Dean Thomas

[bluesqueak]

No: HPFGUIDX 40295

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "judyserenity" <judyshapiro at e...> wrote:

Judy wrote:
> I'm frankly quite confused about Dean Thomas, and I'm wondering if 
> someone could clear it up.  Here is the US version of his 
> introduction.  After Harry sits down and looks at the High Table, 
> the next US passage reads: "And now there were only three people 
> left to be sorted.  'Thomas, Dean," a Black boy even taller than 
> Ron, joined Harry at the Gryffindor table."  This passage is rather 
> flint-y: after saying there were three more people to be sorted, it 
> then mentions *four* people: "Turpin, Lisa" and "Blaise, Zabini", 
> as well as Dean and Ron. 
> 

Ok, here is the (flint-less) British version (UK paperback, 
Bloomsbury, p.91)
After Harry sits down an looks at the High Table, the next UK passage 
reads: 

"And now there were only three people left to be sorted. 'Turpin, 
Lisa' became a Ravenclaw and then it was Ron's turn. He was pale 
green by now. Harry crossed his fingers under the table and a second 
later the hat had shouted 'GRYFFINDOR!'.

Harry clapped loudly with the rest as Ron collapsed into the chair 
next to him.

'Well done, Ron, excellent,' said Percy Weasley pompously across 
Harry as 'Zabini, Blaise' was made a Slytherin. Professor McGonagall 
rolled up her scroll and took the Sorting Hat away."

<Snip>
> I had assumed that everyone sorted 
> after Harry was mentioned by name, but another possibility is that 
> Harry was too relieved by getting sorted into Gryffindor to notice 
> the students who were sorted right after him.  

I think that's the assumption, as we jump straight from 'Potter, 
Harry' to 'Turpin, Lisa'. Dean doesn't get mentioned at all.

> Does the UK version say anything to introduce Dean,
> other than mentioning his sports posters? 
> (I assume Dean is one of Harry's roommates in both versions.) 

The sentence introducing Dean is on p. 107:
"Ron had already had a big argument with Dean Thomas, who shared 
their dormitory, about football. Ron couldn't see what was exciting 
about a game with only one ball where no one was allowed to fly. 
Harry had caught Ron prodding Dean's poster of West Ham football 
team, trying to make the players move." 
 
> 
> The idea that Dean is from an orphanage -- the same orphanage as 
> Tom Riddle -- sounds quite possible.  I'd love to see Dean be more 
> than just a superfluous filler character.

If he is from the same children's home/orphanage as Tom Riddle he 
obviously has a much happier time there; he never seems to stay at 
Hogwarts for the Christmas or Easter holidays. 

Or he might turn out to be a contrast to Harry - someone raised by 
supportive Muggle foster parents, who he gets on well with, and who 
were delighted when he got into Hogwarts.

Pip (Squeak)