CHAPDISC: HBP24, Sectumsempra

[finwitch]

No: HPFGUIDX 161231


>
> 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?

Finwitch:

That despite of their current age as legal adults (or almost)
accidental magic is still a possibility. It's not limited to children.
As we know, Harry had accidental magic at 13 - and as Dumbledore put
it, even the best of them may sometimes lose control. Accidental magic
may be important later on, particularly considering the effect that
happens when Harry&Voldeemort duel.

As for how... it's MAGIC. And Snow is just frozen water, really --
they can shoot water from their wands, after all..

> 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?

Finwitch:

Because he's a teenage boy, because Ron hasn't been liking others go
out with Ginny-- as for Ron's reaction - he'd either be torn between
big-brother-duty and his loyalty as Harry's friend or accept it. After
all, Harry has saved Ginny's life... so if anyone gets to date Ginny,
it's 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?

Finwitch:

Temptation - well, certainly. Choices, too. And it's not like it's the
first time. Book 1: the mirror. Book3: The Firebolt. (Remember Harry
seeing it in the window and not buying it?) Of course, they have also
given in sometimes - just like everyone else.

> 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?

Finwitch:

Well -- It made me pity him. A bit surprised, too - that Draco knew
how to cry.
 
> 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?

Finwitch:

Not shocked, no. He *was* acting in self-defence, after all. The spell
had been lurking in his mind all the time, so I suppose using it was
natural reaction. Of course, he could have used Expelliarmus, but one
doesn't have time to consider things when under attack.
 
> 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?

Finwitch:

Snape had been tailing Draco so naturally it was he to show up. As for
why none other didn't come -- they didn't hear Myrtle. There's a
reason why Draco chose Myrtle's toilet to cry in: he didn't wish to be
heard in the act. As for the countercurse -- well, I would be
surprised if Dumbledore didn't know it, and spposedly Madam Pomfrey
did as well. We have evidence that Snape created SectumSempra, not
that he created the countercurse. For all we know, it was *Dumbledore*
to create that one, so that doesn't say anything about Snape.

> 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?

What? That Snape knew the countercurse, of course. It tells of Snape's
knowledge in the area - due to the vow, this tells nothing more about
Snape.

> 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?

Finwitch:

Harry's truly shocked of the effects of the spell - and regrets doing
it to Draco. As for Harry lying to Snape -- well, he's SNAPE, that's
why. Had Harry told the truth, Snape would have confiscated the book,
of course -- and possibly questioned Harry further.

> 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?

Finwitch:

That Harry's loyalty to someone who has helped him is not overthrown
by a single not-so-good deed. Secondly, he may think that as horrible
as the spell is, well, just because the prince made it, doesn't mean
he used it. And of course, maybe deep down Harry feels that Hermione's
jealous because instead of her, Harry now has another to help him
learn potions...

> 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?

Finwitch:

1. Because of Draco attempting Crucio and Harry merely defending
himself against him. 2. Snape's well aware that since his second year,
Harry knows Snape doesn't have the authority to expel him. 3. Because
of Harry's regular meetings with Dumbledore... and the prophecy, of
course, AND the fact about Voldemort...

As for the Torment-- oh yes. Snape does that on purpose. Much like he
does by assigning Neville to disembowl Toads...

> 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?

Finwitch:

Of course he didn't forget that. As for *effective* detention? I don't
know what you mean with it-- Snape couldn't have chosen one to make
Harry *suffer* more. Of course Harry feels angry and resentful about
that -- it's a defence-mechanism he developed with Dursleys; it's
Snape; Harry's a teen.

> 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?

Finwitch: Because that's the office of Slytherin Head of House. As for
his potions there -- Snape loves potions, doesn't he? The Potions he
has are ones he feels he needs, of course, some Dumbledore has asked
him to make (Stopper Death), a little side business probably... and
just in case Slughorn would need him to cover for him.
 
> 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"?)
>

Finwitch:

Well, we don't need to dwell in bad spells, do we? I suppose we now
have the relationships where they will remain -- Harry&Ginny,
Ron&Hermione -- better this than Love Potion, wouldn't you say?

Finwitch