Female characters - very long and very opinionated

[Susan McGee]

No: HPFGUIDX 3562

--- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, Penny & Bryce Linsenmayer 
<pennylin at s...> wrote:
> Hi ---
> 
> I was reading my 30 new emails this morning and thinking hard about 
how
> I wanted to respond to Susan's original post about the female
> characters.  Gosh darn it all if Neil hasn't made all my points for 
me!
> Thanks Neil!  :--)
> 
> Neil Ward wrote:
> 
> > a) As Steve Bates said, the books are written with Harry as the 
focal
> > point. I think this explains why female bonding features and 
female
> > bonding is absent.
> 
> That was going to be my biggest point.  We are limited by what Harry
> hears & observes.  He's not going to necessarily overhear McGonagall
> mentoring Hermione in her office.  He wouldn't necessarily overhear 
a
> Staff meeting in which McGonagall shines.  He's not going to 
overhear
> Hermione and Ginny having a late-night serious conversation.  We've
> never seen Hermione's dorm room (and so most of us aren't entirely 
sure
> that there are just 3 females there -- Hermione, Parvarti & 
Lavender).
> Like Neil said later, you've got to read between the lines because 
of
> the male POV.
> 
> So, remember that Hermione later tells Harry that McGonagall had to 
go
> to alot of trouble to get the time turner for her.  I think this
> indicates that there has been a mentoring relationship going on 
between
> the two of them -- we just aren't privy to it.
> 
> McGonagall is Deputy Head Mistress.  I agree with Susan's point 
that she
> doesn't have as much on-screen time as we might like.  But, I think 
we
> can read into the fact that she's 2nd in command that she must 
indeed be
> the superstar amongst the staff other than Dumbledore (and that
> Dumbledore is grooming her to be the next Head Mistress).
> 
> > You make some undeniable points, Susan. Women are pushed into the
> > background and held to sterotype.
> 
> I too thought you made excellent points Susan.  Lots of the female
> characters are background characters or have limited purposes.  You 
did
> a great job of illustrating your argument.  And, I think your 
argument
> is exactly what Simon was trying to convey yesterday.  But, like 
Neil &
> Steve, I think the