Chapter Eleven

[merrymelody]

The Sorting Hat’s New Song

In which Harry's journey of Assitude continues, a Gryffindor shows a spine, and the Hat becomes Roxanne's new favourite object.

My chapter formatting's a bit problematic as I have the books on a word file, so if I mention pieces from the next or last chapter, please don't hesitate to thwap me.

Magpie beat me to it this

Comments

[anaid_rabbit]

I love how Ron`s very first use of his prefect authority is the intimidation of people who dare have a dissenting opinion about bestest pal Harry or even *gasp* doubt him...

[merrymelody]

Yes, Dumbledore made an excellent choice there.
'I'm a prefect so everyone has to be rilly rilly nice to my BFF or I'll give you all lots of detentions!'

[jollityfarm]

I am suddenly reminded of those various kings and queens from history who would have people to do important things for them: Henry VIII had a "groom of the stool" to wipe his arse for him. Presumably, just because he could afford it. And plenty of royals throughout history were illiterate because they could employ people to do all that writing shit for them.

Anyway, my point is that it does rather look as though Ron and Hermione have been "employed" as servants to Harry, who can't possibly be bothered with all the tedious minutae of school lawkeeping. Just as kings and queens have the vital business of being royal to occupy them, Harry is too busy being important to worry about whether some kid has his hat on the right way round or not. I don't imagine he's quite royal enough to have a "groom of the stool" though, but that's modern thinking for you.

[merrymelody]

Yes, before there's a much more marked contrast between the primary Slytherins and Gryffindors: Slytherin has a hierarchy and not everyone is equal (Draco obeys Flint, Snape, elder Slytherins, Crabbe and Goyle obey Draco, Pansy has her own gang of girls but sway with the boys also); Gryffindors have actual friendships (despite Hermione yielding to the boys and Ron to Harry a good amount of the time

[sistermagpie]

The Ron thing is really interesting after reading Autumn Term. That's a book where things like prefect authority are taken seriously in terms of people being fair and making everybody act like grownups. There's a scene where the sister who is Head Girl makes a bad decision and screws over her younger sister--only she does it because she *thinks* she's being fair, and also knows that she can't favor the girl who's her sister

[merrymelody]

Even Percy is like you're-forcing-me-to-do-this as in 'I'll have to take points for this, Harry!'
Heh, I was just commenting that it seems no-one in HP has a true ethos that isn't Gryffindorian.
http://www.livejournal.com/community/the_snarkery/12491.html?thread=105163#t105163
So Percy has instincts to be fair and unbiased but the whole culture is based around this might-is-right be-strong-and-brave (elkins made a post about this) http://elkins.theennead.com/hp/archives/000032.html#top

Hermione, by contrast, is better at rationalizing her biases.

Oh yes, Hermione would have kept her temper calmly and just hexed Seamus later or given him detention ;)

OotP just had so many set-ups for that sort of thing and everytime the narrator wound up validating Harry's feelings of persecution and specialness.Totally. I think that's why the endings

[jollityfarm]

It's very strange the way the ideas about what's printed in the Prophet work. If Mrs. Weasley believes what Rita Skeeter writes about Hermione, that is obviously a mistake on her part, but forgivable since how could she have known Hermione wasn't doing such things? However, when the Prophet writes smack about Harry, only the biggest fools would think to believe it, and they need to creep and crawl before they can be granted forgiveness for their shocking lapse in common sense. Even if, as in this case, it's someone who has only met Harry once for about five minutes and has been given no especial reason to believe he isn't mental in the head. I mean, yes, she is wrong - we know this, because we've been reading the books. However, Seamus' mum hasn't been reading the books, and has no way of knowing what's true besides what she's seen

[merrymelody]

I notice Mrs. Weasley stops getting the Prophet because it told 'lies about (Harry) and Dumbledore', omitting that

[jollityfarm]

I personally suspect that if I'd seen Harry's interview in the Quibbler, my first reaction would have been "if your story was in any way credible, surely it would be in a halfway-credible publication?" I mean to say, it's a little like having your alien invasion story in the Daily Sport and genuinely expecting people to take it seriously. From what I could see, the Quibbler is somewhat akin to one of those "true stories, no really" cheap-looking things you can sometimes get, and I think there'd be plenty of people that would dismiss the story just because it was in there.

Of course, the magical world doesn't actually seem to have a halfway-credible publication to reference. It's like trying to choose between the Sun and the Daily Mail. It's probably bad enough that witches and wizards actually do buy the "adult" magazines for the articles.

[merrymelody]

Hahhahahaha, between the Sun and the Daily Mail, I'd chose death. Have you ever seen the spoof, Daily Mail Island on tvgohome.com? It's a reality show in which people's only form of media is the Daily Mail, and they all turn into raving fascists in the first week.

[darklites]

Yes, only an idiot would adopt their families beliefs blindly and spout 'X says' every two seconds instead of thinking for themselves. Which isn't exactly the same as Neville's doing now at all. Oh no.

OMG, hahaha. *dead* Neville is so Draco there. Except, you know, Neville is Correct and Able To Look Past Slander And Defamation, while Draco is Evil and Racist. They're both mindlessly sprouting the views of a parental figure - both their views can be quite logically contradicted if looked elsewhere. But I guess Draco is clearly omgevol since he believed his parental figure blindly. But Neville? Neville is totally The Underdog Hero!!1 Because he believed his parental figure blindly, y'see? Huh? What flaw in my logic? ;)

This is a million years late because I'm randomly catching up on LJ reading. :>

[merrymelody]

No problem, nice to see ya!

Yes, the only way to be is defiant of your parents attitudes. Like Sirius. Cool, cool Sirius.
Not like Percy, though, that is Teh Evol!1111
I love how Draco is apparently 'evil' because of his 'choices' (Can't remember where I read that but stupidity was clearly rife there) which basically amount to: 'Not becoming a Gryffindor on the first day of school and legally emancipating himself from his entire family at 11 after one minute in the hallowed presence of the saintly TBWL.'
Whereas Neville is clearly a demonstration of independent thinking.

[aasaylva]

Very good observation, aligning Draco and Neville like this - never thought of it. But I must say (and that bugged me even more), it didn't come across to me as if JKR tried to say Neville was thinking independently, but just that his loyalties are the right ones. It boils down to something like the pre-rationalism church ordered you to have: faith WITHOUT knowledge. That's what good people are made of. Thus, belief in Dumbledore is some kind of dogma never to be questioned, but to be followed proudly, defying the cowardly masses...

[askmehow]

• He knew that Seamus's mother was a witch and could not understand, therefore, why she should have come over so Dursleyish.
  
  Huh? Is there something Dursley-ish (Muggle-ish, even?) about caring for your children?
  
  I was so puzzled by this. Isn't it interesting that Hermione's parents, who never seem to communicate with her in the school year (and how can they, when she doesn't have an owl - did you notice that in The Woes of Mrs Weasley?) are considered models of good parenting; at the very least, they're never criticised as bad parents.



• * Seamus said, 'Look...what did happen that night when ... you know, when...with Cedric Diggory and all?'
  Seamus sounded nervous and eager at the same time. Dean, who had been bending over his trunk trying to retrieve a slipper, went oddly still and Harry knew he was listening hard.
  
  Hahahaha. I love that Harry notices how two potential detractors' beliefs hang on what he's about to say, and still completely blows it. Thank you! When I read this chapter, the one thing that really stood out to me was

[merrymelody]

Yes, for all Hermione's pride, or at least, lack of shame about being Muggleborn, she's awfully quick to dismiss any connections with actual Muggles like her family, in favour of her purebred buddies. (I think it's the next chapter that she comes back early from holiday with them, in order to sort out Harry's problems for him again.)

And yeah, I also love that anyone insulting Harry's family deserves to be beaten up, yet apparently it's fine for him to insult everyone else's family. Not to mention there's all that whining about Seamus 'attacking' him - like, I didn't see a scene in which Seamus and Dean both start whaling on Harry.

[askmehow]

Hey, you're online! Whee!

Not to mention there's all that whining about Seamus 'attacking' him - like, I didn't see a scene in which Seamus and Dean both start whaling on Harry.

Exactly! Since when is Harry a wilting flower that needs to be sheltered? Isn't it convenient that his thick skin disappears only when the plot requires it? An 'It's in the Script' moent, right there.

I think it's the next chapter that she comes back early from holiday with them, in order to sort out Harry's problems for him again.

Oooh, can't wait! I'm beginning to think that I'll never catch up with you guys! *cries*

[merrymelody]

Hee! Everyone else is in the US, iirc, so I hardly ever see people online at the same time as me.

Harry's always sensitive to his own needs and feelings. It's everyone elses that's the problem.
But yes, he does seem to veer wildly from being incredibly intuitive, to the point of appearing psychic; to not knowing basic human psychology like: Cho cries because she's sad.

Oh, don't even try. It's a stone around my neck, I swear! *dreads loooooooong upcoming chapters*