The Too Unreliable Narrator (was: What really happened on the tower)

[Neri]

No: HPFGUIDX 155831

> Mike now:
> Here is a non-description without shifting POV: Harry knows he 
> didn't spike Ron's pumpkin juice with Felix, yet we are led to 
> believe he did, until we reach the locker room scene after the 
> match. In fact the narrator tells us that Harry thinks, "Hermione 
> had never really understood what a serious business Quidditch was" 
> (p.293,US) and Harry mutters, "That's right, Smith, he is" 
> (p.296,US).
> 
> The unreliable narrator is telling the story from Harry's POV and 
> yet we don't know that Harry didn't really spike the juice. Further, 
> we are treated to comments and musings the lead us further to 
> believe the spiking occurred. This is clearly a case of trickery on 
> JKR's part wherein we do find out that she *conned* us purposely. 
> Harry knows, we are in Harry's POV, we don't know.


Neri:
Yes, you found the example I mentioned as a special exception in the
post were I first suggested the term "non-description":
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/148445

As I wrote there, it is indeed a non-description used to fool the
reader, but it is not used to fool *Harry*. In fact it is Harry here
who is fooling the reader. It's an exception that in a sense only
strengthen my suggestion, that JKR considers it unfair to fool both
Harry and the reader with non-descriptions. This example shows that
she is quite able to employ a non-description in a very purposeful
way. She certainly has that tool in her arsenal. She just never uses
it to spring a surprise on both Harry and us.

In that post I issued the challenge of finding an "unfair"
non-description, that is, a non-description that is used to fool both
the hero and the reader. See also:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/148501
where I answered some other counter-examples raised by other listees.
Since no clear-cut counter-example was yet found in six books I guess
I'll now have to extend the challenge to Austen's books as well <g>.

Neri