[HPforGrownups] Re: Weasleys and the Problem of Money

[Grace Saalsaa]

No: HPFGUIDX 48086


Darla writes:

There's been something nagging at me about the Weasleys lack of
money. If they are so hard up, as they appear to be on several
occasions (i.e hand-me-down robes, shortage of family owls etc), why
did they blow the money they won in PoA on a holiday abroad? Yes, I
realise it is obviously necessary for the story, *grin*, but...
wouldn't you think they'd want to save it? Put it aside for school
books etc? Or is it just me thinking it's odd?


Me:

This question has come up several times. Not just here - but in real life as
well.  I've come to learn that no matter how much money you make, its always
barely enough to cover your expenses.  (For some, no matter how much you
make, it still isn't enough).  If you have extra, most of us would find a
way to spend it.

I have a friend who went bankrupt, has creditors calling her (and she keeps
changing her phone number to avoid them). When her mother's best friend
died, she inherited $10,000.  So what was her first thoughts?  Buying those
things that she wouldn't have been able to afford instead of using that
money to get out of debt.  I asked her why she would even entertain such
thoughts and her rationale was that this money was unexpected, unbudgeted -
a bonus; free money.  Therefore she wanted to treat it as such and lift
herself from the gloom that surrounded her since she would not be able to do
it otherwise.  "Everyone else gets to have a vacation and buy something
nice.  Why can't I?"

It could be a thought that had entertained Molly & Arthur too. And, they did
put some of the gold aside.  Ron got a new wand and the kids did get their
books.  The need for the dress robes wasn't until the following school year.
i can understand why Molly wouldn't have wanted to spend that extra money on
dress robes.  I'm sure Ron was growing fast, the robes would have been
expensive, he would have worn it probably only once that year and Ginny
wouldn't be wearing it the following year since she's a girl.  There would
have been no one to hand the robes down to.  Its also possible that Bill &
Charlie's old dress robes wouldn't have fit Ron either or they kept them -
or never had any.

Grace