to establish all the circumstantial things that make an evil wizard possible over an above the PERSONAL features she DOES develop.
I like Stephen King’s answer to the dilemma of killing a murderer before he murders. In The Dead Zone, the hero, John Smith, who can predict the future, decides after much reflection to kill a local political candidate whom he knows will end up starting Armageddon in the future after he is elected president. He attempts to shoot him at a political rally. The first bullet misses, and the candidate grabs a 3 year old child to shield himself from the bullets. A photographer takes a picture of him holding up the child, it’s published on the cover of Newsweek and the candidate ends up shooting himself in disgrace. The world is saved, although John Smith dies in the attempt.
Korg, great post. I thought it hilarious that you tested out the reaction time for “Petrificus Totalus!” Did you make sure to say it with a British accent? Because I think all those hard t sounds give you a few extra milliseconds of advantage.
As for the conversation about the wizarding world’s over-reliance on magic: very true, and I liked Arabella’s note that Dumbledore would probably have agreed. Also, the spells themselves seem in the last few books to be a little juvenile–like they’ve never progressed beyond third-year DADA classes. I didn’t mind Harry using Expelliarmus against Voldemort in the final scene, but Petrificus Totalus always seemed to me like something that worked great on kids but could be easily overridden by an adult with a wand. Or avoided entirely if the counter-jinx was two or three syllables shorter.
diva_alix, your comparison of Bill & Fleur’s wedding to Motel & Tzeitel’s gave me chills. That’s an excellent comparison.
The “bad guys attack a wedding” scene actually has its own page at TV Tropes:
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WeddingCrashers
It does mention Fiddler on the Roof as an instance, but not Deathly Hallows!
Yes, excellent comparison of Bill and Fleur’s wedding being interrupted by the Death Eaters(read: genetic bigots) versus the Fiddler on the Roof marriage of Motel&Tzeitel’s wedding being interrupted by the anti-jew police(read: genetic/ethnic bigots), so thank you to diva_alex for bringing that up. I also have a reaction to share concerning the points made by korg and Hart Johnson,about the difficulty in getting out a lethal spell or jinx in time to offset a more physical attack, and I thought of how Harry got the Elder Wand from Draco Malfoy–by sheer physical attack, and not through his favorite “Expellliarmus” spell. Too bad they don’t include some kind of Judo or Karate classes at Hogwarts! ( On the other hand, maybe it’s just as well, as Malfoy probably would have taken them, and then he might have been more able to defend himself physically from Harry!)
When Harry wrenches the wands from Draco’s hands, Draco has been temporarily blinded by the shards of crystal from the chandelier flying in his face. This is of interest both in the emphasis on eyes/sight in DH and as a closing of the circle of Harry facing down bullies. In the beginning of SS we learn about Dudley and his gang beating up Harry on a regular basis. Harry explicitly sees Draco as the wizard equivalent of Dudley; Draco is a threat with his wand and lobbed potions ingredients while Crabbe and Goyle provide a physical threat. By DH Harry is no longer afraid of Vernon, Dudley doesn’t think he’s a waste of space and tries to make him tea, and Harry overpowers Draco in a physical confrontation.
Of course, Ron’s advice to Harry in HPSS when Harry is going to face Draco in a duel for the first time is, if nothing happens when he points his wand at Draco, to throw it away & punch Draco in the nose.
Thanks for the kind words, all! Fiddler’s really quite an interesting musical.
Hart Johnson (it’s so weird for me to call you that!) you raise a great point about Hitler’s evil being a product of the times. Voldemort’s was too. If there wasn’t a deeply ingrained racism against non-wizards, Voldy couldn’t have gained such support, or taken over the ministry. It still baffles me that the Ministry was able to change ideologies so and start persecuting muggleborns without many people within it remarking “hey, um, isn’t what He-who-must-not-be-named is about? Why is this our new policy?” Though of course, it is mentioned that people are whispering about it, but afraid, and the evils, including the evils of inaction, which people are capable of astonish me regularly.
That Lost comparision is really interesting Arabella! I used to watch Lost, but kinda stopped following during the third season, it looks like I missed some good stuff!! Ah well, that’s what netflix is for!
diva_alex, you could compare the Ministry workers to those in Germany too fearful to stand up to Hitler, or who were protecting others. In HP, people are disappearing, and weren’t Voldemort’s goons also lining up those with Muggle relatives? That would include a lot of people. Even Arthur Weasley, of pureblood stock, doesn’t publically say anything.
The last two seasons of Lost were knockouts, and last year’s was brain-crampingly fabulous. Lost has a lot in common with HP: literary, religious, and cultural influences/references, a redemption theme, war, etc. I read the recaps/analysis by EW’s Jeff Jensen, an erudite Christian who would feel at home here. His explication of one episode’s Prince Caspian theme was not to be missed.
I was wondering, in chapter 9 Hermione not having done a Memory Charm before only in theory.
“. . . We just need to wipe their memories,” said Harry. “It’s better like that, it’ll throw them off the scent. If we killed them it’d be obvious we were here.”
“You’re the boss,” said Ron, sounding profoundly relieved. “But I’ve never done a Memory Charm.”
“Nor have I,” said Hermione, “but I know the theory.”
She took a deep, calming breath, then pointed her wand at Dolo¬hov’s forehead and said, “Obliviate. . . .”
What did Hermione use on her parents to protect them and make them not know that they have a daughter and have gone off and moved to Australia?
‘I’ve also modified my parents’ memories so that they’re convinced they’re really called Wendell and Monica Wilkins, and that their life’s ambition is to move to Australia, which they have now done.’
‘Assuming I survive our hunt for the Horcruxes, I’ll find Mum and Dad and lifet the enchantment. If I don’t – well, I htink I”ve cast a good enough charm to keep them safe and happy. Wendell and Monica Wilkins don’t know that they’ve got a daughter, you see.
Technically, it’s possible that Ms. H.used a different charm from the Obviate to erase the true memories and replace them with false memories, possibly the less well known muto monumentum spell, followed in due time by the restituo monumentum spell.
There are ways to dodge around the plot inconsistency you found, R. Ross, but no way to get around the monumental act of deception and betrayal.
Hart Johnson,
Having been on the receiving end of some of Korg’s “experiments” in hand-to-hand combat, I certainly wasn’t giggling! Pillows never seemed to be allowed…
Voldy’s treatment of Draco reinforces the fact that he is no evil mastermind; just a bully. He’s either still getting the Malfoy family back for Lucius’ stuff-up, or taking perverse delight in making the monkey-boy dance. He also refers to himself in the third person, a sure sign of a wanker (or professional athlete).
Sorry about the italics… red dust in the keyboard…
Black Angus, did Hermione really betray her parents by protecting them? I don’t think so.
Protecting them is one thing…
I have a real problem with the Wizarding World using magic on Muggles without consent, ‘for their own good’. It’s patronising.
Hermione is very protective of other magical creatures’ rights, but doesn’t seem to think that Muggles, her own parents included, have a say in the matter.
I agree with Red Rocker that it is an act of deception and betrayal. Having known both worlds, Hermione (and dare I say Rowling) prefers the Wizarding World and Muggles are collateral damage in the real war.
You bring up some really interesting points. I remember being slightly taken aback by the memory charm on Hermione’s parents when reading the book, but I just stored it in the back of my head. It seemed too messy a philosophical and moral problem to wrestle with at the time I was reading.
However, using magic on Muggles, with or without their consent, seems to occur more frequently than we think. (Which I’m sure will irk Black Angus). For instance, Albus uses magic on the headmistress at Riddle’s orphange. Arthur uses memory charms all the time on muggles to contain magical mishaps in muggle territory. It seems more often than not it is used to protect the magical community from Muggle infiltration and discovery. Does it make it right? You bet it does. I would have loved to use a few memory charms on the nazis to protect the Jews from persecution. However, would it be right to use a memory charm on a Jewish person, perhaps even telling them they are not Jewish – in order to protect them from being hunted down?
Ah…. no. There must be another way without taking away someone’s identity. It seems the end wants to justify the means.
Just to be devil’s advocate–how do we know Hermione didn’t GET consent from her parents before performing said modification? She may have explained the situation, at least broadly, and asked them to trust her before she did it.
As a parent, I can’t imagine agreeing to let my daughter go into that kind of danger, but then–the Grangers are dentists… (that’s a joke). Seriously though–if she had said “I will need to help Harry find some things, and if you are here to be used as a way to bring me back, we will fail and these evil people will take over… Can you trust me?”
Just a possibility… (Hermione IS a character though, that sometimes seems to get caught up in that old ‘greater good’ conundrum, so maybe not.
Hart Johnson, I did consider your alternative, and like you, I can’t see how anyone – parent or not, but especially a parent – agreeing to have their memories erased, especially of the existence of their own child. Not even for the sake of ridding the world of evil. Some things are core.
Black Angus, it is patronising, but it’s worse than patronizing. It is the use of power over someone who has no way of protecting themselves. No matter how well intentioned, it is wrong.
I acquit the divine Ms. H, of course. It’s her creator who sometimes doesn’t think about the ramifications of her plot devices. Lazy writing.
Regarding the last two words of your post Red Rocker, that might be just a tad troppo forte. A writer who has meticulously plotted out a laberynth of seven books, complete with drawings, maps, and biographies of non-existant characters, certainly has a right not to have her writing labled lazy. My other idea is this – Hermione is 18 years old. She thinks she knows everything, like most teens, but she doesn’t. I was a complete idiot at 18 and when I read Deathly Hallows, I’m actually surprised at the trio’s composure. But alas, Hermione had not probably studied consequentialism in school yet and her decision was a youthful and earnest mistake. I guess there’s no Pete Singer in the Wizarding World and there isn’t an ethics course at Hogwarts.
Hmmm, some good arguments here. I’m rethinking my unreflective, quick answer. I usually consider things more carefully before shooting my quill off.
Good Heavens! Aren’t we being a little hard on Ms. Grainger here? What was she supposed to do? Allow her parents to be tortured and killed? If Harry was Undesirable Number One, than Hermione was certainly in the top ten. To quote that great moral philosopher Ronald Bilius Weasley (who has far more sense than Pete Singer),
“All’s fair in love and war and this is a bit of both.” Hermione loved her parents, and thought that this was the best way to protect them. She is pretty bright. Maybe the Order should have sheltered Hermione’s parents like they did the Dursleys. In the end the Graingers were far safer in Australia if Voldemort had prevailed than the Dursleys.
I don’t believe it would have ripped Harry or Ron’s soul if one of them had AKed Greyback at Malfoy Manor. Especially if Ron had done it. Greyback was on the verge of ripping Hermione’s throat out and who knows what else. Greyback seems to survive a few to many stuns that throw him across the room into a wall. I know that JKR wants to keep her Trio pure, and I agree with that to an extent, but it also means that some of the unpleasant choices that must be made in a time of war are just a little too pat.
I don’t see Hermione’s use of memory modification on her parent’s as lazy writing at all. I think it just shows that human beings are not the most terribly consistent people in the universe. Hermione sees the compulsion that House Elves live under as a terrible thing; yet she compels her parents to forget her & move to Australia.
Does she do the right thing or the wrong thing? Therein lies the problem. And the answer is more likely to be “yes and no” rather than “yes or no.”
I’m also offended that Australia can be seen as ’safe’ and ‘out of the way’! Hermione ships her parents off to the colonies. Reminds me of the Anglocentric protagonist of Dracula’s Guest…
Australia was involved in WWII because those crazy Europeans were going to hurt everyone. We bailed Britian out of the Western Desert and inflicted the first defeat on Japan.
So I assume it would be the same for VoldWar II.
Don’t get me started.
BA, don’t you hate geographical stereotyping?
Some good thoughts on Ms. H’s motivation. I am not convinced, however, that JKR entertained any of those thoughts. I am fairly convinced that she wanted a quick way of showing that the trio were making preparations and that they were taking their quest pretty seriously. If she had wanted to make the point that Hermione was being inconsistent or immature, she would have said something about it.
Joivre, I wouldn’t call JKR a lazy writer overall. When she pays attention, she plans things out very meticulously. It’s just sometimes that she doesn’t think things through. This isn’t the only instance.
I think the main focus is the Trio’s unselfish sacrifices to defeat Voldemort. Both Hermione and Ron give up their families, Hermione going to the length of making herself an orphan, and Ron leaving his with less protection and no news of their welfare. Harry, of course, is laying his life on the line as savior.