Mixed feelings and Sirius questions (was lots of ?)about OOP

[kiricat2001]

No: HPFGUIDX 66097

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "kupukello" <kupukello at y...> 
wrote:

 
> It bothers me that Harry is so thoroughly shattered because of 
> Sirius death (Yes, he died. I checked. Everybody else says 
something 
> like "He is gone" or "He can't come back" but Dumbledore actually 
> uses the word "dead": page 727 UK version: "It is my fault that 
> Sirius died"). Harry finds about Sirius and him being Harry's 
> godfather first in book 3. After that he receives just a few 
letters 
> from Sirius, spends a couple a weeks with him and that's all. In my 
> opinion Remus is far more closer to Harry than Sirius ever was. 
Even 
> Arthur Weasley is more a father figure to Harry than Sirius. Of 
> course is obvious that Harry cannot stand loosing anyone he 
> considers to be "his family" but still. Sirius was anything but 
> mature. Most of the time he was either running, moping or doing 
> reckless things. A very charming character (did you notice that his 
> handsomeness is mentioned all the time!) but hardly someone who 
> would be good for Harry. Throughout the fifth book Sirius treats 
> Harry as if he were James, and Harry is nothing like his father!

All valid points, but they are perhaps not how *Harry* thinks about 
Sirius.  We never see Harry muse about which adult man should or 
could be the father figure in his life.  Once he learns in PoA that 
Sirius is his godfather and his dead father's best friend, that 
immediately puts Sirius into a completely different category than 
anyone else.

Arthur is fine, but he already has a family with a bunch of sons.  
Sirius doesn't, which can also signal to Harry that he'd get that 
father figure all to himself, and not have to "share" with siblings. 

I think Harry also identifies (or maybe 'empathizes' would be a 
better word) with Sirius more and more in this book.  In OoP 
somewhere shortly after Harry arrives at Grimmauld Place he has "an 
upsurge of affection" for his godfather.  Later, when Harry is back 
at Hogwarts brooding about how everyone believes the insinuations 
that the Daily Prophet has been printing about him, he compares that 
to Sirius having had to live for 14 years with the knowledge that, 
with the exception of a handful of people, the entire world thinks 
he's guilty of mass murder.  I don't have the book with me, but this 
moment too was described as Harry having "an upsurge of..." 
(Understanding? Sympathy?) for Sirius.

And, no I don't agree that adult Sirius was described as handsome at 
all in OoP.  Young Sirius, yes.  But JKR repeatedly uses the 
word "unkempt" to describe Sirius.  And when he dies, Harry sees 
his "wasted, once-handsome" face.  

I think that both Harry and Sirius have somewhat incorrect views of 
each other.  I think they are each trying to fit the other into some 
preconceived idea of what the other represents. One of the 
disappointments I have with Sirius' death is that the development of 
this relationship between the two has been cut off just when it 
seemed like they might have a chance to figure things out.

Marianne