Questions on Harry Potter 6/7

[Saint_Cad]

I just reread Half-Blood Prince. I came up with a few questions about issues that came up in that may be resolved in 7. I know a few are discussed in other threads, but others I’ve never seen in the forum.

1. Is there any reason to believe RAB is NOT Regulus Black? Is he dead? If not, will he be the adult role-model for Harry?

2. I know that people claim that Harry’s scar is one of Voldemort’s horcruxes. Is it possible that there is a part of Lily’s soul in Harry? Is this the “love” that Dumbledore talks about that will save Harry?

3. Why did Dumbledore trust Snape so much? He asked Snape to be a double agent, why couldn’t he conceive of Snape being a triple-agent?

4. Neville (the other boy that the prophecy may apply to) gets a new wand and soon thereafter Olliver disappears. Neville even mentions that it may have been the last wand he ever sold. Coincidence?

5. What is the significance in the wizarding world for those that do not complete their studies at Hogwarts? What will Harry miss out on during the 7th year?

There was one other one (a good one to) that I just can’t think of it right now.

[Revenant_Threshold]

I apologise in advance if I say anything incredibly obvious that you already know. I’m boring like that.

@SaintCad

1. Is there any reason to believe RAB is NOT Regulus Black? Is he dead? If not, will he be the adult role-model for Harry?

Well, according to Sirius Black, he was a Death Eater, but then realised he didn’t want to be a part of it and tried to quit, causing Voldemort to kill him (possibly in person). Likely though this is through some secondhand source, since Sirius wasn’t on the best of terms with his family by that point. So…he might be dead. We haven’t seen his corpse.

So “he might be dead” is a good reason it might not be. Other than that… well, there aren’t all that many other people with initials that would fit. Wikipedia has an interesting section on guessing from the book translations;

In several foreign-language versions of the series, the surname Black has been translated into the respective language to carry the same meaning (the colour black). In those cases, the ‘B’ in R.A.B. has been changed accordingly. For example, the Dutch edition uses the initials R.A.Z. (as in Zwarts) in the note, the Norwegian edition has R.A.S. (as in Svart), the Finnish edition has the letters R.A.M. (as in Musta).

The fact that the translation of the name Regulus Black and the initials R.A.B. are consistent across various language editions gives fair support to Regulus Black that other known characters do not have. However, translation of the Harry Potter books into authorised editions in other languages are performed by translating co-authors other than J. K. Rowling, although she would undoubtedly have approval and veto authority over any crucial plot details. Nevertheless these alternate editions might not be considered absolutely canonical. The author is not fluent in many of the languages and cultures that the series is printed in, and therefore must relinquish much literary license to the translators. The translations of R.A.B. and the Black family name themselves could have come about coincidentally, or the translators may have translated both the name and the initials based on a general assumption that R.A.B is “Regulus Black”. Therefore, the mere observation that translations of the Black name and R.A.B. together generally support the “R.A.B. is Regulus Black” theory, does not necessarily provide conclusive proof of the matter.

I’d say it’s a bit more conclusive than they suggest, but that’s just my opinion. Check out the discussion page on that link for a debate on it.

2. I know that people claim that Harry’s scar is one of Voldemort’s horcruxes. Is it possible that there is a part of Lily’s soul in Harry? Is this the “love” that Dumbledore talks about that will save Harry?

Interesting idea; I haven’t heard of it that way before. I would think no, because from what we’ve seen, having one’s soul in more than one place is a mechanism to make you immortal, which would mean Lily isn’t dead. Unfortunetly, she is, as seen by her coming out of Voldermort’s wand in Goblet of Fire. Possible, though.

3. Why did Dumbledore trust Snape so much? He asked Snape to be a double agent, why couldn’t he conceive of Snape being a triple-agent?

The in-book reason so far is that Snape turned to the good side after hearing of the prophecy, and this made Dumbledore trust him because… well, it’s not all that clear. I suppose one reason might be that Snape really hated James Potter, so for him to turn traitor over this information is a lot odder than, say, turning traitor to give up Voldemort’s whereabouts, which would be the likely fake-out information if Snape was lying.

Otherwise, no clue. We still don’t know for certain. I seem to recall JK saying something about finding out more in the 7th book, but I may be thinking of something she said before the 6th. Snape’s true allegiance is one of the most talked about things in the fan community (along with “Who’s going to die?” and “I hate Ron/Hermione!”)

4. Neville (the other boy that the prophecy may apply to) gets a new wand and soon thereafter Olliver disappears. Neville even mentions that it may have been the last wand he ever sold. Coincidence?

Ollivander. And I don’t think so… to me it just seems like JK needed Ollivander to disappear, and Neville getting a new wand, and so needed to somehow mention how it might have been the last one to stop people wondering “Hey, how did Neville get a new wand if Ollivander’s gone? Plot hole!”.

5. What is the significance in the wizarding world for those that do not complete their studies at Hogwarts? What will Harry miss out on during the 7th year?

Well, he won’t take his NEWTS, last year exams, and so likely wouldn’t be able to go straight into a good job afterwards (ignoring that he’s Harry Potter, of course). I think NEWTS are the equivalent of a university degree; certainly not essential for all jobs, but helpful.

[Chronos]

2. I know that people claim that Harry’s scar is one of Voldemort’s horcruxes. Is it possible that there is a part of Lily’s soul in Harry? Is this the “love” that Dumbledore talks about that will save Harry?

The horcrux spell does not cause a soul to split; it just causes a soul-shard to be captured. The soul-splitting itself is caused by a willful act of murder (regardless of whether a horcrux spell is cast to capture it). This is one of those deep-seated metaphysical things that lies at the foundation of magic, as it works in Harry’s world: An innocent soul splitting, in Harry’s world, would be the equivalent of a violation of the laws of thermodynamics, in ours. So Lily’s soul, wherever and in whatever state it may be, is intact.

It would be conceivable that Lily chose to remain, ghost-like, and in some way associated with Harry, but I would strongly doubt that. Remember what Nick said about the choice to remain behind: I don’t think either of Harry’s parents would have made that choice. And I also don’t think it’s possible to force an unwilling soul to remain behind.