The Quality of a Hogwarts Education

[bboyminn]

No: HPFGUIDX 188229



---  "Rick H. Kennerly" <rhkennerly at ...> wrote:
>
> 
> >...
> 
> 
> ...
> 
> Actually, I've had a bit of a rethink on this.  JKR is all 
> over the place in the canon on this issue. 
> 
> First the century's old Statute of Secrecy seems to have 
> driven magic from Muggleville, ...
> 
> ... the Burrow are charmed against Muggles but the George and
> Fred visit girls in the village. 
> 
> OTOH, ... Bones and Vance in London. Godric Hollow seems to
> have lots of wizarding families. And all those WW folk who 
> married muggles. On Potterwatch the WW is encouraged to put
> up protective charms on friendly muggle neighbor's homes as 
> well as their own. Growing up on Spinners End in a half WW 
> family, Snape spies on the muggle raised Lilly and Petunia
> on the playground. Muggle teens traumatize Arianna. 
> 
> It's all very confusing.  The two worlds were separated to 
> protect the WW from witch hunts and such. But then they 
> intermarry and live in the same communities.  TDL wants to 
> bring magic back out into the open.
> -- 
> 
> Rick Kennerly

bboyminn:

It is only confusing if you try to force it into an absolute.

Also, it is not wizard and witches that are hidden by the
Statue of Secrecy, it is the fact that they are wizards and
witches that is hidden. Harry wanders around in full view of
his neighbor, he went to muggle public school. HE is not 
hidden, only the fact that he is a wizard is hidden. 

So, wizards and witches live within muggle communities. I 
suspect they even gradually transform some neighborhoods from
mixed to mostly magical families. This happens to neighborhoods
all the time. There is a neighborhood in Minneapolis that was 
cut off by the construction of a K-Mart that block the street 
it was on. That neighborhood fell in to ruin. Then Asian
immigrants came and needed cheap real estate for homes and 
businesses. Now that dead neighborhood is filled with Asian
restaurants (some of the best in the city), and Asian grocery
stores (love shopping there even if I don't know what most of
the stuff is), as well as clothing shops and Asian video stores. 

I could see the same thing happening with muggle neighborhoods
over time. A wizard moves in, his friend need a place, so he
buys a house to be close to his friend, next thing you know the
wizards are taking over. 

As I intended to point out, and as you did point out, it is 
clear from canon that wizard and muggles live in close 
proximity to each other. But, that doesn't mean they associate.
Every neighborhood has the family that keeps to themselves. 
The grouchy old man who keeps chasing kids way from his lawn,
and keep soccer balls that have the misfortune of crossing his
fence line. The batty old woman who lives with her cats.

That's the beauty of JKR's world, it could be real. Maybe that
grouchy old neighbor is really a wizard in disguise. 

Now, because of the diversity of the wizard world, because
there are muggle who marry magical people, because there are
muggle-born/pureblood marriages, there is certainly a wide
range of degrees of integration into the muggle world. 

I suspect once married, Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione, because
they each had a guide, could pass between worlds comfortably.

Now Mr. Weasley, fascinate as he is with muggles, is a pure-
blood, who live his entire life in the magical world. The
muggle world is strange and foreign to him. He just doesn't
get it. 

As a real world example, I don't picture Prince Charles getting
along too well in the 'muggle' world. His life has been to 
isolated and privileged. However, his sons Prince William
and Prince Harry seem completely comfortable in the 'muggle'
world. They have no problem walking down the street and
associating with commoners. Something that I imagine is very
uncomfortable for Prince Charles.

Next, we must look at the practicalities of the wizard world.

Take Mr. Fortesques Ice Cream Shop, he need dairy products,
nuts, chocolate, assorted fruit, and many other items to 
keep his shop running. Do you really think the wizard world
is capable of providing all that? Strawberries? Bananas? 
Peanuts? Walnuts? Chocolate? 

Now, no doubt there are wizard farmers, but I just don't 
see them as being able to fulfill every food need of the
Wizard world. It would be so much easier if there were 
muggle-borns who had access to those muggle resources, and 
could bring them into the wizard world. 

I suspect there are people, we'll call the consultants, who 
make a very good living helping magical people navigate the 
mysteries of the muggle world.

If there is a need, someone will fill it, and, in my view,
there is clearly a need for these people who professionally
straddle the worlds for a profit.

I can't prove it's true, but I just can see how it is not.

Steve/bboyminn