[HPforGrownups] Slytherins evil, and Ron's Talents

[Jennifer Boggess Ramon]

No: HPFGUIDX 36457

At 10:34 AM -0500 3/13/02, CB wrote:
>I don't think people finding themselves sorted into Slytherin are
>inherently evil. Ambitious, possibly ruthless, yes, but not *evil*.
>I do think, however, that the qualities that make a cannon Slytherin, also
>make it far easier for them to become evil. The line between good and evil
>for them is very blurred, and what starts out as a driving ambition, with
>little thought to the consequences, quickly becomes evil acts.

The other House virtues are just as easily pervertable.

A hardworking and loyal Hufflepuff can very easily find him/herself 
working hard for and being loyal to the wrong person.  Heck, sounds 
like Crabbe and goyle to me.  I wonder how many Hufflepuffs were 
loyal to Voldemort the first time he was king of the hill?

A Gryffindor can be brave in pursuit of the wrong goal.  Bravery by 
itself can be the makings of a bully - or it can get you killed.

And Ravenclaw - well, we've seen in too many horror movies what 
pursuit of knowledge untempered by ethics can do.  *Imgaines a 
white-robed Ravenclaw with wild hair in a Potions lab, stretching 
clawed hands to the ceiling and screeching "Ah, they laughed at me at 
Hogwarts, but I'll show them!  I have created LIIIIIIIIIIFE!"*

The House virtues are about what you are.  They say nothing about 
what choices you make, whether you use those virtues for wealful ends 
or harmful ones.



At 10:10 AM -0800 3/13/02, Ms Lizard Gizzard wrote:
>It's not that I disagree, but could you offer some
>evidence?  I haven't seen any sign that Ron has any
>talent in divination.  But then, I haven't really
>studied it.

It's not that he shows any great talent in Divination per se; it's 
just that he makes a number of offhand predictions that seem to come 
true.  For example, in CoS, when wondering how Tom Riddle got a 
trophy for service to the school, he jokingly postulates that he 
killed Moaning Myrtle - which turns out to be exactly the case.  For 
what it's worth, Harry often does the same thing, although not quite 
as much.  Reading their list of predictions when they start making 
things up for their Divination homework in GoF 14 is quite amusing 
once you've read the book already.  The only think Ron misses is the 
timing.

This has caused a number of people, including me, to wonder if the 
gap between Charlie and Percy might not be caused by a death in the 
Weasley family, as that would make Ron a seventh son and thus a seer. 
If it happenned before Ron was born, he wouldn't mention the missing 
brother in his list of siblings, never having known him.

Ron also seems to have a talent for catching things; almost any time 
one of the Trio catches something flying through the air (other than 
the Snitch, of course, and the Remembrall in PS/SS), it's Ron.  Fore 
example: in CoS, Harry Expelliarmuses the diary from Malfoy (chapter 
13) and Lockhart's wand (16); in both cases, Ron catches the item. 
Hmmmm . . . potential Keeper there, anyone?

-- 
  - Boggles, aka J. C. B. Ramon			boggles at earthlink.net
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