Neville: "All Muggle"?

[Eustace_Scrubb]

No: HPFGUIDX 121522


charme wrote:
<snip>
> SS/PS, US: "Well, my gran brought me up and she's a witch," said  
> Neville, "but the family thought I was all- Muggle for ages."
> 
> All Muggle? Is this the same in the UK editions? Doesn't DD say
that  
> Neville is pureblood in OoP when explaining the prophecy to Harry? 
 
> Donning my spyglass and usual suspicious nature, why would Neville  
> (a supposed pureblood) describe his grandmother and Great Uncle   
> Algie as thinking he was "all Muggle?"
> 
> charme

Eustace_Scrubb:
Well, the Canadian edition (which I think is pretty much the same as
the UK edition) has the line just as you quoted it.

When I think of this in context--it's casual conversation over the
Opening Feast--I think it's just an 11-year old being imprecise in his
word choice.  Sure, Neville meant 'squib,' but I wouldn't be surprised
if his pureblood Gran (and maybe Great Uncle Algie as well) used the
M-word when fretting about Neville's lack of magical manifestations
prior to age 8...perhaps he overheard some statement like "The child
might as well be all-Muggle, Algie!"  They knew better, genealogically
speaking. Neville may have been too young to pick up on what they
really meant, but he picked up on the phrase "all-Muggle."

That's my take on it, anyway.

Cheers, 

Eustace_Scrubb