Sex! Love! Writing!

[Mike]

> Pippin:
> If JKR had answered the question by saying that Dumbledore had
> outlived two wives, would people be saying he hadn't been written
> as a double widower?   

Mike:
Yes, they would, but what's the point? 

> Pippin:
> That she should have put double widowers in canon
> so we'd know what to expect?

Mike:
Actually, I think learning that some women don't outlive their 
husbands doesn't need to be forshadowed. (Not that it makes a damn 
bit of difference, but we did have a widower - Xeno Lovegood). Nor do
I think that finding out that Dumbledore outlived two wives would be 
considered controversial.

If JKR had made it known that she thought of DD as a double widower, 
it wouldn't have affected my understanding of the story. First, 
because I don't care what JKR says but doesn't write. And because 
nothing was written that would have been affected by Dumbledore's 
past marriages, there were no children and no mention whatsoever of 
his wives. Just as nothing was affected by his past sexuality or lack
thereof, IMO.

Understand, it wouldn't have bothered me in the least if DD was gay. 
I just didn't read him that way. For six books he was asexual. The 
short glimpse at his younger self in DH, convinced me of nothing with
regards to his sexuality. Susan's hypothetical reasoning (with a gay 
DD romantically linked to GG) regarding DD's later choices could very
well be right, but since it wasn't backed by canon it remains 
hypothetical, just as are many others that explain things as well. 
(Carol put forth a couple on Main).

Besides, there are more interesting aspects about DD's personality, 
that *were* shown in DH, that are more deserving of discussion than 
his unwritten sexuality, IMO. But I'll leave those for discussion on 
Main. 

Mike