Filch and Names

[random_monkey0_0]

No: HPFGUIDX 40052

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "evilgeniussmurf" <evilgeniussmurf at y...> 
wrote:
> While browsing through a site about British slang, I found out 
> that "filch" is UK slang for stealing. This got me wondering about 
> the background of JKR's Filch. Could he have been a thief? And if he 
> was, how did he end up at Hogwarts?
> ~E.G. Smurf, who will now return to lurkdom

JKR has a neat way of using words that invoke particular feelings. 
When I first read the name "Filch,", I thought of a mean old man, just 
because of the word's negative connotation. 

Likewise, when I read the name "Weasley" (and I think this is a new 
one), I thought, from the word and the descriptions I had already 
read, of "measley." The Weasleys come from a poor background, don't 
have many material things, and are looked down upon by others. Of 
course, my perception changed as I read, but still, I just see him as 
so much of a Sidekick character...

Hermione is a long, complicated name that I didn't even know how to 
pronounce until a few months ago. I got the impression that she was a 
bookish, pretentious, know-it-all sort.

Harry Potter is a combination of two common names, indicating how much 
of a normal kid he is at the beginning of the books. (Yes, he does 
live in an abusive situation, but it's not really anything that you 
wouldn't read about in the newspaper. Not that child abuse is good, or 
should be usual. But it's not unheard of. Oh, bugger...) He is just 
another kid trying to get along in the world, who is suddenly thrust 
into a completely strange situation and forced to cope. One could even 
argue that the name "Harry Potter" was meant to be a name of 
someone whom everyone could relate to, to draw the reader in and make 
them feel part of the story...

Incidentally, does anyone know if Harry has a middle name?

The Random Monkey, who is starting to wonder if JKR's stories aren't 
flinted up because she spent too long on names...