[HPforGrownups] Re: Animagi. - Never Unlikely Animals?

[Georgette Tan]

No: HPFGUIDX 45700

Hi. I'm new and still wading through the recent couple of weeks mail. Please don't eat me.  ;-)

> Well, others have talked about the predetermination/character aspect
> of Animagi, so I'll skip that.  What I thought about today was the
> fact that, of the Animagi we've seen, all fit rather neatly into
> their surroundings.  Cat, rat, beetle, dog, stag.  Why is this?  Does
> a wizard's Animagus form not only reflect traits of the human, but
> must it also fit logically into the geographic area in which the
> wizard resides?

I'm trying to remember if the books mentioned wizards being able to choose their animal forms... or if it gets
predetermined based on their character. If they get to choose, I'm pretty sure James, Sirius and Peter would pick
creatures that are native, or at least, inconspicuous where they intend to do most of their roaming.

As for Rita Skeeter, she should have been a mosquito but they don't tend to live long and you can't appreciate
little spectacle markings on a squashed insect. If she "decided" to be an animagus, she'd pick something that gives
her an edge in her job, which would mainly be spying on people. She was ambitious enough (or blinded by ambition)
to risk being a beetle, allowing her to do her eavesdropping and us to enjoy all the bug references. See how easily
Hermione caught her when she realised how Rita's been getting all the inside news?

Rita's case more or less convinced me that they get to choose their form. If they don't, and she just happened to
be a beetle, it feels too convenient (plot-wise) to me.

--
Georgette Tan (Tarlia)
Quarterly Editor, Woodworks

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