Chapter Discussion Chamber of Secrets Ch. 9 The Writing on the Wall

[potioncat]

No: HPFGUIDX 189057


Potioncat here. Life has been busy and this has been my first chance to join in the conversations. Wow, there have been some good answers. Rather than trying to respond to each, I'm just going to go through some of the questions myself.

> This chapter is packed full of important information, so I hope you'll read it yourself, but here are the headlines:

Potioncat: 
See, you don't have to write a really good summary. You can just do bullets. So if it's the summary that's keeping you back from taking on a chapter, don't let it. (I'm not a list-elf, I just like to pretend to be.)

> 
> 2. What is Snape up to with his "Wrong place at the wrong time" speech? AND > 11. I have to confess, I had a really good question for this chapter that turned out to be based on movie contamination. I had such a bad case; I had to read the chapter several times before I accepted the event wasn't canon. All these years I thought it was an important moment in the Harry/Snape dynamic.

Potioncat:
I was convinced Snape had used Legilimency at this point and knew something was up. But as I read this section, nothing indicates, hints at, or provides a clue that Snape did any such thing.  So I'm still not completely sure what prompted his speech. Although knowing that they had not been at the feast, and knowing what kind of trouble they do tend to find maybe Snape just wanted to make sure they didn't get away with something. Yet, again
I'm surprised the teachers don't seem more upset at this moment. There's writing in blood, a petrified cat and a threat. Why do they seem so calm? 

> 4. Why didn't JKR introduce Squibs in SS/PS?

Potioncat:
It sort of bothered me that Neville wouldn't have used the word Squib at the first meeting. It's a word he would know. But I think the suggestions that JKR didn't want to add too much vocabulary is a valid one. And I could make an argument that Neville may not have been comfortable with the word himself. But this did make it sound like he was part Muggle.


> 
> 5. How does the explanation of Salazar's reasons for excluding Muggle-born students compare to contemporary wizards' reasons? (Malfoy, Black, etc.)

Potioncat: 
The answers to this question made me realize I had compared apples to oranges. I was comparing the attitude toward Muggle-born wizards to the attitude toward Muggles. Not quite the same thing.

> 
> 6. Are you surprised that Harry expected students to think he was Slytherin's heir at this time?

Potioncat:
I was, as I read it anew. At this point, Harry doesn't know about the Heir of Slytherin. Granted, Filch was accusing Harry and maybe the kids think Filch would know. Later in the book we'll hear a really good set of reasons to think Harry is. But at this point, all Harry has done is to be one of the first people at the scene.

> 
> 9. At one time this book was going to be The Half Blood Prince. Who knows what the plot would have been, but do you see any sections in this chapter that seem to foreshadow or parallel HBP?

Potioncat:
The diary and Snape's text seem to be a parallel to me. I know the diary was a plant, but both are old misplaced books with powerful information. Granted, Snape's is not enchanted. There's the introduction—sort of –of a Horcrux. And there's this ending,

"Hard to see why we'd want the book, really," said Ron, "if we weren't going to try and make one of the potions."
"I think," said Hermione, "that if we made it sound as though we were just interested in the theory, we might stand a chance
"
"Oh, come on, no teacher's going to fall for that," said Ron. "They'd have to be really thick
"

Doesn't that sound like Tommy and Slughorn?


> 
> 10. What do you think of Binns' comment, "Just because a wizard doesn't use Dark Magic doesn't mean he can't"? Is this brought up in any of the other 6 books?

Potioncat:
I agree with others, it was brought up by McGonagall in SS/PS and it does seem to continue thought the series.

Potioncat:
And a new question--Pippin offered that the Heir had to be someone who wasn't at the feast, which rules out Draco. What about Ginny?  Did she miss the feast?