"I can't think of a time that Hermione uses a method that doesn't imploy some magic. Perhaps the muggleborns are more likely to use magic because it looms so importatly in their lives, having changed their lives completely while born wizards take it more for granted."
Argh, the above posted before I was finished. Anyway, I was going to say that that was such an interesting observation. I had been thinking that muggleborns would instictively turn to non-magic means because of how they were initially brought up, but I think your point is much more likely. Trying to see what they could do might lead to more experimentation than those who had seen magic from the moment they were born.
I thought of the no wood incident but I discounted it because she was only 11 and I'm not sure how representative that is of her mature personality and because she eventually used magic to solve the problem. If she had set fire to her clothes the tunnel supports and random books lying around I would have considered it a nonmagical solution, but she did use her blue flames spell. While Neville stabbed someone with a stick in the eye you don't get much more nonmagical than that, resourceful yes, magical no. Ron tells Harry in the end of book seven to share his search for Ravenclaw's diadem with the DA so they can help look for it as opposed of using some magical search method.
I wonder if these incidents are not really just expressions of the individual personality of the characters. Ron and Neville are both practical and concrete personalities reacting out of emotion rather than thought out actions. They both might be concidered less magically talented than Harry and Hermione. Both of them were successful using their nonmagical
I was sort of kidding about Hermione and the wood because yes, she was young and panicked, and from that moment on, pretty much, she always had the magical answer. I've always loved Hermione, and people used to point that little incident out as indicative of a major weakness of hers, and I always maintained it didn't really count for much the same reasons you listed. But please stop talking about people getting stabbed in the eyes, yes? It's quite gross. Eew. :p
Reply
Reply
Reply
You mean after the little, "But there's no wood!" incident in the first book, right? ;)
In general, I agree with you, though. Hermione and Harry do seem a bit more, "Ooh, I can do that with magic!" than Ron about things.
Reply
I wonder if these incidents are not really just expressions of the individual personality of the characters. Ron and Neville are both practical and concrete personalities reacting out of emotion rather than thought out actions. They both might be concidered less magically talented than Harry and Hermione. Both of them were successful using their nonmagical
Reply
Reply
Poor Hermione does just about everything and never gets the credit.
Reply
Leave a comment