CHAPDISC: HBP24, Sectumsempra

[Ceridwen]

No: HPFGUIDX 161216

Discussion Questions:

Carol:
1. How in the world could Ron "make it snow"? What might be the 
significance, if any, of this particular piece of accidental magic?

Ceridwen:
It could be a reminder that these are still 'children' under 
wizarding law and they perform accidental magic.  It could be some 
reflection of his mental state on top of that.

Carol:
2. Lavender and Dean are both jilted in this chapter. What is your 
reaction, if any, to their jealousy and/or suffering? Which one do 
you feel is more deserving of sympathy, and why?

Ceridwen:
I think both are deserving of some limited sympathy.  These were not 
true loves of their lives after all; unlike Cho, they did not lose 
their sweethearts to death.  It hurts, but most people are hurt the 
same way at this age.  They'll both get over it.

Carol:
3. Why does Harry feel that going out with Ginny would be disloyal to 
Ron and that he must choose between the two? What do you think Ron's 
reaction would have been if Harry had leveled with him?

Ceridwen:
I think he senses that there might be some conflict on some level 
with Ron if he changes Ginny's status in relation to Ron.  I don't 
know if he's right about this.  At the end of OotP, I thought Ron was 
hinting that Ginny might try for Harry.

Carol:
4. Harry undergoes a number of temptations in this chapter, among 
them to try out Sectumsempra on McLaggen and to use Felix Felicis 
either to strengthen his chances with Ginny or to help him get into 
the Room of Requirement so he can find out what Draco is up to. What 
do these temptations reveal about Harry and about his ability to deal 
with temptation in general? Might they foreshadow a more serious 
temptation in Book 7?

Ceridwen:
Harry is learning to deal with temptations like any normal teen.  
He's done well enough so far - he resisted the urge to use 
Sectumsempra on McLaggen, and he didn't take the easy way to get with 
Ginny or to get into the RoR.

Yes, temptation might play some part in book 7.  I could easily 
imagine LV setting up another trap, as he set up the trap at the MoM 
in OotP, to lure Harry to his death.  I could see him making it a 
very attractive move on a spur of the moment assessment.  His 
connection with Harry hasn't been broken, after all, he was just 
using Occlumency to keep Harry out during HBP.  Harry still has a way 
to go with resisting temptation, and figuring out which is 
temptation, and which is a good idea.  But he is certainly getting 
practice!

Carol:
5. What was your initial reaction to Draco crying in the "bathroom" 
(restroom) and to Moaning Myrtle comforting him? Did that reaction 
change on a second reading after you understood what Draco was trying 
to do? Why or why not?

Ceridwen:
I thought it had everything to do with Draco's mysterious mission.  
Unlike most, I didn't know exactly what it was he was sent to do.  I 
did think he was under a lot of stress, and this was an anvil-sized 
inkling that perhaps he was being put under threat.  Later on, once I 
knew what had been going on, I completely understood what he was 
saying.

Carol:
6. Were you shocked that Harry would try out Sectumsempra under these 
circumstances, especially given the label "For Enemies"? Why or why 
not? What other options, if any, did he have in response to Draco's 
attempted Crucio?

Ceridwen:
No, I wasn't shocked that he would use it.  Harry and Draco weren't 
duelling for fun, after all.  At this point, especially when Draco 
tried to use the Cruciatus, he was definitely Harry's enemy.  And, 
since he had been wanting to use the spell, it made perfect sense to 
me that it came immediately to his mind at that point.  Other 
options: Protego, Expelliarmus, ducking?  Splashing water in Draco's 
mouth?  (note: being facetious here)

Carol:
7. Why did Snape and only Snape show up when Myrtle cried bloody 
murder? Could anyone else have saved Draco, or does Snape alone know 
the countercurse? What does the songlike or chantlike nature of the 
countercurse suggest to you about it or about Snape?

Ceridwen:
Snape showed up because Snape was close by.  He may have been 
following Draco or watching him, or he may have been following 
Harry.  I think Draco is the best bet here.  Unless Madam Pomphrey 
had overheard and come running, I doubt if anyone else could have 
saved Draco.  If any students had responded, they might have panicked 
at all the blood and possible death, and made the situation worse, 
not better.  I think the songlike chant was necessary for this type 
of spell.  It seems to suggest an arcane type of magic, and makes me 
think back to Sirius saying that Snape was interested in the Dark 
Arts from the time he entered Hogwarts.  A person is the sum of their 
life experiences as well as their genes.  I think it expands on 
Snape's lifetime of learning in magic.

Carol:
8. Why do you think JKR included the reference to dittany in the 
scene rather than merely having Snape take Draco up to the hospital 
wing to be examined by Madam Pomfrey? What does it tell us about 
Snape and/or Draco?

Ceridwen:
The reference was anticlimactic to the preceeding scene.  It was a 
calming thing to say at that point:  "All over now, time to clean it 
up.  Here's what you do."  It could be that Snape was aware that 
Draco is sensitive about his appearance, or it could mean that Snape 
is trying to put a lid on any further panicking.  I think it says 
that Snape knows Draco, and can be soothing to him.

Carol:
9. Why does Harry wait for Snape to return, as if he thinks that he 
deserves to be punished, and yet lie when Snape asks him where he 
learned such a Dark spell? What do you think would have happened if 
Harry had told the truth?

Ceridwen:
Harry was shaken up.  He didn't even think of leaving.  He certainly 
didn't mean to hurt Draco like that, as shown in his immediate 
reaction.  Snape could surely find him in Hogwarts, or on his way to 
Hogsmeade, but I doubt if running away even entered his mind.  As for 
lying about the book, I think he must have thought that Snape would 
take it away from him.  And, I think he would have been right.

Carol:
10. Harry uses, or tries to use, three of the HBP's spells in this 
chapter (Muffliato, Levicorpus, and Sectumsempra), and he hides his 
book rather than risk having it confiscated. Afterwards, he defends 
the Prince against Hermione's accusations. What does this behavior 
tell us about Harry and about his relationship with the boy he knows 
only as the Half-Blood Prince?

Ceridwen:
It says that Harry is a very loyal friend, even to someone he has 
never met.  The Prince helped him out in his schoolwork, and with 
some entertaining and useful (Muffliato) spells.  Just because the 
Prince let him down with Sectumsempra, that was a one-time thing.  
Overall, he has helped, and Harry showed due gratitude and loyalty to 
him.

Carol:
11. Professor McGonagall tells Harry that he could have been 
expelled.  Why does Snape tell the staff "precisely what happened" 
yet punish Harry only for being "a liar and a cheat"? Why didn't he 
so much as threaten to expel Harry when he could have done so? Are 
the Saturday detentions primarily intended to punish Harry by 
tormenting him with his father's indiscretions or does this tactic 
disguise Snape's real purpose for keeping Harry in his custody every 
Saturday until the end of term?

Ceridwen:
I think that Snape has reluctantly had to agree that Harry is indeed 
the hope of the WW, and so needs his magical education.  And, I doubt 
if Dumbledore would have gone along with expulsion if he even tried, 
which he would also know by this point.  So he sets him a detention 
to show the pitfalls of using magic without thinking, or with a 
cavalier attitude, by using people Harry looks up to, as examples.  
It would anger him, certainly, but the lesson would stick better 
because of that.  And I think that the lesson is, not to use 
questionable magic, not to use unknown sources, and not to lie or 
cheat because none of those things will gain him victory over LV.

Carol:
12. Harry apparently feels only anger and resentment as he undergoes 
his detention, with no thought of the reasons why Snape assigned it. 
What has happened to Harry's horror and remorse? Has he forgotten his 
own wrongdoing? What, if anything, might Snape have done to make this 
detention (and its sequels) more effective?

Ceridwen:
I don't think he's forgotten his horror or remorse.  I think this is 
his way of protecting himself against overwhelming feelings of 
guilt.  Having Snape assign the punishment made this easier, but I 
think he would have used this defense mechanism no matter who set his 
detentions.

Carol:
13. Why do you think Snape continues to use his old office in the 
dungeon, complete with dead creatures floating in colorful potions, 
now that he's the DADA teacher and his classroom is on another floor?

Ceridwen:
Maybe he hoped to be back at teaching Potions the next year.  In any 
event, the Slytherin dorms are reached through the dungeons, so he 
would logically have an office nearby.

Carol:
14. The chapter begins with Lavender breaking up with Ron, closely 
followed by Ginny breaking up with Dean, and ends with Harry 
celebrating Gryffindor's victory (achieved without him) by finally 
kissing Ginny. What do you think JKR is trying to convey by framing 
the chapter in this way? Does the ending feel appropriate or 
inappropriate in a chapter about Sectumsempra? (And what's up with 
that "hard, blazing look"?)

Ceridwen:
I think the end and beginning set up normal life in a castle full of 
teenaged witches and wizards.  What happens in between is different 
and very out of the ordinary, and is set off by normal bookends.  I 
think JKR meant to take us from the ordinary into a very unordinary 
event, then back to everyday life so we could experience the same 
sorts of emotions Harry experiences at various times during this 
chapter.

The 'hard, blazing look'?  A look of fierce victory.

Ceridwen, thanking Carol for a good discussion and excellent 
questions.