Ginny's crush

[catherine at cator-manor.demon.co.uk]

No: HPFGUIDX 20706

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., devika261 at a... wrote:
> In a message dated 6/12/01 9:54:50 PM Eastern Daylight Time, 
> heidi.h.tandy.c92 at a... writes:
> 
> 
> > I don't see Ginny as crush-lorn over Harry at this point in 
canon. 
> > There's been NOTHING in book 4 to indicate that she is mooning 
over 
> > harry

Heidi, there is!  Isn't she obviously unhappy that she can't go to 
the ball with him?  Personally I think this wasn't hte only issue.  I 
think that she wanted Harry to want to go to the ball with her, not 
just go with her because he can't go with Cho.

Devika wrote
Harry has gotten used to the fact that 
> Ginny likes him, just as he has gotten used to being famous.  Both 
of these 
> things embarassed him before, but now he seems to have accepted 
them.  
> Perhaps Harry is becoming more mature as well.  But still...I can't 
help but 
> wonder if Harry is beginning to enjoy being famous, or having 
Ginny's 
> admiration.  

Focussing on the famous thing, I don't think Harry is getting used to 
it, let alone enjoying it.  There is a lot of canonical evidence to 
back this up.  His fame, and the attention it brings, besides the 
fact he becomes a champion, temporarily alienates him from his best 
friend.  His friends are attacked by the tabloid press, when Rita 
Skeeter is no longer unable to get to him directly (Hagrid and 
Hermione).  He makes it clear that he doesn't enjoy the attention.  
Sure, he wanted the glory of winning the Triwizard Tournament, but I 
think that this was more to do with proving himself, in the same way 
he does on the Quidditch field, rather than being famous for the sake 
of something he can't remember.

It is in GoF that Harry is really exposed to the downside of being 
famous.  In the previous books, it has been merely annoying, in GoF 
it has gone beyond this - it is potentially dangerous.  By this I 
mean that important people such as Fudge have believe the libellous 
tales that Rita Skeeter are printing about him, and are therefore 
doubting his word, his honesty, his sanity.

Finally (for now) he also compares himself to Krum.  Krum is 
attracted to Hermione because she isn't fawning over him like all the 
other girls in the school.  Likewise, Harry is filled with self 
doubt, when he considers that none of the girls who notice him would 
be interested in him if he wasn't famous and wasn't a champion.  

Harry has always struck me as being an introvert, and I still think 
that all he wants is to be left alone.  He is friendly with people, 
but only has a few close friends, which I think are worth much more 
to him than any advantages fame can bring.

Catherine