OotP Harry not a prefect & his Inner Voice

[syroun]

No: HPFGUIDX 115126



--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "ohneill_2001" 
<ohneill_2001 at y...> wrote:
> 
(Snip)
> Del wrote:
> 
> > I disagree strongly that Harry was the only choice. For all we 
> > know, Dean, Seamus or maybe even Neville could have been just as 
> > good candidates, according to Steve's standards....3. Dean or > 
> > Seamus could be president of a number of clubs in which
> > they demonstrate high leadership qualities...
 
(Snip)
> Now Cory:
> 
> The point is, if you want to start assuming things about the 
> characters that aren't in the story, we can make any of the 
> characters into anything we want them to be.  
> 

For those of us that have been to private schools, we have seen from 
experience that a prefect is intended to serve specific purposes, 
one of which is that of a moral compass....they become the student 
version of an adminstrator for the student body. Sometimes they are 
tyrants, other times they have social skills that better facilitate 
their duties, but in the end, they are entrusted with keeping things 
in check for the school staff. I believe that definition fits 
Hermione's fundamental character function perfectly well. 

Past that, in terms of actual examples from JKR, wasn't Lupin made a 
prefect with the implicit expectation that he would keep his 
friends "in line"? Is that any different for Ron and DD's assumed 
hope and/or expectation for influence on Harry, his best friend, who 
has a penchant for going-it on his own? 

Syroun