CHAPDISC: DH24, The Wandmaker

[Blair]

No: HPFGUIDX 183631

> QUESTIONS
> 
> 1. "It was like sinking into an old nightmare; for an instant he 
> knelt again beside Dumbledore's body..." [p. 386].  Is there any 
> character in this series who has as much experience with old 
> nightmares?  If you think there is another (or other) candidate(s), 
> present the case, or the case that it *is* Harry.

Oryomai:
I'm not sure what I think about Harry's experience with his old
nightmares.  They seem to turn on and off.  He can completely
forget(?) what happened to Sirius, and even when reminded of it he
doesn't seem to learn his lesson.  I think that Severus might be more
haunted by his past than Harry is.  Severus never even managed to get
past his boyhood crush on Lily (I am personally of the opinion that he
would have eventually gotten over it had she lived) -- his entire life
was based on the nightmares of his past.
 
> 2. Many readers feel that the death & burial of Dobby is a turning 
> point in Harry's journey.  What significance do you think there is, 
> if any, in the fact that Harry prepared Dobby's grave without the use 
> of magic?  Why does it lead to "understanding blossom[ing] in the 
> darkness" [p. 387]?

Oryomai:
Harry didn't use magic because he wanted to get out some of his
feelings.  He was able to push channel a lot of the pain over Dobby's
death into the digging of the grave.  I think that Harry begins to
understand that there are forces and feelings more powerful than magic
(love and sacrifice?  ugh...that sounds so cliche!).

> 3.  What do you think of the description that "every drop of 
> [Harry's] sweat and every blister felt like a gift to the elf who had 
> saved their lives" [p. 387]?  What do you imagine Dobby would have 
> thought of that?

Oryomai:
I think Dobby would have been honored that Harry Potter dug his grave.

 
> 4.  Why, after all this time and all the various efforts, has Harry 
> *now* managed to "learn control at last... the very thing Dumbledore 
> had wanted him to learn from Snape" [p. 387]?  Why does the death 
> trigger this in Harry?

Oryomai:
I have no clue.  It's something that Harry had needed to learn for a
long, long time.  Maybe he didn't want Voldy to be able to see where
he buried Dobby or where everyone was hiding?  Or maybe Dobby's death
made Harry finally realize that this was the time to act, that there
was no more time for Horcrux hunting or camping out.

> 6.  Is there significance to the fact that Harry used the wand which 
> was Draco's, rather than the wand which was Bellatrix's, to etch the 
> words "Here lies Dobby, a Free Elf"?  

Oryomai:
Well, it is the first time we see Harry using what will be known as
the Elder Wand (I'm not even going to start in on that...I'm *still*
confused).  Harry's first act with the wand wasn't an act of
destruction or an attempt to seek power...it was the burial of a
friend.  Bellatrix's wand would have felt awkward in his hand.  It
might also be a sign that Draco and Harry weren't so different after all.

> 7.  As you read this the first time, did you feel confident that 
> Harry could know and not seek?  Could YOU have known & not sought?

Oryomai:
No.  I don't have such a high and mighty opinion of Harry.  I thought
that Harry would, at the very least, be tempted by the idea of
ultimate power for a minute.  There is not a chance in Hades that I
could have that kind of power and not use it.  Harry was in possession
of all 3 Hallows!!  I'm not that good of a person ;-)

> 
> 9.  Harry Potter has been derided by many for not being much of a 
> thinker.  He becomes a thinker in this chapter, and quite decisive.  
> What do you make of this?  Is it a change?  Did it surprise you?  Has 
> it always been there?

Oryomai:
I think it was sheer adrenaline.  Did he really have much of a choice
but to think?  The options were basically think or die.  I'm still not
sure if I believe he was a thinker...I think that he acted on his
instincts (which are always good and right, right Remus?).
 
> 10.  What did you think was going on when you first read that Harry 
> was laboring over seeing Griphook or Ollivander first... and chose 
> Griphook?  

Oryomai:
Harry decided to choose the Horcruxes over the Hallows.  He knew that
Bella believed something came out of her vault, and he wanted to know
what it was.  He knew but didn't seek.

> 11.  What, in your opinion, was carried in Griphook's comment, "You 
> are an unusual wizard, Harry Potter"?  Do you think Harry is an 
> unusual wizard?  If so, in what way(s)?

Oryomai:
I think that Harry is the closest Griphook has come to trusting a
human.  Griphook saw Harry personally dig a grave for a House Elf. 
That's not the way that wizards usually act in Griphook's experience.
 
> 12.  Is Griphook correct that this is "precisely about" wizards vs. 
> goblins?  Why did he drop the subject so abruptly?

Oryomai:
Griphook wanted the sword; if he upset Harry too much he'd never get
the sword.  It's the goblin refrain -- wizards v. goblins.  In this
case, Griphook could benefit (he might even have seen it as revenge
for centuries of mistreatment).
 
> 13.  Why did Harry remove the Sword of Gryffindor when he left 
> Griphook's room, and why did he not say anything as he did so?

Oryomai:
He was trying to keep an eye on it for as long as possible.  Since his
plan was to try to keep it to destroy the Horcruxes, he did not want
to leave it alone with Griphook.  No matter how enlightened Harry is,
he still has the prejudices of wizards engrained in his mind (History
of Magic anyone?  People say you learn better when you hear things
while asleep...)

> 15.  How do you react to those remarks of Ollivander's concerning 
> wand ownership and control?  Since they're really JKR's words – and 
> rules – are they reasonable? Fair?  Do they tell us enough?  
> "Subtle," "complex," "usually," "in general" – is this just the 
> nature of wand lore, and it *is* nebulous and imprecise?  Or is this 
> simply a way to leave open more possibilities for the author?
Oryomai:
Ugh.  The whole "wand thing" was such a complete and total muck up. 
They're a way for her to be able to wrap everything up in a nice neat
bow even though it makes less than no sense to some of her readers. 
It's nebulous and imprecise -- it appears to go against what we've
known for the sake of a deus ex machina (A ha!  The Deathstick is
mine!  I stole it from Draco!  Somehow, his wand turned into it!  Ha
ha!).  I can't even really talk about it....

> 17.  It has long been an interest of many just what Ollivander is all 
> about.  Something about the way he described Voldemort as "great"... 
> something about how he made the hair stand up on Harry's neck....  In 
> this chapter, we have Harry suddenly thinking about having been 
> unsure how much he liked Ollivander back when they first met, and 
> even now, "the idea of the Dark Lord in possession of this wand 
> seemed to enthral him as much as it repulsed him" [p. 402].  And yet 
> Luna seems genuinely fond of him.  What do you make of this man?

Oryomai:
I think Ollivander is deeply and truly interested in wands.  He's
upset about what's happening around him, but he's completely entranced
by the wand lore around it.  Luna has the same kind of out there
personality type that Ollivander does, and I imagine that she found
the idea of wandlore as interesting as he did (hey, they had to talk
about something in captivity).

> 18.  How is it that, compared to the end of OOTP, Harry can be so 
> certain the visions he's having are real?  We know now that they are, 
> but how could he be so confident after what happened in OOTP?

Oryomai:
Because he doesn't learn from his old nightmares.


Oryomai, who hopes that her chapter discussion goes as well as this one!