Slytherins come back - Into the Great Unknown.

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 180255

---  "Pippin" <1kf.lists at ...> wrote:
>
> --- "Carol" wrote:
> > 
> > Let's look first at what she actually wrote:
> > 
> > "... Harry saw Charlie Weasley overtaking Horace Slughorn,
> > who was still wearing his emerald pajamas. They seemed to
> > have returned at the head of what looked like the families
> > and friends of every Hogwarts student who had remained to 
> > fight, along with the shopkeepers and homeowners of 
> > Hogsmeade" (DH 734).
> 
> Pippin Fowler:
> I had no impression from what I read that any Slytherins 
> other than Slughorn came back. ... Slytherins are ... from
> Death Eater families. ... and [would not]come back to fight
> .... It seems more likely that Slytherins would have simply
> stayed under cover, since neither side... was a safe haven.
> 

bboyminn:

Here's the thing, this scene is ambiguous. It doesn't say
'...but no Slytherins' but it also doesn't say '...and 
Slytherins too'. Because of this we are free to interpret 
as our preferences lead us. 

I'm not one to believe that all who are assigned to Slytherin
House are doomed to a life of evil. We have only seen SOME
Slytherins and it is not fair to judge them all by the actions
of a few, or by the biased opinion of Harry.

Note, during the Thestral lessons, Harry sees a Slytherin 
student he has been in classes with for years, yet he doesn't
know the kids name. That kid can't have rated very high on 
Harry's radar screen; that kid couldn't have been getting in
Harry's face or Harry would have known who he was. 

I think Slytherins are more likely to be or do evil, but I
really don't see all Slytherins as evil or even bad. Because
I have a more positive view of Slytherins, I'm inclined to 
think that some Slytherins did return (either parents and/or 
students).

I suspect if you have a negative view of Slytherin, you are
more likely to think they did not come back.

Keep in mind that we don't necessarily know the Houses of
the friends, family, shopkeepers, or residents of Hogsmeade.

That may actually be what JKR intended, to make it ambiguous
so we could each fantasize as we saw fit regarding Slytherins
in the last battle.

Still, I think that choice was a mistake. She had set up the
joining of the Houses theme, and I think she didn't follow
through on it. The unity of the House was not a product of
my imagination, and the resolution of that theme should also
not be a product of my imagination.

But since it was ambiguous, and because I very much have
a positive view of Slytherins, and because I want them to 
be there, in my mind they are. 

On a related, but side note, I want to remind people who are
complaining about JKR making statements as if she is 
dictating the content of the off-page aspects of the books, 
that JKR is responding, in nearly every case, to direct
questions.

She didn't tell us Dumbledore was gay, someone asked her about
Dumbledore's love life, and she responded with the truth as
she saw it. And she said that she wasn't really hiding this
information, it was just that no one had every asked her 
before. The implication was that if we had asked earlier, she
would have answered earlier.

People complain that JKR is dictating who does what job and
who marries who after the end of the series, but again,
people specifically asked what kind of work important 
characters did and what kind of jobs they got. JKR answer
with HER VIEW of what happened to the characters after the
last page of the book. They asked, she answered. 

I really don't see how you can fault her for that. We asked,
she answered. If we don't want to know, then we really 
shouldn't ask.

I don't think JKR is dictating anything to us. She said she
thought Dumbledore was gay. You really are free to not agree
with that. You are free to say to yourself and others that,
well I can see how some people might reach that conclusion,
but I think they are wrong; Dumbledore was straight.

JKR responded that Ron married Hermione, and I am absolutely
convinced that they are H/H shipper out there who simply 
will not and do not accept that. As far as they are concerned
books or no books, Harry loves Hermione.

JKR is giving her view of what happens off page, and you are
free to disagree. I'm sure there are tons of fan fiction in
which Harry loves Draco, and Dumbledore and Sirius are still 
alive. JKR's views didn't stop these people from imagining
an alternative view. 

In my opinion, JKR isn't dictating anything to anyone. People
are asking for her view on various matters and she is responding
with /her/ view. Where is the fault in that? 

Steve/bboymimm