Color Symbolism and animagi

[Leanne Daharja Veitch]

No: HPFGUIDX 44453

"Irene Mikhlin" <irene_mikhlin at btopenworld.com> wrote:

Daharja wrote:
> For me, at least, this is clearly associating Gryffindor with maleness,
and Slytherin with femaleness. Even the two symbolic animals - the Lion and
Snake - are representative of male and female. The Snake is associated
throughout Western (esp Greek and old testament/Hebrew) mythology with
femaleness.

Irene wrote:
<<Don't know about Paganism, Greek or other symbolisms, but you can't use
Hebrew to support this theory. Every noun has a gender, and the snake is
undoubtedly male.>>

Actually, I was referring to the Snake in OT *mythology*, not language. It's indisputable that the Serpent is associated with femaleness (the story of Eve, for example!) not only in the OT, but also throughout much of Western mythology. In Pagan mythology, the Serpent is sacred to the Goddess.

Irene wrote:
<<Here we go again. But the house currently managed by a woman is the most
important/noble/popular/what not? How inconvinient. But of course McGonagall
does not really move the plot or whatever is the excuse that allows to write
her off.>>

I was actually discussing the house colours and attributes, so McGonagall *is* pretty much irrelevant to the topic, but when one is keen to discredit an argument, irrelevancies do have a habit of creeping in! But referring back to house colours, animals etc and their meanings, the association with Gryffindor (male) and Slytherin (female) keeps recurring. And your argument
conveniently fails to validate the marked absence of the female-founded houses in the chief battle between good and evil in the HP series. Of course, the entire series is from Harry's perspective, so one would expect Gryffindor to take a leading role (as it does), but a more balanced role of male and female imagery / associations would have been welcome.

However, when it comes to animals there *are* a few interesting points to note. I'm particularly interested in Crookshanks. I noted that Dumbledore's auburn hair (in his youth) was referred to for the first time directly before the appearance of Crookshanks (towards the end of CS p183, and early in PA (p49), respectively). Dumbledore's crooked nose is mentioned quite
regularly throughout the books. Crookshanks is both ginger and 'crooked' (and definately male) - merely coincidence? It's also interesting to note that Animagi seem generally to be of larger size than ordinary animals of their type. Scabbers is referred to repeatedly as 'large and fat', Black is an 'enormous' black dog, Rita Skeeter is a 'large, fat beetle' and Crookshanks
is 'either a very big cat or quite a small tiger'.

Crookshanks also appears in Diagon Alley immediately Harry goes to live in the Leaky Cauldron in PA. Crookshanks appears at the door of Harry's dormitory when Black is on the prowl, almost as if he is guarding him. Then (and I am sure I have failed to point out several other instances of note), there is Black's (?) comment that Crookshanks is "the most intelligent of his
kind I've ever met" (PA, p267). Finally, it would make sense that Dumbledore, as the greatest Wizard of his time, would also be an animagus (especially if such less able Wizards as Pettigrew can be animagi). I'm suggesting (if this hasn't already been suggested), that Dumbledore may well be Crookshanks. It is also interesting to note that Harry only moved to the Weasley's
in GF *after* Crookshanks had been installed there (it is mentioned that both Hermione and Crookshanks are already at the Weasley's when Harry arrives). A protection measure? Possibly.

Daharja XXX