Chap. 10 Summary: The Rogue Bludger

[katzefan at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 24584


1.  Was Lockhart telling the truth when he said he had been a 
Seeker and had been asked to try out for the National Team?

Given that Lockhart has -- um -- embroidered the truth about all 
his other so-called accomplishments (OK, he lied outrageously) 
I can't imagine that this is anything more than yet another 
delusion of grandeur on his part.

2.  Why is it taking so long to get Myrtle's bathroom repaired?

Well, if they repair the bathroom, then Myrtle has no way of 
making her presence known (all that water on Filch's floor!)
I'm thinking she prefers it this way and perhaps is even helping 
to ensure that it stays malfunctioning? She was, after all, a 
Hogwarts student, even if she never graduated -- surely she 
mastered some spells, suitable for blocking plumbing and 
causing pipes to burst ... ?

3.  Does Hermione's enthusiasm for making the Polyjuice Potion 
arise out of her concern for the threats against non-pure wizards, 
or are Harry and Ron finally wearing off on her?

I'd say a combination of both. We see in the first book that
she's willing to lie to get Harry and Ron out of trouble (thereby 
saving her from a fate worse than death ... no, not the troll:  
growing up to be a female version of Percy.) I think friendship is 
starting to even out the scales, which, in the beginning of PS/SS, 
were really badly tilted in favour of good grades/good marks for 
behaviour.

4.  Why doesn't Madame Hooch, the referee at the Quidditch 
match, realize that one of the Bludgers has been tampered with?

Perhaps Madame Hooch is not a really fanatic Quidditch fan, and 
simply assumes this is how Bludgers behave? Their main 
purpose, after all, is to try to knock players off their brooms, and
if she's only a casual Quidditch fan, she may not realize that
no Bludger is supposed to focus on any one player.

5.  Why does Lockhart continue to imply that he is good at 
everything - healing charms, Quidditch, DADA - when most of 
what he does blows up in his face?

Up until he started teaching at Hogwarts, I didn't get the 
impression things *were* blowing up in his face. He was 
travelling around, signing books, flashing a 150-watt smile 
everywhere and generally living it up. It wasn't until he was in
a position where he had to back up his claims with action that he 
failed repeatedly. By that time, he had too much to lose - and far 
too big an ego - to admit he's been leading people down the 
garden path for quite a while.

6.  House elves obviously have powerful magic.  Why don't they 
use that power to escape their enslavement?  Why do they only 
get their freedom if their master presents them with an article of 
clothing?

They have powerful magic, but even magic has some limitations 
- theirs may be limited because of their servitude. Once Dobby is 
freed, he is both willing and able to use his magic to send 
Lucius Malfoy out the door with a flea in his ear -- I thought it 
significant that Malfoy, for all his power, didn't dare try to
retaliate against Dobby, even though Dobby had just send him 
tumbling down the stairs.
As for the clothing,  a wonderful book called The Vanishing 
People (Katharine Briggs) says fairy lore throughout England, 
Scotland and Ireland reports that a gift of clothing is enough to 
drive a house spirit away. Some stories say it's because the 
house spirit must perform drudgery until he/she is rewarded; 
other stories suggest that, once clothing is given, the house 
spirit considers himself/herself too fine to continue performing 
chores.

7.  When Dumbledore says that the Chamber is open, he says 
the question isn't who opened the room, but how.  Does this 
mean that Dumbledore already knows who opened the 
Chamber?

It certainly sounds like it. I'm wondering why the `how'
is so important. Could that have something to do with what is to 
come?


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"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from 
magic." - Arthur C. Clarke (painted on the wall of the local 
Chapters bookstore)