Harry and Ron's views of each other

[Morrigan //Vicki//]

No: HPFGUIDX 32863



> -----Original Message-----
> From: Katze [mailto:jdumas at kingwoodcable.com]
> "Ms. Found in A Bottle" wrote:
>
> > > What's the worst thing *Harry's* ever done?
> >
> > I had to really think of this, but I feel the worst is the way
> that Harry if > > often kinda rubbing in Ron's face the fact that he's
rich and Ron's not (esp. in GoF).  But then at the end of GoF when he gives
F&G > the TriWizard > > Tournament winnings...I would have thought he might
consider > giving it to > > his best friend.  I just always kinda feel sorry
to Ron when he > mentions how > > much it sucks being poor, so that's why I
chose that.
>
> I suspected that Harry would offer to the Weasley parents (I guess he
> sort of did in the hospital), but I never thought he'd offer it to
>Ron, because Ron wouldn't take it. He feels sorry for himself, but I
>don't think expects other people to fix it. I think Harry knows this, >and
this  is why he made the request for the robes to come from F&G.
>Ron could  accept the robes from his family, but not his best friend. >Had
Harry  given him the robes, I think Ron might have seen it as
>Harry pitying  him, and that would make him (Ron) feel worse.

I think it's clear to Harry that Ron would never accept the money from him.
Ron has a LOT of pride and the money issue really centers it.  I think it
most likely is because he's the youngest of the boys - he really DOES get
stuck with all their hand-me-downs, which of course are getting more and
more awful with each boy, be it robes, a wand, or what have you.  Examining
the other Weasleys, they seem to have mostly gotten away from this problem
for various reasons: Bill and Charlie were the oldest, and must have gotten
most everything new; Fred and George gripe some about money, but they have
their twin bond, plus definite goals (joke shop) to keep them from focusing
on money problems; Ginny, being the only girl, undoubtedly gets mostly new
things.  The best example of Ron's attitude about Harry providing anything
to him is when Harry got him the Omnioculars (sp?) at the QWC.  Ron thought
he'd paid for them, but when he found out that the money from the
leprechauns was fake, he would not leave it alone.  I think Harry would like
to be more generous to Ron, but when Ron acts like that, how can he really?

On a related note, I really think that at some point Harry will blow up at
Ron about his pride, jealousy and the money thing.  He's undoubtedly going
to say something along the lines of the fact that he'd give all the money in
his vault at Gringott's to have what Ron has - a wonderful, supportive,
LIVING family.  I think that whenever this blowup happens, it will do their
relationship a great service, and a lot of Ron's jealousy towards Harry will
start to disspate.

> I'm still debating why, out of all the people sitting in the hospital
> wing after the third task, it is Ron that Harry doesn't want watching
> when he starts to breakdown in Mrs. Weasley's arms. That was an
> emotional clincher for me. I think Harry believe that Ron sees him as
> strong and a survivor (which he is), and perhaps the breakdown would
> diminish Ron's view of him, or that he was acting like a girl (they
> constantly tease Hermione about her crying). Thoughts?

Hmmm...my take was the simple "boys don't cry" thing.  Ron is his best
friend, but I doubt there are many teenage boys who would cry in front of
their best male friends willingly.  A platonic or romantic female friend,
sure, because it's socially acceptable for girls to cry (at least in many
situations), so therefore girls understand.   Generalizations, of course,
but ones that are proved more often than they're disproved.  At that moment,
Harry needs a mother more than anything - and Molly is the closest he's ever
had to that.  She's got 6 kids that she obviously loves greatly and has
tried to take care of Harry as well from the first moment she saw him,
helping him to get onto Platform 9 3/4.  Goodness knows Petunia never
exhibited anything remotely maternal towards him...

Vicki