Bathroom scene again WAS: Re:Weasley Family Dynamics/To t...

[va32h]

No: HPFGUIDX 165016

Wynnleaf:

Since I doubt that JKR wants us to think Harry was willing to use a
deadly spell against McClaggen, I think we have to assume that Harry
used Sectumsempra rather stupidly -- not choosing it because he
thought it would likely be an excellent spell to use against someone
casting an unforgiveable, but just using it because he'd been going
around with it on his mind (to use the next chance McClaggen turned
his back). So basically what this scene shows us about Harry is that 
he had this Sectumsempra spell in his head, that he had no clue what 
it would do,but he didn't think it any more nasty than a nail-growing 
hex.

va32h interjecting here:

You know what has always bothered me about Sectumsempra? Why doesn't 
Harry know what it does? Or at least have a guess. Most of the spells 
they learn are derived from Latin words...I am twenty years out of my 
high school Latin class, and I remembered enough to know that 
Sectumsempra had something to do with "cutting" and "always". I could 
make an educated guess about the effects of the spell. 

So either Harry is even dimmer than we think, or Classical education 
is very shoddy at Hogwarts. 

va32h