SUMMARIES: The Worst Birthday and Dobby's Warning

[Indigo]

No: HPFGUIDX 22870

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., catherine at c... wrote:
A very nice summing up! 
> Questions:
> 
> Bad Doreen raised some of the questions I had for these chapters 
last 
> week, but I decided to leave them in anyway, just in case someone 
has 
> something fresh to add...
> 
> 1.	When will JKR stop putting in the annoying reminders about 
> events in past books?    Do her publishers tell her to do so?

Probably not.  It's considered a good idea to keep continuity for the 
readers given that the time between book releases can be up to a 
year, and not all of the readers will reread the previous book 
immediately before starting the most recent one.   Piers Anthony and 
Brian Lumley have done recaps in their serial novels too, so JKR is 
not doing this on her own; it's apparently something of a tradition 
for serial novels.

> 
> 2.	When Mr Dursley says that today is an important day, do you 
> think that he is deliberately and sadistically raising Harry's 
hopes  that they have remembered his birthday - and care?

Oh, definitely.  They can talk the talk about wanting Harry to not 
want to be a wizard, but they do take a good deal of joy in quashing 
anything he might get pleasure from.  
> 
> 3.	Why can't Petunia see that Dudley has a serious weight 
> problem?

Denial.  Just call her Cleopatra.  Her boy is perfect in her eyes, no 
matter what anyone else says. 
> 
> 4.	Why are Mr Dursley and Dudley wearing dinner jackets?  Did 
> the Dursleys stipulate Black Tie when they invited the Masons?  
What  does this say about them?

I doubt they stipulated black tie per se, but Dursley is all about 
trying to impress the folks in his mundane world.  He wants people to 
ooh and aah over his car, as I recall, and he just likes being able 
to have people say how lovely his house/wife/child/belongings are.

 
> 5.	Has anyone ever eaten a pudding made of cream and sugared 
> violets?  Is it as sickly and as revolting as it sounds?

Never had one.  It does sound pretty yucky. I've had violet gum and 
violet candy and those are pretty nasty. But I'm an American with an 
uncultured palate *wink* 
> 
> 6.	Why is Dudley being so co-operative about the dinner party?  
> Is he being bribed with promises of extra treats if the Dursleys 
> become richer?

I wouldn't doubt it.  They give the boy whatever he wants now, and 
pay for his good behaviour with treats. 
> 
> 7.	Harry notes that he won't be taken on holiday with the 
> Dursleys.  What do they usually do with him when they go away?

He is left with Mrs. Figg, as memory serves.  They don't trust him 
alone in the house. 
> 
> 8.	Why does Harry assume that his friends have forgotten him, 
> rather than thinking something may have happened?  Is he very 
> insecure?
> 
Yes, and rightfully so. He has never had friends of his own before.  
Everyone he could've been friends with was denied him by Dudley and 
the fear of reprisal by Dudley at his pre-Hogwarts school.  

Plus, adding to that that he's the Famous Harry Potter, the Boy Who 
Lived,  and it's possible parents don't want their kids consorting 
with him.

Adding to *that* that Voldemort isn't really entirely _gone_,  if 
that got out last year, it wouldn't be too big a leap of logic to 
think that people wouldn't want kids rubbing elbows with someone who 
is the sworn enemy of the most famous Dark Wizard in several 
generations. 

Any of those reasons alone would be enough for Harry to think that 
his hopes had been dashed again -- as he's grown to be used to all 
his life. All of those combined? The poor kid.

> 9.	Dobby says that Harry is too important to be put at risk.  
> Why is this?  Is it just because of what Harry stands for among the 
> oppressed, or does it refer to something which is going to happen 
>in  the future?  Could this be an early reference to Professor 
> Trelawney's first prediction?

Dobby has, no doubt, heard from Lucius, that Harry is of some 
significance.  And while he can't speak badly of his family while in 
servitude, he is clever enough to throw a monkeywrench in their 
works. 
> 
> 10.	What happened to Harry's letters?  Did Dobby take them with 
> him?  Did Lucius Malfoy intercept them?

I'd imagine Dobby stashed them somewhere.  I don't think Dobby wanted 
Lucius to know that he was trying to protect Harry.  
> 
> 11.	Why did Dobby drop the pudding?  So it would have the effect 
> it did have, or to try and get Harry immediately expelled?

I think he just wanted to prevent Harry from going back to Hogwarts 
through whatever means possible. 
>  
> 12.	If Harry had been expelled, at the end of the year, would 
> Dobby have cleared his name?
> 
Maybe.  More likely Hermione would've sought to find out what had 
happened and get to the bottom of it herself.  

> 13.	If the MoM knew that magic had been performed in the house, 
> why didn't they also know that it wasn't Harry who had done it?
> 
Perhaps Dobby faked it in a manner to fool the MoM's detection 
spells? 

> 14.	The MoM say that they have "received information" that magic 
> has been performed in the house.  Is it possible that Dobby 
> anonymously tipped them off?
> 

More than possible. Entirely likely. 

> 15.	How did the owl arrive so quickly?  Is it possible that owls 
> can apparate, or did the wizard who sent it apparate close by 
before  releasing the owl?

My guess is that there's a transportation spell that makes travel 
easier for post owls...but that it's only used for emergencies, and 
is probably either expensive or very taxing.   The Weasleys don't 
have it for Errol, obviously.  Poor old guy arrives panting and 
exhausted every time.

> 
Indigo