Dan's predictions -- followed by pain and grief.

[meriaugust]

No: HPFGUIDX 99194

> Steve wrote:
> 
> > I don't want a 'Harry Dies' ending, but at the same time I could 
see
> > it happening. What really bothers me, is not so much Harry 
dying, as
> > the out pouring of grief that would follow. 

Jem:
> 
> JKR might want to do this from an artistic POV but it would 
probably 
> kill the series as a future classic in the process.  Do you go to 
a 
> movie knowing ahead of time that the main character dies?  I was 
really 
> annoyed when Tom Hanks died in that WWII movie whatever it was 
I've 
> completely blanked out on it.  May have been a fine movie but I 
wouldn't 
> watch it again or buy it on DVD.

Meri now: I don't know about Harry's death killing the series as a 
potential classic. After all, everyone in "All Quiet on the Western 
Front" dies, and that's one of the biggest classics ever. Almost 
everyone dies in "The Illiad" and King Arthur dies in most versions 
of his ledgend, too. And as for that WWII movie that Tom Hanks dies 
in, I am guessing you mean "Saving Private Ryan", and I have seen 
that film several times, and not only am I still moved to tears in 
that last scene every single time I see it, I think that it made 
sense from a storytelling perspective, as did the main character's 
death in "Gladiator". Maximus dies every single time I see the 
movie, but that doesn't keep me from enjoying it. Like I said, (and 
to bring myself back on-topic) as long as it makes sense from a 
storytelling perspective, the death of a main character can be okay. 
Just as long as Harry, you know, doesn't survive the whole Voldemort 
war only to get hit by a taxi exiting King's Cross after seveth year 
or comes down with a nasty case of food poisoning from a Pumpkin 
Pastie. 

Jem: 
> Some people just don't want things ending that badly and if you 
know 
> ahead of time that things don't end well, there are going to be 
people 
> who won't start the process at all.
> 
> Killing Harry off is beyond a betrayal to those who have stuck 
with him 
> thru 7 books, it seems to send a rather grim message.  You can 
work for 
> a good and noble cause and your reward is an early death.  It's 
all too 
> RW if you ask me and no one actually did but still I don't think 
that's 
> where JKR's taking us.

Meri again: As someone who just finished reading the first five 
books last night (and stayed up til 2 am to finish the last four 
chapters of Order) I don't really see Harry dying as a betrayal to 
anyone, as long as, like I said, its done in a good storytelling 
context. I mean, look at it this way: here's this kid, he spends his 
first year of life living in hiding with his folks, witnesses his 
parents die at the age of one, spends the next ten years living with 
abusive relatives, and then goes off to a wizard's school, where his 
life is perpetually threatened and he is the focus of unwanted 
attention due to the fact that his parents were murdered by a famous 
evil wizard. Then, to top it all off, said evil wizard has made it 
his life's (er, half-life's?) mission to destroy this kid, and this 
kid, all of fifteen, now has the responsibility of ridding the world 
of said evil wizard. Now, answer me this: how in the heck is poor, 
abused, marked man, target on his back Harry supposed to live 
anything at all resembling a normal life post-grad? He can't. I am 
someone who desperatly wants to see him live, marry, have six kids, 
play Quidditch for England, and live to the ripe old age of 175 and 
even I can admit that the chances of Harry being anything close to 
normal once the whole LV business is over is slim to none. I want 
Harry to live, I really really do. But If JKR kills him in some 
ultimate sacrifice type thing and then he's welcomed to the 
afterlife by his long lost folks (I weep just thinking about that), 
I would also be okay. Anyway, don't pelt me with owls, just IMHO. 

Meri - who for some strange reason has always finished reading OotP 
sometime between 2-3 in the morning...