[HPforGrownups] PoA Chapters 21-22 Summary (better format)

[Ali Wildgoose]

No: HPFGUIDX 22157

As I'm weekly-questions-virgin, this is all very exciting... ;}

*ahems*

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 doubt Black had any serious intention of killing Snape...at least, not 
conciously.  It's possible that he just didn't bother to think enough about 
the possible consequences.  Still, I buy into the theory that there was 
serious animosity between the two boys, and have little doubt that Sirius 
would wish for Snape to be harmed.  Maybe not KILLED exactly, but horribly 
maimed would have done nicely.

Q: What's wrong with a broomstick? Why did they need Buckbeak?

I suspect it's because it's much easier to fit more than one person on a 
large Hippogriff than it is to pile onto an average-sized broom.  That, and 
they were already thinking of Buckbeak - I know all too well the feeling of 
tunnel vision in a crisis.  A broomstick might not have even occured to 
them, just as Harry and Ron hadn't even considered the trouble that stealing 
Mr. Weasley's flying car would cause.  Don't forget that these are just 
kids. ^_-

Q (very nitpicky): Buckbeak is described as "tied to the fence around 
Hagrid's pumpkin patch." When Harry goes to free him, he "vaulted the fence 
into the pumpkin patch and approached
Buckbeak". From this it would seem that Buckbeak is inside the patch. But  
how did Harry then get him over the fence? Harry is described as simply 
leading him several steps into the forest - from which it would seem that 
Buckbeak was tied to the fence on the outside of the pumpkin patch. In or 
out?

My guess is that Buckbeak was on the outside of the fence, but on the 
opposite side of the patch from Harry.  Harry vaulted over the fence, ran 
across the patch to where buckbeak was, untied him, then led him "sideways" 
into the forrest.   (I can draw a diagram if that doesn't make sense. ;)

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 before? Surely the transformation isn't dependent on being 
hit directly by the beams of the moon, or else why hadn't Lupin simply 
stayed in a closed room at the time of the full moon to prevent 
transformation?

I'm not even going to tuch this one.  It's been discussed to death on my 
message board, as well, nearling driving our resident WolfieTwin man.  And 
at the end of the day we just gave up and dubbed it the PHTMNBN - 
"Plot-Hole-that-Must-Not-be-Named".  ;P

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?

I think a Patronus represents ones inner source of strength - the thing they 
draw upon in moments of crisis, given a physical form.

Q: Why, though? This point has always rather confused me. A
"single, very happy memory" is not the same as self-confidence, is it?

No, but even after you've found you happy memory you still have to actually 
perform the spell.  And spell-casting seems to involve a fair ammount of 
confidence, if Hermione is any indication.

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?

My sister and I are 20 and 18, respectively.  I don't even live at home 
anymore, so our disagreements are kept to a minimum.  And yet every time I 
go home and find myself without anyone to hang out with, I discover that my 
sister has been trash talking me in my abcense so that her friends won't 
have any interest in seeing me.  She does this because of my supposed 
cruelty to her....when I was about 12-years-old.  She's still punishing me 
for what I did when we were children.  And the older we get, the more 
distorted her perception of actual events becomes.

Snape and Sirius seem to have a similar relationship, only magnified 
enourmosly due to the severity of the infraction.  I have no doubt that 
Sirus made a regular habit of torturing Snape in school, and the attept at 
setting a werewolf on him probably didn't go over very well.  Childhood 
disputes like this have a tendancy to be blown out of proportion, 
particularly when all those years of make-up-and-be-friends time have been 
spent apart.

Q: If werewolves are only dangerous at the time of the full moon, why are 
people afraid of them all the time? I can understand the fear when you don't 
know who the werewolf is, but when you know who he is, it should be easy to 
take precautions against him, no?

Why are people afraid to let people with AIDS share their workplace, when 
the risk of infection is nill?  Why did the American government ship the 
entire Japanese-American population into internment camps during WWII, 
without a trial and without any evidence?

Because most people are paranoid and stupid, particularly in large numbers, 
and logic does not come into the equation when their own lives are at stake.

Q: What was the first?!?!?!?

I have no idea, but it's been speculated that the birth and destiny of Harry 
had something to do with it.  I can buy into that theory.

Q: In what way will this happen? Is the bond that Dumbledore refers to a 
magical bond or a moral bond?

Rowling seems to be a big fan of normally moral bonds taking on magical 
properties - Lily's love and ultimate sacrifice for Harry being a perfect 
example.

***

k, that's it for me.  And incidentally, listening to the Moulin Rouge 
soundtrack while answering nitpicky Harry Potter questions is an unusual 
experience, to say the least. ;}

Ali

http://homepages.nyu.edu :: Diagon Alley
Harry Potter for Slightly Older Folk

_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com