Harry the Seeker

[Melody <Malady579@hotmail.com>]

No: HPFGUIDX 48469

Joanne wrote:
>Aside from his Zen "one-with-the-snitch" approach that someone else
>mentioned, he hasn't shown the slightest inclination toward obsessive
>behavior.  He would have to change a lot over the course of the
>remaining books for it to be plausible.


The mirror chapter in PS/SS was a start of obsession.  He felt
compelled to go back to it even when his best friend said he
shouldn't.  He sat for hours and just stared at it.  That is
obsession.  Just at an early stage, so Harry *does* have it in him.
Especially when it comes to things he yearns for.  Maybe, Dumbledore
stamped out his obsessive nature soon enough by showing the boy the
ill logic of it, or maybe it is still there and can only be provoked
by deep, deep feelings.

But I will agree, Harry has not shown any signs of obsessive behavior
since then.  Lord knows, he is not obsessed with potions.  ;)


Rachel wrote:
>I think that the reason Harry sought to protect himself from the
>dementors was not so much about a single-minded obsession.  Wood
>wasn't going to let him play if he didn't find a way to take care of
>his 'problem'.  I know kids on a sports team hate being benched- this
>could have been the motivation here.

I would tend to agree with you Rachel except the text does not support
that assertion.  Yes, Wood *greatly* wants to win that cup, and yes,
Harry is completely aware that Wood wants him to catch that snitch.  I
just find it a stretch that a 13 year-old boy would spend all his free
time for the main purpose of making an older student happy.  Frankly,
it seems Harry wanted to protect his game and that was the *main*
motivation.

When Harry first came out of his short coma after falling from his
broom and learned what happened, he asked-
---
(PoA, Ch 9)
"But the match," said Harry.  "What happened?  Are we doing a replay?"
 No one said anything.  The horrible truth sank into Harry like a
stone.  "We didn't - *lose*?"

Harry lay there, not saying a word.  They had lost...for the first
time ever, he had lost a Quidditch game.
---

And when Harry was with Lupin at their first Patronus practice, Harry
said-
---
(PoA, Ch 12)
"I've got to!  What if the dementors turn up at our match against
Ravenclaw?  I can't afford to fall off again.  If we lose this game
we've lost the Quidditch Cup!"

This meant that with Lupin's anti-dementor classes, which in
themselves were more draining that six Quidditch practices, Harry had
just one night a week to do all his homework.
---

>From all that I would say Harry himself is quite motivated to win on
his own and does not need the pressure or a threat from Wood to
perfect his game.  He is quite into winning on his own.

And besides, if Wood threatened to "bench" Harry, the threat would be
empty.  Without Harry, Gryffindor would definitely loose.  There is
still no back-up seeker.


Melody
Who realized after she hit ?send?, that she left out a crucial
sentence and had to delete her previous post.  She greatly apologies
to those that had to read this thing twice so think of it as a game of
find-the-crucial-sentence.  Ok, it?s a lame game, but I do apologies
to those that got this twice.