[HPforGrownups] Blond Hair

[Amanda Lewanski]

No: HPFGUIDX 13168

jennifer.k at lycos.com wrote:

> Conclusion: rowling doesn´t like blondes. I am as a representative of
> sweden (the land of happy little blondes) tremendously offended.

Well, judging by the folk of Swedish descent whom I've met, you're
actually from the Land of Great Big Blond People. I have never met a
little Swedish person.

I think you do JKR a disservice as an author, to think she is so remote
and categorical to use such hair color "tags." As I understand the
process--Penny can correct or clarify--an author develops a mental
picture of their character. In many cases, the personality of the
character helps to "build" their appearance in the author's mental view.
It's an organic process, nothing so clinical as, "Hey, we need another
brown-haired person to balance the scene." For most of the characters,
then, I'd imagine their hair color just "felt" right for them to JKR,
with no other overarching plan.

So while the examples of unpleasant blond people in the book may be
evidence of JKR having bad associations with blonds on some level or
other, I really doubt she's using hair color as a marker or clue.
[Exception: there may be some connection with black, untidy hair,
specifically Harry's and Tom Riddle's, but I think that's the only hair
plot connection.]

--Amanda, hoping she made sense, she writes nonfiction


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