Hagrid/the Chamber/the Monster

[gingersnape1966 <gingersnape1966@yahoo.com>]

No: HPFGUIDX 49952

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, Sherry Garfio <sgarfio at y...> 
wrote:
> bboy_mn wrote:
> > Seeking people's opinion on whether the Staff at Hogwarts and the
> > Ministry thought Aragog was the monster in the Chamber of 
Secrets, or
> > it  they thought that is was Hagrid and Aragog all along, and the 
this
> > Chamber of Secrets business was, as they had suspected for 
decades,
> > just a bunch of nonsense.

to which Sherry replied (in part)
> You would think, however, that those students would have talked 
after they were
> restored ("No, it was a snake, not a spider"), unless their 
memories of the
> attacks were erased by the petrification.  

Me:  I did a quick reread of CoS ch 13, where Tom takes Harry in the 
diary and shows the "capture" of the "Slytheryn monster".  Harry 
doesn't get a close look at it, only a vague description and then 
it "bowled him (Riddle) over as it scuttled away, tearing up the 
corridor and out of sight." 

My point being that Aragog was never actually caught, or even seen by 
anyone but Riddle and Hagrid.  For all they (Dippet, MoM, etc.) knew, 
it was a snake of sorts Hagrid was raising.  Riddle probably gave a 
vague description and Hagrid probably opened his mouth and stammered 
on about how it wasn't his friend and the MoM jumped to conclusions.  
I never realized what a horrible miscarriage of justice Hagrid's 
expulsion was!  It was Riddle's word against his, with no proof to 
back it up at all!  Riddle couldn't even prove Hagrid had kept an 
animal at all, except for the empty box, which a good lawyer could 
have argued was for Hagrid's Transfiguration notes, or slug 
collection or anything at all.

In ch. 17, Riddle laughs about how it must have looked to Dippet, and 
then even he can't believe that Dippet et al believed him as they did.
Now that I think about it, neither can I!

Ginger, who is going to cool off before she starts writing her 
Congressman.