That's what friends are for (was "Armchair Psychologist ")

[Matt]

No: HPFGUIDX 83753

Sorry, spastic mouse finger -- I meant to finish this
up by saying that what makes the portrayals work 
without a lot of extroversion by the characters is
that the psychology of their actions is fairly
transparent, even when it is a bit complicated.  
Harry may be surprised by Cho's reactions, but the
reader isn't.  Nor are we really surprised that Harry
*doesn't* understand.  Ditto with Hermione and the 
centaurs.  Much moreso than many fantasy/SF writers,
Rowling develops characters fully enough that we can
see a complicated situation from multiple points of
view.

-- Matt


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Matt" <hpfanmatt at g...> wrote:
> ----Suzanne wrote: 
> > I couldn't understand why Hermione took it 
> > upon herself to push Harry into a relationship 
> > with Cho. Harry seemed perfectly fine to admire 
> > her from afar, and neither one of them was really 
> > ready for romantic relationship at this point.
> 
> That's what friends are for.  :)
> 
> ----Salit wrote:
> > I think Hermione has some feelings towards Harry 
> > as well, which is partly why she (subconsciously?) 
> > wrecked his date with Cho. For someone as 
> > understanding of the situation as she was, how 
> > could she not figure out that Cho was Jealous of 
> > her relations with Harry . . . .  Had she told 
> > Harry why she wanted him to meet her (talk to a 
> > reporter), he could have explained all that to Cho 
> > and avoided the explosion, but Hermione asked him 
> > to meet her during a date with another girl. 
> 
> Also *just* like a friend to get competitive and
> screw up the relationship he might never have landed
> in but for her.  :)
> 
> Although I'm trying to be a little funny here, I do have an actual
> point: To me, at least, these kinds of foibles and fallibilities and
> good intentions gone awry are what make the characters real.  
> 
> Rowling has a talent at portraying characters in depth without
> spending a long time spelling out the details of what is going on in
> everyone's head.  Reading about "practically perfect in every way"
> Hermione may irritate you, or not.  If it does, though, it is likely
> because you are irritated by people like Hermione, not because she in
> any way falls out of character.