CHAPDISC: HBP5, An Excess of Phlegm

Tue Dec 6 00:24:17 UTC 2005

No: HPFGUIDX 144135

> >>Julie:
> CHAPTER DISCUSSIONS: 
> Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 5,
> An Excess of Phlegm
> <snip>       
> Discussion Questions
>
> 1) We don't see many people who call Dumbledore by his first name. 
> <snip>
> Molly calling him Albus makes me think that all of them see each   
> other as family, not only as colleagues. What do you think?

Betsy Hp:
I'm leery of having the Order members be that close (though Tonks 
coming to Molly with her tales of woe, does suggest they might be) 
because I get the sense that they don't all get together as a group 
that often.  I think it could just be that Dumbledore was never 
Molly's professor.  Or that he's told her to call him Albus.  After 
all, Molly doesn't work for him, and she's not having to set an 
example for a bunch of students.

> 2) Mollywobbles. Anyone knows what it means? Not being English     
> myself I haven't a clue about it.

Betsy Hp:
I think it's just a term of endearment Arthur will sometimes use, a 
nonsense phrase akin to baby-talk that most couples not in 
highschool try and keep to themselves.  Thats why it's so 
embarrassing (and funny!) that Harry is there to hear it.

> 3) Arthur's greatest ambition is to discover how planes stay on   
> the air. Don't wizards and witches learn any physics at all? Don't 
> they –Arthur & Co- know that there are muggle books that can      
> easily explain the basic concepts of aerodynamics? 

Betsy Hp:
I think this does two things: on the surface it's a cute and 
endearing wrap-up of Arthur's interest in all things Muggle; but it 
also shows just how ignorant Arthur is of a world he claims to love.

It hints to that underlying prejudice I've seen both Arthur and 
Molly show regarding muggles.  After all, one of Arthur's brothers 
is a squib (an accountant, IIRC).  Why doesn't Arthur go for a visit 
to see how the other half live? That'd be a perfect time to ask some 
questions.  Arthur's ignorace may be enforced by Molly, who in this 
chapter suggests that Arthur may not have wanted the promotion, and 
has always been hostile to his interest in things Muggle.  So I 
wonder if they don't visit his brother because Molly doesn't wish it?

> 4) What's with Fleur's comment of Gabrielle? (The one when she     
> mentions Gabrielle has been talking non stop about Harry). Is it a 
> sign of what we may see in book 7, a possible relationship between 
> her and Harry? Maybe Gabrielle as a young Ginny?

Betsy Hp:
It's because Harry's a hottie. <g>  Seriously, I think this can be a 
bit of foreshadowing of the hords of girls (most of them younger) 
flocking around Harry as soon as he gets on the train for Hogwarts.  
All young girls love a hero.  Harry's like a Teenbeat superstar.  If 
he'd let them I'd bet the Prophet would be all over a "Win a date 
with Harry Potter!" event.  I doubt Gabrielle will do more than 
appear for the wedding and sigh over Harry for a paragraph or two.  
(Maybe annoy or amuse Ginny a bit.)

> <skipping question 5, because it totally makes my head hurt ;)>   
> 6) We all know Tonks is seriously depressed. Is her depression    
> because she has lost a dear cousin, or because Remus won't marry   
> her? Or perhaps a bit of both. What do you think?

Betsy Hp:
How well did Tonk's know Sirius, I wonder?  It's hard for me to 
judge this one because I think the Remus/Tonks romance was handled a 
bit carelessly, so I'm not sure if there's more to the story or if 
Tonks really was depressed about Remus breaking up with her.

> 7) Why wasn't there a memorial, funeral, or wake for Sirius? I     
> know there wasn't a body to bury, but still, those who loved him  
> needed to say good-bye: they needed closure.

Betsy Hp:
The WW is a harsh place?  I don't know.  It's the billion dollar 
question, really.  Part of me wonders if JKR just didn't have room 
for it.  But on the other hand, the WW really *has* been shown to be 
fairly harsh.  In a sense they're a community under seige, in a 
constant state of pending war.  So maybe they do tend towards a 
rather heartless practicality of only having a burial when there's 
something to bury.  (It'd help explain the lack of fine arts taught 
at Hogwarts.  Painting a picture or singing a song won't be helpful 
when the battle begins.)

> 8) Do you think that Molly's clock with all its hands pointing    
> towards mortal peril is a sign of what may happen in book 7? Will 
> we be seeing more than one Weasley death? Who do you think it will 
> be? When reading this chapter I got flash-backs to Molly's bogart 
> in Grimmauld Place. Will all her worst fears come true?

Betsy Hp:
I like to think that Molly's clock is the way it is because one of 
the Weasley twins is a Death Eater spy and any of the Weasleys could 
buy it if they stumble upon his deadly secret.  But that's just me 
<g>.  There are an *awful* lot of Weasleys, though.  I've heard 
theories that Charlie may not last because he's the least known 
Weasley.

> 9) Why do you think Percy still won't come back home? He knows     
> that Dumbledore & Co where telling the truth all along, is it      
> because "people find it far easier to forgive others for being    
> wrong than being right"? Is it just a pride thing?

Betsy Hp:
Quite possible.  Arthur may well be too proud to admit that he was 
wrong about Percy being used by the MoM to spy on his family and to 
apologize to his son.  Or, Percy may still worry about being used in 
that fashion, and having taken his father's words to heart decided 
to make a clean break of it until the war is over. Or, Percy is 
still a useful spy for Dumbledore and therefore must still be seen 
as on the outs with his family and the Order.
(I did deliberately mis-interpert your question, Juli, because I am 
a stinker. <g>)

> 10) Didn't Bill ask for his parents' permission before he took    
> Fleur to live with them? Or are the Weasleys so polite that they   
> keep their feeling about Fleur bottled up to protect Bill?

Betsy Hp:
I'm sure Bill did ask if it'd be alright.  Though I'm sure he was so 
excited and happy he may have overlooked his mother's striken face. 
Or he may have seen it and decided she'd be that way about any girl 
he brought home and hoped Fleur would win her over in the end.  
Though I'm equally sure Molly *did* lie and say that Fleur was more 
than welcome.  What else could she say, really?

Great questions, Juli!

Betsy Hp (first!)