Werewolf Mystery

[lanval1015]

No: HPFGUIDX 153823

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Marion Ros" <mros at ...> wrote:
>
> 
> Lanval:

> Should not 'James saved Snape's life' really be 'James saved Snape
> from becoming a werewolf'? Not a pleasant fate either, but 
preferable
> to death, I should think. >>>>>>>
> 
> Allie:
> >> You are absolutely right. If the common perception that 
werewolf 
> bites are not fatal is correct, then Snape doesn't owe James a 
life-
> debt. I suspect that what we are dealing with is a big, HUGE... 
> Flint. I don't think more will be made of it in book 7. <<<<<
> 
> 
> Marion:
> 
> This is nonsense. 

Lanval:
Forgive me. In attempting to start a discussion about a possible 
contradiction in the books, I must have accidentally set off your 
Nonsense Detector. I'll try not to do that again.


> Marion:
Why would the Wizarding World have such a fear for werewolves is 
they were harmless? 


Lanval:
*searches her prior posts, trying to find the word 'harmless' as a 
description for werewolves*


> Marion:
If anybody with a wand could adequately defend himself from a 
werewolf attack, why would it be such a no-no for young werewolves 
to attend Hogwarts. Young Lupin was an experiment. One that was 
botched by the so-called 'Prank'.

Lanval:
Butbutbut... he was allowed to stay and finish school! No one even 
got expelled! Least of all Lupin himself! Maybe DD didn't think of 
this particular experiment as all that 'botched'? 

Wait... could JKR perhaps be drawing certain parallels to Real Life? 
About prejudice toward people with certain diseases?

Nah. I'm sure it was all just to show what a crazy idea it was to 
accept Lupin in the first place. And the Prank serves to drive the 
message home, both to DD and to the readers: don't trust these 
contagious folks. 


> Marion:
If werewolves were really so easily stopped by anybody with a wand, 
if they were really not really into killing people and if they 'as a 
rule do not attack to kill', why should anybody worry about 
werewolves at all? They're just large mosquitos, right? Their bites 
might sting a bit, and it might turn you into a werewolf yourself 
(always handy for costume parties and Halloween) but one flick of a 
wand and any real danger can be contained. We're talking about 
people who let their young children practice a sport in which they 
fly a hundred feet high without a crash helmet. If they break their 
necks, there's always Skelegro potion, right? 

Lanval:
Is there? Is there really? Are you saying Snape may not have saved 
Harry's life after all in SS/PS?


> Marion:
> Can you just imagine? "Oh, look! Loopy Lupin is a werewolf again! 
Lets go bother him! Bother bother bother! Oh, he's growling! He 
wants to bite. Bad wolfie! I'll contain your ferociousness with my 
newly learned batbogie hex, or perhaps the trusty jellylegsjinx."
> 
> I don't think so.

Lanval:
Neither do I. 

> Marion:
> We've been told that the  transformation fills the werewolf with 
bloodlust against *humans* (they don't attack animals, hence the 
animagi Marauders were quite safe). This is what makes it a Dark 
Creature, basically. It's a magically partial deformation of body, 
mind and (if you belief in such things) soul. 
> We've been told that, when deprived of suitable prey (humans) and 
locked up, LupinWolf would attack himself (the werewolf knows 
instinctively that he himself is part human perhaps?) 
> And we've been told that the transformation *hurts*.

Lanval:

Yes. I believe I wrote very much the same in my post, so your point 
would be...?


> Marion:
> We've also been told that Fenrir Greyback would choose to be close 
to a populated area in order to kill or transform as many as he can, 
and he chooses a populated area with many *children* by preference 
(he's just sick than way. He mirrors Tom Riddle that way. Tom also 
chose his followers when they were seventeen. Notice that older 
wizards and witches never fell for his charms. Not even screachin' 
mrs Black would have anything to do with Tom Riddle, thank you very 
much. But that's another story for another thread)
> 

Lanval:
Well, since you brought it up: Greyback's *victims* are small 
children.  Riddle's *followers* are seventeen (or so) which means 
they are adults according to Wizarding Law. 

I'm also a bit, say, hesitant, to accept how joining a fledgling 
terrorist group is in ANY way comparable to falling victim to a 
clear stand-in for a child rapist/murderer... ???

As for ol' Tom's charms, some of the older adults in HBP seemed 
quite taken with him.



> Marion:

> Yeah, right, but if you would step into a dark cage with a 
Siberian Tiger, a *rabid* Siberian Tiger, enraged, zoning in on its 
favourite prey, would having a gun help? You'd need *distance* for a 
gun. Or a wand. Within a second of noticing it (the image of 
snarling razorsharp teeth and claws and insane glowing eyes has 
barely made an imprint on your mind) the beast would be upon you. 
Before you could lift your wand, your arm would be ripped from your 
body. Before you could shout 'avada kadavra', it's teeth would be in 
your neck, severing your head from your shoulders. The last image 
your brain would process would be of the monster feasting on your 
intestines.
> 
> They don't give delicate nips, you know.
>

Lanval:
I would have never known!
One small nitpicky point, though. Once Greyback's little victims 
have had their arms ripped off, their heads severed and their 
intestines eaten, will they turn into armless, headless and 
intestine-free werewolves at the next full moon? 

Because, you see,  the author kind of suggested in HBP that 
werewolves generally bite to create more werewolves, not to kill.

And as to famous Headless James Potter.. oh, never mind.


> Marion:
> And I've got a niggling suspicion (can't remember if it's canon or 
not) that werewolves are somewhat resistant to magic (like giants 
are) Perhaps not impervious, but, really, doesn't only silver kill 
them?
>

Lanval:
I don't know. I don't recall it mentioned in the books, but it's a 
possibility. Which is why I thought this group might be a good place 
to discuss it.


> Marion: 
> There's a *reason* the wizarding world hates, fears and loathes 
werewolves. If they were only a minor inconvenience, the WW would 
regularly send out a posse to keep the numbers down. But werewolves 
are just too dangerous. You'd be killed before you know it. And if 
you'd be 'lucky' enough to survive the attack (because for instance 
your friends or family chases it off) the werewolf would still be 
alive and *you'd* be one of them by next full moon.

Lanval:

Hm, yes, overcoming a werewolf might pose a problem for a posse on a 
full moon night, when -- oh! Perhaps they could send the Aurors or 
Ministry officials at some point during THE REST of the month? To 
*keep the numbers down*. That'll look good, AK'ing little kids.

As for why there's a *reason* for the WW to fear and loathe these 
folks who dared to become innocent victims: see above. Yes, thank 
God, JKR isn't one of those stupidy-stupidy people who think 
prejudice and intolerance are Bad Things! Wouldn't want kids to 
learn that sort of junk. 
And look at those Order members! Look how they fear and loathe 
Lupin. Why, Molly Weasley is clearly terrified of him. I'm surprised 
none of them have yet suggested that Lupin be locked up in Azkaban 
for the rest of his life. Or killed. To keep those numbers down.



> Marion:
> I don't think that calling the 'Prank' anything other than a 
murder attempt would fail to do the seriousness of it justice.
> 

Lanval:
I assume you're saying it WAS attempted murder?

Um, no. The danger of a werewolf attack nonwithstanding (let's just 
assume they ARE out to kill), you would have to prove that Sirius 
Black intended for Snape to die, and that's not upheld in canon. 

By your definition (if only the level of danger counts), Hagrid 
attempted murder when he sent Harry and Ron after the spiders.

And if I could interest you in my original question:

Do you think it's a mistake/contradiction by the author that 
werewolves in HBP are presented as Not Necessarily Killers (and no, 
I didn't come up with this myself just to get Sirius off the hook; 
it's all in HBP)? Or is there another explanation?

Lanval