SHIP: More Comments on Various Threads (lots on Ginny)

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

No: HPFGUIDX 15537

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., Penny & Bryce Linsenmayer <pennylin at s...> 
wrote:
I mainly have an
> overall *negative* impression of Ginny.  It's not an impression that
> couldn't be changed with some good character development.
> 
> Ginny is still a bit shadowy in my mind.  In PS/SS, she's just a 
whiny
> little girl with almost no lines, let alone character development.  
In
> CoS, she's shy around Harry ... blushing, dropping her elbow in the
> butter dish .... then falling prey to Riddle's diary.  She does have
> that moment in the bookshop where she sticks up for Harry - this 
shows
> an glimmer of gumption.  But, at the end of CoS, we're left again 
with
> the image of Ginny sobbing in Molly's arms.  In PoA, Ginny turns red
> when she sees Harry.  She experiences anxiety on the train in the 
face
> of the Dementor -- probably residual from the Riddle experience.  Is
> Ginny ever mentioned again in PoA?  If so, nothing springs to 
mind.  Oh
> yeah, blushing, she brings Harry a singing get-well card at one 
point.
> In GoF, Ginny is actively excluded from the Trio's activities, both 
at
> the Burrow & at the World Cup.  She does indicate she thinks Bill's
> earring is cool so maybe a little of fanon Ginny is peeking through
> there.  <g>  Then, we have Ginny's one shining moment in the pre-
Yule
> Ball scene.  We see her wincing when dancing with Neville.  Is she
> mentioned again after that?  She's not with Bill, Molly, Ron & 
Hermione
> when they come in search of Harry.  She's not with the Trio & twins 
on
> the train trip home.  If she's seen after the Yule Ball scene, I 
can't
> recall it.
> 
> I guess I just focus on negative traits when I think about Ginny.  
Maybe
> it's my own bias against her faults.  I see some of my younger self 
in
> her actions, and it's a side I've outgrown & don't much care to
> remember.  So .... consequently, I don't like her character much.  
And,
> I definitely don't think she's a strong enough character to be the
> love-interest of Harry, the hero.  Not at this point.  She might 
become
> a strong enough character, but I do remain skeptical that this will
> happen.  For one thing, I don't know how they move past the fact 
that
> Ginny has had a long-standing hero-adulation crush on Harry.  It 
has to
> move past that for it to be a believable romance, and I think that 
would
> be hard to pull off convincingly.  The crush has been a bit 
annoying for
> Harry at times (the Valentine scene for example).  I don't know -- I
> just don't see it.
> 
> I find it fascinating that there are people who not only like Ginny 
but
> see all kinds of different things in her character.
> 
> Penny

 Just a quickie - this is probably overlapping with a Chatter mail on 
SHIPS which is going on at the moment, but I still think you are 
selling Ginny short.  I've never seen her as being whiny - in fact, 
when she has cause to be miserable we have seen her keeping it very 
much to herself - or at least away from Harry and Ron.  

The only time we have seen her in an over-emotional state (which 
could concievably be described as whiny, but which I prefer to 
describe as a little overwrought) is during CoS.  At this time, she 
is worried about fitting into school and has all those brothers to 
follow, she has a crush on probably the most famous young wizard of 
all time and people are trying to embarrass her about it (I don't 
want to get involved in the who sent Harry the valentine's card 
debate), she is seriously questioning her own sanity - re the impact 
of the diary and what it is forcing her to do, she thinks that she is 
likely to be expelled and to cap it all, she nearly dies.  It is any 
wonder, that at the tender age of 11, when Harry has rescued her, 
that she has a minor breakdown?  And all she does is cry and want to 
be comforted by her mother.  Well, I am not in the slightest bit 
surprised.

The adulation crush I also (at this stage) don't have a problem 
with.  She has almost certainly been brought up knowing about Harry, 
she is overwhelmed when she meets him in the flesh (for goodness 
sake, she is only ten at the time afterall).  BUT, it lasts.  It has 
now lasted for four years.  That in my book is pretty unusual for 
someone of Ginny's age.  Especially as she is in perfect position to 
spend quite a bit of time with Harry.  After all, familiarity breeds 
contempt, and that does not seem to have happened with Ginny.  We  
don't know if this infatuation of a famous person is simply that, or 
whether Ginny has got beyond that.  That is something I will be very 
interested to find out about.  My position regarding Harry's POV is 
ambivalent.  He is quite aware of Ginny - see CoS, when he alone 
notices her clumsiness, her blushes etc. while he is around - yet he 
still makes the effort to talk to her and chooses to ignore her 
embarrassment, despite probably being aware that he would be teased 
if everyone else was to notice (he is relieved on this point).


I feel as though I am starting the Ginny fan club here.  I'm not, but 
I am prepared to be a big fan on reading the later books!
Catherine