Diaries and textbooks

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 135299

On this subject of the diary and the Potions textbook, I do not 
believe that we can draw parallels or comparisons because they do not 
fall into the same category.

When Harry and Ron first find the diary in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, 
it is interesting that Ron is the first to suggest that it could be a 
dangerous magical artefact and quotes a couple of examples. Harry is 
initially sceptical and thinks that it is nothing of interest. It 
belonged to someone called T.M. Riddle and was bought at a 
newsagent's shop in Vauxhall Road by which Harry assumed he was 
Muggle-born. Full stop. He keeps it but his interest is not fully 
aroused again until the Valentine's Day incident when ink is spilled 
over all his books – except the diary. This leads him to the 
experiment with the ink blot when he discovers he can communicate 
with the book, an experiment which reveals that it is indeed magical. 
And so his dealings with Tom Riddle begin. Tom confirms that it was 
created as a diary "preserving my sixteen-year-old self in its 
pages". So this book was produced specifically to hold the memory 
image of Tom Riddle until someone opened it and could be led 
to "finish Salazar Slytherin's noble work". (COS "The Heir of 
Slytherin" p.230 UK edition)

Just as a side comment here, it only occurred to me a few days ago 
that the diary is first cousin to a Pensieve in allowing someone to 
access the thoughts held in it - but only under Diary!Tom's control.

Now, the Potions textbook. When I was teaching, I always found that I 
had a few textbooks over and perhaps a few tatty older copies which 
usually occupied the back of a shelf in one of my cupboards. Often, 
they lay there untouched for months but occasionally, if someone 
arrived at a Maths class having forgotten their book, I might fish 
out one of these for their benefit – although mine would probably be 
just for the duration of the class. Again, some of them might have 
odd jottings in the margins, though these might be as simple as a 
piece of working out. If you go to my bookshelf at home and pull out 
a book, say, of walks in Surrey, I might have made notes in the 
margin where the data had altered or we had found an alternative way 
to cover part of the walk.

The Potions book is like that. It seems to have been gathering dust 
in the corner cupboard. It has marginal notes which allow an 
alternative way of reaching the same result. Now, they are not 
sitting a test or an exam; OK, there is a "prize" at the end but if 
the owner of the book had recorded a way of completing the job more 
efficiently, Harry felt it in order to use this -  especially since 
he wanted to beat Draco. Perhaps this was a trifle underhand on this 
occasion but, on future occasions, when there are no prizes – other 
than Slughorn's praise(!) – I think Harry was in order to use the 
improved methods suggested by the unknown writer. There is no 
suggestion of hidden magic, no hidden personalities waiting to jump 
out at people, no threats to Harry's life. I can recall occasions 
when a Computer Studies student has handed in a piece of work and 
said "I found this bit in a book in the library, sir, and thought it 
was OK to use it" or something similar and I have replied "Well done, 
I'm glad you've researched a bit." 

Where Harry was incautious was in trying out the spells, knowing that 
they /were/ spells and not knowing precisely what they would do. The 
spell he used on Draco proved to be dangerous but let us remember 
that it was to block an Unforgivable curse from the latter gentleman. 
I wonder if Hermione's constant naggings were not because of her 
irritation that not everybody embraces her ordered view of life. I 
wonder how many of us have taken the opportunity to improve our work 
with "a little help from our friends" at some point in the past; I'm 
sure I have.

Geoff:

As has been said in the days of old - 
"Plagiarize,
Let no one else's work evade your eyes,
Remember why the good Lord made your eyes,
So don't shade your eyes,
But plagiarize, plagiarize, plagiarize...
Only be sure always to call it please, `research'."
(Tom Lehrer: Lobachevsky)