The Do's and Don'ts of Being a Good Character

[jenny_ravenclaw]

No: HPFGUIDX 34649

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "cindysphynx" <cindysphynx at h...> wrote:

 >When should the Good characters be permitted to deviate from 
conventions of fair play in the wizarding world?  How is it that an 
author can have her Good characters behave in these morally 
questionable ways and still remain Good in the readers' minds?>

Those are tough questions, Cindy.  I think one thing we need to keep 
in mind is the vicarious satisfaction we as readers can experience 
when we read about Harry getting the best of Draco or Snape being 
embarrassed by the Marauder's Map.  I must admit that one of my 
favorite scenes in GoF was when Fred and George dropped candies all 
over the floor and pretended to pick them up.  I loved knowing that 
any moment, Dudley the Greedy would be getting a mouthful of something 
nasty.  In reality I can't imagine laughing at seeing anyone suffering 
the way Dudley did, but I just couldn't feel bad for him in his 
fictional world.  What I mean by all of this babble here is that I 
enjoy seeing or reading some good ass-kicking of some character who I 
find deplorable.  In real life, I am no one's ass-kicker, and believe 
me, there are times when I wish I could give a student a good slap (or 
at least tell them to shut the f*** up).  Instead, I must always be 
the one to demonstrate restraint and diplomacy.  Phooey.

I can think of several other examples of this, like when Hermione 
slaps Draco across the face in PoA, or when Harry throws mud at Draco 
and his cronies, also in PoA.  In reality, those are not acceptable 
behaviors, but I sure loved reading them!

--jenny from ravenclaw ************************