The Firebolt and the Thestral (was:HP and the democratic equilibrium)

[iris_ft]

No: HPFGUIDX 87041

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Geoff Bannister" 
<gbannister10 at a...> wrote:
> --- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "iris_ft" <iris_ft at y...> 
wrote:
> 
> Geoff:
> > Harry owns a valuable, rare Firebolt. He has every right to use 
it 
> > to fly around on for fun and relaxation; he's not going to get 
to 
> > play Quidditch anyway because he's banned."
>  
> 
> Iris:
> > Back to what Geoff writes, I find the end of the paragraph very 
> > interesting: without his Firebolt, Harry can't fly around on. 
That 
> > means: he can't escape from Hogwarts on his own. For example, he 
> > can't use the Firebolt to fly to London. 
> 
> Geoff:
> Unless my memory is failing, there are college brooms available. I 
> seem to recall a reference to a broomshed where they took the 
brooms 
> after practice and there are certainly the brooms used by Madam 
Hooch 
> in her training classes.


Iris again:

Right. And I suppose that they are available by permission of one of 
the teachers, that students can't borrow them like they want. But of 
course, it would be discussing Hogwarts inner rules, and I'm not 
even sure whether I master correctly the inner rules of my own 
school (but please, don't tell my boss). So that's why what I write 
is only a supposition.
I'd like also to add that the removing of the Firebolt, a gift Harry 
had received from his godfather, is part of the clue game that leads 
to the loss of Sirius, as it has certainly been said already. And it 
gives Harry the opportunity to ride a Thestral, just like Dumbledore 
does, if we trust what Hagrid says. So it's probably not too far-
fetched if we say that it can also mean that Harry has to reach an 
upper level in magic and at the same time in his psychological 
evolution. The Firebolt was linked up with Quidditch, with the 
Patronus Charm. Symbolically, both Quidditch and the Patronus Charm 
deal with Harry's personal achievement or protection (of course, 
their meaning can change by now). 
Loosing the Firebolt, riding a Thestral, mean that Harry will have 
by now to care for someone else than himself, and will have to learn 
better what it means to act towards other people. If the prophecy is 
true, there's no place for personal ego in Harry's destiny. Before 
OotP, he was like a "secret weapon" in the war game between good and 
evil, the same way he was Gryffindor's secret weapon in the 
Quidditch game (see what JKR says before his first match in PS/SS). 
But now things are completely different, and Harry will have to 
learn to act in another way. 
The very first lesson was very rude (trying to act on his own, 
trying to save Sirius, he lost him). We have to wait and see what 
will happen in the forthcoming books. Being captain of his Quidditch 
team would help him to understand and master the responsibility he 
has by now as a potential leader in the war against the Dark Side. 
Being Head Boy too. But of course, only JKR knows what will happen. 

Amicalement,

Iris (if all that I wrote was already said, debated, commented, i.e, 
if my post is nothing new, I apologize)