But since it's only girls who are doing those things, eh, whatever. It's not like they live in a world that's run by magic, where men and women are equally capable of performing magic.
I think this is another case of JKR not knowing what kind of tone she's setting for her story. On one hand, she wants to add fantastical or humorous elements where abuse, bullying, and violence can be viewed in a frivolous/funny/trivial matter. On the other hand, she also wants to introduce mature and heavy themes to make her books darker and more serious - therefore abuse, bullying, and violence shouldn't be viewed in a frivolous/funny/trivial matter.
The result is a mess of different tones. Physical violence between students can be funny and slapstick (Hermione sending the birds on Ron) or it can be threatening (Draco stomping on Harry's nose in HBP). I think it's a combination of JKR not knowing what approach she wants for her world, Gryffindors getting away with their bad behavior, and violence from girls being seen as "feisty" or "funny" because girls aren't seen as a threat.
Same thing goes for bullying. Bullies like Snape and Draco are treated like the embodiment of everything horrible and irredeemable, but bullies like the Marauders are just having a laugh. It's no big deal - James grew out of it and no one got hurt, so who cares? Boys will be boys!
I'm probably not explaining this very well.... But the tone in the books going back and forth between "take this issue seriously" and "don't take this issue seriously" gives me whiplash.
Anyways, I do think irrational behavior from the female characters is played up for laughs or to show how "cool" they are for not taking any crap from a boy. I agree that there's no way Draco slapping Hermione or a male Quidditch player crashing into Luna on purpose would be seen as feisty or entertaining.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2019-01-31 01:03 am (UTC)I think this is another case of JKR not knowing what kind of tone she's setting for her story. On one hand, she wants to add fantastical or humorous elements where abuse, bullying, and violence can be viewed in a frivolous/funny/trivial matter. On the other hand, she also wants to introduce mature and heavy themes to make her books darker and more serious - therefore abuse, bullying, and violence shouldn't be viewed in a frivolous/funny/trivial matter.
The result is a mess of different tones. Physical violence between students can be funny and slapstick (Hermione sending the birds on Ron) or it can be threatening (Draco stomping on Harry's nose in HBP). I think it's a combination of JKR not knowing what approach she wants for her world, Gryffindors getting away with their bad behavior, and violence from girls being seen as "feisty" or "funny" because girls aren't seen as a threat.
Same thing goes for bullying. Bullies like Snape and Draco are treated like the embodiment of everything horrible and irredeemable, but bullies like the Marauders are just having a laugh. It's no big deal - James grew out of it and no one got hurt, so who cares? Boys will be boys!
I'm probably not explaining this very well.... But the tone in the books going back and forth between "take this issue seriously" and "don't take this issue seriously" gives me whiplash.
Anyways, I do think irrational behavior from the female characters is played up for laughs or to show how "cool" they are for not taking any crap from a boy. I agree that there's no way Draco slapping Hermione or a male Quidditch player crashing into Luna on purpose would be seen as feisty or entertaining.