Or maybe I'm overthinking the Stu-ifying nature of HBP. Who knows.
Oh, I think it's present in all the books (like in CoS, where the Hufflepuffs that Harry's never exchanged more than two words with are all 'But he seems so nice!') I think that Rowling just doesn't give a lot of characters very much thought. So in her eyes, Harry/Ginny/Hermione/whoever is nice, so of course all other characters think so, even if the other characters have no reason to, having not been exposed to their personalities like the reader or lead characters have been.
She also seems to have a totally schizophrenic attitude towards popularity. So one hand, her characters have to be victims so we can sympathise with them, and she'll talk about how they're 'bullied', or there'll be lines about what misfits they are; and she'll give the impression that popularity isn't necessarily something that comes from being particularly nice - the Marauders are loved by all for being stereotypically 'successful': goodlooking, clever, confident, athletic; even though they can also be cruel. (Or the Twins *crosses fingers*) But then she can't seem to stop herself from 'rewarding' them for being in her eyes, such great people, so at the same time, there'll be lines in PS about how Harry's one of the most popular boys in his year already (arguably this could be another example similiar to the Marauders - no-one really knows Harry well yet, but he's 'arrived' because he's in the 'best' house, is athletic, famous and rich. But I think with Harry, the narrative tries to give a stronger impression that it's because of his personality: like the afore-mentioned COS line.) or that interview where JKR's directly making the link between being popular (especially in terms of being sexually attractive to men) and being a good person.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2006-07-23 06:02 pm (UTC)Oh, I think it's present in all the books (like in CoS, where the Hufflepuffs that Harry's never exchanged more than two words with are all 'But he seems so nice!')
I think that Rowling just doesn't give a lot of characters very much thought. So in her eyes, Harry/Ginny/Hermione/whoever is nice, so of course all other characters think so, even if the other characters have no reason to, having not been exposed to their personalities like the reader or lead characters have been.
She also seems to have a totally schizophrenic attitude towards popularity. So one hand, her characters have to be victims so we can sympathise with them, and she'll talk about how they're 'bullied', or there'll be lines about what misfits they are; and she'll give the impression that popularity isn't necessarily something that comes from being particularly nice - the Marauders are loved by all for being stereotypically 'successful': goodlooking, clever, confident, athletic; even though they can also be cruel. (Or the Twins *crosses fingers*)
But then she can't seem to stop herself from 'rewarding' them for being in her eyes, such great people, so at the same time, there'll be lines in PS about how Harry's one of the most popular boys in his year already (arguably this could be another example similiar to the Marauders - no-one really knows Harry well yet, but he's 'arrived' because he's in the 'best' house, is athletic, famous and rich. But I think with Harry, the narrative tries to give a stronger impression that it's because of his personality: like the afore-mentioned COS line.) or that interview where JKR's directly making the link between being popular (especially in terms of being sexually attractive to men) and being a good person.