More on the Weasleys

[Penny Linsenmayer]

No: HPFGUIDX 36054

Hi all --

Um .... maybe Yahoogroups is functioning again?  :--)

Jo Serenadust wrote:

>IMO she's just a loving, caring, overworked, underpaid mother
>who loves all her kids equally, (even if differently) and she gets the 
>important stuff right.

Amy responded:

<<<Hear, hear!  I don't think Molly is perfect, and I would especially like 
to see a few more warm moments between her and Ron, but some of the 
indictments of her have read like He-Whose-Book-Must-Not-Be-Named's 
descriptions of Arthur as a criminal, hypocrite, and terrible father and 
husband.  Thanks for the voice of moderation.>>>>

Now, now.  I hope my posts don't fall into this category.  I don't think 
it's wildly over-the-top to suggest that Molly's parenting style isn't 
perfect.  Of course, no one's style would be.  And, as noted by others, it 
*is* a subjective perception based on how one was parented & how one is 
parenting.  I don't think she's a terrible mother by any stretch.  But, I 
don't think she's portrayed as Mother of the Year either.  Maybe she hounded 
Bill & Charlie until they were out of school too, but I think she should 
lighten up on the Twins with respect to their professional goals.  I think 
she favors Percy fairly obviously (chances are good it's noticeable to 
Percy's siblings as well).  I think she neglects Ron in large measure ... 
probably due to his place in the family order rather than anything sinister. 
  And, I do think she's smothering Ginny.  I guess I just don't get what 
JKR's trying to convey with her depiction of Molly; it doesn't seem to me 
that it's a fully favorable portrayal due to how she interacts with her 
youngest 4 kids.

Amy went on to say:

<<<I definitely do not think Molly's attention to Harry has one iota to do 
with his being Famous Harry Potter.  She is very maternal and he is an 
orphaned and abused child as well as a polite kid whom any mother would love 
her son to befriend--'nuff said.>>>

I agree -- I definitely don't think it's Harry's status in the wizarding 
world.  I just don't *get* why she pays so much more attention to Harry than 
to Ron.

<<<The whole Weasley family really embraces him as a regular kid, which is 
good medicine for poor Harry; even Ginny's crush, once
she has met him, can be seen as being of the usual kind and not the
oh-my-god-he's-so-famous,>>>

"Can be seen as" why?  In other words, what is the canon basis for assuming 
her crush is *not* Harry-the-Famous-Potter crush variety?  She's *met* him; 
she interacts with him *some* but not tons.  I don't see how we can say that 
Harry or Ginny knows too terribly much about each other at this point.  I 
would bet Ginny is still "Ron's little sister who has this annoying crush on 
me" in Harry's mind.  And while I don't *know* what might be going on in 
Ginny's mind, her initial crush was based on his fame.  Her diary entries 
that Riddle quotes to Harry in the chamber do mention that she wonders 
whether "famous good Harry Potter" will ever like her (I don't have CoS with 
me so I'm quoting from memory & could be mistaken).  :::shrugs::: I dunno -- 
you can counter with the scene in the bookstore in CoS where she seems to 
know that Harry didn't ask for the attention & adulation Lockhart gives him. 
  But, the diary entries later in the book do mention "famous" (of course, I 
suppose Riddle might not be trustworthy in that regard).

I think it's impossible to judge what her crush is based on at this stage.

Penny

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