Views of Hermione

[amiabledorsai]

No: HPFGUIDX 160514

> Carol notes:
> 
> Alla is right. That's what we do here. We examine plot and character
> and try to arrive at reasonable conclusions about existing scenes and
> characters, and we theorize and speculate about future books, now
> sadly reduced to one. It's supposed to be fun and educational.
> Unfortunately, sometimes we take it a little too seriously. I'll try
> not to do that here.
> 
> The Polyjuice scene as a plot device does a lot more than introduce
> the bathroom (or should I say restroom, as I think that's how the
> American editor should have rendered "toilet"--there's no bath
> involved) with the plumbing that leads to the Chamber of Secrets,
> important though that is to the plot of CoS. It also introduces both
> Moaning Myrtle, Tom Riddle's first victim (who will be useful to
> Harry later) and Polyjuice Potion (courtesy of Snape, who mentioned
> it and "Moste Potent Potions" in class), which will play an
> important role in GoF and HBP. It provides a (not altogether
> ethical) means by which Ron and Harry can spy on Draco (and find
> out what he doesn't know), and it provides a vhicle for character
> development (I think this is the first time we see Hermione not
> only willingly breaking rules but initiating the rule breaking and
> encouraging the others to join her. 

Amiable Dorsai:
Excellent points.  It also gives us, I think, our first glimpse of
just how far Ron will go to protect Harry and Hermione *in cold
blood*, as opposed to on the spur of the moment. He had a month to
think about it, and never backed down.

> Carol responds;
> It seems to me that you're not only holding the Gryffindors to a
> different standard of behavior than the Slytherins, you seem to be
> saying that the end justifies the means. If that's true for HRH,
> surely it's true for Dumbledore as well (and for Snape, if he's
> DDM)?

Amiable Dorsai:
I don't know what Alla would say, but if someone were going around
trying to murder Pureblood bigots, I'd cut Draco a fair amount of
slack for trying to save his own life.  Especially if he did it in a
way, as the Trio did, that caused them no permanent (and little
temporary) harm.

Amiable Dorsai