Names of the Hogwarts Ghosts

[Catlady (Rita Prince Winston)]

No: HPFGUIDX 58641

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "tepmurt9981" <tepmurt at h...> 
wrote:
> Here comes the pun (definition number two):
> - Covered, smeared, stained, with blood; bleeding
> What if the Baron was stabbed to death?  He's covered in the stuff 
> as a ghost, so it would make sense that he was covered in it when
> he died). 


> Moanin' Myrtle 
> First of all, the most common symbolism recognized in Myrtle's name 
> Moanin' Myrtle=Weeping Willow.

The willow for mourning (btw, it seems to me that mourning and 
forsaken love are indeed related), the myrtle for romantic/erotic 
love ... it suits her. She's always mourning over herself, and she's 
yearning for romantic/erotic love (as per her come-on to Harry in CoS 
("you could live in my toilet") and her peeping-Thomasina-ism in GoF) 

> Binns -  This symbolism was also harder to figure out. 

Someone posted once that "binns" is slang for big thick eyeglasses 
(from "binoculars") and thus appropriate to Binns's absent-minded 
professor persona.