COS Chapter Five: "The Whomping Willow"

[for-diddled.livejournal.com]

 

* Harry spends six weeks of the school holidays at the Dursleys’ house, and for the rest of the year he’s a massive celebrity who can basically do whatever he likes because of something that he can’t remember and had nothing to do with. Doesn’t sound to me like he’s got much reason to be jealous of Ron.

* Is the fact that dinner contains all Harry’s favourite things a coincidence, or did Mrs. Weasley deliberately design it that way? If so, is she already trying to snare Harry in order to get her hands on some of his money? *Grins at the thought of MoneyGrubbing!Molly*

* Somehow I can’t imagine the Malfoys being so disorganised.

* “Muggles do know more than we given them credit for, don’t they?” says Mrs. Weasley, the big joke being that they don’t, it’s all magic. Wizards rule!

* The Weasley parents let Fred and George take fireworks to school? Christ, it’s no wonder they’re so badly-behaved.

* Also, couldn’t they just take the kids to the station, then later mail them the things they’ve left behind?

* Still, the foreshadowing of Ginny’s diary is nicely done, though, so I forgive JKR for this minor plot hole.

* Is it really necessary to run into the barrier? Surely standing casually near it and then slipping through when nobody’s looking would be less likely to attract attention.

* Yes, Ron, of course all those grown-up, fully-qualified wizards on Platform 9 ¾ aren’t going to be able to figure a way of getting back. *rolls eyes*

* “The Dursleys haven’t given me pocket money in about six years,” says Harry, implying that they did until he was six years old. I wonder what he bought then that made them decide he couldn’t be trusted with his own money?

* That flying car plan has got to rate as one of the stupidest in the books, and as you can imagine, it’s up against some stiff competition.

* If Harry and Ron had really become invisible, they’d be blind, although to be fair to JKR this little problem with the laws of physics isn’t exactly unique to her.

* The description of the car flying above the clouds is good. Really brings out the wonderment Harry and Ron must be feeling.

* Any guesses as to which city they’re seeing? I was thinking it might be Birmingham or Manchester or somewhere like that, but the “wide, purplish moors” would seem to imply that they’re further north than that.

* Pumpkins aren’t particularly juicy, so it must take a lot to get enough for the whole school to drink. I can’t imagine why wizards drink pumpkin as opposed to, say, orange or apple juice.

* An impact hard enough to raise a golf-ball-sized lump on someone’s head would knock most people out, but Harry is a Gryffindor, and therefore above trivial injuries such as concussion.

* Wonder if there’s meant to be any Freudian symbolism in Ron having a broken wand? :p

* I probably shouldn’t ask why charming a car to make it fly would make it gain sentience.

* Harry looks through the window into the Great Hall, and the reader is treated to a rare sighting of the elusive Hogwarts school hat.

* Now I'm imagining watching a Springwatch-type programme set in Hogwarts, where the presenters set up hidden cameras around the school in the hope of getting a glimpse of one of the school hats.

* “For a few horrible seconds”, Harry had worried that he’d be put in Slytherin. One of the clearest indications in the books that we’re meant to think of being put in Slytherin as a sign of great evil.

* Harry seems to show a remarkable knowledge of colours here. I doubt I’d be able to recognise aquamarine when I saw it.

* The narrative voice pauses to bitch about how “everyone” hates Snape for a few sentences, inexplicably omitting to mention that he saved Harry’s life last year.

* BTW, I highly doubt that Snape was disliked by “everyone outside of his own house (Slytherin)”. In my experience, children tend to quite like the sarcastic teachers.

* Unless by “everyone” Jo means “everyone who matters”, i.e., Harry, Ron and Hermione.

* Snape’s suddenly appearing behind them like that is pretty funny.

* So how is it that the Evening Prophet can interview these Muggles, write the story, print the paper, and send it up to Scotland in less time than it takes Harry and Ron to fly directly from London to Hogwarts? If I were doing Jabootu scores, this would definitely be a case of offscreen teleportation.

* Why would someone travelling from London to Scotland go via Norfolk? Do wizards just like the countryside there?

* Harry hasn’t thought of what effect his stupid actions will have on others. Well, colour me shocked!

* No idea what the “large, slimy something suspended in green liquid” is there for. Probably to add to the atmosphere.

* I’m surprised McGonagall is so angry. One would have thought that, as a Gryffindor, she’d prize reckless action without any thought.

* Harry told the story as if he and Ron just happened to find a flying car, making them look like a pair of criminals as well as a pair of idiots, and continuing in the long tradition of lying to save the arses of adults who really should know better.

* Harry’s being worried about Gryffindor losing points is rather sweet. It’d be interesting to see how the hourglasses in the Great Hall show Gryffindor being on negative points, though.

* One detention each sounds like a pretty inadequate punishment, TBH.

* Is it possible to conjure up food out of thin air, then? If so, wizards could pretty much solve world hunger without any problems at all. That they don’t makes them look rather selfish and insular.

* “Breaking the law? Cool!” Seems Twinkly’s favouritism has given the Gryffindors something of an entitlement complex when it comes to breaking rules. At least Percy and Hermione have the right idea.

* If there are only five second-year Gryffindor boys, and the same amount of girls, and this number is about right for every House and every year, then there would only be 280 children in Hogwarts in total. Which would seem to contradict slightly the description of Hogwarts as a huge castle, or the dining hall as larger than the Dursleys’ house. Oh dear maths/architecture/consistency/worldbuilding…

* Meanwhile, Draco Malfoy goes to sleep in the Slytherin dorms, muttering, “Stupid Potter with his stupid broomstick and his stupid flying car and his stupid ginger boyfriend, he can do literally anything and get away with just a detention.” Little does he realise that he will be proved right in Year 6, after a certain incident in the bathrooms.

 

Comments

American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[majorjune.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

Except that as a matter-of-course, native Americans rather honored their magikal people, so unless a medicine man or woman went "rogue" -- performing the equivalent of "dark magik", which would only attract European magikal folk if they themselves were inclined in that direction...

Otherwise, European magikal folk in the very early days would probably have found themselves welcomed by the native Americans, definitely more welcomed amongst the Indians than they would have been in the fundamentalist Christian cult communities of New England...

That said -- and remember, I am a native of Connecticut -- there are lots of areas here in New England that the native tribes steered clear of -- much of the eastern part of this state was considered "bad medicine" by the native tribes, and indeed one of our state parks in that part of the state is called "Devil's Hopyard", because the European immigrants agreed that something just was not right in that neck of the woods.

It's also the area where most of the state's vampire legends occur, too, and to this day people claim to hear strange noises and "explosions" in the woods...

So Indians may have had their own version of "dark wizards", who knows?

I think that the American magikal community would be -- and definitely become -- as diverse as it's nonmagikal counterpart. Wizards and witches who gravitated to large cities, where it would actually be easier to be secret, would develop a different culture to wizards and witches who traveled the countryside in a covered wagon billing themselves as a traveling medicine show.

A wizard or witch living West Virginia would probably have the respect of nonmagikal people in the area if said wizard/witch provided the only medical care available for either human or animal...and their knowledge of magik, especially potions, was probably enhanced by spells and potions gathered from native Americans, also from African slaves.

Magikal folk living on the frontier would by necessity have more interaction with native Americans than with other people of European extraction; such wizards and witches may have even preferred living on the frontier for just that reason.

And yes, there would be prejudice on the part of those of European descent who were already here, against whatever group of Europeans from another country were immigrating at that point...

So the descendents of the original English colonists would distrust German immigrants, who in turn distrusted the Irish, who in turn distrusted the Poles, who in turn distrusted the Jews, who in turn distrusted the Italians, etc.

But each group would have it's own magikal traditions, and even tho each new wave of immigration encountered discrimination, we ended up with a melting pot as subsequent generations intermarried...

So the British tradition would be modified by German traditions, then furthered modified by Irish traditions, Polish traditions, Jewish traditions, Italian traditions...in addition to what was garnered from native American and African slave traditions...

Therefore I can't believe that American Magik would be anything like the magikal traditions of any one other country, or even another region of the old world...it would be a totally new animal.

And when I use the term "American", I also include Canada, and Central and South America...and I think there would be vast differences between U.S.A. magikal traditions and those in Latin American countries...

Hmmmm...one wonders just who of the United States' Founding Fathers may have been a wizard???

;-)

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[koi-no-soshan.livejournal.com]

Except that as a matter-of-course, native Americans rather honored their magikal people, so unless a medicine man or woman went "rogue" -- performing the equivalent of "dark magik", which would only attract European magikal folk if they themselves were inclined in that direction...

That's a very good point. Actually, one thing I find odd about HP is the International Statute of Secrecy, for this very reason... There are so many cultures around the world in which magic-users were an accepted part of society. The Americas, Japan (Buddhist and Shinto monks, priests, priestesses), Korea (mudang)... In ancient Egypt, there were the magicians and priests, and the Pharaoh's position was not just political but spiritual... So many cultures all over the world should, in HP, have no need or desire for the Statute of Secrecy.

Magical creatures, too. All throughout Asia, magical creatures have a huge tradition in the religions there- and typically good ones. There are dangerous creatures, but the idea of 'demonic' creatures isn't really present in the same way. In Japan the child of a mythical creature and a human has the chance of having spiritual powers- there was a onmyouji said to be the grandson of a fox, I think, and the emperor is descended from a dragon.

Though, I doubt Rowling ever considered the changes that would be made in HP's Asia if dragons were like her monstrous Chinese Fireballs, rather than the dragon kings and such. That would have an effect on the culture, drat it.

In a world like HP with magic very loudly real, and in these cultures where it was highly integrated and had an accepted place amongst them... There should have been a great deal of resistance to any effort by the Europeans to force magic into hiding.

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[condwiramurs.livejournal.com]

Perhaps the "international" part of the Statute of Secrecy only refers to Western European nations and former colonies where Western attitudes took over (those in power having Western attitudes, that is), like America, Canada, New Zealand, Australia? Unless the books explicitly specify differently.

Then JKR's just a culturally-ignorant dunderhead. ;)

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[karentheunicorn.livejournal.com]

Western attitude, that term makes me think cowboy wizards.

Here in the USA our wizards don't wear pointy hats! And they use two wands instead of one. :p

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[majorjune.livejournal.com]

Western attitude, that term makes me think cowboy wizards.

I have it on good authority that Pecos Pete was definitely a wizard... ;-)

And we obviously also have not only regular giants -- Paul Bunyan -- but giant blue oxes, too...


Here in the USA our wizards don't wear pointy hats! And they use two wands instead of one. :p

Smith and Wesson were also wizards... LOL

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[karentheunicorn.livejournal.com]

A western wizard whistled while widdling a wand.

Try that one 3 times fast.

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[majorjune.livejournal.com]

There are so many cultures around the world in which magic-users were an accepted part of society.

Exactly. I too found it odd that Rowling establishes an international secrecy statute, when such a thing only makes sense in western European countries that underwent the Inquisistion.

Even countries that were predominantly one of the eastern Orthodox Christian religions were tolerant of other beliefs and never mounted a concerted campaign of terror against other religions of whatever flavor.

As you point out, in the Far East magikal folk were considered an intrinsic part of society, and very often a ruler would have a wizard/witch, or priest/priestess with magikal powers as a trusted advisor.

So to in the Middle and Near East -- even in Islamic tradition one finds rulers with magikal advisors, or dealing with djin...

Hindus, Buddhists, African Animists, all honor their wizards/witches/witch doctors/medicine men/medicine women/wise men/wise women...

Heck, even in the Bible there's the story of The Three Wise Men who traveled from the East when Jesus was born -- those three were actually astrologer/magicians either from Assyria, or perhaps as far away as India...and both Herod and the Holy Family welcomed them...


Magical creatures, too. All throughout Asia, magical creatures have a huge tradition in the religions there- and typically good ones. There are dangerous creatures, but the idea of 'demonic' creatures isn't really present in the same way.

Oh yeah....I watch anime! LOL

I've always thought it odd that the belief in dragons pretty much spans the globe, but while in Europe dragons are thought to be evil and Satanic, in the orient they are thought to be lucky...

That's another thing I thought was odd in Rowling's Potterverse, the fact that there are no demon-type critters, whether good or evil...


In Japan the child of a mythical creature and a human has the chance of having spiritual powers- there was a onmyouji said to be the grandson of a fox, I think, and the emperor is descended from a dragon.

Inuyasha. ;-)


In a world like HP with magic very loudly real, and in these cultures where it was highly integrated and had an accepted place amongst them... There should have been a great deal of resistance to any effort by the Europeans to force magic into hiding.

Exactly. I'd have no problem if Rowling had presented the secrecy statute as a sort of European Union thing -- but I just don't buy that it would have been able to have been imposed world-wide, I just don't see the Wizanmagot having that sort of power.

And sadly, it rather smacks of British Imperialistic mindthink -- that The White Man, even when he's magikal -- knows better than people of a darker hue. Which is an odd sentiment for Rowling, who professes a more liberal political bent, to present.

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[condwiramurs.livejournal.com]

Very good point about the British racist imperialism inherent in the notion of the ISoS as presented in canon. (And Rowling, IMHO, has a history of saying one thing, and even genuinely believing she really means it, while subconsciously doing things supporting the opposite in her writing.)

RE demons: we do know they exist in the Potterverse, actually. Kappas are mentioned as water-demons, and the Dementors are IMHO clearly meant to be rather demonic in nature.

Re: American magikal communities (was: Stupid train)

[majorjune.livejournal.com]

RE demons: we do know they exist in the Potterverse, actually. Kappas are mentioned as water-demons, and the Dementors are IMHO clearly meant to be rather demonic in nature.

But Rowling doesn't present a demon universe like one sees in oriental folklore, where demons can be in human form (or not); they can be good, bad, or indifferent to humans; but they are definitely more powerful than humans.

You need to keep in mind that what in English is translated as "demon" when translating oriental folklore has little or nothing to do with the demons and "demonic" entities that western Christian tradition has created.

It's like how I pointed out the differences in how dragons are viewed in the different cultures; western tradition views dragons as evil, eastern tradition views them as harbingers of luck. Western tradition states that demons are servants of Satan, while the concept of Satan has no meaning in eastern religions. In those cultures, "demons" are more akin to ancient elemental spirits that perhaps predate mankind. Ditto "demons" in native American folklore.

Founding fathers a wizard?

[terri-testing.livejournal.com]

Ben!

And Abigail A, bless her sneaky little heart....

I'd like to claim Tom, but I really think he was just a run-of-the-mill Muggle genius.

Re: Founding fathers a wizard?

[majorjune.livejournal.com]

Ahh, we think alike! ;-)

I definitely could see Ben Franklin being a wizard. And the Adams also came to mind, John in addition to Abigail; they were rather ahead of their time in regards to smallpox innoculations and "practical magik", especially Abigail.

And I would tend to agree with your assessment of Jefferson -- altho he perhaps associated with men he knew were wizards, perhaps that was part of his store of knowledge.