CHAPTER DISCUSSION: Prisoner of Azkaban Chapter 9: Grim Defeat

[willsonteam]

No: HPFGUIDX 189680


> CHAPTER DISCUSSION: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
> Chapter 9: Grim Defeat

> Questions:
> 
> 1. A school-wide sleep-over, mixed gender (Hermione sleeps close to Ron and
> Harry), and with 11 to 17 year olds ? Can you imagine this happening at your
> school – both when you were young and/or for your kids nowadays - whichever
> applies ? Especially with little to no adult supervision – only Percy seems to
> be on patrol.

Potioncat:
Afterall, this is Hogwarts. No supervision in the co-ed Houses either. Percy provides more supervision than most teachers would. But the closest RL situation I can think of, is our youth mission event. Boys and girls sleep in the same room for 5 nights---granted, adults are sleeping in the narrow space between the male side and female side of the room
> 
> 2. And speaking of Percy – where's the Head Girl and the Prefects ? Can you
> imagine that Harry (through whom we `see' this magical world) would pay no
> attention to them at all ?
Potioncat:
Sometimes it bothers me that we didn't hear of a head girl at this time (wasn't it Penelope?) or that we don't find out who the prefects are in Ginny's 4th year. But JKR's cast of characters is pretty long as it is.
> 
> 3. Teacher Talk: When the Headmaster approaches, Harry quickly pretends to
> be asleep. Do you think Professor Dumbledore knew he was listening in on the
> conversation ? Was that the reason he cuts off Snape's insinuation that Lupin
> helped Black get inside the castle or was it solely because he truly believes
> Lupin didn't help ?
Potioncat:
I don't think there was anything to indicate that DD had any idea who was sleeping near that spot. On the other hand, you'd think Snape and DD would want to know where Harry was. Either way, I think DD cut off Snape because they had had the discussion before and DD was tired of it. He trusted Lupin.--enough said althoughI understand why Snape didn't trust Lupin.
> 
> 4. Snape taking over Lupin's class: What did you make of this and did it
> give you a clue as to what was to come out ?
Potioncat:
I thought it was more of the Snape/Lupin dynamic--and I loved how it all made sense by the end of the book.
> 
> 5. It wasn't till I was writing a version of book 6 myself that "teachers
> taking over classes for others" became a problem to me – what do you make of the
> class schedule for Hogwarts' students ?
Potioncat:
I think Snape took over Lupin's class for his own purpose, not that it was common practice. I don't think we ever see it done at any other time, or by any other teacher. But you'd think, with calendars and astronomy tools that Lupin's schedule would have been set up and substitute teachers arranged. Why oh why does the full moon always take the werewolf by surprise?
> 
> 6. Quidditch: what did you make of the fact that several of the experienced
> and older quidditch players didn't think of protecting Harry's glasses in the
> storm and that Hermione comes up with the solution ? Or is this a detail that I
> notice as a bespectacled citizen ?
Potioncat:
You'd think that would have been developed years ago. Didn't James wear glasses--or is that movie contamination?
> 
> 7. Quidditch: we also have the first introduction of Cedric Diggory. What
> – if any – was your impression of him ?
Potioncat:
He seemed an honorable young man.
> 
> 8. Did you have an idea by this time what, exactly, Harry might be hearing
> when dementors are near ?
Potioncat:
Yes, I think so. But it makes me wonder what exactly others hear. I wonder what made it so bad for Arthur.

Thanks for the interesting questions. I'd like to add one

Snape knows DD trusts him in spite of his dark history. What  do you think about Snape's dismissal of DD's trust of Lupin?
>