[HPforGrownups] Re: Is Harry a stoic?

[Katze]

No: HPFGUIDX 32880

joanne0012 wrote:

> > Does anyone else see potential danger in this personality trait of
> > Harry's?
> 
> I agree that Harry is a Stoic, but I think that's why he will NOT break down.
> Sotics accept fate, destiny, the inevitability of things.  Sh*t happens, it's not
> our fault.  That acceptance is not the same as being "hardened."
> 
> I'm sure that the Dursleys treatment of Harry bothered him at one time, but he
> got over it.  He realized that it's not his fault, it's nothing he did or is, they're
> jerks, it doesn't reflect on him.   This realization made him stronger, that's why
> he didn't turn into some sort of angry delinquent despite the Dursleys.  Different
> people cope in different ways.  Just because Harry hasn't cried, or doesn't want
> to cry in front of his friends, doesn't mean that he's bottling up something that
> will inevitably overflow or explode. (An example, on a personal note, my kids are
> still wondering why I haven't cried over their dad dying.)

I'm not expecting Harry to breakdown and cry. My main inquiry was mainly
why it was so important to Harry to not have Ron see him almost
breakdown. I don't think Harry will breakdown (in the crying sense). He
tears up, but I'm not expecting crying. While I agree that not crying
doesn't mean he's bottling up some emotion, I do think this is the case
with Harry. We've seen examples of him feeling hurt and holding it
inside, and then let loose (like with Ron in GoF). So I think that he
does tend to bottle it up, and that's mainly because he trusts only a
few select people, which is perfectly understandable. 

The potential danger that I see is his anger. We've already seen
examples of Harry getting angry and reacting in minor ways (the glass,
Aunt Marge, Sirius in the shack, Ron in the common room with the pin,
and there are probably some more that I can't think of off the top of my
head). I think there's an anger brewing in Harry, and I *want* to see
him get angry. I think we'll get a better glimpse of this kid's power if
he really truly gets angry, so that's part of my motivation for wanting
this, but also...I'd like to see him get angry as a release, cause I'm
starting to get angry for him ;-)

-Katze (who only read GoF in November '01 and is wondering how on earth
you folks who read GoF when if first came have managed to survive a year
and a half without a new book!)