Twins or individuals? (was Re: Molly's worst moment)

[John Kearns]

No: HPFGUIDX 132786

It's funny, I was just talking with my wife last night about how one 
of my favorite aspects of the books is Rowling's writing 
distinctions between Fred and George, despite the fact that they so 
often move as a duo.  There is an excellent, though brief (and pre-
OotP), discussion of George's angle here:

http://www.hp-lexicon.org/essays/essay-george.html

The distinctions are subtle, but if you look for them, they are 
there.  There are actually dozens of times in the books that one 
twin is mentioned without the other, and they nearly always depict 
the same characteristics for the two.  As people have mentioned, I 
too see Fred as the slightly reckless, more money-driven twin - he's 
always the one, for example, that Ron brings up when he mentions the 
twins picking on him (Fred turned his toy into a spider, Fred gave 
him the dud spell, Fred told Ron he'd have to wrestle a troll in the 
sorting - just in a couple of chapters of PS!).  George, meanwhile, 
is more thoughtful and people-driven. A few examples from Scholastic 
OotP:

Fred: "Time is Galleons," 68

George: "Size is no guarantee of power.  Look at Ginny." 100

George: "All thanks to you, mate" (when they discuss the joke shop 
with Harry), 105

Fred: "I love hearing Mum shouting at someone else," 107

Fred: "No one in their right mind would make Ron a prefect," 161

(as first-years are waking up from testing fainting fancies)
George: "Feel all right?"
Fred: "Excellent." 254

(as Harry catches Fred and George hexing Zacharias Smith during DA)
George: "Sorry, Harry, Couldn't resist..." 394

Fred: "Easy for you to say, stuck here! I don't see you risking your 
neck!" 477

Fred fell back into his chair with his hands over his face.  George 
and Ginny got up, walked swiftly over to their mother, and hugged 
her. 479

George: "If Zacharias Smith beats us I might have to kill myself."
Fred: "Kill him, more like." 574

Also, compare these two passages:
"It's not my fault I didn't," said Fred, with a very ugly look on 
his face. 417
"I think we're well shut of him," said George with an 
*uncharacteristically* ugly look on his face. 70 (emphasis mine)

Of course I chose these specifically for my purpose and 
counterexamples could be found if they were taken equally out of 
context; but I chose these to illustrate my overall impression of 
them.

It will be interesting to see whether Rowling differentiates their 
characters in HBP, not to mention how much they play into the story 
in the first place.  It's one of the things I'm most looking forward 
to.

John K