Slytherins come back WAS: Re: My Most Annoying Character/Now Rowling's control

[sistermagpie]

No: HPFGUIDX 180265

> Magpie:
> 
> Albus Severus will certainly have to find out what 
> Slytherin means for himself by actually going to Hogwarts, but I don't
>  see any indication in this scene that he'll have to become any more 
> enlightened than Ron is.
> 
> Pippin:
> Ah, now I see it. So,  Harry should have pushed Albus to make the
> enlightened choice and go into Slytherin, not because Albus wanted to,
> but for the greater good? I really think Harry had had enough of 
that. 

Magpie:
No, that's not what I meant at all. At first I was confused as to where 
that came from--but I saw you explained it. My "have to" was just 
saying that I didn't see any evidence that Albus would be forced by 
anything to become more enlightened about Slytherin than Ron--but the 
idea that Harry should have pushed Albus into anything--much less an 
enlightened choice about Slytherin--never entered my mind. 

The Hat will choose Albus' house, just the way it chooses everyone's 
house. It's really not up to Albus. However, the fact that he's worried 
about being in Slytherin seems to obviously point to his not being put 
there. I honestly have no opinion about what Harry "should have" said 
to Albus--I'm just commenting on what I think he actually said, which 
was a nice encouragement of "don't worry about the Sorting, your mother 
and I love you as Albus not as your house affiliation--but if it really 
bothers you, I was worried too about being a Slytherin and because I 
shared that worry with the Hat it didn't Sort me there." Not only does 
tihs not seem like a bad thing for Harry to say, it seems like what I 
might have said in his place. First I'd say it didn't matter what house 
Albus was in, but then, since I know that it's easy enough for me to 
say as a parent it doesn't matter and that wouldn't really help him, 
I'd share that I actually understood that very fear and know why he 
doesn't need to fear it. 

Pippin:
It comes in with the idea that something should be done
so that Albus would "have to" become more enlightened than Ron is.

Magpie:
No, I definitely didn't mean I thought Al had to become more 
enlightened than Ron is. I'm just describing what I see in the scene. 
Actually, I don't even think enlightened attitudes matter much. There 
are characters with positive views of Slytherin already--the ones who 
get Sorted there it seems. Anything more enlightened seems like it 
might just be wrong.

Eggplant:
The subplot makes much more sense if Dumbledore is gay and
Grindelwald is more than just a brilliant colleague, it's
more interesting too.

Magpie:
More interesting quite possibly--I admit I sort of added it as I was 
reading! But I don't think it makes more sense. It doesn't fill any 
holes since the book provided alternate motivation.

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.

Magpie:
The moment just doesn't read as ambiguous to me in any way. The 
sentence doesn't make it any more ambiguous that Slughorn's brought 
back the Slytherins than it's ambiguous as to whether or not Slughorn 
hasn't brought back an army of Inferi, Sirius Black or the Captain and 
Tenille. She doesn't need to say "but no Slytherins" since they 
wouldn't naturally be included in the group anyway. There's an infinite 
amount of things that the author doesn't tell us didn't happen--the 
books made up of things we hear did happen.  Things like Harry's not 
knowing Theo Nott's name back in fifth year or Slytherin's acting less 
than evilly anywhere else are imo irrelevent.

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

Magpie:
My vote goes to that he knows because this is just the narrator telling 
us what's going on in the battle and we're not supposed to be caring 
about stuff like how Harry has recognized these people (though it 
certainly seems to shoot down the idea that he couldn't recognize 
people he knows even better).

Jim Ferer:

That's very far off base. You are now criticizing JKR for defending
her copyright. She must defend her copyright or lose it. Are you
seriously suggesting she should put her work in the public domain? 

Magpie:
No, that's trademark you lose by not defending it. You can't lose 
copyright by not defending it. Though I agree that some authors are 
vocally against fanfic. 

But if we're talking about the encyclopedia I support Rowling there. I 
don't think she's being unreasonable at all. Fanfic is in a grey area 
(with the understanding that people on either side think it's black or 
white!)--I don't think fanfic is copyright infringement myself, but 
Rowling is one of the authors who's supportive of it.

-m