[HPforGrownups] Re: Fred and George: should we worry? (Was: next prank)

[yr awen]

No: HPFGUIDX 42656


  Jenny from Ravenclaw:
  Fred and George are quite the loveable scoundrels, are they not?  Or 
  are they?  Has anyone ever thought of their pranks as a bit 
  mean-spirited?<<<<<<
  Oh, for certain. Pranks usually have the element of potential humiliation in them. I believe James Thurber said something to that effect, on the 'necessity' for humiliation in humor. We laugh at the discomfiture of another person because it 1.) builds up our own egos and 2.) hasn't happened to us.

  Hmmm, maybe they are.  If I look at their "pranks" from another 
  perspective, they could make the twins a force not to be reckoned 
  with.<<<<<<<<

  I definitely agree with you here -- you don't mess with the twins.

   Turning Ron's stuffed animal into a spider (CoS), changing and 
  hiding Percy's Prefect badge (PoA) and making snacks that turn people 
  into canaries (GoF) may not be so funny if they happened to you.  Ah, 
  and in FBWTF, they obviously destroyed a Puffskein because, as Ron 
  writes to Harry "they used it for bludger practice".  At some point 
  they also feed fireworks to a salamander.  While I have to admit their 
  pranks are quite funny, what they did to the animals was not. [snip the rest]<<<<<<<<<

  By way of comment on "may not be so funny if they happened to you"... well, pranks are rarely funny when inflicted on you, as opposed to other people. See mangled James Thurber quote above.

  To sort of divide this up a bit, the twins seem to ply their trade on two levels: retributive, and for the hell of it. Percy's stuffed-shirtedness and Malfoy's arrogance are natural targets (such traits are, after all, the target of pranksters and satirists the world over); they're practically *begging* to be taken down a peg or two by having Head Boy badges enchanted to read 'Bighead Boy' or be hexed into oblivion. They take advantage of Dudley in the same way that Hagrid does, by playing on Dudley's greed and making him suffer for it. On the other hand, you have things like wanton Puffskein destruction, turning poor Ron's teddy bear into a spider, and salamander torture -- although, with regards to the last point, salamanders are immune to fire (yet I'm sure the salamander didn't appreciate flying around the room while fireworks were going off inside it.)
  I do sort of agree with you that the twins' "nothing is sacred" attitude can be a bit *too* cavalier -- I imagine that, if I knew them, they would drive me up the wall. To be honest, I probably wouldn't be able to stand them; as a reader, though, I'm at least allowed to sit back and snicker at their antics until I'm forced to examine them in more detail.

  Jenny:
  Many people dislike Snape, Draco, Rita Skeeter and some aren't even 
  crazy about Ron - all because of their attitudes.  Fred and George are 
  funny and fun, and obviously talented wizards, but are they nice?<<<<<<<

  When you say 'people', are you talking about the reading audience or the wizarding world? The WW seems to approve of them on the whole, with the exception of Mrs. Weasley. Additionally, 'nice' is a fairly ambiguous term; I agree that some of the stuff they do can be pretty mean, but they're also pretty staunch allies in Harry's camp. I'm thinking here of the ironic incident in CoS, when they follow Harry around, shouting that he's the Heir of Slytherin and to watch out for the "seriously evil wizard coming through" -- it's obvious they believe the allegations of Harry are complete crock, but aren't afraid to play on the other students' superstitions. And really, with some of the hysterical reactions circulating via the Hufflepuff gossip chain, I have to say those kids deserve it.

  Jenny:
  Should we applaud them for their prank inventions and encourage them 
  to do more?  I for one would love to see them open a new joke shop, 
  but maybe they should be steered away from their current passions for 
  practical jokes.<<<<<<<<

  ::pokes:: Channelling Molly are you <g> I agree that maybe a bit more maturity wouldn't go amiss. On the other hand, laughter is the best medicine -- and can be a good defense, as you mention when you say F&G should maybe start working a bit harder against Voldy & co.

  HF.  


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