Which characters knew DD was Gay?

[montavilla47]

No: HPFGUIDX 179239

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "k12listmomma" <k12listmomma at ...> wrote:
>
> Montavilla47:
> > I doubt that they identified Albus as gay (as he wasn't yet eleven).
> > And, if they did suspect that he was gay, they probably would
> > have beat him up, rather than his sister.  I think that the story was
> > more or less true.  They attacked Ariana because they didn't
> > understand her magic.
> 
> Shelley:
> When I read the attack on Ariana, I didn't think that she was attacked 
> because she was a witch. I think kids are far more likely to find that stuff (magical 
abilities) as "cool", rather than to be scared of it enough to beat someone up over it. I can't 
see kids conducting Salem style witch hunts. Nah, instead, I think because it was BOYS 
attacking a GIRL that it was more akin to gang rape.
>
Montavilla47:
That certainly is a pervasive view, isn't it?  I can't say that it didn't cross
my mind when I read the book.  But I'm not sure that we can make 
that assumption--given the age of the participants.

I just looked back on the passage where Aberforth describes the attack
and he doesn't mention the age of the boys involved.  So, they might
have been old to know what rape is and how to do it.  

It's odd--I wonder if the idea of rape is unconsciously planted because
the boys "forced their way through the hedge."  Because, it is a leap to
think that she was raped by the next bit: "when she couldn't show
them the trick, they got a bit carried away trying to stop the little
freak doing it."

When you're trying to *stop* someone from doing something, rape 
isn't the first action that comes to mind.  A beating seems more 
likely.  

Of course, there''s also that next passage, about her magic turning
inward.  Somehow that seems like it must be the result of something
worse than a few kids slapping you around.  I don't know, though, 
never having been badly beaten myself.

It's odd what associations come up for me when I look at that 
passage.  There's a parallel between Ariana with her innocent
magic-making in the garden and Lily with hers in the park.  But,
of course, the difference is that the "boy" watching Lily is a 
wizard and isn't frightened or enraged by it.  

There's also the other veiled sexual violence events in the book--
a surprisingly large number, really, starting with Ginny's
possession by Tom, the sexually-charged rebirth of Voldemort, 
the sexually-tinged humiliation of SWM, the possible rape of 
Dolores Umbridge by the centaurs, and the veiled rape
threats towards Hermione by Fenrir Greyback.

Am I missing any?

I wonder if the number of sexually violent episodes in the 
books is simply a reflection of how common sexual violence
is in Western culture nowadays?  Or is it that we're projecting
these images onto the story because we're conditioned to
think that way?


Montavilla47
Astounded that she's used the R-word so many times in a 
single post.