[HPforGrownups] CHAPDISC: DH3, The Dursleys Departing

[Sharon Hayes]

No: HPFGUIDX 177155

Laura wrote: <SNIP>
2. Although Vernon is the chief disciplinarian at
Privet Drive,
clearly it is Petunia who sets the tone of the
family's relationship
with Harry. We learn in Book 1 that it is her rage
and resentment
towards Lily that is playing out in her treatment
of Harry. What do
you think Petunia sees when she looks at Harry,
and how does it make
her feel?

Sharon:

First, thanks for the very interesting questions!
To my mind, Petunia was envious of Lily becuase
she was a witch and got to go to Hogwarts -- as
evidenced by Petunia's letter to Dumbledore asking
if she could also attend (in Snape's DH memory).
It must have been extremely dissapointing for
Petunia to be turned down. However, Petunia is not
the kind of person to be outcone by anyone, even
her sister. JKR makes it clear that she was always
staring out the window watching what the neighbors
were doing and that she was highly concerned with
what the neighbors and others thought of her and
her family. She wanted to be better than everyone
in the street. So Petunia would have turned her
dissapointment into its opposite, deciding that
being a witch was something shameful and
disgusting, since she herself could never be one.

When Harry shows up on her doorstep, he reminds
her once again of all that childhood angst about
being a witch, and so Petunia sees Harry as
representative of everything she couldn't have and
now hates and despises. She treats him so badly
because she tells herself he is a freak and
doesn't deserve better. But underneath she is just
envious. That is why they try to run away so Harry
won't go to Hogwarts. Petunia wants none of it,
she especially does NOT want Harry to have what
Lily had and she never could.

<BIG SNIP -- becuase I need to think a LOT before
answering any of those questions :-)
12. Did you wonder what would happen to the
Dursleys' lives while
they were in hiding? Would Vernon lose his job?
How would their
bills get paid? Or were you happy to see the back
of them? *grin*

Sharon:

Yes and no - -I was glad to see the back of them,
but I wondered what happened to them, especially
how they got along living in the WW!  I envisaged
Uncle Vernon being driven absolutely bonkers by
all the magiic being used. Dudley I think would
have been fine with it, eventually, and Petunia
might have been to a small degree as well, if
Dudley was. But I can just imagine them all
freaking out completely by being Dissapparated
(ROLOL!!!!!) let alone having to live with other
kinds of magic for who knows how long?  I also
wondered if Dudley would contact Harry after the
war and they were let out of hiding. I wouldn't
think Harry would want to contact them, but Dudley
might.


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