[HPforGrownups] Digest Number 2455

[Tyler Hewitt]

No: HPFGUIDX 50596


Susanne wrote:
...This reminded me of something I've been seeing
frequently, namely that readers are waiting for
certain characters to have some kind of breakthrough
(Neville and Ron, for example).
I like Ron now, rough edges and all, and what if
Neville or Ron never find out about any "special"
talent to set them apart? Are they then not worthy to
be liked?
Can Ron only stay friends with Harry and Hermione (or
be loved by Hermione) if he becomes more talented?
I'm probably being silly, but in RL there are lots of
people who never find that special talent. What does
it say to them, to read about characters they
identify with because of their "normalcy", who then
suddenly become "better".
It's almost like Eloise with her "off-center" nose.
Ron is seen as unworthy to be part of the trio in a
way, or be liked by Hermione, because he doesn't show
any special magical strength or logical thinking.

I'm not sure if I'm getting across what I'm trying to
say :}


Me:
Your message comes through very well! I've always felt
that JKR has really done a good job creating Harry,
Ron and Hermione. Each of these charecters has
qualities that we aspire to or that we can relate to.
By giving us a trio of lead charecters with differing
backgrounds and abilities, she has allowed a larger
number of readers to identify with them. That's
probably a good move if you want your books to become
popular.

As for Ron, I like that he's seemingly an ordinary
kid. While I think a lot of kids identify with Harry
because he's a hero, I also think that many kids
identify with Ron, because they feel 'normal' just
like him. I'm not waiting for Ron to blossom into his
talents. I think he's talented enough at being Ron. 

Same goes for Neville. We learned something about
Neville's past in GoF that makes us see him in a more
sympathetic light. So now we want big things for him.
That's fine, but things don't always work out that
way, in real life or in fiction. I do think that
Neville might be playing a bigger role in future
books, but I can't really anticipate what that role
might be. We were given info about his parents,and it
just seems like that info will be expanded upon. 


Tyler


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