Chapter Discussions - Chapter One, Dudley Demented

[marinafrants]

No: HPFGUIDX 68202

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "bluesqueak" <pipdowns at e...> 
wrote:
> Hi!
> 
> To kick off our Order of the Phoenix Chapter Discussions, we're 
> starting with a summary of Chapter One (surprise!).
> 
> I've included the questions that occurred to me as I summarised 
the 
> chapter. Rather than put a long list of questions at the end, I've 
> placed them where they arise naturally from the text.

Great question, Pip!  I don't have answers for all of them yet, but 
here are a few of my thoughts.

> This chapter starts with Harry hiding under a flowerbed, trying to 
> hear the TV news without being seen. It establishes that Harry 
isn't 
> a cute little boy any longer; he looks pinched and unhealthy, his 
> jeans are dirty and the soles of his trainers flapping.
> 
> Is this a choice of Harry's? Previously his clothes have been 
> secondhand and too big for him, but there was no mention of their 
> being worn out or dirty.

Given that he's been lying on his back in a flowerbed, it's not too 
surprising that his clothes are dirty.  This may not be their normal 
state.


> The news comes on and is harmless. There is nothing of interest to 
> Harry; we find out that he has been waiting for some incident that 
> shows Lord Voldemort has come out into the open. 
> 
> Was Uncle Vernon right not to trust Harry? Harry did have an 
> ulterior motive for watching the news, which he hasn't shared with 
> them.

Does one really need justification for watching the news?  Seems to 
me it's something that a teenager should be allowed to do without 
having to explain his motives.  And since Harry's reasons revolve 
around magic, which Vernon has forbidden him to ever talk about, 
it's not like he's in a position to share.

> 
> Harry hears a loud crack, his aunt screams and he leaps to his 
feet, 
> pulling his wand out. Did Petunia recognise the crack as the sound 
> of someone apparating? 

She may have, but I think a loud crack out of nowhere would be 
enough to startle a scream out of many people, even without magic 
involved.  Also, Harry has observed people Apparating fairly 
recently.  Petunia may have heard James or Lily do it at some point, 
but would she instantly recognize the sound so many years later?

> Harry feels that he is much more capable than Ron and Hermione, 
> having survived the graveyard at the end of GoF. His godfather is 
> advising caution, which Harry feels is reasonable – though he 
finds 
> it galling to be warned about rashness by Sirius. 
> 
> Is Sirius assuming Harry is James? Is Harry normally rash?

Do we actually know that James was rash?

Harry has been rash in the past, but not in circumstances when 
Sirius was around to observe him.  The question is, how much does 
Sirius know about Harry's past behavior?  Would Lupin or Dumbledore 
have told him a lot of details?  

Sirius might be just assuming that Harry is rash because teenage 
boys often are.  Or becasuse he himself was rash at that age.

> Harry feels unhappy because he's taken the sensible option. He 
knows 
> Sirius wouldn't have taken the sensible option. Does this show 
> Sirius as a good or a bad role model for Harry?

It seems that in this case, Sirius is not a role model at all.  
Harry knows (or thinks he knows) what Sirius would've done, but he 
does the opposite, even though he's not pleased about it.  Makes me 
wonder who he *is* using as a role model in this instance?  
Hermione? Lupin?  His imaginary perfect dad?

> The Patronus saves Harry, and Harry then turns his Patronus on the 
> Dementor attacking Dudley. Dudley is clamping his hands over his 
> mouth. Muggles are not supposed to see Dementors – is this a sign 
> that Dudley has magic in him? Or is it a sign that Dudley trusts 
> Harry more than Harry thinks?
> 
> Is Harry rescuing Dudley a sign of Harry's inner goodness? Or does 
> Harry care for his cousin more than he thinks he does?

I think Harry's actions here have nothing to do with his feelings 
about Dudley and everything to do with his feelings about 
Dementors.  Harry hates and fears the Dementors, both because of his 
own experiences with them and for the suffering they've caused 
Sirius.  I don't think he'd let any person be victimized by them, no 
matter how nasty.  I think if Draco or Snape were about to be 
Dementor food, he would've saved them, too.

Marina
rusalka at ix.netcom.com