[HPforGrownups] Neville and Remus (Was: snape the lapdog/Neville the lackey

[Kelly Grosskreutz]

No: HPFGUIDX 71685

oh have faith wrote:
> They feel no such qualms when Fred and George (cooler Gryffs) turn
> his head into a canary.

Sorry for heavily snipping your post, but I just wanted to comment on the
bit with Fred and George.  IIRC, Neville himself thought the canary cream
thing was funny once his head turned back to normal.  If he had been angry
about it or started crying, I think the attitude in the Common Room might
have been different.  But since Neville seemed to think it was funny, the
others saw no reason not to laugh or to tell Fred and George off.

Now on to bookraptor's post:
I see Neville as the anti-Lupin, rather than anyone's lackey.  He has
problems getting accepted because he's forgetful, lacking in self-
confidence, definately not "cool."  However, unlike Lupin with his
friends, he never compromises himself to keep Harry's good will or
respect.

Two examples, from the first and fifth books. He stands up to the
trio in SS when they're leaving the Gryffindor Common Room at night,
even though it might cost him what little bit of a relationship he
has with them.  I agree that it isn't a friendship at that point or
indeed at any point in the series. In OOP, he may not be the first to
speak up but he insists on going along to the MOM, and won't back
down.

Lupin went along with Black and Potter because he'll bend over
backward to be liked.  I wonder where Neville found his self
assurance. He did have a few years with his parents. Maybe that early
influence was enough to give him a basis, and he was able to build on
it despite his grandmother's unconscious put downs.

Kelly Grosskreutz (me) responds:

I just finished rereading a first book, and found myself taking another look
at Neville.  Many people liken him to the Peter Pettigrew of this current
incarnation of the Potter group.  But, as this post also points out, he does
have a parallel to Lupin.  Lupin sat there and let his friends do whatever
they felt like because he was too afraid to stand up to them and risk losing
their friendship.  Neville, at age 11, finds the courage to stand up to
three people whom he probably would like to call friends because they are
doing something that he perceives as wrong.  What I find even more
interesting is that Neville receives his first ever points for doing so.  It
made me wonder if Dumbledore either was aware at the time of at least some
of James and Sirius's treatment of those they disliked or became aware of it
later.

We know that Dumbledore chose Remus as the Prefect.  Lupin thinks it was
because it was hoped that he could keep James and Sirius in line.  We all
see how admirably he does that in the Pensieve scene.  If Dumbledore knew at
this time of the bullying, he also had to be aware that his hope that Lupin
would stop it with his Prefect position was in vain.  Many have speculated
that part of the reason Snape might have gone over to the DEs is because of
his treatment at school.  I have to admit I'm toying with that idea myself.
If Dumbledore was not fully aware of the extent of the bullying James and
Sirius were capable of, I believe he did learn more about it from Snape at a
later date (if Snape joined the DEs for the above reason, he might have said
something to DD about it when he defected).  Even if that is not true, DD
still had to have been aware that something was going on since the Shrieking
Shack incident did happen.  Either way, it's years and years later, and a
new generation shows up.  Neville, the one who is kind of the outside of the
Gryffindors and could be perceived as cowardly, stands up to those he wants
to call friends.  Dumbledore, this time around, is going to take pains to
reinforce it, perhaps trying to atone for a perceived failure with Snape.

Ok, I'm going to stop now because I feel I'm rambling and probably no one
will understand me.  *sigh*

Kelly Grosskreutz
http://www.idcnet.com/~ivanova