CHAPDISC: DH25, Shell Cottage

[Carol]

No: HPFGUIDX 183997

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> CHAPTER DISCUSSION: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
> Chapter 25, Shell Cottage

<snip summary>

> 1) Any suggestions why JKR had these characters (Trio, Bill, Fleur,
Mr Ollivander, Griphook, Luna, Dean) in a small house for weeks, maybe
months?

Carol responds:

First, I think we can establish the time frame a little more clearly
than "weeks, maybe months." The "Malfoy Manor" chapter occurs during
Easter break, which seems to occur (wrongly for 1998) in March, or at
least to begin in March, and the Gringotts break-in and the rush of
succeeding events, including the Battle of Hogwarts, occur some time
in (early?) May. It seems, then, that the stay at Shell Cottage lasts
at least a month, pretty much all of April with perhaps a bit of March
and May in there, too.

That aside, why *would* JKR put this extraordinary grouping of
characters together for a month or more? Your summary makes the
chapter seem eventful, and yet, in retrospect, it isn't. The
conversations with Griphook and Ollivander occurred in the previous
chapter; the planning is mostly off-page. The only really memorable
event in the chapter is Lupin's visit. On the other hand, we get some
interesting glimpses of the psychology of minor characters, including
Lupin, with perhaps an intentional contrasting of Luna and Griphook.
In some respects, it feels like a camping chapter, a respite and a
waiting, but the tension is mounting.

Still, why should the planning take a full month (at least) when
Griphook recovers fairly quickly and makes up his mind to elp HRH
early in the chapter? My answer is bound to be unpopular, but I think
it's because JKR was trying to stretch out the action as long as
possible to make the timeframe of DH match that of the other books, or
near it--almost but not quite a school year. (It would have helped a
little, IMO, if she had realized that Easter fell on April 12 that
year, so the same amount of time in Shell Cottage would have taken
them to mid- rather than early May. I think she mistakenly thought
that the year was 1997, forgetting that year seven is not January 1
through December 31, 1997, but September 1, 1997 through August 31,
1998. Why do I think so? Because of JKR's maths and because Eater 1997
was March 30. Oh, well. Probably no one cares about these details
except me.)
> 
> 2) There is a relaxed mood in this chapter, with no spells used in
anger. Some (adrenaline junkie) readers may have been tempted to skip
this chapter to get on with the fighting, and filling of body bags.
This chapter filled a few holes in what goes on with families in other
parts of the Wizarding World. What tidbit did you enjoy, hidden in
this chapter?

Carol:
As I think I indicated in my previous response, I liked this lull
before the storm, with its glimpses into the psychology of minor
characters. If I have to choose one tidbit, it would be Ollivander's
making Luna a new wand, which hints at his gratitude for her
companionship, which must have made his ordeal in the Malfoys' secret
room much more endurable than it had been before her arrival.
> 
> 3) Fleur seemed to react worse to Griphook than the others. Were
Wizard - Goblin relations worse in France?

Carol responds;
I can't answer that because we have no canon on the matter except that
that the Goblin Rebellions that HRH are forced to hear about in
Professor Binns's classes seem to involve the European WW in general
rather than being confined to Britain. That aside, I think it's simply
Fleur herself, who can't endure the ugly, demanding, arrogant little
Goblin, with his repulsive eating habits (even eef 'e doesn't like 'is
food overcooked like ze Engleesh!) It don't think it's prejudice
against nonhuman creatures per se as Fleur herself is part Veela.
> 
> 4) There is a saying, "History was written by the winners". The
Daily Prophet has been doing it in most of the books. So are wizards
the "lesser evil" compared to the "not fluffy bunnies", or just as
bad, or worse?

Carol:
Oh, my. Don't get me started on history being written by the winners,
especially if the winner's last name is spelled T-u-d-o-r. But, no. I
don't think we're seeing any such thing in the history books Harry
would be reading if Professor Binns hadn't ruined the subject for him.
Bathilda Bagshot, author of "A History of Magic," seems to be an
objective chronicler who fairly presents the Goblins' point of view,
if the few glimpses we get of Binns' classes and exams are any
indication (perhaps not so objective regarding Muggles and witch
burnings and Wendolyn the Weird).

Griphook himself is certainly no "fluffy bunny." He's tricky and
treacherous, and his view that Goblinmade works, paid for by Wizards,
belong to the Goblin who made them is preposterous. If I paint your
portrait (pretencding that I can do so) and you pay me for it, you own
the portrait. I *might* own the reproduction rights, depending on what
society I live in, but not the portrait itself. Goblins clearly own
the reproduction rights--the Wizard-made fake Sword of Gryffindor has
none of the powers of the original. Goblins don't share their secrets
with Wizards or any other creatures. But they don't own the Sword of
Gryffindor itself, as shown by the Sword's coming to Neville in
conditions of need and valor and peril.

I don't think we can generalize about one group or the other being the
lesser evil. Clearly, Griphook is a much lesser evil than Voldemort
and the Death Eaters, but if the likes of Griphook took over the WW, I
doubt that they'd show mercy to any captured wizards. In general, I
think we can take Bill at his word about the danger of striking a
bargain with a Goblin. The Wizard, unless he's a ruthless murderer
with a band of followers at his back, is not likely to come out the
winner. (Snape and his fake Sword of Gryffindor are a kind of
exception: The Goblins mistakenly think that they tricked him.)
 
> 5) We see many heroes in the Harry Potter books have bad qualities.
Is the possibility of Godric Gryffindor's stealing the sword ("For the
greater good") the thing Harry has to come to terms with about his
house hero?

Carol:
I don't think that Godric Gryffindor stole the sword that bears his
name. It clearly was made for him to his specifications. As stated
earlier, the fact that it comes to worthy Gryffindors under conditions
of need and valor shows that it does *not* belong to the Goblins.
nevertheless, we see Harry forced by circumstances into making a
somewhat ethically iffy bargain--he intends to keep his promise to
give Griphook the Sword of Gryffindor as his reward, but only when
he's through with it. If Harry had named that condition, he'd have
been more honest, but Griphook might not have agreed to that
condition, and Harry couldn't take that chance. (As for what right
Griphook had to claim that particular reward, I'd say he had none, but
he didn't want anything else and they had nothing else to give.) At
any rate, this incident nicely places our hero in a moral dilemma and
shows his human frailty much better, IMO, than that accursed Crucio in
a later chapter.
> 
> 6) To seal the bargain, Griphook shook hands with Harry Potter. That
sounded ominously like "Just sign here for Dumbledore's Army" to me.
How did you feel about it?

Carol:
The same way you did. The handshake seems to me like a "binding
magical contract" holding Harry to his word.
 
> 7) Luna deserves her own question. Flowers on Dobby's grave: loyalty
to her father; the only one who Mr Ollivander gave a personal
compliment to as he left; and never complained despite her account of
missing Christmas in a cellar jail. Why do you think she is such an
important presence in Harry Potter's life?

Carol:
I could write a whole essay about Luna and yet I'm having trouble
answering this question. I'm not sure that Harry himself ever fully
appreciates her presence in his life. It isn't so much what she does
as who she is that matters. I can't think of any character in all of
literature who so intriguingly blends eccentricity and empathy, humor
and pathos, intuition and absurdity. I don't think that, until "King's
Cross," Harry fully understands what Luna senses instinctively about
death and tried to tell him in OoP, that it isn't the end of all
things but a new beginning. Her patient endurance of suffering is a
very different kind of courage from Harry's eager desire to right
wrongs through action, yet, in its way, it's just as admirable. She
would have understood his self-sacrifice and have done the same thing
herself, in his place, without hesitation. Luna is one of JKR's more
brilliant creations. I find myself imagining as I write how different
DH would have been if Luna had come along on the camping trip with the
Trio!
> 
> 8) We see Fleur in her own environment here. She quickly changes
from (ze goblin) fury; to (you are safe 'ere) over-protectiveness; to
getting Mr Ollivander to deliver the tiara (when Bill was going there
too); to (glancing at the window) worry about Bill outside; to anger
at Muriel; to baby hugger; to humble wife ("Wait" said Bill) within
one meal time. What do you think of her?

Carol:
Take away her beauty and her French accent and you have Molly Weasley.
I think they understood each other and each found, belatedly, a
kindred spirit, in the moment in HBP when Molly offers Fleur the
tiara. I can imagine her as the mother of a family of beautiful
daughters like herself and Gabrielle, breaking the Weasley tradition
of having mostly sons. Do I like her? Yes, oddly. I've liked her ever
since she kissed 'arry and Ron ("You 'elped) after the second task in
GoF, and I loved the shared moment with Molly in HBP. But I don't
think I could stand to be with her for more than a short time if she
were a real person, especially given her possessiveness and awareness
of her own beauty. She blends fierce loyalty and feminity, beauty and
domesticity. I suspect that Bill is quite happy with her and she with
him. Ginny, OTOH, probably continues to loathe her.
> 
> 9) Did you pick up that subtle reminder of the "Lost Diadem of
Ravenclaw" in your first reading? Were there enough clues to identify
this as the last Horcrux?

Carol:
Since I had noticed the two different tiaras in HBP and had long
suspected that the one in the RoR was the Ravenclaw Horcrux, Luna's
remark about the "tiara" that "Daddy" was making (not to mention that
we'd already seen the bust of Rowena Ravenclaw wearing it!) in the
context of discussion about this tiara seemed like an obvious hint,
and yet not even Hermione picked up on it, apparently dismissing it as
just another of Luna's tangents and non sequiturs. To answer your
question more directly, yes, there were enough clues. More than
enough, if only Harry weren't so dense. (Quick, Harry. If Slytheiin is
associated with a locket, Hufflepuff with a cup, and Gryffindor with a
sword, what object is associated with Ravenclaw?)
> 
> 10) Every culture has differences with Births, Marriages and Deaths
(Hatch, Match and Dispatch). Lupin offers us our only insight into
Wizard Births. Especially a new born Metamorphmagus. Anything special
you see here?

Carol:
I don't understand the question. Of course, we see that Teddy is a
baby Metamorphmagus. We also see that Harry was right; Lupin belongs
with his wife and son at this critical time (family is more important
than anything else in the Potterverse). We see that becoming a
godfather involves no religious ceremony; its merely an honor bestowed
through the naming of someone to that position by the parents. (We're
still at a loss as to the rights and obligations of godfathers and
godmothers in the WW.) I don't know what else to say except that the
business of congratulating the father and drinking to celebrate a
birth seems very similar to Muggle customs on similar occasions.
 
> 11) Goblin ownership laws: "the true owner of an object is the
maker, not the purchaser". This sounds like our copyright and patent
laws. I can't buy a CD and copy a song onto my I-Pod. Are arguments
against the goblin law grounds for authors to re-think copyright laws?

Carol:
Oh, dear. I don't want to go here! For my views on copyright laws and
the Fair Use doctrine, anyone interested can search OT Chatter. For my
views on Goblin ownership of the Sword of Gryffindor, see upthread.
> 
> 12) Is Harry getting reckless, like his thoughts on Sirius? Any
other thoughts about Harry being a godfather?

Carol:
*Getting* reckless? I'd say that he's been reckless since SS/PS. :-)
Seriously, though, I don't think he was ever as reckless as Sirius
Black was--he never takes chances with his own life or the lives of
others for the fun of it--and he has no choice but to do both the
things Bill lists as dangerous, make a bargain with a Goblin and break
into Gringotts. (Does Bill know or guess that that's what Harry was
planning to do? He surely knows that Griphook is a former Gringotts
Goblin and he may know where the fake Sword of Gryffindor is hidden.)
However, since Harry survives and doesn't go to Azkaban and since
Teddy in the Epilogue is mentioned as spending a lot of time at the
Potters' house, it appears that once Voldemort is dispensed with,
Harry becomes the sort of godfather that he wishes Sirius could have
been to him.
> 
> 13) Any other question you would like to bring up?

Carol:
Not at the moment. You seem to have done a thorough job with a tricky
chapter. Thanks, Aussie!

Carol, happy as always to see another chapter discussion posted