Chapter Nineteen
The Lion and the Serpent
Useless Fact: This is the chapter I read first when I got my copy, purely on the basis of the title.
( Read more... )
Useless Fact: This is the chapter I read first when I got my copy, purely on the basis of the title.
( Read more... )
But more importantly, I don't like the way his development is going--the "lesson" he's teaching seems all wrong. Like Luna, Neville is supposed to prove himself to the cool kids and tag along after them until he earns their friendship when I personally think it would be more satisfying and dignified for both of them to think Harry and his friends aren't half as great as they think they are. But of course Neville thinks of Hermione as "kind" rather than being annoyed at how she constantly draws attention to him in class and likes to see him as yet another unfortunate to protect, like the house elves. And he thinks Harry's the best and so heroic despite Harry obviously fidgeting whenever he has to spend time with Neville--not to mention Harry's OMG WOE TO ME THE ORPHAN I SUFFER SO!! when Neville himself has to deal with two Pod Parents. And of course he loves Ginny for proving how kind she is by being seen with him in public--it's good she was rewarded by meeting a better guy during their date.
Neville could be the character who stands against the stupid side of Gryffindor if he continued to stand up to peer pressure and refuse to become a bully. Instead we're supposed to cheer him on for conforming and getting the kids who used to completely ignore him to tolerate him--woo hoo.
It's the same with Luna, in a way, the way the book just assumes that of course she'd want to hang out with these kids even though they think she's as nuts as everyone else thinks she is. It's like that scene in The Breakfast Club where Molly Ringwald explains that Anthony Michael Hall's friends "look up to" her and her friends--it's the classic arrogant fallacy of the popular kids: other kids wish they were our friends. Certainly the geeks don't trash us to each other. I think that's one of the weirdest things about the way N/L was sunk to me--maybe I'm remembering this wrong, but I got the impression that JKR thought that a) Neville should be even more put off by Luna's weirdness than a hero like Harry would be, despite being a nerd himself and b) that it was unhealthy for two outcasts to get together because that would imply they didn't mind being outcasts. Like it would sad if they wound up settling for marrying each other instead of hooking up with "normal" people who were socially successful. I don't think Neville and Luna *should* get together just because neither has real friends, but if they chose each other because they genuinely loved each other it would be just as good a relationship as any of the Trio ships.
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I must say that's not the way I read it at all, rather I thought what she was doing was generalising the motives of N/L-shippers, much like she generalised the motives of D/Hr-shippers ("they only want Draco and Hermione to get together because Tom Felton is pretty and girls usually go for 'bad boys' before they have acquired the wisdom and experience I have"), when she sunk that ship. And her assumption of the N/L-shippers' motivation was that they didn't want Neville and Luna together because they honestly thought they were suited, or because they love each other (which we now know they never will in Canon), but because they thought "everyone must necessarily be paired up", and "no one who is NOT a geek could ever possibly love Neville or Luna, so they better fall in love with each other, because that's the only chance they could ever get".
I completely agree with you on the "Neville-lesson" part, though. I still like Neville, but I'm really fearing that his "rise-storyline" will become more than I could handle, and I'd hate it if the lesson becomes that he has to transform to Harry's/Trio's/Rest of Gryffindor's standards, before he can "gain" other people's respect and his own peace of mind. This is why I loved this story so much, because it shows a Neville who cmes to the conclusion that he doesn't need other people's approval all the time, rather than having him transform, and then become accepted. It's also a big part of the appeal in the Neville/Cho-ship, for me. I mean yes, part of it IS because I think having Neville succeed where Harry doesn't is a far more satisfying and suitable resolution for this character, instead of having him go through some cheesy secondary hero's journey (kill me now!), but it would also be come across to me as "two people who Harry has deemed unworthy" (though for completely different reasons), deciding they love each other despite what other people (other people here meaning Harry ;-)) think of them. While N/L could supposedly tell this story as well, I think N/C would do it far better, not least because the fact that both Neville and Luna are, at least by the end of OotP, Harry-friend-wannabes, and I don't think JKR having them dating each other would have changed that in any way.
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But yeah, that's exactly what I don't like about Neville, that his own strengths aren't good enough so he better develop some kung fu double quick. Then we can have Hero!Harry, Second!Hero!Neville and Coming!Up!A!Distant!Third!Sidekick!Ron.
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Why does he have to be good at the subjects Harry deems best, like DADA, and 'prove' that he belongs in Gryffindor by fighting. Why can't it just be that he's brave because he has a rough time of it and doesn't whine (unlike other characters who shall remain nameless, lest I be accused of not having proper respect for Harry, the Only Boy with Hormones in the world...Oops.) and works hard?
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And now I'm curious as to whether any Neville/Cho exists. I know Invisible to See had a little.
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I would really like to see someone who genuinely doesn't conform. Someone who doesn't support Gryffindor at Quidditch - and not just because they're Slytherins, but because they hate Quidditch. Someone who actually resists conforming and refuses to hang around with the popular set on the basis that they're a shallow bunch of patronising fucks. Neville pisses me off because he does nothing to earn anyone's respect, we're just supposed to like him because he follows our heroes around like a slightly brain-damaged lost puppy. He doesn't have a single thought of his own in his head and no real personality beyond "charity case". Why should I care if he's bullied by anyone?
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And these are the rebels. The ones who stick it to the man and don't like authority.
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Personally, I'm just hoping the Hufflepuffs and Raveclaws have already figured out that winning the House Cup isn't the "honor" it's said to be by their professors and left the dreary task of chasing it to the glory-hog Gryffindors and resentful Slytherins...
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I think it's my way of working out my own personal feelings about rebellion, particularly as it relates to this canon.
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Not that this has anything to do with anything, but at my school, when a house won the House Shield, they either got half a day off school for all the students, or (because they changed that later on) everyone in the house got a free sausage and ice cream at the House barbecue. :D:D:D:D I think Hogwarts should actually have something like that - it would make more sense.
I'm just hoping the Hufflepuffs and Raveclaws have already figured out that winning the House Cup isn't the "honor" it's said to be
Me too.
Sort of related, but I liked how Cho actually gave a shit about Ravenclaw winning, instead of just being happy Gryffindor won yet again (or like Cedric, making excuses for Gryffindor/Harry), like everyone else seems to be. But even that was demonised and Cho came across as a sore loser instead. I'd be pissed off too, so I liked what she did.
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You had barbeques at your school? Lucky duck, where did you go to? In my junior high and high school (in New York City, natch), the most we ever got was luke-warm pizza and hot Kool Aid-- and that's only if we were in the school play or forked up $5 to go the senior prom.
But seriously, in Hogwarts, the only thing that a House gets for winning the House Cup is having their colors draped around the Main Hall for about half a day before they're all shipped back home. Now what the hell sort of motivation is that, anyway?
Sort of related, but I liked how Cho actually gave a shit about Ravenclaw winning, instead of just being happy Gryffindor won yet again (or like Cedric, making excuses for Gryffindor/Harry), like everyone else seems to be. But even that was demonised and Cho came across as a sore loser instead. I'd be pissed off too, so I liked what she did.
Didn't you know it's now apparently a sign of deep ev0l (or at least immature petulance) if anyone other than a Gryffindor shows ambition? Apparently, no one but our Sainted Trio and their house get to better themselves in any public way. Get your priorities straight, woman! ;)
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no one but our Sainted Trio and their house get to better themselves in any public way. Get your priorities straight, woman! ;)
*apologises profusely*
How could I have forgotten myself and suggested otherwise?
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You'd think the teachers would be over the House thing, but they're worse than anybody!
I love how Cho cried. Well, I guess that's what you get if you let the chicks play.
Ginny's good, but not Harry good, the three older girls on the Gryffindor team don't seem to affect the game at all and their only job so far has been to restrict the boys from manly fighting; the Slytherin team don't have any at all (because they're probably sexist on top of being racist, fat, ugly, stupid, mean, cowardly and untalented.)
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Meh, I cry too when I'm frustrated or angry, can't help it. At least it's not the whole Ravenclaw team throwing a big pity-party like Gryffindor did in PoA. Sadly that means no posters of Ginny's head on fire from the Ravenclaws (and it would so go with her hair too).
the Slytherin team don't have any at all (because they're probably sexist on top of being racist, fat, ugly, stupid, mean, cowardly and untalented.)
Well, as far as we know, Hufflepuffs don't have any girls on their team either. And Ravenclaws have only Cho. Oops, forget, everything Slytherins do is evil, even if other do the same. What was I thinking?
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