CHAPTER DISCUSSION PS/SS 8, THE POTIONS MASTER

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 188272

> My questions:
> This chapter begins with Hogwart students following after Harry. They notice Ron too. One of the whispered comments was, "Next to the tall kid with the red hair."
> 
> What do you think Ron was thinking about Harry's celebrity and his own place in the scheme of things? Why don't Gryffindors treat Harry with the same sort of awe the other students do?
>
Carol responds:

Good questions and I don't pretend to have any definitive answers, but I'll take a stab at them. First, "next to the tall kid with the red hair" suggests that Harry (a skinny kid with messy hair and glasses) is less distinctive-looking than Ron from a distance; up close, his only distinctive feature is his scar. Otherwise, who ever whispered the comment would have described Ron rather than Harry.

As for Ron, who didn't know who Harry was when they sat together on the Hogwarts Express but felt comfortable with him after learning that Harry, too, had never had money or even a friend before, probably took Harry's celebrity in stride at first, especially after he learned that he knew more about the WW than Harry did and they could be beginners in all their classes together. I don't think that the jealousy set in until considerably later, maybe even fourth year. His own place was simply as Harry's best friend, a much more enjoyable position at this point than Bill/Charlie/Percy/the Twins' little brother or "another Weasley with red hair and second-hand robes." With Harry himself, as opposed to other people who may well view him as nothing more than the sidekick of the Boy Who Lived, he finally has a chance to be himself. It's good, though, that he knows more than Harry about the WW at this point and is at home in it (and, as we find out later, can slaughter Harry at chess) or the friendship might never have developed. I think that they see each other as equals and friends with complementary personalities. And, of course, Ron will empathize with Harry rather than Snape and the Slytherins in Potions class, in part because he likes Harry and in part because of Draco's dismissive behavior before the Sorting, guaranteed to make Ron his enemy from this first encounter.

As for the other Gryffindors, Snape's questions expose Harry as just another first-year when it comes to knowledge and magical ability. So, although they empathize with him, especially when Snape starts docking points from their House, they don't make a big deal about his unfairness nor are they in awe of "our new celebrity" because Harry, whatever his reputation as the infant victor over Voldemort, is no Dumbledore in the making (and, the Slytherins learn, no Voldemort in the making, either). At this point, before he's started getting into trouble and either losing or gaining huge amounts of points for his House, he's just another Gryffindor. Later, the Gryffs will care more about his prowess as a Seeker or School Champion than they do about his reputation as the Boy Who Lived--at least until fifth year, when even Seamus starts doubting his sanity and truthfulness, and HBP, when the MoM battle makes Voldemort's return undeniable.

Carol, probably overthinking the questions as usual