Underage Wizardry

[Karen Barker]

No: HPFGUIDX 130352

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Wilson, Bruce" 
<brucewilson at m...> wrote:
> Lyra:
> 
> I guess someone needs to convince Dumbledore that "domestic magic" 
> would be a useful subject. (He might realize it's a lot less dodgy 
> than divination.) 
> 
> 
> [Wilson, Bruce] 
> The Wizardling equivalent of Home Economics?  This would be 
especially useful for Muggleborns (or Mugglereared) like Hermione 
and Harry.  Children raised in a wizard household could learn those 
sorts of spells from their parents.
>  
> Even requiring the professors to have a unit on 'practical 
household applications' as a part of each class would be useful.
>  
> However, remember---absense of presence is not the same thing as 
presence of absence.  Just because we aren't shown something in the 
Wizardling World doesn't mean that it isn't there.  Like Narnia, 
Middle Earth, and Wonderland, the WW--or even Velgarth and the Seven 
Kingdoms---has an existance outside of the author's published works. 
>  
> BAW

I think you're right about there being a unit on 'practical 
household applications' within standard lessons that we do not see.  
I also think that pure blood wizzards probably help their muggle-
born/raised housemates with such things.  

We see Hermione knitting magically and she complains that she was 
not as fast during the holidays when she had to do it 'manually', 
but we've never seen her dashing off for a 'magical dressmaking and 
needlecrafts' lesson!  I suspect that Ginny showed her how, having 
been taught at home by Molly, who we know specuialises in jumpers.

I think this also helps explain why Harry is pounced on for doing 
magic at home.  They know that he is the 'only wizard in the 
village'.  At his trial when Mrs Figg testifies someone remarks that 
there are no other magical people registered in Little Whinging.  
Therefore if something magical happens there, it must be Harry. 
QED.  If there are magical happenings in The Burrow, however, there 
are adult wizards living there to whom it could be (and probably is) 
attributed.

Karen