Theoretical boundaries / Dursleys' abuse

[delwynmarch]

No: HPFGUIDX 120421


Ms. luna wrote:
"WHo said his childhood was amusing?"

Del replies:
The narrator. Re-read PS/SS : the description of Harry's life at the
Dursleys is very often *hilarious*. I remember thinking that I hadn't
laughed so hard in a long time when I first read the first chapters of
PS/SS.

Ms. Luna wrote:
"Okay, I take your point about not directly from Harry's eyes do we
see everything, but most of Harry's own story is from Harry's
perspective."

Del replies:
The story is told from his perspective, yes, but not *by* him. The
narrator is like some kind of ghost living right inside Harry and
telling his story, but he is not Harry.

Ms. Luna wrote:
"So, yes, there is a narrator telling the story, but it IS from
Harry's perspective, and as Harry grows and changes, so to must the
style of  narration."

Del replies:
Why? The style of narration is the narrator's only, it doesn't *have*
to be influenced by the story he is relating at all. Usually, an
invisible narrator like the one in HP remains strictly consistent from
the beginning to the end of a book or series, no matter what happens.

Del