Boggart Inconsistency

[terri-testing.livejournal.com]

If I understand PoA correctly, Harry's Dementor-boggart both affects Harry and reacts the way a real Dementor would (magically speaking).


That is, what Harry experiences when confronting his Boggart is the same as what he does when confronting a Dementor: physical cold, hopelessness, loss of consciousness accompanied by access to memories (from where ever) that were previously consciously inaccessible. Moreover, he's told that his Patronus (if he could cast it strongly enough) could keep the Boggart at bay as it would a Dementor.

Say what? Lupin's Boggart is the moon, but he doesn't turn into a werewolf under its rays (or PoA, and the HP series, would have ended much sooner). Seamus's is a banshee, but Lupin doesn't seem worried the kids will all die if it screams.

And Lupin doesn't suggest to anyone else, even as a theoretical consideration, that the Boggart-in-the-shape-of-one's-fear might also possibly be banished or deflected by whatever spell would banish or destroy the feared object--Sectumsempra for Ron's spider, Un-ravel-us for the mummy, Evanescoing the corpse for Mrs. Weasley....

No, it's Riddikulus or nothing. For them, not for Harry.

Anyone come up with a Watsonian way to make this one consistent?

(And, btw, how come when Harry's anti-Dementor lessons with Lupin resulted in no improvement over time, nothing but his feeble patronus repeatedly "draining Harry of energy as he fought to keep it there," he never wondered if Lupin was secretly on Voldemort's side and trying to sabotage the lessons?)

Comments

[annoni-no.livejournal.com]

But if the effects of boggarts are entirely psychosomatic, wouldn't the entire class have been in mortal danger when it was their turn to face the boggart? Most of the monsters it turned into were potentially lethal, and not all in the slice'n'dice you way. For instance, if when it turned into banshee it had started to scream, would the student it was responding to have died in fright of what they *assumed* the effects would be, even if the rest of the students pulled through? Just how complete are any of its transformations?

Positing this level of verisimilitude to the target form seems inconsistent with Hogwarts' policy of plausible deniability when endangering students. Besides, my impression of the boggarts' shape-shifting abilities were that they were first and foremost a defense-mechanism designed to Scare Away potential threats, much like many insects mimic the markings of more lethal creatures to deter predation.

[dungeonwriter.livejournal.com]

Sigh, kinda sad to discover it's a plot hole.