Re: Dumbledore's "“peaceful expression”? (was: Dumbledore's pleading)

[nkafkafi]

No: HPFGUIDX 141734

> Valky:
> Ooops, you know Neri, now you point it out I think the Peaceful
> expression must come directly from the description of the portrait. 
> 

Neri:
Thanks Valky, now I see it. It's Dumbledore's new *portrait* that is
described as "looking peaceful and untroubled".

But I don't think this is where the words "peaceful expression" came
from. In fact, it's very easy to trace exactly where they came from.
Just type "peaceful expression" in the search box on the top right (if
you are in the HPfGU site), and then hit "search more" many times, and
you'll quickly discover how this one spread out and what was the
original source. You might find this entertaining as I did <g>.  

> Valky:
> I take the lack of a described customary look of terror as in other
> Avada Kedavra cases, to be quite ambiguous in the case of Dumbledore,
> but still lending to No successful AK, and I continue to question that
> Dumbledore would have his eyes closed (in death or in the portrait) if
> Snape betrayed him or post humous bleeding if he was died of Avada
> Kedavra, as there is no precedent for that. Just in case there was
> interest in how much more canon there is other than the peaceful
> expression for questioning how Dumbledore died. 
>

Neri:
Regarding the post humus bleeding, I'm not a pathologist, and neither
is JKR, but it sounds logical to me that if a person had a nasty
poison in his stomach for many minutes then an internal bleeding might
occur. If this person is then thrown from the top of a tower and lands
on his back, it seems reasonable the blow would make a bit of this
blood trickle out of his mouth, even if his heart stopped three or
four seconds before that.

Regarding the "customary look of terror", being wary now of anything
that isn't cited canon I went looking and found Cedric's expression is
"slightly surprised". It's only the Riddles who have "a look of
terror" on their face. 

Another interesting inconsistency I found is that in the Frank Brice
case and in the spider case there's a "rushing sound" after the green
light, which in the spider case is further described "as though a
vast, invisible something was soaring through the air". This quite
distinct sound is *not* described in Cedric's case, nor in the fox
case, nor in any of the many AKs in the MoM, nor on the tower. In the
Cedric case there's a "swishing noise" but it's heard *before* the
green light, actually before the "Avada Kedavra!" incantation is even
spoken, and so I take it to be the sound of the wand whipped out of
hiding (Harry's eyes are shut in pain so he doesn't see it). So did
Cedric too die from something else? And what about the fox? 

As a whole, if JKR meant for the AK symptoms to be a clue I'd say she
did a pretty lousy job describing them consistently throughout the
series. If, however, she went for the most appropriate dramatic effect
in each specific context, I'd say she just about nailed it.

Neri