[HPforGrownups] Re: Requiescat in Pace: Unforgivables

[Lee Kaiwen]

No: HPFGUIDX 174768

Geoff Bannister blessed us with this gem On 08/08/2007 05:38:

> As I said in a recent post, even as a Christian, I have done things in
> the heat of the moment which I have regretted
...
> situations like this where they have gone against their own conscience
> and hated themselves for it afterwards. 

But, Geoff, this is a big part of our problem with the scene. There IS 
no regret expressed, either here or later. Harry never does seem to 
"hate himself" afterward for what he has done. This is Rambo!Harry, 
blowing away a baddie, then checking his watch to see if the ballgame's 
started yet.

JKR has written so many "heat of battle" scenes we know she can do them 
(she does one just a few pages on in the Room of Requirement with Malfoy 
and his goons that would have provided a perfect excuse for a UC). If 
she really wanted to make that point, she could so easily have done so 
here, rather than the scene we got which leaves us speculating about 
Harry's tone of voice, and inventing rationalizations which are in such 
obvious contradiction with the canon we got.

Harry states his purpose, he states his reason, and there is nothing 
aside from speculation which indicates he was out of control with anger, 
or anything other than cold and calculating in his choice of spells.

Even if we assume for a moment that any of the above rationalizations 
WAS the intent of the author, the problem is she left it so muddy that a 
significant portion of her readership doesn't see it (this never-ending 
discussion is proof of that). That's a different authorial failing, but 
it's still a failing.

Sorry, but no amount of rationalization, or insistence that the 
Cruciatus ain't what it clearly is and always has been, can save this 
passage. And no, saying "we've all done bad things" DOESN'T excuse 
Harry. At best it's a plea for mercy, not justice.

Lee Kaiwen, Taiwan, who does find this passage offending his Christian 
sensibilities