[HPforGrownups] Re: The editor was sobbing/Wizard genes (was: Uncle Tom?)

[Magpie]

No: HPFGUIDX 166952

Carol:
> The genres I see are Bildungsroman
>(in the form of boarding school story),
> mystery novel/detective story, and
> heroic quest, none of which requires
> the protagonist to die

Eggplant:
The genius of the Potter books is that they are original and difficult to 
categorize.

Magpie:
I disagree. They are a bit difficult because they mix lots of genres 
together, but that depends on many of the things that aren't original in 
them.

Eggplant:
They are supposed to be children's books but even book
1 was very long for a children's book,

Magpie:
I don't think it is so very long. Other kids' books have been longer.

Eggplant:
and children's books are not
astronomically popular with adults but Potter is,

Magpie:
I don't think that can really be said to say anything about Potter as a 
book. It was the right story at the right time with lots of things coming 
together to make it very popular. Perhaps in another time and place they 
just would have been very popular children's/YA books. The popularity with 
adults also seems to sometimes lead to things in them being considered 
original when they're not as well.

Eggplant:
and children's books
are not usually so grim, and not funny-grim but grim-grim.

Magpie:
Again, I disagree. They can certainly be as grim as Potter is. I'm not sure 
why you would think they never have been. The Potter books are firmly YA by 
now, and YA books can get a lot darker than this.

Carol:

> I would not be at all surprised if she
> rewards him [Harry] at the end with the
> happy ending he himself would like best

Eggplant:
And that's why the only man who's read the book and publicly commented on it 
was sobbing. I don't think so.

Magpie:
Yes, it could be why he was sobbing. I'm not sure why that sounds so 
strange. People sob at the end of LOTR and the main characters aren't dying. 
Saying good-bye doesn't have to mean Harry's died. It wouldn't necessarily 
be so very sad if Harry died anyway. It would depend on the circumstances. 
Someone else dying besides Harry could be a lot more emotional than Harry 
dying himself.

Kristin1778:

> I agree with you that there would be
> nothing wonderful or noble about Harry
> sacrificing his life

Eggplant:
I think most would say that a fireman who died trying to save a child from a 
burning building acted rather nobly; I don't see why it would be any 
different for Harry.

Magpie:
I think Kristin was really referring to JKR sacrificing Harry, not Harry 
sacrificing himself. That's why it's noble for Harry to be willing to die, 
without needing to die to do it.

Kristin:
> and nothing comforting about Harry
> reuniting with his parents in the afterlife.

Eggplant:
On that I agree, it would be insipid.

Magpie:
But that would be exactly what would happen if Harry died, wouldn't it? 
We've seen that in this universe the spirits exist "on the other side" and 
when Harry is willing to die in OotP isn't he thinking about being with 
Sirius? If Harry did die, I don't t know how that could be avoided 
completely, even if JKR didn't dwell on it.

Carol:
As for Lily's eyes, I agree with the poster who said that we've already seen 
their significance in HBP. The resemblance of Harry's eyes to Lily's made 
Slughorn see Lily in Harry all year long, resulting not only in his delusion 
that Harry's supposed gifts as a potion-maker came from his mother's genes 
(how would Slughorn know about genes, a Muggle concept?)

Magpie:
Does he say genes? I would assume that Wizards would just understand this 
sort of thing through the concept of "blood," which I think was how Muggles 
would have spoken about it themselves before genes were understood. Harry 
would have Potion-making "in the blood."

If Slughorn actually uses the word "genes," I think that's a big ole Flint!

-m