Ron Week: More Questions

[catherine at cator-manor.demon.co.uk]

No: HPFGUIDX 16231

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., Penny & Bryce Linsenmayer <pennylin at s...> 
wrote:
> Hi --
> 
> I will preface my remarks by saying that I came to roughly the same
> conclusion about Ron that Heidi expressed earlier.  I liked him 
alot in
> Books 1 & 2.  But, PoA made me slightly uneasy about Ron, and GoF
> *really* made me uneasy about Ron.  More than uneasy really .... 
while I
> don't *hate* Ron, I do dislike the person that he seems to be 
becoming.
> I don't like what I saw in GoF honestly.  

I agree with you Penny.  I just wrote a really long post on Ron in 
GoF, and it got eaten up when I tried to send it, so I am now going 
to try and summarise.

I, like you, thought that Ron was a strong character in PS and C0S.  
The chess game was wonderful, and I was also very impressed with how 
he overcame his phobia to go into the Forbidden Forest after the 
spiders.  I did not like his treatment of Hermione at the beginning 
of PS, even though I appreciate she was very annoying, and think that 
an apology may have been in order (besides saving her from a troll).

By PoA, I was becoming aware of a certain preponsity to be a little 
narrow minded, based on wizarding prejudices.  His opinion on 
werewolves, for instance, his mockery of Filch being a Squib, and 
then in GoF, when he finds out that Hagrid is half giant.  I felt 
that his attitude towards Hagrid changed subtly after that (I will 
find examples if asked).  Harry and Hermione don't have these 
preconceptions, as were raised in Muggle homes, but I don't think 
this excuses Ron - he should rise above it.

By GoF, I feel that Ron has seriously regressed.  He has almost 
turned into a clown - bitter, jealous and sad on the inside, a joker 
on the outside.  This seems what Harry values him for.  When they are 
no longer speaking, Harry misses Ron who can make him laugh, talk to 
him about Quiddich, make Potions and Divination bearable.  Hermione 
fulfils the role of advisor/helper much better.  Ron seems to be 
there to lighten Harry up when things get too heavy.  Ron doesn't 
take an active role in anything in GoF.  He is passive, he is a 
bystander always and resents it (or does he? it he getting scared?)

I do dislike Ron in GoF.  I don't however, think there is anything 
too ominous about his behaviour.  For instance I don't understand 
what justification there is for him becoming a DE, as I think it will 
take a lot for him to betray Harry and his family.  I do think that 
he could be an unwitting pawn (chess analogy).

I think that his behaviour is simply normal 14/15 year old.  He is 
petty, immature, spiteful on occassion, jealous - absolutely horrid 
(<g>) to Hermione in particular (I hated Ron during the Yule Ball 
episode, despite feeling very sorry for him).  I noticed this more, I 
think, because Harry and Hermione seem so much more mature - Hermione 
is developing into a young woman, who is sensible, smart, sensitive 
and kind (something I would also say about Ginny).  Harry has been 
through too much in his short life not to seem much older than he 
is.  I think this is one of the reasons he values Ron - as Ron is 
able to bring a degree of normalcy to his life.

I am hoping that the events at the end of GoF will hope Ron grow up.  
Harry needs the friend who was there is PS and CoS.  He has had to 
rely more on Hermione, but I feel that he doesn't want to do this.  
However, on the evidence so far, it doesn't seem likely to happen.

Catherine