[HPforGrownups] Re: The Death Chamber

[elfundeb]

No: HPFGUIDX 81642

Annemehr wrote, regarding the death chamber:

And though Ginny and Neville were mesmerised, there's really no
telling if they heard any voices or not.

I would love to know what all their reactions mean, too.  

Debbie:

I think it's significant that Ginny and Neville reacted to this scene in a similar manner, just as (long, long ago) I noted the similarity of Ginny's and Neville's responses to the Dementor on the train to Hogwarts in PoA.  Both are mesmerized and have to be dragged away, even though only Neville can see the thestrals, so that can't be the explanation.  

We do know, however, that both Ginny and Harry have had near-death experiences and that they do not have a complete memory of those events (Ginny nearly died in the Chamber and Harry was drawn to the Dementors because their effect was to revive dormant memories of his survival of AK.)  

This leads me to believe that Neville, too, has suffered a near-death experience, and therefore this is a bit of canon that leads me to think he might have witnessed his parents' torture, and possibly even been tortured himself (note how quick Bellatrix, who was convicted of the Longbottoms' torture, later on in this scene attempts the Cruciatus curse on Ginny, the smallest of the six, to get Harry to talk).  But if Harry's and Ginny's experiences are any guide, Neville cannot remember it.

Memory charms, anyone?  But that's another post, for another day.

Annemehr:

For Ginny to have known about Harry "dawdling" must mean that the ones
who were entranced by the arch and veil seem to have been *aware* of
what was going on, but yet unable to muster the will to actually *do*
anything but stare or, in Harry's case, approach it.  

Debbie:

This is a lot like Harry's experiences with the Dementors.  He was drawn to them as well as repelled by them, because they offered him memories of Lily which he had previously been unable to access.

Annemehr (snipping explanations for Hermione's and Luna's reactions, with which I agree):

Is Ron the "typical" teenage boy who can't concieve of death
happening to him (but wouldn't he know better by now)?  

Debbie:

I think Ron is simply not afraid of death.  He has laid his own life on the line at least twice (in the PS/SS chess game and in the Shrieking Shack).  He is, however, afraid of other things, which are evident from his reaction to other rooms, but he is not afraid of sacrifice.

Annemehr:

Now I'll mention a point that may or may not be significant.  The next
room they can get into is the time room, and Ginny says "Oh, look!"
and points at the bell jar.  Then, (quoting from ch. 34):

"'Keep going!' said Harry sharply, because Ginny showed signs of
wanting to stop and watch the egg's progress back into a bird.

Debbie:

I cut off the remainder of the quote, because part of what I think is significant about this is that each of the characters' reactions to the various rooms is essentially a manifestation of their hopes and fears.  Hermione, who has not experienced death, is afraid of it.  OTOH, as someone who relies on logical thinking, she is the first to recognize that the tank is full of brains.  

Ginny, as the youngest child in a family mostly comprised of adults who is still perceived as a child by her family (for example, she was banished on Harry's first night at Grimmauld Place when it was agreed that he needed to know certain things), is fascinated by the phenomenon of growing up.  

Ron, interestingly, reacts the strongest of anyone to the locked room. '"This is it, then, isn't it?" said Ron excitedly, joining Harry in the attempt to force the door open."'  And when Hermione announces that they're  leaving that room, he stares at it "with a mixture of apprehension and longing."  He's right, of course, as Dumbledore later tells Harry that the locked room contains the power that Harry possesses "in such quantities and which Voldemort has not at all."
OTOH, maybe the significance here is that Ron understands himself well enough to know that if it's a mystery to him, then it must be important. <g>

Debbie
who also wants to address the brains, the thoughts and the scars, but it will have to wait for another post 

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