[HPforGrownups] Aberforth

[Irene Mikhlin]

No: HPFGUIDX 174924

Carol wrote:


Just out of curiosity (I'm addressing the group in general), what were
your expectations for him and how close to the mark were they? What's
your reaction to the character as he's presented? Is he just a plot
device? A foil to Albus? Something else?


Is he wiser than DD in your view, or are they both mistaken in their
perceptions of each other? Any guesses as to which House he was in?


Irene:

I didn't have much expectations, but I've enjoyed this character immensely. I thought the purpose of the character was to present a contrast between academic cleverness, represented by Dumbledore, and a street-wise person with the "heart of gold". Where JKR failed miserably in making me like her beloved Hagrid (I'll explain in the end of the post), I really liked Aberforth.

I thought he was spot-on in his assessment of his dear brother. Oh, and Albus was really petty and mean to call him illiterate, twice. I'm pretty sure he was a Gryffindor (never mind his rather Slytherinish speech to Harry), for no other reason that Rowling likes him.

Which brings me back to my Hagrid rant. He really should have died twice in that book. First, during the Seven Potters chase, where in the heat of the battle he almost managed to kill Harry, by indulging his inferiority complex. I thought - OK, JKR, it would serve him right, but you don't want to kill him so early in the book, fine. Then came the acromantula moment - surely that would be a fitting tragic death, the very definition of hubris? But nooooo, he had to survive. :-( JKR just didn't have the guts in the end.

Irene