Pansy Parkinson (Was: House characteristics)

[horridporrid03]

No: HPFGUIDX 150625

> >>Alla:
> > <snip>
> > Now, Okay, she likes Hermione, she really likes Hermione, I     
> > understand that, so it is understandable that she wants young    
> > girls to be like her, but what is so BAD about Pancy Parkinson   
> > that she does not want the girls to be like her, except that     
> > Pancy is in Slytherin House?
> > <snip>

> >>Magpie:
> It just seems like JKR makes it very clear which types of girls or 
> girlish behavior are good or bad--Hermione as a character is very 
> judgmental of other women, which is fine because it's in character 
> for her, but she doesn't get called on it too much.
> <snip>
> But I feel like Lavender and Parvati sometimes are being judged 
> because of their giggling and interest in make up and boys.  Pansy 
> is sometimes aggressively rude, but it seems like in the fat rant 
> JKR is referring to Pansy's being interested in looks being her 
> problem, she's being held up as a type, not a specific character. 
> <snip>

Betsy Hp:
At one point JKR said that all children have experienced a Pansy or 
a Draco in their lives, and frankly, it confused me.  Or, not so 
much confused me, because I thought I knew what she was getting at, 
but made me think that she feels she's been clearer on 
Pansy's "type" than she actually has been.

Pansy is supposed to be the "mean girl".  And if this were really a 
school days genre story, she'd have a bigger role to play as 
Hermione's opposite.  But, while the flavor is there, JKR is 
concentrating more on other aspects of the story and Hermione gets 
beyond Pansy by, well, day one almost. (And even then, Ron was more 
Hermione's "mean girl".  He's the one who had her crying in the 
girls' room.)

And that's where JKR falls down, I think, on really showing us what 
makes Pansy a bad type.  So we know Pansy's a bad sort because she 
doesn't like Harry and friends and does like Draco.  She also tends 
to have more girlfriends than boyfriends, which JKR seems to use as 
a short-cut for either "shallow" or "mean", with her female 
characters.  

[An Aside: Which leaves the "popular" Ginny with no friends her age 
that the reader can see.  It made me think that JKR must be changing 
her view of Pansy when we saw Pansy without her girlfriends and 
hanging with the boys in HBP.  And it's a big part of the reason I 
think Lily and Snape were friends.  JKR will not leave Lily with 
girls as her closest friends, IMO, unless she's going to turn Lily 
bad.]

But Pansy never does much to fill the "mean girl" role.  She doesn't 
steal, or try to steal, a boy from Hermione.  She stays loyally 
interested in a boy Hermione is not interested in.  She also doesn't 
seem to be going for the "most popular" boy of her class or of 
Hogwarts.  Again, she sticks with Draco, who is popular (it seems) 
with Slytherins but not all of Hogwarts.  She stays with him even 
after his father is publically shunned. (And privately shunned 
amongst the Death Eaters.)

Just as Draco really doesn't give Harry any competition (Harry is 
richer, more famous, more athletic, and better connected) Pansy 
doesn't have any power over Hermione.  They're the school-days mean 
kids, but without any teeth.

> >>Lealess:
> I wouldn't automatically prefer Hermione to her, but I am not the 
> author, who must perforce know her characters better than I do... 
> right?

Betsy Hp:
The funny thing is, I doubt Hermione would have much time for me, if 
we were in school together.  I got downright giggly about boys 
(still do, sometimes).  I'm not sure Pansy and I would have gotten 
along, either, but yeah, JKR did not do enough, IMO, to paint Pansy 
as a bad egg that young girls would do best to avoid emulating.  

> >>Lealess:
> I kind-of like Millicent, by the way.  Go figure.

Betsy Hp:
I recall someone, somewhere (not this list, I think) pointing out 
that the one time Millicent and Hermione dueled, Millicent wisely 
decided to forget magic, where Hermione would excell, and go for the 
physical attack which gave her the win.  There's something admirable 
about that, IMO.  Plus, a half-blood in Slytherin has got to have 
some extra jolt in her juice I'd think. <g>

Betsy Hp