"Slytherin" Hermione?

[tylerswaxlion]

No: HPFGUIDX 112288

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Bex" <hubbarrk at r...> wrote:
> ~Yb:
> How can you "decide" what memories to erase? "Obliviate" seems to 
> take care of everything, even how to write your own name in joined-
> up writing, as evidenced by Lockhart, but there must be varying 
> degrees of Memory Charms, otherwise Marietta wouldn't have had much 
> use for Hogwarts after this little encounter. So to erase 6 months 
> of meetings, how would you go about just getting the ones you want?
> 
> Any thoughts?
> 

I think this accuracy should just be ascribed to "magic".  

"Obliviate!" pronounced with the proper emphasis, wand movements, and
**intention** to erase DA meetings, activities, and personnel does the
trick.  No worrying about how the biological brain stores memories. 
No worrying about how many DA meetings there were.  Just the intent
and training and power.  Kingsley should have the talent and ability
to accomplish it.

I don't think the wizarding world understands how reality works on a
lot of levels, b/c they have never needed to know it.  Pomfey doesn't
need to know about anti-biotics or how bones really knit together. 
She doesn't need to know about stem cells to re-grow Harry's arm.

I think we muggles have questions that would never occur to a wizard.
 I see the following "Who's on First?" type conversation:
Muggle:  How did Kingsley just erase the DA meetings?  
Wizard:  He Obliviated them.  
M:  But how did he know how to get the RIGHT memories?  
W:  He OBLIVIATED them.
M:  But HOW did he just erase THOSE memories and not any OTHER memories?
W:  He ***OBLIVIATED*** them!!!

As for Gilderoy and the joined-up (cursive) writing--Magic seems to be
a force wizards can use to make their dreams reality.  The more
complex the dream or desire, the more complex spell required.  I don't
mean lots of words or hard to remember lines, but even Hermione needs
to practice in Charms and Transfiguration.  It's not just
pronunciation and wand movement--I think it's intention and
concentration--like I'd imagine telepathy/telekinesis would take.

Complex magic seems to require tools--for the most part wands--to
focus the intent.  Wands all seem to have magical creatures' essences
at their core, again, negating any possible scientific explanations
for their workings. 

That given (my opinion, that is) Gilderoy ended up in such a mess b/c
he was really intending to wipe out huge parts of the boys' memories.
  He's not a nice man at all, and I think he deserves to be in St.
Mungo's or worse.

Gilderoy didn't know when or how the boys had figured out the secret
of the Chamber, so he was going to take it all away--can't leave any
straggling memory that might have contributed to the discovery. 
Gilderoy wasn't going to take a chance of them remembering anything at
all that might expose him.  Any loose ends might undo the spell and
reveal Lockhart's perfidy.  At the very least, he was going to remove
the entire year(wish I could quote here, but I don't have my books
(GRRR!))  Luckily, Ron's wand misfired--so we have intent, power
(Gilderoy's special talent), but mussed up wand-work (with that
Unicorn hair not transmuting the magical power correctly).  If it'd
been a decent wand, Ron and Harry would be in St. Mungo's working on
their joined-up writing again.

We see intention affecting spellwork again in OotP, when Harry
couldn't properly Crucio Bella.  He knew the spell, it'd been used on
him.  But he didn't have the intent, which I believe must include some
sadism--not just wanting to cause pain, but a perverse enjoyment in
the pain of another.  Simply feeling pain and rage and wanting/needing
revenge weren't enough to get the full effect.  For me, I see the need
for sadism in intent as the reason why Crucio is an unforgivable curse.  

There are undoubtedly lesser spells that cause pain--but they're
called "hexes" and "jinxes" b/c even if the intent is to cause pain,
it's not sadism, i.e., the spellcaster is not enjoying the pain of
another simply because s/he is hurting them.  

Like a hand-buzzer shock for a joke.  Or a slap across the face in
anger.  Or tripping someone.  Like when Fred, George, Hermione, Ron,
and Harry sling random hexes/jinxes at Draco & Co. on the Hogwarts
Express.  Not nice, but not unforgivable.

-TL