My girlfriend and I were over at some friends’ house visiting their baby last weekend. One of the Harry Potter movies was on TV. I’ve never read the books and only saw the first movie.
In this movie, Harry had to fight a huge spiky dragon and steal a golden egg from it. Yes, very cool scene, but I have another question: What the hell kind of lawyers does Hogwarts have that they can put a kid in that kind of danger? Supposedly the dragon is supposed to be magically tamed when he’s about to kill a kid, but still, any number of things could have killed Harry instantly in that fight, or at least severely injured him.
Did anyone find suspension of disbelief way too difficult in this scene?
Harry was competing in a contest he was not really eligible for. Because of the dangers involved, only students who had already “come of age” (age 17 in the wizarding world) were allowed to put their names forward to be chosen to compete. Somehow, Harry’s name was chosen, even though it was a mystery how it had been entered (Harry swore up and down he didn’t do it, but hardly anyone believed him). Having his name chosen created a binding magical contract, and Harry was compelled to compete despite his being too young.
You must’ve been watching “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”, which depicts Harry’s 4th year at Hogwarts. Fetching the golden egg was part of the Triwizard Tournament, an irregularly-scheduled competition between Hogwarts and two other wizard schools…and which is well-known as a dangerous competition (edit: and, as KittenKat notes, it was a competition which was only intended for “adults” to compete in).
That said, throughout the books, there’s all sorts of dangerous situations which Harry and his friends find themselves in – some of them standard to being a student at Hogwarts, others which they enter into due to their attempts to stop Lord Voldemort. Regardless, that level of danger is simply part of the milieu, and if you can’t suspend your disbelief over it, you’re not likely to enjoy any of the books or movies.
Also, the contestants were all supposed to have been 17 or older, presumably with experience. Bad guys had conspired to get Harry in as a competitor even though he was underage in an effort to possibly kill him.
There are no lawyers in the wizarding world. Nor are there any laws concerning product liability, workplace safety, or child endangerment. Hogwarts castle would never pass any kind of safety code inspection. You have staircases that randomly change position, without any kind of warning siren or flashing lights beforehand, not even a sign saying 'This staircase may move without warning", and that’s just the start of the gross negligence and callous disregard for safety displayed. The wizards don’t keep secret because they don’t want to be bothered, but because they don’t want to be held accountable for the gross lack of responsibility and neglect widespread throughout the government of the magical world.
Wizarding parents do seem much more cavalier about injuries and the safety of their children than muggle parents. Just a game a quidditch, which is considered a desirable thing, can lead to vast injuries or even death and no one seems to protest.
I just watched ‘Prisoner of Azkaban’ with my kids and after the quidditch scene (where Harry is injured) it cuts to him in the hospital wing for some exposition. But what struck me was the other beds int he hospital wing being filled by kids in quidditch uniforms.
I can just see the school nurse saying to herself “Quidditch this weekend. I’d best stock up on supplies.”
Not to mention the fact that later in the story, a student participating in the tournament does get killed. Granted, it was technically after the contest had ended and away from school property, but it still seemed like gross negligence on the part of Hogwarts to allow that to happen. And, yeah, this part’s always bugged me, too:
Harry: I didn’t put my name in and I don’t want to do it. Dumbledore: You’re too young and it’s too dangerous. Harry: Well, good, that’s settled then. I’ll just be getting back to – Dumbledore: BUT there’s nothing we can do. A flaming cup spit out a piece of paper so you must pointlessly risk your life. Harry: Whaaaaaaa…??
Actually, that works pretty well as a metaphor for military conscription. Not that JKR was likely to have had any such thing in mind, but there you are.
The books make it clear that many people have died before in the tri-wizard tournamnet. It is considered wonderful of Dumbledore that he has put a great many safeguards in palce this time, and insisted upon restricting the age-level.
Further, the fact that Harry’s name was put in is quickly deduced to be an assasination attempt byt hose who believe he didn’t do it himself.
The wizarding world is a place where kids are allowed to take risks, which is I thinka big part of the appeal to young readers.
I thought in the book though the dragon didn’t get loose, can anyone confirm that? It’s been a bit since I read that one. I do remember that they greatly changed that part in the movie to add some thrills and show off some CG skills.
I posted this in the Quidditch thread and didn’t get any response there, maybe this thread is the better place for my question. Here goes:
Why would anyone watch any of the Triwizard Tournament? All three challenges take place outside the view of anyone in the audience (maybe the other three champions at least battled the dragon in the pit, we don’t get to see in the movie). At the lake and in the maze none of the champions could be seen for any of the action - sounds like a pretty lousy spectator event to me…
Yeah, I can confirm. In the book Harry just flies higher and higher to coax her away from her eggs, till she finally takes off to try and get him, and he sweeps down to steal the golden egg. All happens in the confines of the stadium.
Oops, forgot to respond to Pitchmeister. Probably no one responded because you’re absolutely right! The dragon challenge would have been pretty exciting to watch, but the others, booor-ing! Best not to try and make sense of Goblet of Fire, though. For instance, they couldn’t have Quidditch that year? Really? Three days of the school year kept ALL the teachers so busy they couldn’t manage it (and this, even though as far as I can tell, the teachers have very little to do with Quidditch, other than Madam Hooch. They don’t coach, they don’t attend practices, etc.) Or the fact that fake!Mad-Eye Moody couldn’t just change Harry’s toothbrush into a Portkey to deliver him to Voldie. (Although that one I can fan-wank pretty easily.)