Harry's protection

[macfotuk at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 113775

An old post but a kewl ne that deserves re-visiting in light of 
recent discussions (so unsnipped - sorry)

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "arrowsmithbt" 
<arrowsmithbt at b...> wrote:
> --- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, macfotuk at y... wrote:
> > 
> > Haven't heard from Kneasy in a while, but I'm sure he would 
agree 
> > that this simply shows that LV never learns and has more 
weaknesses 
> > than he should have as an archetypically ESE character. That is, 
> > though JKR says he's the baddest - he's actually a completely 
> > bungling baddie. He's *still* convinced that little HP is a mere 
> > upstart who fluked it first time. Despite knowing half the 
prophecy 
> > he still feels he can snuff (swat) this pesky little Potter (he 
is, 
> > after all, the darkest, mst powerful wizard ever!). Fans of 
> > Divination surely will have spotted LV's boast in GoF graveyard 
> > scene to his assembled DE's 
> > 
> > Setting oneself up to fail? hmmmmm JKR loves to show how dumb LV 
> > (ESE defined) can be and how HP (we the reader see as good) will 
> > prevail - though she may not protect him in book 7 by which time 
he 
> > is as expendable as any other character). It has always struck 
me 
> > that yes, the developments of this scene (Harry's survival 
despite 
> > LV's intent to make an example of him) show that in fact HP is 
the 
> > stronger, for he escapes, against all odds and, notice, without 
DD's 
> > or Lily's obvious protection (excepting that Lily is there 
during 
> > the priori incantatem spell and perhaps DD might be argued to be 
> > too, through the pheonix song and the wand cores involved). This 
> > scene reemphasises that LV constantly under-estimates whatever 
it is 
> > about Harry that makes him a formidable adversary - a theme 
returned 
> > to in OotP (DD saying HP has powers LV knows little of and/or 
> > underestimates - which we all take to mean love and 
selflessness). 
> > LV still hasn't learned this by the end of book 5 (nor I suspect 
the 
> > denoument in book 7).
> 
> Did I hear my name invoked?
> "For I  can call demons from the vasty deep.."
> 
> Generally speaking I do tend to be scathing about Voldy; difficult 
to
> take him seriously when he constantly falls flat on his face. Sad, 
that.
> Down to  my FEATHEROA leanings, I suppose -  similar to the views
> of Mr &  Mrs Ramsbotham in "The  Lion and Albert"
> "...the waves they was fiddling and small,
> No wrecks and nobody drowning,
> In fact nowt to laugh at at all." 
> 
> But just this once, and as an exercise in lateral thinking, 
devious 
> interpretation and mostly because it's fun, let's assume that 
there's
> some method to his madness.
> 
> Four times he's been confronted by Harry and come off worst.
> Godric's Hollow
> In front of the Mirror of Erised
> The graveyard
> The Ministry
> (I'm not counting the CoS; strictly speaking that wasn't Voldy.)
> 
> Harry's protection was emplaced at Godric's Hollow - but protection
> against what? 
> "Voldy!" you reply, "as ane fule kno." 
> "Ah," says I, "does Voldy know  that?"
> All Voldy knows is that the particular spell he cast was repelled -
 and
> I have a sneaking suspicion that it wasn't an AK. Most posters will
> disagree. 'Twas ever thus. (I first put this one on the board last 
year,
> and it's repeated in a post made yesterday - 112046).
> 
> For the sake of argument, let's assume that my suspicions regarding
> the spell  are justified. So;  he casts a spell; it doesn't work. 
OK, next
> time  we'll try something different - the "hands on" approach 
adopted
> by Quirrell. (Never did like that one - so unwizardly. What's wrong
> with "Accio! Stone?) Never mind, that one didn't work either - but 
> now Voldy has learned two facts concerning Harry Potter; the spell
> used at GH won't work and neither will a physical assault.
> 
> He fixes the latter in the graveyard but instead of utilising it, 
the
> silly bugger has to go  and ponce around playing at duels. Oh dear.
> This is where he learns the third brutal fact of life - wand 
conflict.
> Unfortunately (from Voldy's point of view) this wand conflict
> prevents Voldy from learning something I'm sure he'd like to know,
> namely - is Harry now vulnerable to an AK? He can't tell, the wand
> conflict prevents the AK from reaching Harry.
> 
> But being a persistent sort of cove, he's willing to give it 
another
> go; this time in less formal circumstances and where Harry might
> not be casting an interferring spell at the same time - the 
Ministry.
> He throws an AK at a defenceless Harry, only for an animated
> statue to interpose itself. (This should tell him something; if
> Harry is invulnerable why did DD block the AK? Yippee! Progress!)
> 
> He tries something else during his tactical withdrawl - possession.
> This time it doesn't work because of some property inherent in
> Harrys personality (according to DD) and therefore unlikely to be
> part of the original protective magic.
> 
> So if you want to be magnanimous, you can say that Voldy has
> been on a learning curve, he's been experimenting and like any
> good investigator he's been changing one parameter at a time.
> 
> GH - a spell (probably a form of possession  or mental intrusion)
> that is repelled by the protection. Is the protection general or
> specific to the spell used?
> 
> Then the Mirror - try a physical attack; no joy. It's general.
> 
> The graveyard - remove protection and try again. Has it worked?
> Can't tell, those bloody wands get in the way.
> 
> The Ministry - Try an AK - but it's blocked by outside agency 
> (promising) and as a bonus he finds out that Harry's mind has 
> developed in ways that Voldy can't live with. ("Make a note of 
that,
> Bella.")
> 
> If I was Voldy, I'd be sticking to the AK from now on, it could 
well
> do the trick. Mind you, I doubt he will, he'll try to come up with
> something 'foolproof' that won't work for one reason or another.
> As Hermione observes, wizards aren't renowned for logical thinking.
> 
> Kneasy

This analysis by kneasy is, as ever, thought-provoking. So what 
thoughts?

1. CoS showed that even diary!Tom couldn't 'get' Harry either 
(perhaps this was a chief purpose of the book)?

and

2. Lv *STILL* seems not to have learned the leasson that he should 
NOt try to AK Harry. Perhaps next, by kneasy's reasoning, Voldy will 
try to get HP in the back (the baddie never does this in Westerns 
and probably won't in JKR world either) - but I suspect that kneasy 
would reckon, and certainly I do, that THIS wouldn't work either.

He may never learn that he just can't 'get' Harry. *HE* can't 
anyway. (?)