Theoretical boundaries

[Barry Arrowsmith]

No: HPFGUIDX 120202

I missed the fun and games on the board yesterday, it was the sort of 
thread that at one time I'd have leapt into with glad cries. Not so 
inclined to do so now; when you've done it 3 and 4 times on the same 
subject, well, it's something to skip over while looking for something 
more engaging. Things have calmed down a bit now, spleens are  vented,  
bile spilled and all will be calm and peaceful - until the next  time.

However, one thing was said which particularly caught my eye:

 >
Will your next posts defended Voldemort murdering James & Lily and then 
trying to kill an fourteen month baby.
 >

It's been done. Plus others not so much defending as explaining or 
justifying their deaths. And done logically, calmly and using canon as 
supportive evidence.

What amazes me is that so many posters are so ignorant of what has gone 
before on the site. Yeah, OK, Yahoo!Mort is a mess, finding old threads 
is a chore and when members join the first  thing they want to do is 
post and to see their names and thoughts on the board. Understandable, 
I suppose. Me, I'd be stricter (entirely compatible with my sadistic 
tendencies), I'd make each new poster take a test after one month to 
ensure that they had at least a passing acquaintance with the major 
theories that have been suggested in the past. If they didn't reach a 
certain standard they'd stay moderated until they did reach the 
standard.

I  can hear the predictable cries of horror from the Elves, not because 
they want to hide past posts but because they've got more than enough 
to do already. It's reasonable to expect that any new joiner will have 
an interest in and knowledge of the books, though since the release of 
the films this is no longer something that can be taken for granted. 
There have been transients this last summer who have seen the films but 
not read the books. IMO it would be equally reasonable to expect that 
members should have some knowledge of the history and content of the 
site. At the very least this would encompass the Fantastic Posts and 
probably also the Recommended Posts.

One of the basic tenets of the board is that any theory, any opinion is 
valid until overtaken or definitively ruled out by canon,  though even 
here things can get stretched -  you've  only got to  look at the 
number of fans who think Sirius is going to come back, no matter that 
JKR has said he's dead. Delve into  the quicksand that is FanFiction 
and not even those strictures hold - it's an "anything goes" 
sub-culture.

This site  has been up and running for over 4 years now with a 
membership in the thousands. Do you really think that just about every 
possibility, no matter how unlikely hasn't been discussed already? I  
signed up before the last book came out and  I like to think of myself 
as pretty smart and devious with a penchant for conspiracy and betrayal 
theories; but my ideas look mundane besides those of some of the past 
posters.  A lot  of the old mob were still active then, and they used 
site shorthand a lot; ESE, MAGIC DISHWASHER; FAITH; GEORGE; FEATHERBOA; 
LOON; etc. etc. If I didn't want to appear ignorant it was necessary to 
make an effort, and the effort brought it's own  reward -  the arcane 
knowledge of the board itself.

That doesn't mean you have to agree with the theories of course, in 
fact it's better if you don't, much more fun can be had.
We are after all discussing a piece of fantasy fiction; until it's 
finally completed nothing is unthinkable, anything is possible within 
the boundaries JKR has set. And those boundaries are pretty wide and 
fairly elastic. In such circumstances it pays to be objective, not 
subjective. I  be very surprised if what we read in the books isn't 
very carefully crafted; there's a reason for everything of note (and 
quite a lot that doesn't at first sight appear to be of note) and very 
little is random pagefiller.

Trouble can arise when posters closely identify HP with the RW and 
others don't. I'm one of the don'ts. It's most definitely not the RW so 
why try to equate one with the other? I just  can't comprehend why folk 
should get so worked up about so-called abuse and emotional trauma when 
it's a 'given' of the story, when it's *deliberately* contrived and 
constructed by the author. Sure, it's maybe unfortunate that a 
fictional construct has to fictionally suffer fictional hardship. Do I 
feel sorry for him? Not so's you'd notice, no. No more than I feel 
sorry for Humpty Dumpty or the Dormouse in Alice. I'll go where Jo 
leads me. If it doesn't tie up satisfactorily at the end, then I'll 
start moaning about characterisations and plot arc, not before.

With such characterisations I immediately start wondering why is it set 
up like this? What's the reason? This isn't a case study for budding 
social workers, it's a fantasy adventure mostly aimed at youngsters, 
isn't it? Since I refuse to believe that JKR is being gratuitously 
nasty there's probably some motivation behind such  behaviour. Usually 
it's possible to come up with some sort of rationalisation with at 
least some basis in canon that'll do until more information becomes 
available.

I won't bore you with ideas that I've posted; sufficient to say that 
there are theories (from others as well as myself) as to *why* the 
Dursleys act the way they do, *why* Snape is so nasty, *why* DD trusts 
him and so on. One thing I am sure of -  discussing the possibilities 
of why something is the way it is is infinitely more interesting than a 
sterile and pointless trading of "Oh yes he is," "Oh no he isn't." You 
want to  know what the theories are? Look 'em up. And while you're 
searching you'll probably find other things you didn't know about too.

There are an awful lot of theories back there - some wondrous, some 
fantastic, some farcical. Enjoy them. Relish them. Even hate them. But 
treat them for what they are - theories. Attempts to explain the whys 
and wherefores of the story, attempts to explain what the hell is going 
on. In two books time it'll all stop, there'll be definitive canon that 
can't be countered, all the important stuff will be explained (it'd 
better be!) and all that'll be left will be minor nit-picking or FF. 
It'd be a pity if all those theories lovingly constructed over the 
years were ignored until then, too late for worthwhile discussion and 
it just being a question of marking them as right or wrong.
Where's the fun in that?

Kneasy