Who is Florence? what is she, That all our swains commend her?

[Edblanning at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 35453

(Eloise bursts into  Shakespearean song)

Yet again trailing in last, in the wake of a thread that's probably finished. 
But what the heck, I need to do this for me, so I may as well share it.
I thought I'd just go back through a few posts, for the benefit of those who 
like myself are beginning to be hopelessly tied up in the Devil's Snare that 
is the tangle of Florence's love life. Please forgive me ( and correct me) if 
I misrepresent anyone. I'm just trying to get this straight.

Elkins:
Florence is Sirius' girlfriend. Forbidden love and all that. He hexes Bertha. 
Eventually caves in to his friends and gives Florence up.
Florence goes all moody- resentful. Goes to Snape to get revenge tuition. 
Snape has a crush on her anyway and Sirius comes to think there's something 
going on between them.
Florence ends up going bad in a big, big way, marries Lestrange etc.
Both Sirius and Snape blame each other for Florence's descent into Darkness, 
triggering the Prank, mutual hatred etc etc.
Neatly summed up by Marina as
Florence, Loved and Abandoned by Black, Becomes EnRaged, Goes After 
Severus, Turns Evil Deatheater = F.L.A.B.B.E.R.G.A.S.T.E.D.

Now, Cindy makes the plot a bit juicier
Bertha *does* catch Sirius with Florence, but the reason he's so enraged is 
that he's been caught two-timing Lily, who hasn't yet started going out with 
James. AND, Florence is Snape's girlfriend.
Yep. That's reason for a hex alright. (and thanks for the admission that 
Snape isn't totally repulsive!) Ah...*that*s the romantic trapezoid.
Bertha tells Snape about Florence; Snape tells Lily about Sirius. End of 
Sirius/Lily. Sirius now hates Snape more than ever, leading to Prank etc.
Snape still carries a torch for Florence, but she's after Lestrange who's 
more malliable. He joins DEs in the hope of getting her back.

Now enter Captain Tabouli, with some very well thought out objections on the 
grounds of character to the above (which I won't attempt to summarise!)
But, we have a new theory!
Florence was kissing Crouch junior ( a bit of cradle-snatching here!), Crouch 
rebelling in the face of his father's treatment of him ( nothing he did was 
ever good enough) and Florence getting her revenge for his imprisoning of her 
DE parents. So young Florence seduces both Crouch Jr and Lestrange into 
Darkness.

Tabouli then has another theory, hot on the tail of the last.
Florence is not Florence Lestrange, but Florence Norris, and it's Filch who's 
caught kissing her.

The trouble is, we just don't know who old Flo is. I think the case for her 
being Mrs Lestrange is quite strong - but then the same reasoning leads us to 
Mrs Norris. I rather like the idea of Mrs Lestrange having such a prim and 
proper name, though.

Sirius is certainly the kind to hex first and think later: the romantic 
trapezoid definitely has merits.

But methinks there are any number af variants we could play on this theme.
Perhaps she was Snape's girlfriend and Bertha caught her with Lestrange. 
Or alternatively she was already involved with Lestrange and Bertha caught 
her with Snape. Although I don't think Snape would hex her. I agree with 
others that physical violence isn't his style. Actually, I think he doesn't 
*need* to stoop to physical violence, the threat is enough.

I do like the idea of some kind of entanglement between Snape and Mrs 
Lestrange though, even if it was all in Snape's mind. We could then work 
Cindy's ambushes and my conviction that Snape sacrificed something personal 
to convince Dumbledore of his loyalty into the same theory.

Elkins comments on Dumbledore's comment re the Penseive memory of Bertha,

>"But why, Bertha, . . . why did you have to follow him in the first 
>place?"

>The anguished tone seems rather out of keeping for a simple matter of 
>a fast hex, doesn't it?  No, Dumbledore's agony there arises from his
>wise suspicion that this entire Sirius Black affair is going to prove 
>the last straw for the unstable young Florence, that it will be the 
>catalyst which will push her right over the edge into Darkness.>

I think the anguish is for Bertha. Why on earth does she have to be such a 
nosy cow, sticking her oar in (can cows have oars?), telling tales and 
getting herself into trouble over matters which are none of her business. 
Exactly what she's done again and look at the trouble she's caused this time.

Whilst I think that that Bertha is the prime subject of this little Penseive 
scene, I agree that mentioning Florence's name is significant. She may well 
be Mrs Lestrange, but equally, she may be someone we haven't yet met. After 
all, Arabella Figg was introduced at the beginning of PS/SS and we still 
haven't met her. Perhaps Florence is the new DADA teacher. ( Snape's 
long-lost love returns? Is this the end of those nocturnal ramblings?)

Eloise, finding this discussion of someone who may as yet not even have had 
*one* word even more amazing than the Avery one.

Who is Silvia? what is she,        
That all our swains commend her?
Holy, fair, and wise is she;        
The heaven such grace did lend her,
That she might admirèd be. 

Is she kind as she is fair?       
For beauty lives with kindness.
Love doth to her eyes repair,        
To help him of his blindness,
And, being helped, inhabits there. 

Then to Silvia let us sing,        
That Silvia is excelling;
She excels each mortal thing        
Upon the dull earth dwelling:
To her let us garlands bring.   

Not to Mrs Lestrange, though!






























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