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

Worse than all.... objectively

[terri-testing.livejournal.com]

Be fair, Jodel!

Oh, what a cut!

But, now, now, Jodel, the problem, as with Hagrid, isn't with HIRING the man originally. It's with being delusional enough after ever to let the wizard run about unsupervised.

I am absolutely convinced that Hagrid made Ogg a simply wonderful assistant.

As assistant junior gamekeeper, with monster-watching and monster-breeding duties, but no responsibilities except attentiveness and blind obedience to his master ... Hagrid's utter lack of judgment would be covered by his master's.

And Black initially hired Dumbledore as Transfigurations master, no more. BLACK never authorized Albus's promotion to Head of House (if he ever was), or Deputy Headmaster (if he ever was) or Headmaster.

Phineas died in 1925, decades before Albus's ascension to the post.

To any post of real power.

Albus, under Phineas, was a reined threat.

Re: Worse than all.... objectively

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

To be rather more fair, I also think he hired Horace. Who was an excellent coach for making it clear to the entitled brats that encouraging talent *regardless* of ancestry or fortune was a Good Thing. Given the way the whole ww is one big Old Boys' (and Old Girls') Club, *someone* had to show them how it works before they get turned loose in it.

Of course we have no idea how long Black even *was* Headmaster. He may even have hired Merrythought, which would have been around 1895 or so.

And you are probably quite right. Albus was probably a quite competent instructor of Transfiguration. Or even of DADA -- which I suspect that he did hold the post of from '45 when Merrythought retired, until he became Headmaster, probably sometime in the '60s. We don't *know* that Minerva took over directly from Albus, when she hired on in '57. There was no jinx on the DADA post when Tom asked for it, along with congratulating Albus on his promotion. And yet Tom knew the post was vacant.

Re: Worse than all.... objectively

[oryx_leucoryx]

In my personal canon Merrythought replaced Black as DADA instructor (or it may have been Dark Arts back then) when he became headmaster. Just because I like it. We don't really know where Mr Black's talents lay.

Re: Worse than all.... objectively

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

Well the whole family practically flaunted their being Dark wizards, so that certainly makes sense. The times would certainly work.

He'd have been young for a Headmaster, having been born in 1847. But that would certainly not have added to his popularity. It certainly wouldn't have been a point in Snape's favor.