[HPforGrownups] Full moon question for the folklorists

[Silverthorne]

No: HPFGUIDX 97482

Carol:
I haven't studied werewolves (or vampires, for that matter), so I
can't answer this question, but maybe some of the folklorists can. How
long is a "full moon"? Is it just one night, or does each phase (new
moon, first quarter, full moon, last quarter) last about a week for
werewolves as it does on a Muggle calendar? In other words, how many
days each month would Lupin be confined to the Shrieking Shack (or his
living quarters at Hogwarts)? Surely it can't be a full week. Even
five days each month seems like a lot to manage without arousing the
suspicions of many students. But one night--*the* full moon--seems
like too short a time. Anyone have authoritative opinions on this?

Silverthorne:
Well, if you go by legend, it would be *only* the night of the 'offical'
full moon.

If you go by science....He would be a werewolf for probably all of 10
minutes to an hour--the amount of time that the moon would 'fully' reflect
the light of the sun.

If you go by what the Moon looks like in the sky (IE--taking into account
that Remus didn't change into the werewolf until he actaully *saw* the full
moon A LA cinematic liscence), then he has three nights in which he would
need to be careful--because the moon 'looks' full for a day before and a day
after the 'real' full moon.

What has always puzzled me about the folk loric lycanthropy is this--what
happens to werewolves on months when the moon is up *During The Day*? It
does happen--so, does the sunlight 'cancel out' the effect of the full moon?
Or do the poor victims actaully end up changing in broad daylight?? I've
enver seen this one explained...what do you guys think?


Carol:
BTW, for anyone who's interested in Lupin's monthly transformations
and how they fit with the calendar for a particular year, I found a
site with phases of the moon for every year from 1700-2035:

http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/MoonPhase.html

Silverthorne:
Cool.

Carol:
BTW, the site shows the full moon for December 1993 as falling on
December 28, but Lupin missed the Christmas luncheon three days
earlier. Either JKR had her dates slightly wrong, or Lupin's
transformation was already beginning three days before the official
full moon, which would suggest that his transformations last about six
days. As for Godric's Hollow, the full moon was on October 23, so even
if the transformation lasted a full week (October 20 to October 26),
he would have been back to his human form that time. And September 1,
1993, the day of Hogwarts Express trip, was the exact date for the
full moon that month, so if JKR were following the calendar, he should
have been in full werewolf mode rather than recovering from a recent
transformation, which is how I read his tiredness, pallor, and
hoarseness (from howling) in that scene.


Silverthorne:
Interesting points, all.

To address the loss of days/ the amount of time Remus is MIA while 'sick'
with lycanthropy--if it's something like a magical virus, it might have a
build up time, the actual 'viral' results, and then a few days for the body
to recover--rather like a cold or a flu that lasts more than a day or
two--you start out not feeling too hot for a few days, then suffer the major
symptoms for a few days, and then have a period where you're recovering but
still not feeling too hot.

As for the moon phase inaccuracies--either JKR did not consult a lunar
calandar and just guessed,  or intentionally altered the RL facts to fit the
story. Going back to a recent quite from her where she stated that she
didn't really expect her work to be analyized, I suspect that being
'accurate' according to actaul lunar dates was not high on her list. Heck,
for all we know, in her verion of the world, the moon has a longer or
shorter timetable than the real moon's 28.whatever days...Personally,. I
think just just had a full moon happen when she needed on to happen--it's
not like a majority of her audience is going to pick apart whether or not
she got the dates right on....lol

Silverthorne