SUMMARIES: The Worst Birthday and Dobby's Warning

[mervin180 at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 22893

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., catherine at c... wrote:
 
> 1.	When will JKR stop putting in the annoying reminders about 
> events in past books?    Do her publishers tell her to do so?

It is helpful to those who are new to the series.  Many people do not 
read SS/PS first, and this technique helps them grasp the story line 
better.  However, I suspect that, since GoF, the story line has 
become awfully complex, and couldn't easily be sumarized in a few 
sentences here and there.
 
> 3.	Why can't Petunia see that Dudley has a serious weight 
> problem?

Love is blind.  Some parents are completely oblivious to the fact 
that their little darlings are really snots.   What we see as faults, 
she may twist around in her mind to be positive traits. For example, 
if somebody tells her Dudley is dangerously overweight she 
thinks "he's a strong, good sized boy" and if somebody tells her he 
beat up some children at school she thinks "he is just high spirited, 
he was just playing."  She is blind to the fact that Dudley is not 
perfect.

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

ummm.....I once saw sugared flowers (but not violets, I think) used 
on a wedding cake...but I thought they were just for decoration...

> 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?

Even if he's not being bribed, he's smart(and greedy)enough to 
realize that the more money his dad makes, the more 
treats/toys/presents he gets.


> 8.    Why does Harry assume that his friends have forgotten him, 
> rather than thinking something may have happened?  Is he very 
> insecure?

For most of his life, Harry never knew anyone he could trust or who 
cared about him. The only people he knew of that loved him (his 
parents) died, and the only family he knew for 10 years abhorred 
him.  It is not suprising that he would assume that his first (and 
best) friends, too, would leave him.  Also children at age 12 put a 
lot of emphasis on friendships, and something as simple as a 
forgotten phone call, or missed email, can make them worry about the 
state of thier friendship.

> 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?

I don't know if this has anything to do with Trelawney's first 
prediction.  Harry is certainly a key figure in the enlightenment of 
the magical beings oppressed during Voldemort's reign, but I don't 
know if Dobby can see into the future.  Do elves, maybe, practice 
some form of Divination?
 
Angie