Sympathy to the characters WAS: Respecting the Dursleys

[dumbledore11214]

No: HPFGUIDX 159607

> Jen R: 
<SNIP>
>> When have our sympathies been a reliable guide? Well, I'm willing 
to 
> bet my sympathy for Harry is right on the money. That my feeling of 
> compassion for the beleagured Order members, despite their flaws, 
> will not turn out to be a 'gotcha' by JKR. That believing in the 
> Weasley family will not steer me wrong. That agonizing with and 
> cheering for the Trio will not end up in a surprising twist. I've 
> already confirmed to my own satisfaction that Dumbledore was meant 
> to be essentially good after HBP.

Alla:

I will say even more - so far my sympathies did not suffer one 
reversal whatsoever, at least not a complete reversal. There is 
always book 7, but I doubt so.
I mean, I certainly am harsher on Dumbledore in general than I am 
used to be ( I used to be quite harsh on some of his deeds, but in 
general like him a lot), but all I have to do is indeed to reread the 
cave and a lot of it comes back.


Jen R: 
> Sympathy is a movable feast. I don't think JKR is toying with 
> readers so much as prioritizing her plot over her characterization 
> sometimes. She's definitely willing to sacrifice adult characters 
to 
> keep the children as the heroes. We see this in the graveyard, the 
> MOM battle, Dumbledore's 'mistakes' in OOTP, the Shrieking Shack, 
> and so on. That's fine, it works in the story. The moral high 
ground 
> is a slippery slope though.

Alla:

YES, precisely. I think it is a pity, but I do think that a lot of 
her adult characters took a hit to sustain the plot.


> Pippin:
> Maybe I should have said infallible, not reliable. Weren't we 
supposed
> to feel sorry for p-poor, stuttering Professor Quirrell? For  poor 
but
> brilliant, parentess but brave Tom Riddle? As for readers feeling 
they've
> been toyed with,  of course that never happens, just ask any
> H/H shipper <veg>. 

Alla:

Weren't we? I don't know, I know that I certainly did not have time 
in one book to care for them that much as to feel sorry for them. 
Honestly, I did not dislike them, but I did not sympathise with them 
either, I was indifferent and I think that was done on purpose for 
the reversal to not be as radical as to go from sympathy to hatred, 
but from indifference to hatred, in my case at least.

Because when JKR wants to she certainly could make me feel for the 
character in one book - Sirius, Lupin, Cedric after all.


Pippin:
> Some people think that because there haven't been any startling
> reversals lately, JKR is all through with them.
<SNIP>

Alla:

Hehe, there is one reversal I do not expect to happen :) But if it 
would be, I sure will be the first to bow to your greatness publicly.


JMO,

Alla