Wizards' Ages

[finwitch]

No: HPFGUIDX 111772

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "potioncat" <willsonkmom at m...> 
wrote:
> In the Scholastic interview  (2000?)
> How old is old in the wizarding world, and how old are Professors 
> Dumbledore and McGonagall?
> 
> Dumbledore is a hundred and fifty, and Professor McGonagall is a 
> sprightly seventy. Wizards have a much longer life expectancy than 
> Muggles. (Harry hasn't found out about that yet.)
> 
> Sorry, I can't attribute that quote exactly, by the time I managed 
> to find it, copy it, get back here and paste it, I forgot.
<snip>
> The casual fan has no idea that DD is 150 or McGonagall 70. At the 
> time of the interview, Harry doesn't know these folk are so old, or 
> that wizards tend to live so long.  He still doesn't know, as far 
as 
> I can tell.
> 
> Why do you think this is so important?  If they live so long, and 
> appear to work so long, how do young people like Snape and Percy 
> advance so quickly?  You'd think candidates for DADA and Potions 
and 
> Ministry Officialdom would be coming out of the woodwork!
> 
> And why hasn't it come up yet? 
> 

Finwitch:

Some idea since he took his OWLs. As I recall, one of the Inspectors 
(don't remember which one) had been testing Dumbledore - (comment: he 
did things with a wand I had never seen before) and as Dumbledore's 
*old*, just how old _is_ the Inspector?) Also, there's mention of 
Nicolas Flamel and his Philosopher's Stone - (over 675 - so, he was 
there when Ministry was *founded*).

And um - I doubt an old wizard/witch would bother with standards for 
cauldron-thickness... maybe they don't really WANT to go into 
Ministry: 'We did well before, no need for this...'

Teaching - well, possibly. But anyone wanting a NEW job is probably 
young, considering the old ones are either employed or retired 
already.

There ARE available jobs, considering that Voldemort killed so many 
of them in the war. Some get fired due some political reason... 
(well, the Ministry is VERY corrupted, isn't it?)

And as to how it didn't come up yet... I mean, plotwise, how could it 
have? What could bring out Harry's interest? Now that he's met 
someone older than Dumbledore, he might have wanted to ask about it, 
(but Dumbledore was away, as well as any other adult he *could* ask 
such a question). When Dumbledore met Harry, there was the Sirius' 
death to worry about etc.

Maybe it'll be in book #6. I don't think it's important - (JKR 
wouldn't tell us ANYTHING important, would she?) but it's just 
something to keep in mind...

Maybe Ron's great-great-great-grandfather comes to play at some point?
Maybe Harry will ask Dumbledore? A wizard (or was it a witch) who was 
inspector to (now) white-haired Dumbledore?

Finwitch