Hermione's growth, symbols

[davewitley]

No: HPFGUIDX 82739

Debbie wrote:

> Something else I noticed this week was what happened to Hermione 
in the Department of Mysteries (where everything seems to be a 
metaphor) just before she is hit by Dolohov's curse: "Hermione 
smashed into a bookcase and was promptly deluged in a cascade of 
heavy books." I think we're being reminded here that Hermione's book-
learning and logic can only take one so far.

Melanie replied
> 
> Are you implying that Hermione is not a competent witch.  I think 
that she is more than competent in her magical abilities.  

As I understand it, Debbie's was making a symbolic point, not 
describing Hermione's magical abilities.

Hermione is a great book-lover, and here she is shown being hurt 
instead of helped by books.  In real life, of course, that would be 
meaningless, but this is fiction.

I'm interested in Debbie's statement "where everything seems to be a 
metaphor" above: certainly in the Chamber and the Shrieking Shack 
there seems to be plenty of symbolism going on.

David