[HPforGrownups] The two-way mirror - a cruel useless plot device

[k12listmomma]

No: HPFGUIDX 163673

Good Question!

I am really thinking that this is a learning device for Harry. Didn't he 
think, when he wrapped it and threw it into his trunk, that he would never 
use this? There's the mistake right there- Harry being independent, thinking 
he won't need Sirius's help, or thinking that he won't need to talk things 
over with Sirius. I think Rowling is trying to show a critical mistake that 
Harry makes, and because he has resigned in his mind "not" to use the 
mirror, he forgot about it later when he "needed" the mirror. It's my 
prediction, that in Book 7, something else will come up again, and he will 
want to think, as he did the first time, about writing it off, but then will 
remember his regret at having done that the first time. I think it's a plot 
device to teach Harry that he indeed needs his friends, that he is not alone 
in this world, and this fight will be won only if he doesn't shut out 
everyone that cares about him.

Shelley



>I am usually the last person to critizise JK Rowling, but upon
> rereading OOTP, a thought has been lingering on my mind.
>
> The two-way mirror is not used at all during OOTP, except to make
> Harry feel even worse for his actions. He got himself, all his friends
> and the Order members, in great danger in his attempt to save Sirius
> from the Department of Mysteries. There were other things he could
> have done to notify the Order about his dream, like telling Snape, as
> he realized too late. He  discovers the mirror only too late, and
> feels even worse if that can be. But I wonder... why? Why did Rowling
> write the mirror into the story? It's not needed to make him feel
> regrets or guilt, he already does that. It's not needed for any other
> reason so far. And, if it appears again the Deathly Hallows, she could
> have introduced the device into the story by other means, like part of
> the things Harry inherited from Sirius.
>
> So, why did Rowling need to make things even worse for Harry? It's not
> like she needed filler material to make the book longer, if anything
> it could have used a trim here and there. I think it was a bit cruel
> to make Harry realize the mirror was there despite everything else he
> went through.
>
> Maria
>
>
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