The willing suspension of disbelief

[Steve]

---  "Carol" <justcarol67 at ...> wrote:
>
> Carol earlier:
> > Since several posters on the main list are discussing the 
> > willing suspension of disbelief <snip>, I thought I'd bring 
> > up the original context of the phrase from Samuel Taylor 
> > Coleridge's "Biographia Literaria." 
> 
> Carol again:
> 
> Sorry. Forgot to post the link on the off chance that anyone 
> wants to explore Coleridge's theory of the Imagination a little
> farther:
> 
> http://www.english.upenn.edu/~mgamer/Etexts/biographia.html
> 
> Carol, who thinks that Coleridge was a greater genius than 
> Wordsworth, opium addiction or no ..
>

bboyminn:

This read very similar to the attitude I've always had. When
ever someone come across a seeming error or inconsistency in 
the books, they can take one of two paths. One is to assume
it is literally a mistake and that it is wrong wrong wrong
and no explanation can ever alter that. My position is to
assume there is an explanation, but we simply didn't see it,
didn't understand it, or it is off-page but there and real
none the less.

So, rather than whine and cry because something seems wrong,
I use my imagination and try to come up with a real world 
(Potter World, that is) explanation for it. Of course, if
an inconsistency is found, it is certainly worth discussing
and analyzing, and speculating on how a seeming inconsistency
fits into the broader story. 

For example, Ron suddenly knowing that Draco has the Hand of
Glory. Well it, the Hand, was mentioned earlier in the series.
Draco showed an interest in having it. Through off-page 
conversations, held and overheard, Ron came about that 
knowledge. Perhaps, it was second hand, he heard someone who
heard someone say to someone something about Draco and the 
Hand. Keep in mind that Ron doesn't necessarily have to be
saying this is absolutely true, only that given his accumulated
knowledge, it would seem reasonable that it might be true.

I choose to suspend disbelief in the sense that I choose to
believe that a non-existent world does exist and that there
are laws of science and reason that govern it. In making that
choice, by extention, anything that happens in the world does
have an explanation even if I don't know what it is.

As a result, I have complex mechanism by which business, as an 
example, in the wizard world works. Mechanisms by which payments
can be made from Gringott's accounts to merchants. Mechanisms 
by which the wizard world and the muggle world interact and 
exchange (limited) goods and services. Mechanisms by which 
Gringott's interacts with the muggle financial world, in way 
that take advantage of investment opportunities, but do not 
manipulate the market. Mechanisms that facilitate international
trade. Mechanisms by which food is grown and distributed.

None of this is in the books, but it must exists, so I assume
it does and make up the mechanisms. 

We don't know how Harry, Ron, and Hermione managed to get food
at the Black House, but they did, so there must be a mechanism
or means that allows this to happen because it did happen in 
the books. That fact that I don't know what that mechanism is
doesn't mean it doesn't exist. So, I speculate on possible 
way that it can happen. 

I've never let not knowing something stop me from knowing it,
if you know what I mean.

Steve/bboyminn