CHAPTER DISCUSSIONS: Chapter 10, "Luna Lovegood".

[meriaugust]

No: HPFGUIDX 89159

Meri here, answering Kirstini's questions:  
> With the obvious exception of CoS, where the journey is made in 
the 
> flying Ford Anglia, the chapter detailing the journey on the 
Hogwarts 
> Express is the most consistently similar throughout the books. 
What 
> effects do the disruptions of the familiar have on the reader's 
> expectations for the book?

Meri: I think it serves the same purpose as GoF opening in a scene 
other than Privet Drive: it shows us that we should be expecting 
some major changes in this book, and because this change happens 
directly to Harry, it serves to emphasize that Harry's world is in 
for some severe disruptions. Almost everything he loves or is 
familliar about life at Hogwarts (DADA lessons, Quidditch, 
Dumbledore's friendship and counsel, visits to Hagrid and being able 
to one-up Malfoy and hate Snape in peace) is gone, and this is one 
of the main themes in the book. Harry's world is changing. But I was 
pleased about one thing in the chapter: that even without Ron and 
Hermione around, Harry still has companionship (Ginny, Neville, 
Luna) and than even though he is sometimes seperated from his 
friends, R and H will always come back to him. Loyalty is a good 
thing, which is one of the other major themes of the book. 

Kristini asks: 
> Is there a sense that, by introducing a new character, subverting 
> Harry's expectations for the journey, deliberately taking time out 
to 
> describe the weather and spending a lot of time over aspects of 
the 
> story – like Neville's cactus – which might be seen to be 
deliberate 
> red herrings, this chapter seems to be slightly more self-aware 
than 
> the others? Does an awareness of reader expectation pervade the 
> chapter?

Meri again: I am not sure how much of JKR's writing is influenced by 
what the fans expect to see, but this chapter does seem to be 
planting things for the future. I read somewhere (and for the 
absolute life of me I can't remember where) that when JKR names a 
chapter after a character or references a character in a chapter 
title that character will be important. "The Boy Who Lived" 
(Harry), "The Keeper of the Keys" (Hagrid), "The Potions Master" 
(Snape) "Dobby's Warning" (Dobby), "Cat, Rat and Dog" (Crookshanks, 
Scabbers/Peter Pettigrew, and Sirius), "Mad-Eye Moody" (Fake!
Moody), "The Madness of Mr. Crouch" (Barty Crouch Sr.)and "Detention 
With Delores" (Prof. Umbridge) are all examples of this. This only 
seems to tell me that there will be further significance to Luna 
Lovegood to the plot, and like some of these characters, she may be 
more than she seems. I know that there has been speculation that 
Luna is a Seer, but I need more info/cannon before I buy that one. 

Kristini: Have Ron and Hermione been deliberately marginalized in 
this chapter 
> in order to allow the secondary trio of Neville, Ginny and Luna 
more 
> page space in which to develop? 

Meri: I think that the "secondary trio" have been given their own 
space for a reason. They are the ones who go with Harry to the DoM 
and prove to be some of his greatest assets through that battle and 
the DA. I think that there is more to these three than meets the 
eye, but I don't know if R and H were "marginalized". I think that 
we are just recieving a glimpse of upperclassmen life at Hogwarts, 
through their prefect's meeting. 

Kristini asks: > How does this chapter prepare the reader for the 
major themes of the 
> book?

Meri concludes: As I wrote before, this whole chapter is about the 
disruption of Harry's familiar world. He spends his first Hogwarts 
journey out of the company of Ron, he is exposed to the lunacy of 
Luna, he is mortified in front of Cho, he sees the thestrals for the 
first time and Hagrid is missing from the train depot. In fact, the 
only thing that remains consistent in the chapter are Harry's 
enemies, ie: the confrontation with Crabbe, Goyle and Malfoy. But, 
in the end, all of Harry's missing friends return to him, more or 
less in one piece, and we see their loyalty to him, something that 
heartens him after the tragic conclusion of the book. Anyway, just 
my two thoughts worth. 
Meri (who was impressed with herself for remembering all those 
chapter titles in her head)