Special treatment of Harry or not WAS:Re: Lessons in the book

[Ceridwen]

No: HPFGUIDX 146101

Sherry now:
> i agree that Harry doesn't give a rip much about detention, and I 
also agree
> that it is a pretty common feeling among kids.  i think especially 
if it
> comes from someone you dislike or disrespect.  He was far more 
affected by a
> few well chosen words from Lupin in POA, than he'd ever be by 
detention from
> Snape.  But I think there's something more in this last detention.  
how
> could Harry have anything but contempt for a detention designed to 
try to
> give him a bad impression of his father and godfather?  my dad was 
so very
> far from perfect, and my siblings and I can admit it and laugh 
about it.
> however, we don't allow outsiders to discuss him that way.  i would 
highly
> resent a detention that had me having to read letters from all my 
dad's
> ex-wives for instance.  it would make me completely close off my 
feelings or
> thoughts about the reason I was getting the detention or the 
rightness and
> wrongness of it.  

Ceridwen:
Since I'm leaning toward the idea that the detention was given 
because Harry acted without thinking or knowing what the outcome 
might even possibly be, the detention makes sense: recopy the cards 
of other people's infractions.  It probably made a greater impact 
when he saw that it was mainly Sirius and James who kept showing up 
in the cards.  They weren't the only two, from what I recall 
offhand.  But they were in there an inordinate amount of times.  And, 
how many detentions and other punishments were caused by people 
acting first and thinking later?  Not just James and Sirius, but 
everyone in the cards.  Which is what Harry did - he used a spell he 
had no knowledge of, and there was a potential disaster.  Act first, 
think last.

That Snape assigned a box that he knew would contain more of Harry's 
father and godfather was just pure Snape.  And I've already mentioned 
that, from what we've been shown so far, Snape seems to have 
pinpointed himself on the Marauders and hasn't really gone beyond 
that point.  That may just be the 'Harry POV' again, but that's all 
we have.

Sherry:
> now, I was a kid who was pretty much a rule follower,
> because i didn't have the opportunity to get into much trouble at 
Harry's
> age.  And I didn't want my dad to yell at me, because I wanted his 
approval
> so much.  But Harry doesn't have anyone like that anymore.  i don't 
think he
> is jaded or unaware of right and wrong.  Neither do I think he has 
an
> indifferent attitude to right and wrong, just to detention, which is
> completely different.

Ceridwen:
I was the same way about my dad, and my mom as well.  But for my mom, 
it was not wanting her endless lectures.  And I do realize that the 
Dursleys would not have provided the desire, and probably not even 
the instruction, that someone else might have, to avoid detentions.  
They probably acted like such a thing would only be expected (St. 
Somebodyorother's school for incorrigible boys?).

But, kchuplis brought up two scenarios: Blowing up Aunt Marge, and 
slashing Draco.  His reaction to the Aunt Marge episode, though not 
as horrible as the Draco episode, got more worry out of him than 
slashing Draco so that the bathroom was awash in blood.  That's 
disturbing.  Aunt Marge floats away, the Ministry rearranges 
memories, Harry's given a slap on the wrist and not kicked out of the 
WW, Aunt Marge is fine if lacking a memory (unfortunately, the WW 
didn't see fit to give her a personality change as well!), and that 
*seems* to carry more weight than buckets of blood?  Yes, I would say 
he is becoming jaded.  To mishaps, to detention, to what he can get 
away with.  And I think that will be another thing, along with his 
capacity for hate, which he'll have to release, probably very early 
in book 7, in order for the love power he has to be able to vanquish 
the Dark Lord.

> ever seen the movie, THE BREAKFAST CLUB?  The kids in
> that movie, had a rather indifferent attitude to detention too!
> overall, i think Harry's attitude, especially in the last detention 
is
> pretty understandable because of the situation and the one giving 
the
> detention.  it doesn't necessarily mean that he doesn't care about 
the
> horrible thing he did to get the detention, only that he has no 
respect for
> the person giving it.  any time Snape punishes Harry, we're going 
to have
> that attitude.  Thankfully, we won't have any more of it in the 
last book.

Ceridwen:
I think that the person giving the detention shouldn't matter if he 
was as caring over the horrible thing he did.  But, that opinion 
aside, we don't see him complain about detention merely because he 
has it with Snape.  He complains about it, period.  It cut into his 
Quidditch.  It later cut into his time with Ginny.  We do see Harry's 
thoughts quite often through the books, since he's the POV 
character.  And, we don't see that he only resents the detentions 
because they're given and managed by Snape.  He resents them because 
they eat up his Saturdays.  (Oh, and no, I haven't seen The Breakfast 
Club.  Is it any good?)

Ceridwen.