Ron's chess-playing skills (was Howgarts Clubs - Art, Music, and Chess).

[o_caipora]

No: HPFGUIDX 85717

> Carolyn:
> 
> Now I've just re-read PS, and found myself puzzled by Ron's 
> supposed chess-playing skills. 

> I am not a chess player 
> myself, but to my mind, someone who is good at chess is supposed to 
> be good at strategy, and thinking ahead of the game. 
[lots of trenchant analysis snipped.]
> Any new thoughts on the chess theme and Ron's role, now that
> the real battle has commenced ?

Ron can't be a better chess player or logician that Rowling is. Maybe 
he can be now, but while Rowling was writing the first book she may 
not have had the easy access to chess masters she presumably does now.

Something's bothered me since the first book, and I hope someone has 
an answer.

One of the puzzles was pure logic, the potions. Reading that, it took 
paper, pencil and fifteen minutes to see that the clues were 
consistent, and a bit longer to see that they were incomplete. The 
text didn't have enough clues. There had to be a diagram showing the 
heights of the bottles (or the shapes, I don't have the book here).

This is probably a point settled long ago, but what gives? Did the 
British edition have a diagram cut in the American? Did she 
intentionally give a puzzle without giving the reader enough clues?  
Was it a mistake?

Sorry to beat a dead horse, but I couldn't find it in the massive 
archives.

Cheers,
Caipora