Persons of Simultanious Heritage

[quigonginger]

No: HPFGUIDX 88237

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, Intensefancyblue at a... wrote:
> Dear Ginger,
>      
>      I think that what you're really saying is whether or not 
people who have 
> 
>      similar backgrounds are more inclined to form cliques. And 
they do. But,
>      so do people of similar interests. 

Ginger here: 
Actually, I hadn't thought much about cliques.  I was just pointing 
out that having the same ancestor on more than one branch of the 
family tree doesn't make one as stupid as some feel it does.  The WW 
doesn't show this at all.  Certainly family members tend to group 
together, but that isn't due to the formation of a clique, it is just 
familiarity and blood ties.

Intensefancyblue continued:
Lord Voldemort obviously felt that 
> Harry
>      who has a background that mirrors his own would be a tougher 
opponent
>      than Neville who has both parents but is raised by his 
grandmother. 

Ginger again:  
At the time LV went after Harry, Neville was living with 2 healthy 
parents.  The DE attack which left the Longbottoms in St. Mungo's was 
after LV had attacked the Potters, as Dumbledore tells Harry, "after 
Voldemort's fall from power, just when everyone thought they were 
safe." (GoF US hardcover p. 603)

As Carol pointed out, Dumbledore told Harry in OoP that LV had chosen 
Harry for his lineage, due to them both being of mixed blood.

She also brought up the interesting point that Dumbledore referred to 
Harry as a "half-blood", even though his parents were both wizarding 
folk.  Young Riddle does the same in CoS.  Which brings us back to 
the drawing board as to how much wizarding blood is required to be 
considered pure-a topic of much previous speculation on this list!

Intensefancyblue continues:
>      Example: Draco Malfoy in the movies looks an awful lot like a 
skinhead
>      with his attitude towards Muggle-borns. While Ron, who is also 
a pure-
>      blood doesn't care at all and accepts Hermione (what he 
worries about 
>      is if his little sister is in danger or his wand acts up or 
Errol 
> crashes into
>      a window with a message...you get the picture) for who she is.

Ginger again:
As I am not a movie person, I can't comment on Draco's looks, but his 
attitude in the books is certainly skinhead.  And you are quite right 
about Ron as well.  If we look at the parents, it seems that the 
attitudes are learned at home in both cases.

What is noticibly absent, (getting back to the point of my original 
post) is any evidence that either of them having been decended from 
the same people on more than one branch of the tree ("inbred") has 
caused them any defects.

Ginger, thanking Carol for correcting my spelling