Unreliable narrator (was: Snape's stalling)

[Barry Arrowsmith]

No: HPFGUIDX 117423

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "nkafkafi" <nkafkafi at y...> wrote:

 >
I'm pretty sure you are an anti-conspiracy reader, Potioncat, like 99%  
of us (including some who won't admit it ;-)  ). We anti-conspiracy 
readers know that the books are full of conspiracy, of course, but we 
also know that conspiracy has its limits, and sometimes you just have 
to trust a character. I trust Lupin. You trust Snape. Actually I trust 
Snape too, although I have no doubt he hates Harry with all his heart 
and enjoys hurting him, but I trust that DD's trust in him will be 
justified in the end. And I also trust DD not to be a ruthless puppet  
master.
 >
snip

Conspiracy -
1. The action or act of conspiring; a combination of people for an 
unlawful or reprehensible purpose; an agreement so to combine, a plot.
2. In a neutral or good sense: combination for one purpose.
(OED)

It seems to me that these two definitions cover most of the 
fundamentals of what's happened in the Potterverse throughout the 5 
books so far.
The  DEs fit nicely into category 1., as do more or less any of their 
actions or plans. The Order and Dumbledore's Army  fit nicely into 
category 2.

In fact I don't think you're discussing conspiracy at all, you're 
agreeing to disagree about any character assessments and 
interpretations that you don't like.
Hmm. Is this a conspiracy on your part?

Who cares? Not I. But it does provide an opportunity to slide into a 
look at the most interesting life-form associated with HP - the Fans 
With Opinions. Personally, I have absolutely no wish to try and 
persuade anyone to change their mind, but I do enjoy suggesting 
alternatives to the general consensus, it fits with one of my  basic 
tenets of life - the majority is usually wrong. Either that or they've 
misunderstood the question and got it right by accident. How dare they!

Fortunately, if you're a fan there's no requirement to take anyone 
else's opinions or views into consideration; dismiss them as facile, 
ridiculous, boring, repetitive. No problem. After all, why bother about 
what anyone else thinks? They're obviously mistaken. Aren't they? 
Hasn't  each of us been granted an exclusive insight into the inner 
depths/shallows of HP, enough so we can definitively state "He's 
wrong." I expect that from some members every time I post. Fair enough. 
In fact, it's an exercise I go through myself every time I sign onto 
the board. Most of us do, I think; a quick look at what's been posted 
and who by. "Oh God. So-and-so's still vapouring on about whatsisname. 
They're talking through their hat again. Give it a miss." It can 
certainly save an awful lot of time - time I can spend more 
productively wondering what the author is up to in this or that 
particular passage, what's she trying to hide now?

It helps that the Fans're a remarkably diverse and motley crew.
Don't like that idea that's just been posted? No worries, there'll be 
another along in a minute. There's something for everyone. Fan age 
range covers 6 decades, maybe more; both sexes (though this site seems 
to have a preponderance of females); all sorts of backgrounds and life 
experiences; different personal beliefs and philosophies and, perhaps 
the most fascinating of differences  - what they get from the books and 
what they expect from the books.

Now if you're one of the large number concerned with/about Harry, then 
you've lost me. The adult characters interest  me most. I find 
Character!Harry boring, the other kids only marginally better.
Oh, I've tried, but without success. Recently I put up posts on 
Hermione, Ron and Harry, partly because up to now I've largely ignored 
them as individuals (as opposed to dissecting the situations that Jo 
puts them in), and partly to see if I could find something to spark 
some enthusiasm for them.
I Failed. Utterly. Probably the most bland and anodyne posts I've ever 
sent to the board. Space filler stuff. Even so a few fans emailed 
off-site to say they enjoyed them. I didn't have the heart to reply 
telling them how depressing they were to write. Mind you, there were 
still others that mailed wondering if Kneasy was getting soft in his 
old age. Nice to have a reputation.

This highlights one of the big divisions in fandom; those that are 
happy with what the books have presented to them so far in the way of 
perceived characterisation and story-arc - and the others, the awkward 
squad, the ones who love rummaging around for unconsidered trifles that 
can be  cobbled together to construct a different perspective.

It's no secret which side of the divide I'm on. Characters and plot in 
flux is much more interesting than stability IMO - and there's an extra 
benefit - I've no illusions to be shattered. I'm an equal opportunity 
misanthropist. Oh, there's the possibility of disappointment in the 
eventual resolution and how it's handled, but I've made no big 
investment in saying "This is how he/she/it must be, it's obvious." 
Obvious? With JKR? Surely you jest.

Mind you, for most posters there is an in-built  touch of 
schizophrenia; for while they all agree that there are/will be plot and 
character surprises it's accepted that this will not apply to the 
characters that they have 'adopted,' so  to speak; particularly if they 
have appeared as a sympathetic type up to now. While baddies may 
achieve redemption, it's considered impossible that the apparently good 
should go bad. I  wonder why?

Strangely, though those that propose theories regarding actions or as 
yet unrevealed motivations based on concrete events are often chided 
for going beyond  the limits of  canon, this rarely applies whenever 
the fraught and extremely woolly subjects of 'abuse' or 'morality' are 
raised. All bets are off, posters pile in with "Of course, as an abused 
child, he would..."

Excuse me? What is more fanciful than projecting Real World, and for 
the most part anecdotal evidence, on to the fictional product of  one 
woman's mind? Harry has a thoroughly miserable time at least once every 
book - so what? I ask.
Because that leads on to a very interesting question -  why is Harry 
being made to suffer so much? I presume there's a reason (unless JKR 
has a *very* mean streak or is channeling C. Dickens), but I've yet to 
see any post contemplating that all this suffering may be either 
necessary or even beneficial in the long run. Or even (dare I say it) 
largely imaginary. There aren't many teenagers who aren't convinced 
that at least some adults are against them - and what we see is 
generally just Harry's POV.
No doubt all will be explained in due course, to the satisfaction of 
some and the dismay of others.

Yes, the ending; how will it go?
Another Fan divide here - more than one in fact.
Fluffy or non-fluffy?
Harry lives - or dies?
The magic goes away or the WW reforms?
Evil defeated, good triumphant or something a bit more ambiguous and 
equivocal?
Or cherry-pick from any of the above?

Or maybe he's dreamt it all after falling from the school roof.

We'll agree to disagree, shall we?

Kneasy