[HPforGrownups] PoA Chapters 21-22 Summary

[Glenda and Danny Millgate]

No: HPFGUIDX 22151

>Snape: "Sirius Black showed he was cap= 
able of murder at 
the age of sixteen, You haven't forgotten that, Headmaster? You haven't for= 
gotten that he 
once tried to kill me?" [Q: Had Black really meant to kill him then? It was= 
a very 
dangerous prank, but was it cruelty on Black's part or thoughtlessness?]

I would say that it was just silly, but we know from experience that Snape likes to take the worst view of the actions of people he hates, and the best view of the actions of people he likes...at least he is consistent!

>Then he tells 
Hermione that "three turns should do it." He exits, telling them he is goin= 
g to lock the 
door. [Q: Why tell it in clues? Great for the story and suspense building, = 
but was it really 
reasonable when so much is at stake? What if they hadn't understood?]

I think he would have kept at it until they clearly had 'got it'. Hermione states later that there were lengthy applications to the ministry, and she had to sign lots of forms...i would say that Dumbledore was, to a degree, trying to not break his responsibilities as headmaster, although this is really only following the letter of the law and not the spirit. He might be aiming for what the American's call 'plausible deniability'...he could quite honestly state at any time that he did not reveal the time secret to anyone else. Makes him able to truthfully cover for H&H if necessary.

>free 
Buckbeak, fly him to where Sirius is locked up and free Sirius[Q: What's wr= 
ong with a 
broomstick? Why did they need Buckbeak?] 

Because they needed Buckbeak to leave Hogwarts with Sirius. They couldnt send Buckbeak alone...he's not quite that smart....and Harry wasnt really going to give his Firebolt to Sirius if an alternative was available. Also, if they had used a broomstick, they would have had to have one of them stay behind with Buckbeak to avoid him being found, while the other went to get Sirius, and then rendezvous somewhere....much simpler and safer to just stay togerther.

>[Q: "Harry 
looked up at the sky. Clouds were obscuring the moon completely." (435) SO = 
WHAT? The 
question we have written ourselves hoarse on - why didn't Lupin transform b= 
efore? Surely 
the transformation isn't dependent on being hit directly by the beams of th= 
e moon, or else 
why hadn't Lupin simply stayed in a closed room at the time of the full moo= 
n to prevent 
transformation?] 

This is a pretty common ploy in werewolf stories...the moon comes out, etc. Perhaps the potion he has been taking has weakened his werewolf blood to the point where it takes the event of him missing a potion AND being hit directly by the moon for the transformation to fully take place?    
 
>Patronus gallops back to him, Harry sees that it is a stag. "Slowly, it bow= 
ed its antlered 
head. And Harry realised... `Prongs,' he whispered." [Q: Is there some rule= 
as to what 
shape a Patronus takes? If so, what is the rule? What can we conclude about= 
it from Harry's 
Patronus? Did anybody read this bit without tears in her/his eyes?] 

Are you suggesting that a patronus's shape is hereditary, and that is why harry's patronus was also a stag? That's really interesting, I like that explanation. He probably never saw his father in his Animagus state - I just cant imagine circumstances that would make him change into a stag in the prescence of an infant!      

>(443) Harry explains that this time h= 
e could do it 
because he knew he had already done it. [Q: Why, though? This point has alw= 
ays rather 
confused me. A "single, very happy memory" is not the same as self-confiden= 
ce, is it?]

No, its not, but magic is really a focussing of the will...in fact, i often wonder if wands themselves are magical or if they are just a vehicle for a magical persons will. Confidence must play a large part of getting proper focus for really difficult magic like this.
     
>Snape is eager for Sirius to receive the Kiss. [Q: Why?? How can he = 
hate him so much 
as to want him to receive the Kiss? Is it reasonable for a boy's grudge to = 
be taken to such 
an extreme?] 

That's just Snape all over....he takes himself so seriously. It seems that all of his really strong emotions seem to centre around his sense of pride...he hates people that make him look a fool, and he hates people that help him out of trouble. Looks like an extreme case of low self esteem and immaturity to me. If he were more mature or had greater self esteem, he would rise above these things.
   
>Moreover, it see= 
ms that everybody 
now knows that he is a werewolf, since Snape had "let it slip." [Q: If were= 
wolves are only 
dangerous at the time of the full moon, why are people afraid of them all t= 
he time? I can 
understand the fear when you don't know who the werewolf is, but when you k= 
now who he is, it 
should be easy to take precautions against him, no?]

LOL, people are one thing, but parents are something else again! I bet that most of these people would tolerate talking to him or working with him, but the idea of having him live with their children when they are not there to protect him would be intolerable to most parents. I have two primary school aged children, and i see this all the time...some parents wont let their kids play with other kids in the playground that they deem unsuitable...they are hardly going to put up with a werewolf in the building. Very much like the way that AIDS teachers and children were treated about ten years ago (and still now, sometimes).    

>Lupin seems to want to = 
say goodbye and 
leave as quickly as possible. [C: how is he feeling now, returning to a lif= 
e where no one is 
willing to hire him? Where no one will trust him? Does he have a family? Fr= 
iends who can 
help?]

Lots of theories...maybe he hates goodbyes, maybe he wants to get out quickly before the media or parents arrive, maybe he's off to look for and help Sirius, maybe he's going to hunt down Peter and he wants to go while the trail is warm.    

>Dumbledore maintains his ends-= 
do-not-justify-
means ethical stance 

Except in the case of allowing students to use the time turner illegially!

>." He also hints that good will come out of it ("... the time may come = 
when you will be 
very glad that you saved Pettigrew's life."). [Q: In what way will this hap= 
pen? Is the bond 
that Dumbledore refers to a magical bond or a moral bond?] 

I think from the wording that it may be a magical bond 'When one wizards saves another wizard's life, it creates a certain bond between them...' It seems to be very specifically worded. Just a feeling, cant explain it.

Malfoy is furious about Buckbeak [C: is there a book that doesn= 
't end with 
Malfoy being foiled?]. 

I certainly hope not...the fans would be appalled if Malfoy were actually HAPPY at the end.

Thanx, great summary.
Glenda


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