The Virtues of Hagrid

[Mike]

No: HPFGUIDX 175305

> > Missy wrote:
> >
> > First of all, I need to say, that I love Hagrid. 
> >   <snip>
> > Hagrid loves Harry deeply. 
> >   <snip>
> > Hagrid is alone in the world.  He mentions several times to
> > Harry that they are the same, that they have no family. But the
> > one thing Hagrid never mentions is that aside from DD, until the
> > trio came along, Hagrid didn't have much of anyone at all.

Mike:
This is a very good point, Missy. Hagrid *is* alone in the world and
Dumbledore is not much of a drinking buddy, is he? I don't get the
sense that he had many wizarding friends amongst the previous 
generations of students at Hogwarts. He probably had to live for a
long time under the shadow of belief that he had opened the CoS. And
as likeable as he seems to us, he is still probably quite scary to
many a youngster on first sight. 

So until someone like Harry, someone with no preconceptions of what
the wizarding world is like, came along, Hagrid probably had a hard 
time making that first connection. Of course it helped that Hagrid 
rescued Harry from the Dursleys and that the snotty kid in Madam 
Malkin's disparaged him so Harry could come to his defense. But I 
think Hagrid took it upon himself to watch over Harry (with maybe a 
nudge from DD <wink>) and it is a credit to Harry that he accepted 
Hagrid's friendship without reservation.



> cariad
> <snip>  that Hagrid was really his Godfather in every sense.
> <snip>

Mike:
I snipped your examples, all good, to add one of my favorites. Near 
the end of GoF, in Hagrid's hut, Hagrid surprises the trio with his 
pronouncement that he knew LV would be back. Takes the matter-of-fact 
approach to the looming battle but shows no fear. Then he turns to 
the still demoralized Harry:

" Hagrid's chest swelled as he looked at Harry.
'Yeh did as much as yer father would've done, an' I can' give yeh no 
higher praise than that.' 
Harry smiled back at him. It was the first time he'd smiled in 
days. "  (GoF p.719, US ed.)

You bet, cariad, Hagrid was still being Harry's Godfather even after 
Sirius was back. And not such a dumb giant either, was he?

Mike