Why does Hermione's age matter?

[jonathandupont at hotmail.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 29836


> Amy Z wrote:
> 
> > Okay, we have a new crop of impassioned 1979- and 1980-advocates, 
so I'm
> > going to ask them:  what do you think it tells us about Hermione 
if she is
> > born in one year as opposed to the other?  L.O.O.N. that I am*, I 
can see
> > the attraction of picking at canon for clues, researching 
Scottish cutoff
> > dates, etc., but none of that explains the *meaning* of her age.  
Can
> > someone explain?

Well, I prefer the 1979 version because (a) it's more logical, 
Occam's Razor, whatever, (b) it was the one I automatically assumed 
(which is a reason for a lot of people it seems - we must all be 
stubborn) and (c) I like the way it explain's Hermione's character 
(the way she could learn so much (she's good already - but note that 
in canon she revises for AGES - no wonder she gets so good marks), 
and the fact that she's so prepared and conversely nervous about it 
(displayed in her bossiness)).

Even so, I won't care if JKR for some reason says its 1980 - but an 
awful lot of people seem very attached to their date (especially 
the '80ers it seems to me, but maybe that's just my bias). This 
dedication to it also probably makes me more stubbornly stick to 1979.

Oh, and 'cause everyone else has used it as an excuse - I've got a 
bad gut feeling about why people are saying 1980... 
 
Jon