DADA post question

[Susan Miller]

No: HPFGUIDX 94441

Since I'm agreeing with everything that Ravenclaw Bookworm wrote 
about the quality of most of the DADA teachers, I'm snipping the 
whole piece. I suggest readers up-thread and read her post.

Since we are discussing Quirrell, you know I have to make an 
appearance. :)

Regarding Quirrell's teaching:

>From book 1, we know that Quirrell was apparently a fine teacher 
before he went on Sabbatical:

"Poor bloke. Brilliant mind. He was fine while he was studyin' outta 
books, but then took a year off ter get some first-hand 
experience.... <snip> [He] never was the same since." Hagrid, SS/PS, 
US edition, page 70-71

Then, we see him teaching (page 134):

"The class everyone had been looking forward to was Defense Against 
the Dark Arts, but Quirrell's lessons turned out to be a bit of a 
joke. His classroom smelled strongly of garlic, which everyone said 
was to ward off a vampire he'd met in Romania and was afraid would be 
coming back to get him one of these days. His turban, he told them, 
had been given to him by an African prince as a thank-you for getting 
rid of a troublesome zombie, but they weren't sure they believed this 
story. For one thing, when Seamus Finnigan asked eagerly to hear how 
Quirrell had foungt off the zombie, Quirrell went pink and started 
talking about the weather; for another, they had noticed that a funny 
smell hung around the turban, and the Weasley twins insisted that it 
was stuffed full of garlic as well, so that Quirrell was protected 
wherever he went."

You can read this "class is a joke" in two ways - 1: there was no 
constructive teaching going on, or 2: the teacher and the classroom 
were peculiar and easy to make fun of.

We know that Quirrell was establishing a persona - a stuttering 
buffoon. However, I tend to believe that even in his possessed state, 
he took his teaching responsibilities seriously, as did Fake!Moody.

I think that taking Quirrell and Moody as examples of Dumbledore's 
hiring "total incompetents" (Quoting Carol) is a bit stiff. 

No one can deny that students learned good information in Moody's 
class. We also know that Not-yet-possessed!Quirrell was known as 
having been "fine". He was also a talented wizard, given the wandless 
magic he performed in the dungeon. In fact, who knows, maybe the 
turban WAS given to him by a prince for services rendered. His 
stammering followup to Seamus could have been a continuation of his 
establishment of the buffoon persona.

In short, I'm in agreement with Ravenclaw Bookworm.

CV - Quirrell Lives!