[HPforGrownups] Re: Trio's Auror Skills (WAS: Hermione: Panic Attacks & Tears?)

[Laura Huntley]

No: HPFGUIDX 38989

Pippin said:
<<<<Hermione panicked in GoF as soon as she was hit by Draco's 
curse, *before* Snape sneered at her  -- and it could be that the 
sneer was meant to bring her to her senses, just like Ron's 
"HAVE YOU GONE MAD? ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?">>>>>

Hum..well, I'm sort of bristling at that suggestion.  To me, Snape's actions during the whole teeth scene are just about *the* most reprehensible in Potterverse.

Having your teeth grow like that has got to be downright *terrifying*.  Certainly worth a little whimpering.  What's more, I'm sure it was extremely *painful*.  If you've ever had braces, I'm sure you are aware that any change in the positioning of your teeth can hurt *allot*.  

I've always had a pretty high tolerance for pain, but I can remember being near tears after having one of my molars moved a mere millimeter by a hellish little rubber device called a spacer.

IMO, Hermione's behavior was completely understandable, if not admirable.  I can't say what I'd do under similar circumstance...probably something violent and very stupid.

Pippin:
<<<<<<Ron can think logically  --when playing chess or solving the keys 
puzzle, but he can act in a hurry because he  trusts his intuition. 
Hermione needs *time* to think everything out. When she has to 
deal with a situation she's not prepared for in advance, she 
tends to panic -- as with Boggart McGonagall, to give another 
example.>>>>>>>>

Personally, I think that JKR intentionally portrays Ron as extremely *illogically*.  I mean, think about it.  Ron doesn't "trust his intuition" when facing problems -- he merely acts/thinks rashly, often influenced only by his dislikes/likes and prejudices.  To call his way of facing problems "intuition", is, IMO, an insult to the word.  Try immature, rash, and unfair.

Notice it's always *Hermione* who's willing to give people a second chance and is willing to believe that people she doesn't like can do good things, and vice versa.

And while Hermione is so often criticized for being "heartless" and "insensitive", isn't it always Ron who's the first to condemn others for trivial reasons?  And who is more likely to take care of Harry/Hagrid/whomever when he's upset?  Ron?  I don't think so.  Ron is too busy chasing his own emotions to give a hoot about other people's.

 <<<<<<I am not sure why Ron's intuitiveness  should be thought such a 
handicap to an Auror. Ron's off the cuff suggestions are 
sometimes useless but they aren't usually harmful. Sometimes 
they do suggest the solution, as when he takes Harry's bugging 
remark  literally.  That's thinking outside the box, IMO.>>>>>>

Personally, the bugging thing is more a case of ignorance about the Muggle world than anything else...trying to call it "thinking outside the box" is stretching it a bit, I think.  "Thinking outside the box" implies that one is consciously exploring different angles of a problem, which Ron wasn't doing.  Hermione in this circumstance, however, *was*.  She took Ron's ignorant comment and used it to examine the dilemma in a new light.  *That's* thinking outside the box.

Also, I disagree that Ron's suggestions aren't usually harmful.  Often, he makes unfair and/or prejudiced assumptions about people/circumstances.  When the Trio tries to overcome an obstacle, it's usually his ideas that lead them astray for a good portion of the story.  Furthermore, prejudice is pretty much always harmful.  Definitely not good for thinking outside the box.

<<<<Also, as has just been pointed out in another thread, Evil 
Wizards generally hide their dark marks under  someone else's 
sleeves. If Hermione becomes an Auror, she'll have to be 
prepared to deal with it  should someone in authority  turn on 
her. Suppose she'd been with Harry when Lockhart  tried to 
curse them in his office, would she have caught the wand like 
Ron did, or would she have panicked?>>>>

Did she hesitate to curse Snape in the Shrieking Shack?  She was distraught afterwards, yes.  She did not, however, let her personal tendency to be uber-respectful towards authority figures get in the way of what *needed to be done*.  That's Hermione all the way.  Yes, she wants to be a good kid and follow the rules whenever feasible.  When push comes to shove, however, she does what needs to be done to further the right cause.  No questions asked, full steam ahead.

Debbie said:
>She analyzes Crouch Sr.'s disappearance from the 
>Hogwarts grounds in the same dispassionate manner.

Yes, while Ron spews out ridiculous, impossible theories based on his own personal dislikes (of Krum, in this instance). ^_~

Debbie:
>in CoS her schoolgirl crush on Lockhart 
>and/or status as a professor prevents her from 
>realizing he's a fraud.

Actually, I pretty much think Hermione had admitted to herself (if not other people) that Lockhart was a phony at least by the pixie incident.  At the very least, she is aware that he's not exactly the sharpest tool in shed by the time she blatantly manipulates him into signing her a note for the restricted section of the library.  IMO, she recognizes the fact that she has a physical crush on the man, even if he's got an undesirable personality.  Furthermore, she never lets that crush hamper her convictions or her plans to get things done.

Just as a side note...it's not uncommon for intellectuals to have an unfortunate attraction to admittedly stupid, but gorgeous people.  Human beings tend to want people who have the traits they lack.  For instance, a weak person tends to want a powerful one, etc.  It's not particularly healthy, but it's pretty normal.


laura  


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