OOTP Chapter Six: "The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black"

[for-diddled.livejournal.com]

 

* Just in case we haven’t got how super-sassy and awesome Ginny is, Fred’s now going on about how she ignores her mother’s instructions. It’s just so ridiculously unsubtle, and it means that, even when she isn’t present, I still want to give Ginny a good, hard kick.

* “‘Maybe it’s something that can kill loads of people at once,’ suggested George.” Like a bomb, or mortar-shell, or one of the other weapons Muggles have invented. Seriously, a Dark Lord who’s willing to use Muggle technology could totally own the WW.

* Honestly, JKR, maybe in future you should just write “GINNY IS COOL AND REBELLIOUS AND SUPER-SASSY” on a plank of wood and beat me around the face with it. It might be more subtle.

* “‘She doesn’t trust us at all, you know,’ said Ron regretfully.” Since we’ve seen them flout her instructions without a second thought, she’s probably right not to.

* I wonder if there’s supposed to be anything significant about Harry’s dream here?

* And a new day dawns, bright and clear. Harry’s dressed and breakfasted, but not, I note, washed.

* So Sirius can calm his mother down, run to the front door, answer it and begin speaking to Shacklebolt in the time it takes Harry to walk across the room and close the door? Really?

* I like the way JKR’s portraying the Skiving Snackboxes as a fun idea, and not at all an irresponsible way for kids to bunk off class. For an ex-teacher, Miss Rowling can come across as remarkably anti-education sometimes.

* It’s suddenly struck me that, having seen Lord Voldemort come back last book, all this talk of Extendable Ears is just really out-of-place. They would have been a fun and interesting idea in earlier books, but the whole “Twins inventing stuff” subplot just seems jarringly light-hearted in the darker, edgier second half of the series.

* No wonder Kreacher ends up betraying the Order, when everyone around him treats him with such hostility.

* Shocking as it is to hear myself saying this, Hermione’s easily the nicest character in this scene. At least she’s trying to be sympathetic and understanding, which is more than we can say for the others.

* I like how Sirius is getting all judgemental about his younger brother. I mean, I know he joined Voldemort, but nil nisi bonum and all that.

* I doubt that Phineas Nigellus really was the least popular headmaster Hogwarts ever had. Or, if he was, he’s probably been eclipsed by Dumbledore now.

* You’d have thought that the Blacks would have found a more aesthetically pleasing way of editing the tapestry than covering it in burn marks.

* Maybe it’s just my inner Slytherin showing, but all the Black heirlooms look rather cool. Why are they throwing them away, again?

* Wow, that line about “a heavy locket that none of them could open” is such a brilliant piece of foreshadowing that it makes all these Grimmauld Place chapters totally worth it!

* Bah, silly Kreacher, trying to save the priceless mementoes of his beloved former owners from the whiny son who treats him like dirt. Clearly he deserves to be sworn at and thrown around for his insolence.

* I bet Snape was relieved that Harry and he never met, too.

* I like the way that Harry washing his hair is seen as a big deal, rather than, say, a piece of basic hygiene. Cannon proof for DirtySlob!Harry?

* Harry: “Dumbledore, don’t you love me anymore? Why won’t you speak to me?”

Every other student in Hogwarts: “Now you know how we feel about him, you spoilt little git!”

 

Comments

[darth-eldritch.livejournal.com]

For an ex-teacher, Miss Rowling can come across as remarkably anti-education sometimes.

She tries too hard to be cool.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

Indeed! :D

[darth-eldritch.livejournal.com]

And yet they scapegoat Slytherin for playing power games....

At least Slytherins are honest.

[charlottehywd.livejournal.com]

Both badmouth other teacher is order to be liked.

Does this strike anybody else as being really immature? If I had a teacher do this I would think they were very unprofessional.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

Have to agree with you regarding Ginny. And Harry. Hell...these two deserve each other, don't you think? :/

[darth-eldritch.livejournal.com]

Yes, they do! I get tired of them both!

Remember the incredibly romantic moment when Ginny picks a maggot out of Harry's hair at the breakfast table?

[karentheunicorn.livejournal.com]

I like the way that Harry washing his hair is seen as a big deal, rather than, say, a piece of basic hygiene. Cannon proof for DirtySlob!Harry?


Ya know, it seriously pisses me off.

Through the whole series I must have ignored Harry's bathing habits (I must have blocked it out or it's so subtle I just didn't catch it), but now that I read what you're pointing out to me it makes me mad.

Through the whole series we were constantly being hit over the head with a brick by JKR. She was insistant on showing everyone how gross Professor Snape was supposed to be.

OMG, he's got greasy hair, OMG, he's got yellowing teeth, OMG he's got dirty underpants.

And right there smack dab in front of the whole HP fanbase we have dirty stinky maggot haired Harry Potter.

Seriously, he's a little hypocrit to judge snape or anyone else on their appearance.

[darth-eldritch.livejournal.com]

THIS

[majorjune.livejournal.com]

And right there smack dab in front of the whole HP fanbase we have dirty stinky maggot haired Harry Potter.

And I wonder what color Ron's knickers were, because it seems that if he doesn't have his mother or Hermione washing them, they don't get washed.

[mmmarcusz.livejournal.com]

* Just in case we haven’t got how super-sassy and awesome Ginny is, Fred’s now going on about how she ignores her mother’s instructions. It’s just so ridiculously unsubtle, and it means that, even when she isn’t present, I still want to give Ginny a good, hard kick.

A 14-year-old girl who defies her parents? We must alert the village elders!

* And a new day dawns, bright and clear. Harry’s dressed and breakfasted, but not, I note, washed.

Nor is he shaved. Do wizards use old-style cut-throat razors? Or do they use Muggle safety razors? Or is there a shaving spell? Or have all the male characters, unbeknownst to us, been walking around with Jesus-style facial hair?

* It’s suddenly struck me that, having seen Lord Voldemort come back last book, all this talk of Extendable Ears is just really out-of-place. They would have been a fun and interesting idea in earlier books, but the whole “Twins inventing stuff” subplot just seems jarringly light-hearted in the darker, edgier second half of the series.

Maybe they could trip Voldemort up on a banana skin, or put a bucket of paint on the door?

* I like the way JKR’s portraying the Skiving Snackboxes as a fun idea, and not at all an irresponsible way for kids to bunk off class. For an ex-teacher, Miss Rowling can come across as remarkably anti-education sometimes.

Not to mention that, surely Hogwarts, with its lackadaisical attitude towards physical danger, would probably insist that they attend class anyway, splashing blood into a bucket (it'll toughen them up, and Prof. Snape can use it for NEWT spells!)

[mary-j-59.livejournal.com]

Well - in this scene, Harry is barely 15 and undersized; he hasn't hit his adolescent growth spurt yet. So it's very likely he doesn't need to shave.

But, getting back to some previous comments, did Ginny really pick a maggot out of his hair? And did Rowling mean this to be romantic? Why do I not remember that?! There is nothing even slightly romantic about maggots.

[aikaterini.livejournal.com]

/* “‘Maybe it’s something that can kill loads of people at once,’ suggested George.” Like a bomb, or mortar-shell, or one of the other weapons Muggles have invented. Seriously, a Dark Lord who’s willing to use Muggle technology could totally own the WW./

Considering that Voldemort grew up in the Muggle world, why on earth didn't he think of that? Oh, that's right, because he's evil and he's apparently inherited his ancestor's prejudices against Muggles and Muggle-borns, so anything of Muggle origin, no matter how useful it may be, is off-limits to him. Even though using Muggle technology would not only be practical, but it would also be demoralizing to the wizarding world because it would shatters wizards' preconceptions of Muggles being incompetent and stupid.

/* I like how Sirius is getting all judgemental about his younger brother. I mean, I know he joined Voldemort, but nil nisi bonum and all that./

Especially when we learn that Regulus *didn't* leave the Death Eaters because he was a coward and "got cold feet," he left for the same reason that Snape did: Voldemort threatened somebody that he cared about. Now I'm wondering how Regulus felt about the Marauders and their bullying ways.

/* Harry: “Dumbledore, don’t you love me anymore? Why won’t you speak to me?”/

/Every other student in Hogwarts: “Now you know how we feel about him, you spoilt little git!”/

Heh, so true! Although I did feel bad for Harry in that respect - I just thought that it was really weird for Dumbledore to suddenly ignore him all year. It just really threw me off.

[oryx_leucoryx]

Considering that Voldemort grew up in the Muggle world, why on earth didn't he think of that?

He kept returning to the Muggle world for the summers during World War II. It's not like there wasn't what to learn in ways of destruction.

[madderbrad.livejournal.com]

Considering that Voldemort grew up in the Muggle world, why on earth didn't he think of that? Oh, that's right, because he's evil and he's apparently inherited his ancestor's prejudices against Muggles and Muggle-borns, so anything of Muggle origin, no matter how useful it may be, is off-limits to him. Even though using Muggle technology would not only be practical, but it would also be demoralizing to the wizarding world because it would shatters wizards' preconceptions of Muggles being incompetent and stupid.

There's absolutely no way that Rowling could have handled a story which incorporated muggle elements and technology, it would have been too complex for her.

Seriously, I've had an exchange with mary_j_59 recently here about 'magical mechanics' and how ridiculously simple Rowling's magic was - yous waves a stick and says some words and FLASH BANG something magical happens. But if she'd had to address magic versus muggle technology ... nah, no way she would have been able to do it, with the hard concrete facts of muggle devices right up close and personal contrasting with the undefined magic. Flying cars was about her limit.

[mmmarcusz.livejournal.com]

* Maybe it’s just my inner Slytherin showing, but all the Black heirlooms look rather cool. Why are they throwing them away, again?

Because purebloods are evil, or something. Except Potters and Weasleys and Sirius. And, of course, they couldn't consider selling them to help with the war effort. (I'm picturing a 1995 Del Boy Trotter picking up this lot from a Muggle skip and selling it for quite a profit!)

* Wow, that line about “a heavy locket that none of them could open” is such a brilliant piece of foreshadowing that it makes all these Grimmauld Place chapters totally worth it!

That's what JKR told her editors. Before she purged them.

* Bah, silly Kreacher, trying to save the priceless mementoes of his beloved former owners from the whiny son who treats him like dirt. Clearly he deserves to be sworn at and thrown around for his insolence.

After all, house elves are barely human, except when they obey the "good guys".

* I bet Snape was relieved that Harry and he never met, too.

What would they talk about? Harry would get super-defensive and insulting.

* I doubt that Phineas Nigellus really was the least popular headmaster Hogwarts ever had.

Oh, he was the worst. He kept the Headmaster's office locked so that students couldn't meet him, he gave special favours to his favourites, he was often missing from the top table to carry out "more important duties" and he didn't notice that several of his professors were evil Dark wizards. Hogwarts was glad to be rid of Prof. Black.

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

Worse than all that, I suspect he's the one who hired Albus.

[oryx_leucoryx]

I like how Sirius is getting all judgemental about his younger brother. I mean, I know he joined Voldemort, but nil nisi bonum and all that.

I like how he is the one who tells us what his parents thought about Regulus joining when Sirius wasn't living at home at the time. How does he know? Aren't all the protections on the house a bit of a hint the Blacks were not expecting an improvement in their standing?

Rowling keeps doing this - having people tell us information they had no access to - hearsay and speculation is presented as 'facts'. Sorry, I refuse to read like that. Anyone who is talking about something they couldn't have known for certain is potentially mistaken, or worse.

[danajsparks.livejournal.com]

>>>>Rowling keeps doing this - having people tell us information they had no access to - hearsay and speculation is presented as 'facts'. Sorry, I refuse to read like that. Anyone who is talking about something they couldn't have known for certain is potentially mistaken, or worse.

I'm not sure, though, that she necessarily expects us to just take Sirius at his word here. I think one of the themes in the series that's actually somewhat consistent is that you can't just assume hearsay and speculation to be the truth. In fact, some of the hearsay and speculation that we're given earlier in the books, especially regarding Snape, clearly turns out to be wrong.

[danajsparks.livejournal.com]

>>>>Wow, that line about “a heavy locket that none of them could open” is such a brilliant piece of foreshadowing that it makes all these Grimmauld Place chapters totally worth it!

This chapter gave us so many potential clues and raised so many questions about wizarding culture and history. It's really disappointing that the only things that turned out to be significant were the locket and the info on Regulus.

For instance, I would really like to know what it means to be a noble and most ancient house.

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

>For instance, I would really like to know what it means to be a noble and most ancient house.<

Er, vainglory and rampant narcissim? Admittedly it's a bit more acceptable than playing evil anagrams and running around calling yourself something that sounds rather like an evil French cheese.

Make's you wonder whether Tom eventually realized how silly that sounded, and *that's* why he didn't want anyone using that stupid name.

[madderbrad.livejournal.com]

Honestly, JKR, maybe in future you should just write “GINNY IS COOL AND REBELLIOUS AND SUPER-SASSY” on a plank of wood and beat me around the face with it. It might be more subtle.

But she did! In book 6.

But it was the complete opposite of 'subtle'.

I doubt that Phineas Nigellus really was the least popular headmaster Hogwarts ever had.

If he wasn't then it would have been another graduate of Slytherin house.

[charlottehywd.livejournal.com]

When did JKR do that? ;-)

[fishinginthemud.livejournal.com]

All the comments about Harry's dirty unbathed ass are cracking me up. I want Alexyss K. Tylor to yell at him to wash his damn nuts.

[ladyhadhafang.livejournal.com]

LOL! :D