Chapter Discussion Chamber of Secrets Ch. 8 The Deathday Party

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 188998

><snip nice summary and question 1, which others have already answered>

> 2.	What was your first thought when you realized that Filch was taking Kwikspell course?

Carol responded:
Surprise, I think. It hadn't occurred to me that he might be a "failed wizard" (much less a Squib, which we hadn't heard of yet unless you count Neville's fear that he was "all Muggle" in SS/PS). I wasn't really amused by the parodies of ads with testimonials though I recognized the tactic from real ads--"Learn Spanish in five weeks" or whatever.
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> 3.	 500th anniversary of Nick's death is one of the few dates (or is an only date?) that can help us place Harry Potter in time. And we debated the timeline many many times in the past. Do you feel that JKR made a wise decision to actually place it in time or would it have been better to let the reader place the action in time as they see fit and not give any definite dates in the book?

Carol:
It's the only date in the early books, but we do eventually get the dates on the Potters' tombstones, and we get people's ages at various times, which can help us to figure out the time line. For example, Auntie Muriel says that she's 107 and remembers DD as a teenager, which confused me because I thought that DD was 150, not 115. I like having a time line, but I wish it were consistent and that JKR's math skills were better. I can give numerous examples where she's off by about a year. I think it has something to do with being born in July so that she, like Harry, was always the same age through any given school year and she forgets that most people have a birthday between September 1 and June 30. She also seems to forget that the year itself changes during that same period. In the case of Nick's death date, she's off by 100 years from what she said in SS/PS (unrevised edition)--that he's been dead for 400 years (which would fit better with his ruff). It might be better, however, to have the dates relative to one another without specific dates. That way, she wouldn't have to worry about minor details like whether a particular video console was invented yet.
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> 4.	Would you like to go to Deathday party?

Carol:
If I were invited, I would accept the invitation to be polite. (Okay, I'm a wimp and I hate saying no!) But I would hate it and would find an excuse to leave early.
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> 5.	Obviously we know now that Draco was not Slytherin Heir, but what do you think was the reason for him saying that?

Carol:
Well, he didn't claim to be Slytherin's heir; he only gloated and warned (or threatened) the "Mudbloods." I don't think he'd have dared to say those words if the teachers, especially Dumbledore, had arrived yet. He's just trying to scare the Muggleborns and impress people with his apparent knowledge. (He clearly isn't surprised, and it seems clear that he knew at least a little bit about his father's plot to release Slytherin's monster and who the intended victims are. I don't think he knows about the diary and Ginny, though, much less who the heir of Slytherin is.)
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<snip question 6, which I've already answered>
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> 7.	Filch is a Squib as we know now and he is expected to clean up the messes that magical kids make all the time. Do you think it is too much to expect of him?

Carol:
Despite his fussing, I think cleaning messes (and giving detentions) makes him feel important. It would make him feel even more inferior if the House Elves just snapped their fingers and did his work for him or a teacher or older student came along and whisked the mess away with a cleaning spell. Despite his malicious personality, I feel rather sorry for him. It must be very hard to see eleven-year-olds who are more magically powerful and talented than he is. I do think, though, that Squibs have some sort of magical connection to cats, which we see in both Filch and Mrs. Figg, and some sort of affinity with the magical world that differentiates them from Muggles. He wants to be around magic and the magical world and the QwikSpell course shows that he wants to be more than just an observer. Imagine being the only tone-deaf person in a family of musical geniuses or the only klutz in a family of athletes and multiply that by ten. Then imagine being the janitor in a school for such people. Being Filch can't be fun. No wonder he cares so much for his cat, the only creature (with the possible exception of Madam Pince) who shows him any affection or respect. I'm not trying to excuse his behavior, but I do understand why he's so envious and spiteful.
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Carol, who is by no means a Filch fan despite feeling somewhat sorry for him