defense of Sirius and James

[Carole Estes]

No: HPFGUIDX 19115


----- Original Message -----
From: "Magda Grantwich" <mgrantwich at yahoo.com>


> > I don't know about that!  Boy, I sure get tired of hearing how
> > great James, Remus, and Sirius were/are.  Aaarrrggghhhh!

It seems to me they were pretty great guys.  They (James and Sirius) went
through an awful lot for their friend (animagi transformation).  They went
out of their way and beyond their cultures inate prejudices against
werewolves to befriend Remus and make him feel comfortable each month during
his transformations.  They could have simply said..."well see you in a
couple of days" but no they actively endangered themselves in order to help
remus.

>
> I agree.  Lupin's alright and the jury's still out on James (respect
> for the dead and all that) but even after reading GoF, I haven't
> changed my opinion of Sirius Black.  He strikes me as one of those
> charming guys that are great in their 20's but don't marry or mature
> like their friends.  The kind of guy who'll still show up on his
> motorbike in a black leather jacket (which is getting a tad snug
> around the waist) and expect his married buds to join him at the pub
> on the night that their kids are playing a semi-final soccer game.

I'll agree that he was probably that type of guy (without the jacket getting
snug) before Azkaban.

However, if you read the scene where he talks to the trio in the cave in
Hogsmead (GoF, Padfoot Returns) he has a lot to say about what makes a good
father, a good father.  He points out that Crouch should have spent more
time at home rather than at the office.  This leads me to think he has a
clue about  family priorities in the post Azkaban era.  So no I don't agree
that he's be that kind of guy post-Azkaban.

>
> He doesn't seem too bright either.
>

Ditto what Heidi said.  Add to that that it was said that the animagi
transformation is a very difficult spell.  These guys accomplished it during
their 5th year, without any help from a more experienced wizard/witch.  That
indicates that they were not your run-of-the-mill wizards.

carole