OOP: Re: Poisoned Honey?, What I Think is on the Cover

[Devika]

No: HPFGUIDX 55095


> Eileen wrote: 
> 
> >What really surprised me was the description of the
> >DADA professor as someone with a personality like
> >poisoned honey. That can't refer to her being
> >ultimately good or bad, I think, since it's not like
> >the summary is going to give away the plot. She must
> >have that personality the moment she shows up. So what
> >exactly does that mean? 
> 
> >Poisoned honey is just not a positive descriptor. Will
> >we have a teacher who doesn't like Harry? 
> 

Then Derannimer wrote:  
> Umm. . . 
> 
> Am I the only person who immediately thought of a femme fatale of 
> some sort when I heard that phrase?
> 
> Is there something wrong with me?
> 
 
Then Gina wrote:  
>>I totally agree.  I immediately thought of a femme fatale.  Not 
only that, but I thought of Snape.  He's kind of the opposite of 
poisoned honey.  Seems bitter, but is really good.  We know Snape has 
always taken the opportunity to derise and sneer at the the DADA 
teachers.  Maybe this DADA teacher could give him a run for his 
money.  Love interest even? <<

My reply:

I hadn't thought of a femme fatale exactly, but I can definitely 
agree with that possibility.  Actually, to be slightly OT, the first 
person I thought of when I read "poisoned honey" was Mrs. Coulter 
from Philip Pullman's _His Dark Materials_ series, at least the way 
she was in _The Golden Compass_.  She was someone who beautiful and 
seemed very sweet to children, but then turned out to be luring them 
into a trap.  

The word poisoned does have an evil connotation to me.  However, I 
really hope the new DADA teacher is not evil.  When I thought about 
it some more, I decided that the new teacher could be someone with a 
sweet personality who faced so much suffering and loss during VWI 
that she has become bitter and sorrowful.  The sweetness of her 
personality has been "poisoned," so to speak, by her grief and pain.  
Then, she would not be evil.  In fact, she could be one of the "old 
crowd," fighting against Voldemort.  This might be consistent with 
the Aging Potion!Arabella Figg theory (or at least it is in my own 
mind <g>).  And, of course, if she had been romantically involved 
with Sirius fourteen years ago, only to lose him when he was 
arrested, then that could contribute to her pain...

OK, I'd better stop now, before I propose any more wildly unfounded 
theories :)

 
On another note, I believe now that the picture on the OoP cover is a 
depiction of Harry's dream of a single door in a silent corridor.  
The picture always suggested a dream to me, and I always thought that 
it looked like there was actually one door, but that the room was 
spinning--like what might happen at the end of a dream before Harry 
woke up.  Does that make any sense?

Just some thoughts--

Devika, who is ridiculously excited for the release of this book, and 
can't stand the fact that it's still 10 weeks away!