"Dam' Good Auror"

[blpurdom at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 27197

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., dfrankiswork at n... wrote:
> Penny wrote:
> > As Catherine says in the above 
> > message (21458), it always strikes me that Ron is just grasping 
> > at straws, and when he's right, it's through sheer luck.
> > 
> > Yes, yes ... I know Ron contributes some skills & strengths to 
> > the Trio. But, on the whole, his contributions don't really stack 
> > up in my mind ... not as far as sleuthing & solving the puzzles 
> > anyway.  
> 
> Yes and no.  Yes, Ron's contributions to sleuthing and puzzling are 
> minimal (something that has always sat oddly with his chess playing 
> ability).  And I am among the sceptics on the Ron-is-a-seer front.
> 
> What he does contribute are ordinary blokeishness, and friendship. 
> [snip]  Ron provides the connection to normality, to ordinary 
> human reactions and the mindset of wizarding society.

As someone noted in another post, Ron had to remind Hermione that she 
is a witch!  Ron's deep connection to the wizarding world is probably 
his most important contribution to the trio other than his sheer 
physical bravery and his fierce loyalty.  There is never a moment 
when he is not acutely aware of being a wizard and when all of the 
ins and outs of wizarding society isn't at his fingertips.  

Harry and Hermione have no clue as to how giants are regarded in 
wizarding society; they might have gone blabbing about Hagrid's 
heritage all over Hogwarts even before Rita's article hit the fan if 
Ron hadn't told them about this.  Even with all she's read, Hermione 
couldn't recognize the insult "Mudblood" for what it was when it was 
directed at her.  

Ron's their inside man, the one who knows the way other wizards and 
witches think, which Hermione and Harry still don't completely 
grasp.  One could argue that any other student born in wizarding 
society could fill his role just as well, but Neville isn't as 
competent as Ron, and Seamus (the only other non-Muggle-born in 
Harry's house and year) just doesn't seem to have Ron's je-ne-sais-
quois.  Plus, Ron's family dynamics bring a lot of valuable elements 
to the story.  Ron is quite simply indispensible!
 
--Barb