Sneakoscope (was Occam's Razor, Lupin/James and the Shiver)

[David <dfrankiswork@netscape.net>]

No: HPFGUIDX 49522

Barb wrote:

> Another clue to the efficacy of dark detectors comes earlier, in 
PoA, when Ron gives Harry a Sneak-O-Scope, which he says Percy 
declared to be defective, as it kept going off when they were having 
dinner.  (This was on the Egyptian trip.)  However, Ron informs 
Harry that the twins were putting something (beetles?) in his food, 
so the device was NOT defective--Percy was simply unaware of the 
actions of the twins.  As we are told that a Sneak-O-Scope goes off 
when there is someone about who cannot be trusted (the twins, in the 
case above) 

We may have had this discussion before, but I believe that *all* the 
sneakoscope instances in POA are due to Scabbers.

The passage in question illustrates Ron's naivete.  Putting beetles 
in soup is not an example of untrustworthiness.  Ron is still young 
enough to confuse minor misdemeanours with serious weakness of 
character.  Also, he has no other suspect to blame, not thinking of 
Scabbers.

There is a later case where Hermione falls into a similar trap, 
asking Ron if he was 'doing anything untrustworthy' (or something 
similar at the time).  The point being there is a difference between 
being in essence untrustworthy and sometimes behaving badly.  We are 
not merely what we do.

David, who thinks Occam didn't design his razor to cut works of 
fiction