Chapters 1-4

[flying_ford_anglia at yahoo.com]

Original Yahoo! HPFG Header:
No: HPFGUIDX C1597
From: flying_ford_anglia
Subject: Re: Chapters 1-4
Reply To: [Yahoo! #1591] Chapters 1-4
Date: 6/2/00 7:53 pm  (ET)

1. I was amazed at how much I'd missed on my first reading of the book!

Isn't it odd that Dumbledore doesn't recognise McGonagall as a tabby
cat? Surely he would have seen her animagus before! (She says, "How did
you know it was me?")

I don't think I realised I was captivated by the story until the very
very end of Chapter one, where Harry is left on the doorstep.

2/3. I find it strange that Harry had absolutely no friends until he
started at Hogwarts. In Ch. 2 we learn that "at school, Harry had no
one"... because no one wanted to cross Dudley's gang, and in Ch. 3 it says
"he had no friends, no other relatives".

Along with the abuse Harry suffered, how could he possibly have turned out
to be so balanced, charming and popular from age 11 onwards? I guess the
wretched upbringing adds to the 'rags to riches' element of the story
(perhaps the film version should film the Muggle world in black and
white and the Magic world in colour... that would be a good contrast).

4. I agree that the chapter on the letters is a real turning point. I
particularly like the last address on his letter: "Mr H Potter, The Floor,
Hut-on-the-Rock, The Sea". The slightly sarcastic humour in the writing
is one of the special things for me - it's quite an adult concept in a
children's book.

Ch 1-4 seem to be defining the Dursleys and Hagrid as the main comedy
characters in the books, but they are really littered with hidden clues
and references to later events. We should read between the lines!

Neil