CHAPTER DISCUSSION: PS/SS 3, The Letters from No One

[potioncat]

No: HPFGUIDX 187798

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"zgirnius" wrote:


> Questions for Discussion:
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1. This chapter seems to have a lot of over the top action in it. The Smeltings uniform (maroon tailcoat, orange knickerbockers, a straw boater, and a knobbly stick?!), the Stonewall uniform Petunia attempts to imitate (compared to elephant skins), and the extremes to which Vernon goes to avoid the letters. What was your reaction to these? Are there others in the chapter I missed? How do you feel they contributed to/detracted from the book, and how do you see them fitting into the series now?

Potioncat:
It was the over the top mistreatment of Harry in chapter 2 that drove me from the books the first time. It reminded me of Roald Dahl. But the second time I tried SS/PS, I accepted it as the form of the storytelling. Some of it makes for great humor. Harry thinking that the uniform is going to look like elephant skin---sounds like the way a kid would see it; and you can feel his frustration.

The tons and tons of letters that seem to follow after the Dursleys and Harry remind me of a certain type of magical story. One (of several) that comes to mind is Strega Nona. She has a magic pasta pot that won't stop producing pasta until a certain incantation is spoken. I know the basis is a little different, but there is an established folklore concerning something magical that continues to produce until the proper word is spoken, or correct action taken.


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2. Vernon is described as grayish white after he reads the first line of Harry's letter. Petunia is described as looking like she might faint, clutching her throat, and making a choking noise. What do you make of these reactions? What do you think is behind them?

Potioncat:
Perhaps because there had been no contact in all the years, Vernon thought they had dodged the magic bullet.  Petunia should have expected a letter or a visit about now. I think she is reacting on her own, but also responding to Vernon's reactions. During the 7 years we see this couple, they seem to maintain a careful dance of keeping each other appeased. 


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3. "I'm not having one in the house, Petunia! Didn't we swear when we took him in we'd stamp out that dangerous nonsense?" Harry and Dudley overhear Vernon saying these words to Petunia in their discussion of the letter. What does this tell us about Vernon and Petunia?

Potioncat:
I think Petunia let Vernon think the magic could be "stamped out." I'm pretty sure she doesn't expect any such thing. But it seems they did agree to raise him as normal. 

Has this ever come up before in all the years of discussion? Doesn't this sound like a conservative set of guardians discovering their ward is gay?---determined to stamp it out. 


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4. Why do you think Vernon and Petunia decide to move Harry into a bedroom?

Potioncat:
Embarrassment, maybe. Fear of retribution, perhaps. 


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5. Why does Petunia hand Vernon a fruitcake when he is nailing the mail slot shut instead of a hammer?

Potioncat:
As I read it, he was nailing the  door shut, and she handed him a snack. I didn't think the intent was to use the fruitcake on the nails. Maybe she was hoping the food would distract him. Fruitcake isn't something we typically eat in July in the US. Would Brits eat it this time of year? I think she was so befuddled that she took a forgotten Christmas cake from the pantry. In the US, we sometimes refer to someone being, "as nutty as a fruitcake." Nutty in this case means crazy.  So I took it as sort of a visual pun. Is that phrase used the same way by Brits? 


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6. Any opinions as to why green ink is used in these letters (which we now know are his Hogwarts letters, of course)? Or purple wax?

Potioncat:
We will discover later that McGonagall's signature is on the letter. I think it proves she was in Slytherin and is ESE!McGonagall.

No?

OK, it looks less Muggle-like, and more magical--much like the bright cloaks and robes many wizards wear.  

 
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7. The chapter is called "Letters from No One". Who do you think it responsible for sending these letters to Harry? Why the misleading chapter title?

Potioncat:
Is it misleading? Who would send a letter to Harry?  No one--hence the title. 

McGonagall's signature will be on the letter, but I'm not convinced any witch or wizard is overseeing the production of all those letters. More likely there is some sort of charmed quill that addresses and continues to send undelivered letters.

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8. Feel free to suggest your own question.

Potioncat:
I can't think of any other questions--nice job, Zara!