Harry's abilities

[Amy]

No: HPFGUIDX 9398

Lori wrote:

> It cannot have been Lily's sacrifice that saved Harry from 
Voldemort, at
> least not by itself.
> 
> Voldemort apparently killed many people.  Men, women, children, 
various
> non-human magical creatures.  And in all those murders, no one ever 
died
> trying to save someone else before Lily?  I don't buy it.  No one 
else
> seems to have survived V's rage because Person X died to save them.
> 

Hi Lori!  I agree this is a pretty compelling argument.  Just to pick 
a nit, however:  as the story stands right now, Lily didn't only die 
trying to save Harry, she literally said "Kill me instead."  Maybe 
that's the difference.

Or maybe you'll prove right plotwise.  But anyway, as I said, never 
mind the plot.  The plot might require that Harry end up being born-
to-save-the-world, but how do you feel about what this says about the 
world?  I don't like it nearly as much as the thought that he was 
just a greatly loved child who has since shown remarkable courage and 
integrity.  I find Harry's humanness most interesting--one of the 
great delights of the books in fact is the way this odd wizarding 
world is so thoroughly human--and he starts to lose interest for me 
if he is too much the Other.  And, as I wrote to start off, JKR's 
beliefs (put in AD's voice so often) seem to me to lead in another 
direction.  One can believe BOTH in Harry's inherent uniqueness AND 
in free will, the importance of our moral choices, etc., but I think 
there's some tension there.

I'm really enjoying all the responses to my wonderings.  Thanks, all.

Amy Z