I think I’ll start referring to Voldemort as “Tommy Boy.” That’s my favorite so far.
On to Snape: In Order of the Phoenix, Tommy Boy makes a reference to a Death Eater that has left him forever, who will be killed. I can’t see that he’s referring to anyone but Snape. I think that Tommy Boy knows that Snape is on the other side and has some cunning plan to use that to his advantage, possibly involving the Imperius curse. Of course, this could just be a massive plot hole, but I think we’d have to wait 'til book 7 to know for sure.
Okay, on the off chance that someone will actually read this stale thread…
My problem with the Potter books isn’t the mediocre writing style, it’s the massive plot holes and inconsistent characters.
Dumbledore should be sacked. He’s supposedly a tremendously powerful wizard, and the only one who stood up against “Tommy Boy” (heh heh) but is completely incompetent. In the first book, he allowed a professor possessed by Voldy to teach there for a whole term. In the second one a totally incompetent professor is allowed to “teach” a course (on “Defense against the Black Arts” no less) for a whole term.
And yet he seems to know everything at the end of the first book that transpired, even though no one else is supposed to be able to see what happens in the mirror, etc. And then there’s his extremely convenient phoenix in the second book (I couldn’t read any of the books after that).
Another thing that aggravated me was that the characters just don’t behave like real people. Harry and friends respect and admire Dumbledore, and yet never go to him for help. Books with children as protagonists have to have a reason to not enlist adult help–suspecting the adults are in on the conspiracy, injury, etc. (Diane Duane uses the device that children are more powerful magic users, for instance). Snape despises and jabs Harry and friends, yet is supposedly trying to help Harry at the Quidditch match, fight the troll, etc. There is no justifiable reason for his back-and-forth behavior.
Lastly, too much exposition is used to patch the holes–it doesn’t work, and I find most of it insulting. I can’t remember the last objections I had to the second book after I pitched it in disgust.
[On preview, genie reminds me of her theory that the Dursleys are a hamhanded attempt to imitate Roald Dahl. She comments that the latest book weakens that theory (though I haven’t read it so I don’t know) but me response is that Rowling is making it up as she goes along.]
Yes, it’s clear that Voldy knows that Snape is a traitor. For goodness sakes: Snape was sitting on the “good” side during the trials! How can everyone not know?
Yet Voldy, on Quirrels head, does nothing. And Lucius Malfoy, including his son, still love him, and he loves him back. What gives?
-How come there were no mention of Ron of Hermiones B-days? Like come on! We dont’ even know there Birthdays even in book 5!
-In addition, we all know Harry got oodles of gifts every christmas and for his b-day, but what did he get anyone else for the first 4 years? Hes certainly has the money. (Does anyone know exactly how much he has?)
-OH! So the Ministry of Magic can’t find Sirius Black eh? Why not send him an owl post and follow the owl on a broomstick? Your sure to find him sooner or later!
-Did it say in book 3 that Crookshanks talked? Or did I miss read? Perhaps there is another animagus in Hogwarts. Because he seems like a smart cat to me. (knowing how to immobilize whomping willow for instance, or how the cat attacked Scabbers by hearing that he was in the bag)
-In every book, on one of the first pages, there is a picture of the Hogwarts crest. Underneath it says, “Draco, Dormiens, Nunquam, Titillandus” on a banner. What on Earth do these words mean??
Anyways, I did like the new book. But I almost went into a depression, because Harry could not have gone throug ha worse year.
Muggle schools would never put up with some of the bullshit that happens in Hogwarts.
I swore I wouldn’t post any of my dumbness in this thread anymore but I do know this one: Never Tickle A Sleeping Dragon. Whether it’s proper Latin or not I couldn’t say.
I have yet to figure out Crookshanks. I’m fairly certain he’s not an animagus, simply because Hermione ought to be smart enough to figure that out. Then again Ron isn’t exactly stupid and he lived with Scabbers for years so maybe I’m wrong. Crookshanks is definitely WAY to smart to be an ordinary cat.
In the opening of OOP, we see harry communicating with his friends from all over he place in a matter of minutes. It seems owls are capable of supersonic flight as well as uncanny homing abilities. Even the numerous spells placed upon grimauld place cant seem to stop them.
I don’t understand why this bothers some people. You probably had a teacher at some point who was unreasonable and mean. I know I did. But did that teacher ever try to kill you? If that teacher knew you were in mortal peril, do you think she or he would have just sat back and laughed? Probably not.
Snape may be a jerk, but he’s not an evil jerk. He’s not working for Voldy, and he does not want Harry dead. Although he personally dislikes the boy, he is an adult and a teacher. He seems happy to limit himself to picking on Harry in class and not trying to do him real physical harm. He may not even intend to do him emotional harm. Snape honestly seems to see some degree of bullying as justified, even necessary, because he thinks Harry is otherwise spoiled by the Hogwarts faculty and staff.
I’m not sure what the deal is with that cat, because he does seem a bit uncatlike. At first I too wondered if he was an animagus, but I’ve concluded that he can’t be. The maruder’s map knew who both Pettigrew and Barty Crouch jr. were despite one being an animagus and the other wearing a Mad-eye desguise. If we was anyone but Crookshanks, he’d have appeared on the map too. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if he turned out not to be your garden variety orange-tabby in some book.
Rowling goes in big for mythical/fabled critters (there are boggarts and redcaps in another book I’m reading, how suprising! I figured she made them up- or she did and James Herbert stole them…) so does anyone know any about cats that don’t involve them being gods?
Boggarts and redcaps were not invented by Rowling. I don’t know that she’s actually made up any of the fantastic creatures in her books. There are some with names I did not recognize, but the majority I knew from myth and legend. Mostly British/European, although the kappas mentioned in Prisoner of Azkaban are Japanese.
I haven’t read it, but in another Potter thread someone mentioned Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them and said that there was an entry for a highly intelligent cat creature with good danger sense.
Although I don’t known a copy of Fantastic Beats & Where to Find Them, I seem to recall in someone else’s summary of the book that kneazles (like Crookshanks) cannot be animaguses. I’ll have to actually read the book to confirm this myself though.
Moved and seconded. His behavior is bounces between wildly incompetent and wildly inappropriate and frankly, he’s my second-least favorite character (Snape is worse):
In OOP
[spoiler]
I saw red during the big confession scene at the end…specifically the bit where Dumbledore tells Harry that he only made Ron a Prefect 'cause Dumbledore thought Harry had enough on his plate. Yeah. Uh-huh. :rolleyes:
Do you know how inappropriate it would be to tell Harry that? I don’t care that Harry’s the CHOSEN ONE. It’s inappropriate for an educator (or anyone in a position of authority to blab about one student/patient/client to another UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. And it’s not the first time he’s pulled that crap: It was also horribly inappropriate to tell Harry about Neville’s parents. (“It’s Neville’s secret to tell, m’boy…except that I’ll tell you!”
Not only has Dumbledore violated several confidences that he had absolutely no business doing, he’s added yet another burden for Harry: to have to carry around the secret that Ron is second best yet again and was only chosen 'cause Harry had other things to worry about? How horribly demeaning and emotionally crippling for Ron, should Harry ever let that slip.
There’s an idiot notion that Dumbledore apparently subscribes to "the truth must be told whatever the cost. (although he’s perfectly happy to lie by omission when hit suits him). I disagree. Truth is important, but people’s feelings are also important and grown-ups learn how to balance the two. This is a case where a lie (“Harry, Ron was chosen because I thought he’d be better at this specific job than you”) would have been better for EVERYONE (Harry can learn that being second-best won’t kill him, Ron gets an untainted triumph) than the crippling truth. [/spoiler]
I never much liked Dumbledore, but at this point, I put him in the same “Self-interested, swinish, manipulative mentor figure” category I put Obi-wan “It WAS true…from a certain point of view”* Kenobi (although not to the same degree).
And why hasn’t Snape been sacked other than the fact that Dumbledore is a doddring incompetent? I was pretty disappointed in Dumbledore’s lack of explanation for the single biggest burning question: Why is he allowing Snape to abuse the hell out of Harry and Hermione and Ron every single book? The “buck-toothed” comment alone that Snape made a few books back to Hermione should have not only been grounds, but a goddamned requirement to sack Snape. WHY is Snape still around?
Fenris
*Yeah, the point of view of a lying pile of shit.
Unfortunately, I can’t take credit; got it from a parody fanfic.