DudleyDiscipline/WerewolfMoon/WerewolfBite/Cockroach/WizSecrecy/SiriusImmatur

[Catlady (Rita Prince Winston)]

No: HPFGUIDX 54149

Lady Farro wrote:

<< The few times that Dudley was ever disciplined were rare. ""Dudley 
was sniffling in the back seat; his father had hit him round the head 
for holding them up while he tried to pack his television, VCR, and 
computer in his sports bag." Chapter Three The Letters from No one 
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." >>

I always thought that that was JKR showing how stressed out Uncle 
Vernon was (to the edge of insanity!), not as Uncle Vernon's normal 
methods of discipline.

Unc Mark wrote:

<< Professor Lupin does not change into a werewolf until the group 
emerges from the tunnel from the Shrieking Shack. When the clouds 
part and he sees moonlight Lupin morphs. >>

Consult the following resources:

http://www.hpfgu.org.uk/faq/mysteries.html
"Magical Creatures 
1.Werewolf Transformations 
As they exit the Shrieking Shack, the clouds part to expose the full
moon. It is at this point that Lupin begins to transform. If he only
transforms if he sees the moon, why would he not just stay inside
in a room with no windows during the time of a full moon?
Yahoo Club Messages: 2216
Yahoogroups Messages: 2704, 2705, 2729, 2837, 3675,3685 

2.Why doesn't Lupin Transform until the moonlight strikes him? 
Yahoogroups Messages: 17578, 17705, 17710, 17730,17737, 17778, 32386, 
32624, 32644, 32725, 32732, 32744, 32746, 32761"

http://www.i2k.com/~svderark/lexicon/puzzles.html
"Why did Lupin transform into a werewolf only when the full moon came
out from behind the clouds? Don't werewolves automatically change
shape at the full moon, whether or not there are clouds? And how long
does it take to drink a potion? How could he have been so incredibly
stupid as to forget to take it that night? 
JKR's partial answer: 
"The moon wasn't up when he entered the Shrieking Shack." (Sch2) This 
really doesn't answer the question, however. Of course, lycanthropy 
might easily work a little differently in the Potter universe. It is 
even possible that there are more than one type of werewolf, one that 
is mostly human and another that is mostly wolf. This is supported by 
the fact that we've heard that werewolves live in the Forest, which 
seems unlikely when they're normal humans most of the time."

Alex Trin wrote:

<< Did anyone else notice that even though Sirius was bitten by 
Werewolfy/Remus he suffers no werewolf effects? As in BECOMING one? 
Does this have something to do with the Animagus effect? I thought 
that if you were bitten by a werewolf, you became one. Thoughts? >>

I believe that it is an Animagus effect (as you suggest). I believe 
that a being bitten by a werewolf becomes a werewolf only if the 
being is human when bitten ... or possibly also if the being is wolf 
when bitten, and then becomes a kind of werewolf not mentioned in 
FANTASTIC BEASTS which is wolf all month 'round but its bite turns 
humans into werewolves. 

Jeremy Imhotep:

<< I have been wondering what exactly izards DO with their time. I 
mean, I know they must work and have jobs, but I can't think of there 
being enough non-muggle jobs for all of them. Here's my logic: >>

Steve bboy_mn did a very good job of listing types of employment for 
wizards, and I believe that they make a LOT of things from scratch, 
not just by Transfiguration, such as carving broomstick sticks from 
wood and polishing them by hand and hand-tying the twigs on them...

In addition, I believe that one of the NICE things about magic is 
that it very much reduces the amount of work that humans (wizards) 
need to do: magic does it instead. So most people can live the 
lifestyle of leisure that us Muggles associate with retired people. 
Most jobs would be part-time jobs.

Happy Duck wrote:

[[ Suggested that Dumbledore's Animagus form is a cockroach]] 

I think not, because JKR has confirmed in interviews that the 
Animagus doesn't get to choose his/her animal form, but instead the 
animal form is a reflection of his/her personality, and even used 
COCKROACH as an example of the animal form of an unworthy person. 
Dumbledore is surely the most worthy person rather than being an 
unworthy person.

"" 
http://www.geocities.com/aberforths_goat/October_2000_Live_Chat_Americ
a_Online.htm
Q: Does the animal one turns into as an Animagi reflect your 
personality?
JKR: Very well deduced, Narri! I personally would like to think that 
I would transform into an otter, which is my favorite animal. Imagine 
how horrible it would be if I turned out to be a cockroach! 

http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author/transcript2.htm
Q: If you were Animagus, what kind of animal would you be?
A: I'd like to be an otter -- that's my favourite animal. It would be 
depressing if I turned out to be a slug or something. ""

<< Now, I also think that there might be some truth to the idea that 
people who can transform into animals can recognize other people who 
can transform into animals. >>

So McGonagall knew all along that Scabbers was an Animagus? Is this 
part of Evil!McGonagall theory, or part of MAGIC DISHWASHER with 
McGonagall rather than Hagrid having heard prisoners raving in 
Azkaban the source of Dumbledore's secret early knowledge that 
Pettigrew was still alive, therefore had faked his death, therefore 
was a servant of the Dark Lord?

Finwitch wrote:

<< Some questions: One he's already asked - Why do wizards hide from 
Muggles? - but Hagrid probably wasn't the right person to answer... I 
mean really - if Muggles would seek magic as an easy answer, wizards 
can just refuse, right? Honestly, if a muggle i.e. points a gun at 
said wizard, the wizard could turn that gun into a flower or 
something... >>

Regardless of what wizards tell themselves about how superior they 
are to Muggles, the reason that the wizards hide is because they're 
SCARED Of Muggles. When it comes to Magical History, I have more 
faith in Professor Binns's accuracy than in Hagrid's. In CoS, Binns 
said: "You all know, of course, that Hogwarts was founded over a 
thousand years ago - the precise date is uncertain - by the four 
greatest witches and wizards of the age. The four school Houses are 
named after them: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena 
Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. They built this castle together, 
far from prying Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared 
by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much persecution." 
Let me repeat: "witches and wizards suffered much persecution." 

It seems to me that wizarding schools are just as good as Muggle 
schools at teaching self-flattering lies to children. In this case, 
that the reason for hiding from Muggles is to avoid being pestered 
when it really is fear of persecution. That Muggle persecution of 
magical people is useless because the magical people have the 
Flame-Freezing Charm, when it is really quite dangerous if the 
Muggles get hold of a mage without his wand, sneak up on him and jump 
him with more numbers of assailants than he can Curse before they get 
his wand away from him, and then tie him up, THEN burn him.

While I have the notion firmly in my head that Salazar Slytherin was 
a bad guy and surely at least partly a racist, Binns's statement was: 
"He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, believing them to 
be untrustworthy." Simply a security precaution, fear that the 
Muggleborn students might let information about Hogwarts and wizards 
leak to their Muggle relatives, who would then spread the info to 
other Muggles, some of whom would lead mobs of peasants with torches 
to kill the wizards.

QTTA says that Abraham Peasegood (inventor of Quodpot) was one of 
many wizards who emigrated to the North American colonies in hope 
there would be less oppression of magic folk there .... 

It seems to me that their whole big deal of despising Muggles is part 
of a pattern of denial. Unwilling to admit that they are scared of 
Muggles, they build up and up and up their claim that Muggles are 
inferior.

Chrissi Hendriksen wrote:

<< He just love it to proclaim his childish opinions against Severus 
Snape for Harry. This is my fundamental critic against Sirius Black. 
I´m convinced a man in his age shouldn´t act in this way. >>

Sirius spent 12 years with Dementors in Azkaban, instead of spending 
those years growing up  -- he may well have been 21 or 22 when he 
went in, so those are the normal years of maturation (I say this at 
age 45.5 looking back, not at age 33 congratulating myself on 
new-found maturity). He's lucky to still be *alive*, let alone sane; 
arrested development is only to be expected.