[HPforGrownups] Bullying (was: SPOILERS.Re: JKR site update)

[annegirl11 at juno.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 114934

SS Susan said:
> but I've just 
> realized I've been assuming these weren't necessarily actual 
> questions JKR has received, but rather simply the things she has 
> decided she wants to address with us.

I got the sense that she picked that somewhat random question to answer
b/c she'd gotten a lot of parents saying, "My kid is bullied, too, and
really relates to Harry. However, I'm not sure I agree with Harry's
actions towards bullies. What are you trying to say? What should I tell
my kid when I tell them to talk to a teacher if someone picks on them,
but they idolize Harry?" Or something to that effect. Here on HPfGU we
forget that Harry has very, very young fans.

> I'm not sure "heroic" is a word I would have even thought of 
> bringing in here, but I do think that JKR's portrayal of Harry's 
> silence/stiff upper lip in OotP gets put forth as NOT necessarily a 
> smart move on his part.

ITA. And that's what I think her answer was to address. Harry behaves as
is his character, but she wants to establish to real kids that they
shouldn't act like Harry when it comes to bullies. I'm sure she wouldn't
want her kids to try to deal with their own Draco or Umbridge by
themselves.


 > At that point I think we could chalk his refusal up to at 
> least three things:

4) The English boarding school boy code of silence and self-reliance.
Don't tell anyone if you're in pain, don't act weak, don't let anyone
help you. It's demented and horrible, and I'm glad it's on its way out in
the real world, but it's present in the sometimes 1950's culture of the
WW.

> Still, I'll grant you that it wouldn't have hurt Harry to have TRIED 
> talking to someone.  McGonagall, perhaps?

OOtP was so frustrating to me because Harry had at least a dozen possible
outlets, but he didn't seek any of them. He could have talked to ANY
Hogwarts professor, Hagrid, Mdm Pomfry, Mr. or Mrs. Weasley, Remus or
Sirius, Dumbledore, and at least gotten advice from an older Weasley boy;
hell, maybe even if he told the Dursleys that a teacher was *cutting up
his hand* they would have raised a stink b/c they're the only ones
allowed to abuse their nephew! Harry's options were limited after the
radio silence, but he was never as alone as he thought he was.

Aura

~*~
"I have a high self-esteem problem."
- Carson, QE
Fanfic and original stuff at www.homepage-host.uni.cc/w/ofnone