Responses to Marietta (was: Misc. responses, some quite old)

[sistermagpie]

No: HPFGUIDX 169250

> AmanitaMuscaria now - Does no one think that maybe there's something 
> that _Marietta_ needs to do to break the curse?
> I thought once we discovered that it was still active in HBP, that 
> the solution was for her to go to the DA and tell them what she did 
> and why. 
> I think the wizarding world is harsh, and things aren't meant to be 
> fair, or easily curable, necessarily.
> Witness the Ministry wizard at the World Cup in GoF who had 'had 
> those horns for a while now' or some such quote.

Magpie:
I don't see why anybody should think that--least of all Marietta, who 
has been memory charmed as well. Hermione gives no such indication. 
She just says anybody who tells on her study group will be punished 
and that's what happened. Why would Marietta need to go to the DA 
(which no longer even really exists) and tell them what she did and 
why? Everybody knows that. This isn't the case of the WW being harsh, 
it's Hermione being harsh and not giving it a second thought for all 
we see. She doesn't seem to be waiting for Marietta to do or say 
anything. She's moved on. And who says Marietta thinks she was wrong? 
LIke it or not not everyone by default thinks Hermione is right about 
everything. Even within canon we've got an example of a DA member not 
siding with Hermione over the curse.

Barbara:

I read something else into Marietta's punishment. She is given a bad 
case of acne-- a magical, over-the-top, type of acne, but nevertheless 
acne. And like most magical things, it is an exaggerated form of the 
muggle version. In many ways her acne seems to mirror the real 
version. Marietta's attempts to cover her pustules in the same way 
many of us try to do. I think acne sufferers can find some solace. ( I 
have adult acne--roseacea.) Also in the same way that muggle doctor's 
struggle a bit to manage muggle acne, the healers are having trouble 
controlling Marietta's magical version.

Magpie:
I think we all know what Marietta has been given, since it's 
described: "her face was horribly disfigured by a series of close-set 
purpustules that had spread across her nose and cheeks to form the 
word 'SNEAK'." Yes, it's a form of acne. I'm not sure why that makes a 
difference. Acne is not a pleasant thing to have, especially in severe 
forms. It's not surprising JKR has never given her heroes a bit of it 
that we know of.

Barbara:
I don't think we are meant to believe that Marietta will be permanently
disfigured, for we learn via Tonks that wizards can alter there 
appearance via transformation.  Most likely Marietta will learn how to 
alter her face and out-grow her condition.

Magpie:
I don't understand why I should think this at all, when canon suggests 
the opposite. If we'd never heard of Marietta after OotP I probably 
would have assumed it had worn off. Instead Rowling is sure to tell me 
the girl's still having to cover herself in the next book. That to me 
pretty clearly says I should assume it will continue throughout the 
books unless I hear differently. This isn't regular acne, obviously, 
so why should I think she would outgrow it? And Tonks is a special 
case. There's no indication that Wizards can just "alter" their faces. 
Eloise Midgen tries to hex her pimples off. 

And also, obviously, I think Hermione needs to learn something here, 
so for me it's not just about how Marietta can get over it. I think 
it's more of a problem that Hermione is still skipping through life 
handing out punishments to people without a thought to the 
consequences, just as many people on the good side do.

Barbara:
Hopefully though Marietta and others will learn to take oaths 
seriously. In the next book oath taking (and breaking) becomes a life 
and death matter. Prof. Snape (who should know better!) has gotten 
himself in a mess by making an oath.

Magpie:
I think Hermione's the main person who needs to learn to take oaths 
seriously actually, and learn when she's done something stupid, which 
imo she did with Marietta. She presented her club as a study club at a 
time before Umbridge had even made her decree, and said that signing 
the parchment was agreeing not to tell anybody. Snape's Vow, by 
contrast, was made with Snape's full knowledge of what he was getting 
into and how serious it was. It was presented as an oath and he knew 
the punishment. Hermione was playing at what Snape was doing for real.

Barbara:
What I find amusing is that Hermione came up with this curse. It's the 
ultimate teenage curse--bad acne. She could have come up with 
something much worse. I believe that Hermione was attempting to find 
deterrent that was meaningful but not hideous. It wasn't
much of a deterrent though.

Magpie:
Yes, it wasn't any kind of a deterrant--though I don't see how it's 
not hideous. Skin diseases aren't too aesthetically pleasing. James 
could have thought of something worse to do to Snape in the pensieve 
than pantsing him--that doesn't make it less of a cruel, humiliating 
thing to do. (It's ironic that there aren't too many worse things ever 
done from one student to another that weren't something our heroes did 
that could have been "much worse.") I can't imagine what Book VI would 
have been like if somebody had pulled a curse like this on Hermione. 

Sue:
Yes, I agree. Marietta brought the curse down upon herself by bad
behavior. I suspect that it is beyond Hermione's power to lift the
curse, and that Marietta herself must perform some act that will redeem
herself and remove the curse. In reading the many quotes of Jo Rowling
about book 7 I seem to remember a statement that Ravenclaw will have
its day. I believe that one that day marietta will perform some noble
act and the disfigurement will vanish.

Magpie:
Is Hermione a god who gets to curse people forever until they've done 
some act to appease her and the universe? If I were her I'd be fearing 
Ravenclaw getting its day.

-m