Inferi (was Re: CHAPDISC: HBP21, The Unknowable Room

[quick_silver71]

No: HPFGUIDX 158869

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "potioncat" <willsonkmom at ...> 
wrote:
<cut>
> Potioncat:
> Yeah, that's right. But why did JKR tell us so many times that 
ghosts 
> are transparent? And why did Snape ask the difference between 
ghosts 
> and Inferi? They don't seem anything alike.

Quick_Silver:
Yeah they really aren't that alike at all. But I wonder if that's 
put of the reason Harry has a little trouble at first with the 
question...because they seem to just *be* different Harry's never 
had to put words to the difference before. Or it could simply be a 
stupid question Snape asked to shame Harry for talking in class.

<cut> 
> Potioncat:
> That's a good point. Many of us were interested in how a DADA 
class 
> between Harry and Snape would play out. Do you mean, that even 
though 
> Harry is good at DADA, Snape is still able to challenge him? That 
is, 
> make the course challenging?

Quick_Silver:
It can go either way really (depending on how you read Harry, Snape, 
and their relationship). It could be that the question was meant to 
show that Harry is challenged by Snape's class however it could also 
show that Snape is still asking questions and excepting Harry to be 
unable to answer (like in Potions) in which case Snape is in for a 
rude shock.

In my *personal* opinion Snape comes of the worse for that scene. 
First he asks a rather suspect question (it comes across as an 
almost pointless question to me...making me wonder on Seamus's 
intelligence or lack there of) and then derides what seems to be a 
perfectly answer by comparing Harry to a child. When Ron points out 
that Harry's answer is legit (and mocks Snape's answer) Snape then 
attacks Ron's apparation skills without even explaining why his, 
Snape's, answer is better. As the old saying goes
ask a stupid 
question, get a stupid answer. 

I'm more interested in what Snape says about Ghosts then Inferius 
personally (Dumbledore handles explaining Inferius both earlier and 
later in the book).
 
Quick_Silver