The GoF Pensieve - A Discourse
Q: And how vital is book four in the whole seven book series to Harry?
JKR: Crucial. The fourth is a very, very important book. Well you know because you read it, something incredibly important happens in book four and also it's literally a central book, it's almost the heart of the series, and it's pivotal.
From: "JK Rowling talks about Book Four" cBBC Newsround, 8th July 2000. (Part 1 of 4)
This piece is put up to get some discussion, rather than my more usual essays. I do answer a few of my posed questions, but hope to see some opinions relative to them, and to other matters herein.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, certainly in the top 6 best Harry Potter books to date. Lord Voldemort returns to a corporeal form, we meet the Death Eaters properly, the Order begins to assemble and many more events with which we are all familiar. The next, much longer. essay in the pipeline expands on this a good deal, but pinpoints something that may be of import as a pivotal matter from GoF, while also possibly being the key to the series.
The part of GoF that particularly interested me, some may be surprised to know, was the matters in the Pensieve. Being interested in the workings, or rather lack of workings, of the legal system in the WW I have been pondering on these matters.
I do not propose to describe the proceedings, nor do I intend to examine what they tell us of the legal system, or lack thereof, in the WW. Rather I hope to cause discussion on what we might be able to divine from them in terms of what may happen in DH as a result and what has happened previously in the WW. This will exclude the Longbottom / Lestranges issue as my personal view is that Neville will take care of the six-gilled shark but not necessarily of the Lestranges. He might, but I think it too obvious and JKR is anything but obvious in her story as countless failed theories pre-HBP and earlier would attest.
Karkaroff's proceeding is first. He is already dead so will play little part in DH. He does, however, mention several other DEs of whom all, other than Mr. Multiplicity, are dead or in Azkaban having been participants in the DoM raid. Mad-Eye Moody at this point has both his eyes intact, and although he says that Rosier took a chunk out of his nose we have not so far been informed what happened to his eye or his leg.
I like Mad-Eye a great deal, but would find him easier to explain if he had a parrot on his shoulder.
Question 1 - Who or what accounted for Mad-Eye's lost eye and his leg?
Question 2 - Does only Voldemort know who all his Death Eaters are?
Question 3 - (As there are many Snape fans, including me in terms of him as a character) - Why was Karkaroff so firmly convinced by implication that Severus remained loyal to Lord Voldemort?
Ludovic Bagman comes up next. His is a short and almost wholly biassed proceeding in that his popularity, IMO, sways the Council of Magical Law into not imprisoning him, although he had been caught for the offence of passing information to Voldemort's supporters. To me Barty Crouch Senior asking for a vote on imprisonment suggest he had been convicted of this offence. The rattling chains make for some interesting discussion, are there any thoughts about them? My own are that the chair in the proceeding chamber acts like a dark detector in that if there is guilt the chair can assist in detecting it. Maybe Bagman was accused of the wrong crime?
For what it may be worth I am of the opinion that he is a Death Eater and will play a part, however short, in DH while being revealed as the enormous blond Death Eater from the amusement at Hogwarts. See here if inclined to know why.
Harry had one fleeting glimpse of the blond Death Eater during the lark at Hogwarts. He would not have seen Bagman for almost two years. Bagman had not notably been on the wizarding scene and may well have regained some of his former sporting prowess (lost his pot belly, in other words). His hair would have grown, possibly as part of a disguise from the Goblins.
This may be thought rather thin, but then so is a view that Harry must surely have recognised Bagman had he been the blond Death Eater, IMNSVHO.
It should also be borne in mind that, not only was any view Harry had of the blond Death Eater fleeting, but also that Harry at the relevant time was in torch lit corridors and the darkened grounds (where he only saw the behind of blondy) and was rather preoccupied with a certain Severus Snape rather than on figuring out who all the others involved were.
There are at least two wholly unremarked upon Death Eaters involved in the jamboree and brutal-face is referred to as no more than that.
It'll take a good deal more persuasion than has so far occurred to make me alter my view of Ludo, which will probably only change if proved to be wrong by Deathly Hallows in a few weeks time.
Question 4 - Why is Barty Crouch Senior so upset that Bagman escapes imprisonment?
Crouch senior was not in any role as a prosecuting attorney. He was fulfilling the chairman's role of the Council of Magical Law.
Winky expounds on Barty Senior's dislike of Bagman and it does seem that there is more to it than just some annoyance that Ludo escaped imprisonment. I believe Barty Senior knew some things about Bagman that were ultra vires the proceedings against him in the Pensieve and would make one's hair curl.
Question 5 - Any speculations out there over what the stories Rita Skeeter could tell us about why one's hair might curl due to Ludo could be?
The third, and most interesting proceeding, to me at least, is against the Lestranges and the late and unlamented Barty Crouch Junior. I have a notion that Barty Crouch Junior may appear as a Dementor due to a theory I hold that Dementors initially came about from being soulless wraith type creatures, very much akin to the ringwraiths in LOTR.
One young Canadian boy earlier asked her how Dementers breed.
"I was just so pleased that he thought about it and pleased that I had the answer," Rowling told The Canadian Press.
These evil creatures don't, by the way, breed but grow like a fungus where there is decay.
So there you have it, Dementors do not breed. They grow like fungus, obvious when one thinks a little about it.
The source of the above quote.
Question 6 - Where did Dementors originate and why have they left the service of the MoM other than inducements from LV? Perhaps the six-gilled shark drove them away, or they had some loyalty to Fudge but none to Scrimgeour.
You may recall that in GoF LV says the Dementors are his natural allies, or words to that effect. That he sought their alliance and created a situation where there was decay so that they could grow like fungus should have been apparent.
Whether this means they are like fungi or another kind of bacilli could not be determined. Botanists may be interested to delve further into this issue.
Question 7 - Will the Death Eaters in Azkaban come into play again or remain there?
Question 8 - Who now guards Azkaban and why did DD seem to think it was safe during his discussion with Draco on the Tower?
Question 9 - Just for the sake of it, justify why Neville would be the one to neutralise Bellatrix.
I look forward to answers.
JKR: Crucial. The fourth is a very, very important book. Well you know because you read it, something incredibly important happens in book four and also it's literally a central book, it's almost the heart of the series, and it's pivotal.
From: "JK Rowling talks about Book Four" cBBC Newsround, 8th July 2000. (Part 1 of 4)
This piece is put up to get some discussion, rather than my more usual essays. I do answer a few of my posed questions, but hope to see some opinions relative to them, and to other matters herein.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, certainly in the top 6 best Harry Potter books to date. Lord Voldemort returns to a corporeal form, we meet the Death Eaters properly, the Order begins to assemble and many more events with which we are all familiar. The next, much longer. essay in the pipeline expands on this a good deal, but pinpoints something that may be of import as a pivotal matter from GoF, while also possibly being the key to the series.
The part of GoF that particularly interested me, some may be surprised to know, was the matters in the Pensieve. Being interested in the workings, or rather lack of workings, of the legal system in the WW I have been pondering on these matters.
I do not propose to describe the proceedings, nor do I intend to examine what they tell us of the legal system, or lack thereof, in the WW. Rather I hope to cause discussion on what we might be able to divine from them in terms of what may happen in DH as a result and what has happened previously in the WW. This will exclude the Longbottom / Lestranges issue as my personal view is that Neville will take care of the six-gilled shark but not necessarily of the Lestranges. He might, but I think it too obvious and JKR is anything but obvious in her story as countless failed theories pre-HBP and earlier would attest.
Karkaroff's proceeding is first. He is already dead so will play little part in DH. He does, however, mention several other DEs of whom all, other than Mr. Multiplicity, are dead or in Azkaban having been participants in the DoM raid. Mad-Eye Moody at this point has both his eyes intact, and although he says that Rosier took a chunk out of his nose we have not so far been informed what happened to his eye or his leg.
I like Mad-Eye a great deal, but would find him easier to explain if he had a parrot on his shoulder.
Question 1 - Who or what accounted for Mad-Eye's lost eye and his leg?
Question 2 - Does only Voldemort know who all his Death Eaters are?
Question 3 - (As there are many Snape fans, including me in terms of him as a character) - Why was Karkaroff so firmly convinced by implication that Severus remained loyal to Lord Voldemort?
Ludovic Bagman comes up next. His is a short and almost wholly biassed proceeding in that his popularity, IMO, sways the Council of Magical Law into not imprisoning him, although he had been caught for the offence of passing information to Voldemort's supporters. To me Barty Crouch Senior asking for a vote on imprisonment suggest he had been convicted of this offence. The rattling chains make for some interesting discussion, are there any thoughts about them? My own are that the chair in the proceeding chamber acts like a dark detector in that if there is guilt the chair can assist in detecting it. Maybe Bagman was accused of the wrong crime?
For what it may be worth I am of the opinion that he is a Death Eater and will play a part, however short, in DH while being revealed as the enormous blond Death Eater from the amusement at Hogwarts. See here if inclined to know why.
Harry had one fleeting glimpse of the blond Death Eater during the lark at Hogwarts. He would not have seen Bagman for almost two years. Bagman had not notably been on the wizarding scene and may well have regained some of his former sporting prowess (lost his pot belly, in other words). His hair would have grown, possibly as part of a disguise from the Goblins.
This may be thought rather thin, but then so is a view that Harry must surely have recognised Bagman had he been the blond Death Eater, IMNSVHO.
It should also be borne in mind that, not only was any view Harry had of the blond Death Eater fleeting, but also that Harry at the relevant time was in torch lit corridors and the darkened grounds (where he only saw the behind of blondy) and was rather preoccupied with a certain Severus Snape rather than on figuring out who all the others involved were.
There are at least two wholly unremarked upon Death Eaters involved in the jamboree and brutal-face is referred to as no more than that.
It'll take a good deal more persuasion than has so far occurred to make me alter my view of Ludo, which will probably only change if proved to be wrong by Deathly Hallows in a few weeks time.
Question 4 - Why is Barty Crouch Senior so upset that Bagman escapes imprisonment?
Crouch senior was not in any role as a prosecuting attorney. He was fulfilling the chairman's role of the Council of Magical Law.
Winky expounds on Barty Senior's dislike of Bagman and it does seem that there is more to it than just some annoyance that Ludo escaped imprisonment. I believe Barty Senior knew some things about Bagman that were ultra vires the proceedings against him in the Pensieve and would make one's hair curl.
Question 5 - Any speculations out there over what the stories Rita Skeeter could tell us about why one's hair might curl due to Ludo could be?
The third, and most interesting proceeding, to me at least, is against the Lestranges and the late and unlamented Barty Crouch Junior. I have a notion that Barty Crouch Junior may appear as a Dementor due to a theory I hold that Dementors initially came about from being soulless wraith type creatures, very much akin to the ringwraiths in LOTR.
One young Canadian boy earlier asked her how Dementers breed.
"I was just so pleased that he thought about it and pleased that I had the answer," Rowling told The Canadian Press.
These evil creatures don't, by the way, breed but grow like a fungus where there is decay.
So there you have it, Dementors do not breed. They grow like fungus, obvious when one thinks a little about it.
The source of the above quote.
Question 6 - Where did Dementors originate and why have they left the service of the MoM other than inducements from LV? Perhaps the six-gilled shark drove them away, or they had some loyalty to Fudge but none to Scrimgeour.
You may recall that in GoF LV says the Dementors are his natural allies, or words to that effect. That he sought their alliance and created a situation where there was decay so that they could grow like fungus should have been apparent.
Whether this means they are like fungi or another kind of bacilli could not be determined. Botanists may be interested to delve further into this issue.
Question 7 - Will the Death Eaters in Azkaban come into play again or remain there?
Question 8 - Who now guards Azkaban and why did DD seem to think it was safe during his discussion with Draco on the Tower?
Question 9 - Just for the sake of it, justify why Neville would be the one to neutralise Bellatrix.
I look forward to answers.