House-Elfs and Slavery Again/SPEW

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 38326


Ahketsi at a... wrote:
> Why would Hermione, who is obviuosly very 
> > intelligent, create a name for her cause that has the acronym 
SPEW?  This funny name obviously reduces the credibility of her 
cause.  Hermione may not think the same as her peers,but even 
she could see  this. It was a ridiculous mistake on her part, one 
that I cannot see her making. What do you all think?<<<

Grey Wolf:
 Hermione was just too impulsive, and she was thinking of 
> higher ideals than the more prosaic side of any sort of 
campaign:  publicity, mottos, mass appeal, etc. (you know, all 
those things  politicians waste -sorry, "invest"- millions on). 
<snip>
> Another point of view is that it's just a form of comic relief, but it 
> was far too serious for that.
> 

Even experienced publicists can make silly mistakes. The 
Chevrolet people had a hard time understanding why the Chevy 
Nova wasn't selling in Mexico, until somebody pointed out that 
"no va" means "won't go" in Spanish.  

Just because Hermione is brilliant doesn't mean she can't make 
an obvious mistake, and then make it worse by refusing to 
acknowledge it.

I think JKR does exaggerate Hermione's obtuseness a bit here 
for the sake of the joke (not only does she not understand Elf 
culture, she doesn't understand her own), but also because the 
absurdity of the name had to be obvious enough for Ron and 
Harry to spot immediately.  If the joke was subtle, it would be out 
of character for them to get it. The silly name also telegraphs the 
reader that Hermione's campaign is ill-advised. We are to 
understand at the outset that Hermione means well, but her 
efforts are going to be hindered by her blinkered outlook.
 


> On the other hand, I vaguely recall that JKR is a fan of some 
sort of  American revolutionary woman called... Jessica? If 
someone knows about  it, maybe he/she could investigate the 
first steps of that woman, to  see if they relate to the SPEW 
campaign.

Jessica Mitford...but JKR says in an interview that Hermione's 
misadventures in social action are based on things she herself  
and her sister undertook as teens. 

http://www.cbc.ca/programs/sites/hottype_rowlingcomplete.html


Pippin