Chapter Thirty

[merrymelody]

Grawp -

This’ll be fun! Who doesn’t like Grawp?

(Am still behind a good five chapters. I’ll post them sooner or later, unless Mirabella/y’all would rather we keep moving in a more linear fashion?)

Comments

[sistermagpie]

Crabbe and Goyle are emphasised as much stupider than both their friend Draco, and Harry and Ron ((who are equally gluttonous when it comes to food, interestingly.))

Harry and Ron are just growing boys who use all those calories to become good, tall people, while C&G are big and maybe fat. Slow metabolism is a sign of inner disgrace.

The Slytherins are helping a Squib? I guess they supported Hufflepuff, there’s not much they won’t do.

You do have to wonder if this is something the author notices, since Snape and Umbridge both seem to get along with Filch. Filch may be Pureblooded, but still, the Squib question seems like an obvious angle on bigotry where the Slytherins come out better. (I'm sure if this is noticed it will change and Hermione will knit Filch something and become the only person to appreciate him.)

I guess they’re really showing Umbridge. It’ll be SUCH a burn on her when they all fail their DADA exams. Surprise that Umbridge suddenly forgets what she used to be so good at and let's the kids get away with it. If

[merrymelody]

Harry and Ron are just growing boys who use all those calories to become good, tall people, while C&G are big and maybe fat. Slow metabolism is a sign of inner disgrace.

I think one of my all time favourite parts of the books is that bit in CoS where they 'greedily' eat four desserts, compared to Harry and Ron's moderate three. Those pigs!
It serves them right that their food was drugged, I guess. (Maybe that's why Dudley's lost weight from GoF? I imagine you'd be looking at a phobia of food in a real person...)

The Squib question seems like an obvious angle on bigotry where the Slytherins come out better.

Yes, perhaps to them it doesn't matter so much about your magical skills as it does your blood, and vice versa in Gryffindor.
(I found it interesting that Ron views himself as better than Filch after finding out, which I guess kind of backs that up.)
Not that the Slytherins are likely to be all 'We love you just the way you are!' but obviously if being untalented was considered awful, a lot of them would be shunned.

(I'm sure

[dphearson]

I think one of my all time favourite parts of the books is that bit in CoS where they 'greedily' eat four desserts, compared to Harry and Ron's moderate three. Those pigs!
It serves them right that their food was drugged, I guess. (Maybe that's why Dudley's lost weight from GoF? I imagine you'd be looking at a phobia of food in a real person...)

I love the series, but one of the things that make me very uneasy is all the body judgements and size judgements. Iknow kids do that sort of thing, but there is something very ugly in how Harry takes such glee in his descriptions of plumpness or fatness, while his own eating habits are not examined, except to say whether he got as much as he wants. But other kids getting as much as they want to eat? Then they are fat, spoiled children.

[merrymelody]

Yes, it's something I'm not comfortable with.
It seems that quite a few negatively portrayed characters are introduced as being plump and ugly before displaying their personalities (Dudley, Crabbe, Goyle, Umbridge) as if they're just living down to their looks or something. (Of course, this could also apply to Veelas, who conceal their 'true' characters/looks. That's getting into a gender issue as well, though...)
And adding to that, you have the tendency for fat/ugly people to either turn out evil or else just remain fairly inept; and the delight the narrative takes in describing the lengths of their hideousness (Dudley basically being a walking, talking 'Your momma's so fat' joke) as if this is somehow indicative of their moral worth (which is somewhat of a double-standard, considering the Slytherins are quite often referred to as shallow because of their preoccupation with appearances, and at least twice are criticised for mocking people's weight - Molly and Neville's, iirc.)

[sistermagpie]

I guess it’s probably too late to reschedule again, but why doesn’t Slytherin get a replacement just for this match

Probably couldn't find anybody big, stupid or evil enough to take his place, whereas Gryffindor's just full of pluck.

Which would be okay, if they didn't go around noting the lack of it in everyone else, and how it makes them TEH EVIL!11

Harry was taken out of the game honorably! Montague deserved to be taken out and besides the team is Slytherin, so anything against them automatically adds honor points to the other side.

The Slytherin games are always narrow. (Ravenclaw played Slytherin. Slytherin won, though narrowly. - PoA)Narrowly seems to indicate that either the Slytherin team rocks except for Malfoy, so that they rack up enough points that the other player catches the Snitch and they still win, which makes you wonder why the other player does that--I mean, wouldn't the correct strategy there be to just keep Malfoy from grabbing the Snitch in hopes you'd get a few more points before you caught it? And if

[merrymelody]

Probably couldn't find anybody big, stupid or evil enough to take his place.

Heh. Perhaps they found out what happened to the last? 'So...the Beaters, our Seeker and the (?) Keeper have all been beaten up/hexed by the other team? Last time on the field? And if we win and get more points than them, they'll shove us into toilets? You know, come to think of it, I think I've got too much homework at the moment!'
I miss Flint. He was funny, at least.

If Malfoy never catches the Snitch wouldn't the Slyths have replaced him?Yeah, I've never gotten this 'OMG, they HAVE to have him on the team' - for starters, those brooms are probably fairly out of date three years on

[merrymelody]

Ron's role has always been to be less than Harry.

It's a shame. Wouldn't it have been interesting if Ron were better at something and Harry had to learn to deal with that (the prefect thing doesn't count, since it's soiled by not being cool enough in the eyes of the Order, and also the upcoming Speech of Doom)?
I'll never get why Ron didn't go into Slytherin, where at least he could come to terms in company of never being allowed to achieve/beat anything/one.

[mariagoner]

He's still able to appreciate her good hair.
---
The hair fixation just confirms doubts over Harry's sexuality. I've never met a straight bloke who could tell me whether I had hair or not without looking, let alone one who obsesses over it.
You know that Cho's just a big Barbie doll for him.

I think most of it is just due to the fact that Rowling seems absolutely clueless as to what tends to what, er, attractions young men find most irresistible about young women. (Guess her new husband was too much of a gentleman to englighten her!)

Here's a hint Jo... the prime ones are just a little to the south of the collarbone and to the north of the belly button!

[_rp_zeal_]

I’m actually now curious about any little canon details predicted in fic.

I recall having seen some but can't bloody remember what they were at the moment *headdesk*

But general direction-wise, the Draco Trilogy, Artful Facade and other pre-OOTP fics featuring a temperamental and somewhat dark!Harry were on the right track, considering how many fans criticized them for being OOC because Harry is so nice/kind/compassionate etc. But what's even more amazing was DT's unfortunately accurate "prediction"(?) of a sassy and ass-kicking Ginny, and AF's manipulative Dumbledore (who died a hilarious death, by the way ;P).

everytime someone appears close to making a breakthrough, it's like the author steps in and stops them, in order to 'help' them.It's like Rowling is 'rebelling' against the boring, sissy conventional wisdom or something... I'm also starting to think the Gryffindor values are really no different from the Slytherin ones, there are only slight variations in the technicality. Like the definition of 'deserving' victims and

[_rp_zeal_]

I much prefer completely physically weak female characters who are strong in other ways.

Er. That would've applied to Hermione right? Strangely I was thinking about good-but-never-as-good-as-the-male type of heroines like Ginny when typing that line.

I could understand Hermione's wimpering and being all terrified. Just like I could understand Neville's squeaking and Draco's running away while screaming. I think it's Harry who's appearing unrealistically brave in the scene, he makes everyone else look so stupid ;)

[merrymelody]

I don't mind whether heroines are physically strong or not (I find it somewhat unrealistic if they're stronger than men, unless there's a reason given, like in Buffy the Vampire Slayer or something; although I'd find it acceptable enough.)
I think the problem with having super-strong Ginny/Hermione is that there's no build-up at all. It's not like there's ever been a mention of them enjoying sports (until now!); Hermione's fairly studious and seems an 'indoor' type; Ginny was the literal damsel in distress in CoS...
It's like if suddenly Percy was beating Fred and George at Quidditch or in duels - you'd be all 'Where is this coming from?'

I could understand Hermione's wimpering and being all terrified. Just like I could understand Neville's squeaking and Draco's running away while screaming. I think it's Harry who's appearing unrealistically brave in the scene, he makes everyone else look so stupid ;)Yes, I wouldn't mind Harry being the scared one for once, it seems to always fall to everyone around him. Of course, then he'd be (

[violaswamp]

Yeah, I really would like Harry to run away from a scary situation in abject terror at least once. I'd like him more.

Useless comment.

[guza]

* Eventually the area was roped off and Filch, gnashing his teeth furiously, was given the task of punting students across it…

Punting as in a boat, not a football; apparently. Which is a shame.

...

This is the first time I've realised that. I always thought that he'd throw them across (or maybe kick them across - my mind varied the two). Kind of like Aragorn threw Gimli in The Two Towers.

Re: Useless comment.

[xerox78]

I had always imagined Filch kicking the students across too, but it just didn't look right in my mind. Poor old Filch.

Re: Useless comment.

[mariagoner]

This is the first time I've realised that. I always thought that he'd throw them across (or maybe kick them across - my mind varied the two). Kind of like Aragorn threw Gimli in The Two Towers.

Hinthintnudgenudgesomeartwouldbefreakingpricelesshere ;)

[violaswamp]

One of the things that’s kind of annoying - Fred and George have now completely abandoned their younger siblings to Umbridge (do they know about her detentions?) who now has a grudge against their family in specific.

Yeah, isn't that rather, well, unchivalrous?

And it fits in nicely with the wish-fulfillment ‘OMG HARRY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON IN THE WORLD, any attempts at escaping this horrific prison are foiled by trolls, dragons, knife-wielding assailants! Harry Potter is the top priority of the WW and even his broom must be monitored!’ theme.

I really, really hate that about the books. I think it's possible to do the Chosen One thing without getting annoying about it, but HP hasn't succeeded at this, IMO.

This strikes me as coming from the same impulse as her 'Why don't we try for some inter-house unity, by which I mean, I'll ask you guys for permission, and if you say no, I'll never mention it again. I know the right thing to do, but I’m not going to stick my neck out doing it, since I must obey my menfolk over my own

[mariagoner]

Honestly? I don't think she really cares about doing right. I think she wants to think of herself as the kind of person who's doing right, and so she makes these perfunctory gestures in the direction of morality, knowing full well that the guys will slap her down--and relying on them to do so, because she doesn't actually want to do what she knows is right but at the same time doesn't want to face the fact that she's not Little Miss Moral.Eeeeeexactly

[violaswamp]

She basically argued that Hermione was just being very normal in disregarding the well-being for someone who was her enemy and outside her normal social circle.

Huh?

I'm not sure how a normal person could avoid being seriously freaked out if their friends caused anyone, especially someone who wasn't being physically aggressive, serious brain damage. I just can't imagine how that wouldn't cause an "Oh, damn" reaction in a normal human being.

[merrymelody]

Yeah, even Ron felt bad about Lockhart (Harry didn't understand that, of course. It involves human emotions like 'regret' and 'guilt') and he was going to abandon Ron's sister to death and incapacitate Ron and Harry.
(Which is why the reaction is so bizarre, here. I guess it's intended to show how psychotic the House rivalry's gotten, and it's certainly not OOC for Ron/any of the Trio to be a jerk, but if you can find Lockhart sympathetic, and not the poor guy who tried to take points from your brothers?...)