GOF Chapter 3: The Invitation
Jan. 17th, 2011 09:25 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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deathtocapslockThis is the obligatory Dursley chapter, in which we are treated to the home life of this family and learn how inferior they are to wizard families.
Dudley takes up a whole side of the square kitchen table. Ahem, I doubt a square kitchen table (as opposed to a dining room table) was designed to seat 8 people, 2 on a side. His parents excuse away his teachers' accusations of bullying. As opposed to the Weasleys who never receive reports making such heinous accusations against the twins (we'll see the school does occasionally owl their parents, but I don't see any awareness that some of what the twins do is bullying behavior). (This starts the theme of parents dealing with wayward sons in this book.) Dudley is forced into a diet of fruit and vegetables rather than his favorites. From the descriptions we get of the food Harry eats at Hogwarts I get the feeling Harry's favorites are closer to Dudley's than to the health foods, nor does he limit his intake. But somehow Harry remains thin, regardless of whether he gets starved by Petunia or stuffed by Molly or the House-elves.
Changing the food choices of the entire family is a good thing! However adjusting Harry's serving size to Dudley's (perceived?) emotional needs isn't. I don't begrudge Harry for working around a diet he doesn't need, but then I also sympathize with Dudley who does. Changing eating habits of years is hard.
This is also the place to say Dudley must have grown up as an emotional wreck. Knowing that his parents were capable of such physical and emotional deprivation of someone in their care - what if he ever failed to please them? I think a big part of his misbehavior is both making sure his parents know he *isn't* Harry as well as wanting the reassurance that they still love him, no matter what anyone else thinks.
Of Harry's 4 sources of help only one sends food he appreciates. Odd that even Hagrid managed to send an edible birthday cake. But how edible is it (or any of the others) 3 weeks later?
Harry is surprised that the Weasleys wrote directly to the Dursleys. Vernon is embarrassed that they didn't know how many stamps to use. But really, how hard is it to find out? Didn't they go to the post office to buy the stamps? What does it say about the exchange rate between Galleons and pounds that a family so poor finds it reasonable to spend on so many stamps for one letter? Molly's letter sounds as if she is trying too hard to make the Quidditch World Cup sound special and to make Arthur sound important. And of course she doesn't have enough imagination to realize that sending a letter by owl isn't normal for the Dursleys.
Harry is offended on Molly's behalf when Vernon calls her 'dumpy'. Since Molly likes Harry nobody is allowed to notice she is overweight.
I must say that the scene where Harry threatens Vernon with Sirius looks a lot less humorous now that I have seen Harry enjoy torturing a man for punishment, and Sirius engaging in Muggle-baiting.
If I am correct in my understanding that Ron is claiming that he and Molly wrote their respective letters at about the same time, then I am impressed with the UK post. Molly's letter arrived on Saturday morning. Pig arrived the same morning. Considering the speed of owls elsewhere, it looks as though Ron's letter was sent earlier that morning. So a letter got delivered the morning it was sent?
I am less impressed with the Weasleys. They plan on taking Harry regardless of the Dursleys' consent. One could argue that eventually Molly and Arthur realized their sons were not exaggerating when they said Harry had been imprisoned and starved, but seeing how Arthur views the treatment of Muggles, both in this book and in COS, I doubt this made a difference.
Harry is happy specifically because Dudley is suffering and he isn't. The seeds of the bully of HBP and war criminal of DH.
Dudley takes up a whole side of the square kitchen table. Ahem, I doubt a square kitchen table (as opposed to a dining room table) was designed to seat 8 people, 2 on a side. His parents excuse away his teachers' accusations of bullying. As opposed to the Weasleys who never receive reports making such heinous accusations against the twins (we'll see the school does occasionally owl their parents, but I don't see any awareness that some of what the twins do is bullying behavior). (This starts the theme of parents dealing with wayward sons in this book.) Dudley is forced into a diet of fruit and vegetables rather than his favorites. From the descriptions we get of the food Harry eats at Hogwarts I get the feeling Harry's favorites are closer to Dudley's than to the health foods, nor does he limit his intake. But somehow Harry remains thin, regardless of whether he gets starved by Petunia or stuffed by Molly or the House-elves.
Changing the food choices of the entire family is a good thing! However adjusting Harry's serving size to Dudley's (perceived?) emotional needs isn't. I don't begrudge Harry for working around a diet he doesn't need, but then I also sympathize with Dudley who does. Changing eating habits of years is hard.
This is also the place to say Dudley must have grown up as an emotional wreck. Knowing that his parents were capable of such physical and emotional deprivation of someone in their care - what if he ever failed to please them? I think a big part of his misbehavior is both making sure his parents know he *isn't* Harry as well as wanting the reassurance that they still love him, no matter what anyone else thinks.
Of Harry's 4 sources of help only one sends food he appreciates. Odd that even Hagrid managed to send an edible birthday cake. But how edible is it (or any of the others) 3 weeks later?
Harry is surprised that the Weasleys wrote directly to the Dursleys. Vernon is embarrassed that they didn't know how many stamps to use. But really, how hard is it to find out? Didn't they go to the post office to buy the stamps? What does it say about the exchange rate between Galleons and pounds that a family so poor finds it reasonable to spend on so many stamps for one letter? Molly's letter sounds as if she is trying too hard to make the Quidditch World Cup sound special and to make Arthur sound important. And of course she doesn't have enough imagination to realize that sending a letter by owl isn't normal for the Dursleys.
Harry is offended on Molly's behalf when Vernon calls her 'dumpy'. Since Molly likes Harry nobody is allowed to notice she is overweight.
I must say that the scene where Harry threatens Vernon with Sirius looks a lot less humorous now that I have seen Harry enjoy torturing a man for punishment, and Sirius engaging in Muggle-baiting.
If I am correct in my understanding that Ron is claiming that he and Molly wrote their respective letters at about the same time, then I am impressed with the UK post. Molly's letter arrived on Saturday morning. Pig arrived the same morning. Considering the speed of owls elsewhere, it looks as though Ron's letter was sent earlier that morning. So a letter got delivered the morning it was sent?
I am less impressed with the Weasleys. They plan on taking Harry regardless of the Dursleys' consent. One could argue that eventually Molly and Arthur realized their sons were not exaggerating when they said Harry had been imprisoned and starved, but seeing how Arthur views the treatment of Muggles, both in this book and in COS, I doubt this made a difference.
Harry is happy specifically because Dudley is suffering and he isn't. The seeds of the bully of HBP and war criminal of DH.
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no subject
Date: 2011-01-21 01:24 am (UTC)All that day she seemed to be in a particularly good mood, and that evening in the common room she even consented to look over (in other words, finish writing) Harry's Herbology essay
I honestly don't know how nobody could realize what's going on, Hermione must have a distinctive style of writing that her teachers would remember, and yet nobody notices three similar essays with similar facts written in a similar style?
Anyway, I think that's definitely not right. Academic dishonesty for sure, though in this case, Hermione's also at fault for doing it for them and letting the boys pass off her work as theirs- Snape didn't get a say with his potions book at all. I'm really quite aggravated at Harry getting all this prestige and favoritism and good grades by using Snape's hard work, that little rotter. I don't think it's that wrong to use the book, but not to admit that his success in potions is due to another student's hard work is wrong. He's getting credit for showing creativity and innovation he doesn't possess- if he was like, 'Yes, I did this because this book showed me how', he'd get marked well like all the other students who succeed through following instructions, but he wouldn't get the extra praise and rewards that he hadn't fairly earned.
On another level, if the books are that outdated and there are easier, more efficient ways to make potions, then it's a shame he's hoarding that information instead of helping his peers, but that's just my nitpick, it's not a serious criticism, because there are a lot of kids who wouldn't care and anyway, Harry's not a teacher, it's not his responsibility to make sure the kids are getting the best possible education (and the dude whose responsibility it is doesn't really seem to care about that).
But I'm surprised Hermione didn't insist on Harry teaching a secret Potions group, to make up for the shoddy education they're receiving. You know she would've killed to get her hands on that book- or at least, learn some of the Half-Blood Prince's secrets! Should've pushed Harry to make a new club- Potions Anonymous or something, lol.
no subject
Date: 2011-01-21 01:28 pm (UTC)I'm surprised Snape didn't draw on his research to publish a revised edition of the book, rather than keep all these discoveries to himself.
"You know she would've killed to get her hands on that book- or at least, learn some of the Half-Blood Prince's secrets!"
You'd have thought so, but then, didn't she refuse to use the Prince's instructions because they weren't Ministry-approved? Which seems a bit inconsistent with her attitude towards Umbridge and the government in the previous book, and her portrayal as the intellegent, intellectually curious one of the trio.
no subject
Date: 2011-01-21 01:55 pm (UTC)Maybe he couldn't be bothered - after all, he's the only Potions teacher in the country and he writes his instructions on the board, so it's quite possible he's giving them the improved instructions anyway.
no subject
Date: 2011-01-21 03:16 pm (UTC)We don't see him sending kids to instructions in books after 1st year do we? Nor do we know of any textbook they use after 1st year for his classes. The instructions are on the board. That's his version, with any improvements he thought they should use. Anyone who saved the instructions from his classes would have the most up-to-date version of any potion that was brewed.
no subject
Date: 2011-01-21 11:10 pm (UTC)And I doubt Snape had the time to be revising books, or the credibility. Being a Slytherin and ex-DE (depending on who knew what or who had been under suspicion). And as oryx said, he's seen to put instructions on the board, so those probably came with the improvements he created.