Lupin fans and possible death predictions

[caliburncy at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 26570

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., cynthiaanncoe at h... wrote:
> I tried to post to name a Lupin fan club yesterday, but it didn't 
> post, so I'll tack it onto Luke's comment.  Lupin's problem isn't 
> that people criticize him or dislike him.  It is that people assume 
> he is expendable.

Well, I don't know that the people who predict Lupin will die think so 
 because they assume he is "expendable".  There are three kinds of 
people who die in stories:

1) Bad guys ("Expendable" or prominent character; it doesn't really 
matter)
2) "Expendable" good guys
3) Prominent character good guys

I really think most of those people making these predictions would put 
Lupin in the third category.  His death would be *powerful* and 
heart-wrenching (it is in fact, for this very reason that you of 
course don't really want to even consider it); he wouldn't just serve 
as (to coin a rather disagreeable story-telling slang term) 
"deadmeat".  It's certainly not like he's a "red shirt" (security 
guard) on Star Trek, beaming down to the planet only to be gobbled by 
some ferocious beast in order that one of the main cast doesn't have 
to be.  No, I don't think it's like that at all.  It's in some ways 
because he's NOT "expendable" that he might conceivably die.  It's 
because violence and death affect those we love as much as it does 
those whom we do not know.  Even in stories.  The good ones anyway.

Also see my additional comments below (on the same subject):

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., Penny & Bryce <pennylin at s...> wrote:
> Cindy asked why Lupin seems to be the one pegged to die by many of 
> us. I want to go on record: I don't *want* Lupin to die in OOP.  I > 
base my prediction on the fact that (a) JKR said in some post-GoF > 
interview that there was a death coming in Book 5 that would > 
"half-crucify" her to write, and (b) Lupin is one of her favorite > 
characters.  I suppose though that any of the semi-important > 
characters might be enough to half-crucify JKR, so perhaps Lupin is > 
safe after all.  I fervently hope so but ....

Right.  I think you could be a true Lupin fan and still predict that 
he might die--I don't see how this invalidates your love of Lupin.  
Expecting something to happen and being in favor of it are not the 
same thing.  I personally take the (safe, non-assuming) stance that he 
may die or he may not (at any point, not just in Book 5).

I don't necessarily think that the "half-crucify" statement points any 
more toward Lupin than some other characters.  Characters are the 
author's children and almost *any* death is hard to write.  But of 
course, it does seem more likely to be a beloved character, given the 
intensity of that statement (not to mention that she basically stated 
in no uncertain terms that it would be a beloved character in another 
interview).  But, as you later stated, Penny, there are other beloved 
characters besides Lupin, so we don't really know.  Hagrid (also 
commonly cited by JKR as one of her favorite characters, usually right 
after the trio), for example, also seems to fit all the clues JKR has 
given thus far ("special fan of Harry", etc., etc.).  I'm not saying 
it's Hagrid and not Lupin; I'm saying there's no greater evidence for 
either, or any other of the other possible characters.

So which of us truly knows who will die?  None of us really claim to, 
though we may have our guesses.  "What's coming will come" . . . and 
all that overly-quoted jazz.

Because this is a story (I would obviously never say this in a 
real-life circumstance), I will go on record as saying that I would be 
extremely disappointed (though also relieved, of course) if some of my 
favorite characters *didn't* die.  I wouldn't want this to be a "let's 
kill off the auxillary characters only"-story.  That just wouldn't 
ring true.  A couple people may not like me for saying that (though by 
counter-example, many others may think the same), but regardless 
that's what I think.

-Luke