Mitfords and Weasleys (was Re: Official Discussion Questions )

[milztoday]

No: HPFGUIDX 37328

> 
> Dr. Philip Nel writes:
 
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> 
 
> In GoF, Ron remarks, 'Percy loves rules,' and he wonders whether 
his brother would send a family member to Azkaban if it would advance 
his career (GoF, pg 463).  Reflect on the role of bureaucracy in the 
novels.  Does his tendency to side with bureaucracy make Percy 
susceptible to the same sorts of errors made by Cornelius Fudge and 
Barty Crouch, Sr., errors that ultimately (if unintentionally) help 
Lord Voldemort?  Might we expect him - albeit unwillingly - to aid 
Voldemort by following the letter of the law instead of its spirit?  
Will he side with Crouch or with his family?
> 

Hi everyone, it's been a while since I've written. I recently 
discovered the books of Nancy Mitford and began doing some background 
reading on her. In the process, I discovered that Rowling named her 
daughter after, Jessica Mitford, Nancy's sister, who was also an 
author and that Rowling gave her daughter J. Mitford's autobiography 
_Hons and Rebels_ as a christening present. Rowling has made it no 
secret that she bases her Potter characters upon people she has known 
or upon figures from folk-lore and mythology. After reading a bit 
about the Mitford family, I have the impression that she partially 
based the Weasleys upon them. I'll begin with some background and 
review, before tackling Percy issues.

Mitford background: They were an aristocratic family. Nancy's father 
was a Baron. The father was mildly eccentric, fond of hunting and 
other bucolic activities, preferring to live in the countryside. Of 
the children, there were seven Mitfords: six girls and a boy. They 
were Nancy, Diana, Unity, Pamela, Jessica, Deborah and Tom. Nancy, 
born in 1907, was the eldest. Deborah, born in 1920, the youngest.Tom 
died in combat during WW II. Pamela had a fondness for horses as a 
child and became a horse-breeder later in life. Deborah is the 
current Duchess of Devonshire. Diana married Sir Oswald Mosley the 
leader of the Fascist Party in Britain and was jailed for her 
activities. Unity, however, followed Hitler and became a close friend 
of his. When the war began, a distraught Unity shot herself in the 
head. She survived, only to die some years later. Jessica became a 
Communist and lived in the US. She wrote a book exposing the dirty 
side of the American Funeral industry. Nancy, as mentioned before, 
was an author best known, perhaps, for her comedic novels. Nancy, by 
the way, was one of the people who urged Churchill to imprison Diana 
(which strangely echoes Ron's musing about Percy). Tom died in combat 
during WW II. I can't find much about him, but everything I have read 
indicates that he was a nice fellow and generally well-liked.

Weasley background: One of the oldest pureblood wizarding families. 
Father is mildly eccentric with a fondness for Muggles. The Weasleys 
live in relative isolation compared to the Magicals who live in more 
populated areas, like Hogsmead. There are seven Weasley children: six 
boys and a girl. Estimates have Bill anywhere from 13 to 20 years 
older than Ginny. Charlie Weasley could have played Quiddich 
professionally but chose to study Dragons instead (paraphrasing 
Oliver Wood in SS/PS). Bill has a respectable job working at 
Gringotts. Percy has an interest in politics. He hero-worships MoM 
leaders such as Cornelius Fudge and Barty Crouch Sr. Fred and George 
are the pranksters. Ginny, well, not much is written about her, but 
what is indicates that she's a nice person and she was almost killed 
by Tom Riddle in CoS. Ron is Harry's best friend, with a streak of 
jealousy and somewhat low self-esteem (but is that an unheard of 
combination in real people?).

The most interesting Mitford-Weasley parallel, is the Percy-Unity-
Diana-Jessica one, imo. The fates of these Mitfords night give us a 
hint at what's in store for Percy post-GoF with the 
disappearance/murder of Barty Crouch Sr. and Cornelius Fudges' 
refusal to believe Voldemort is risen. Maybe Percy will spend some 
time in Azkaban a la Diana Mitford. Maybe like Diana, Percy will be 
the betrayed, not the betrayor as speculated by folks in the Group 
(myself included). Maybe he'll leave the MoM and, as Jessica did, 
begin to write about social injustices. Or maybe, and more 
tragically, he'll follow in the footsteps of Unity Mitford. 

Anyhow, I just wanted to share this Mitford-Weasley link with all of 
you as I haven't seen it brought up in the Group before. It might be 
farfetched, but the Rowling-Jessica Mitford connection makes me 
believe otherwise.

Finally, I want to stress this last point. I'm not saying that 
Rowling based the Weasleys ENTIRELY upon the Mitfords. (The Mitford 
parents didn't believe in education for women, particularly their 
daughters and they separated partially due to the political 
differences. Jessica ran off at age 17 to marry. Nancy had an unhappy 
marriage. Etc.) But I am saying that there are some rather striking 
parallels between the two, imho.

Milz