[HPforGrownups] Re: CHAPT DISC: Prisoner of Azkaban Chapter 13: Gryffindo...

[Shelley]

No: HPFGUIDX 190027

On 2/2/2011 10:40 AM, terrianking at aol.com wrote:
> I don't think it was something she obsessed on. She already knew back  in
> first year that wizards/witches have no sense of logic as pointed out to
> Harry when solving Snape's logic puzzle in the dungeons. She's seeing here in
> action that lack of insight where most everyone immediately attributes the
> event  as  being the prediction come true. They have no reason to look at it
> logically because magic (or someone magical) said 'it' would happen and
> magic is right. It becomes an argument when they don't understand her
> reasoning that magic might be wrong once in a while.
> JMO
>
> Robert
I agree! I think we have the prospective as readers of following Harry 
and Hermione of being from a Muggle society when they entered into this 
Wizarding World. They spot easily the superstition and lack of logic 
that comes with that lack of questioning how magic works because Wizards 
aren't used to analyzing magic- for Wizards, magic just works, and 
that's all they need to know. So they don't question divination or 
prophesies, because to them, that's just one (valid?) magical ability. 
Ron immediately relates to the social acceptance of an idea of a Grim 
and the superstitious idea of it bringing bad luck or misfortune, but 
Harry doesn't accept that feeling of doom at all that he was supposed to 
feel if he had been raised in that society. His attitude is almost 
irreverent at that point, or seen as "brave" because he's unafraid of 
the Grim. So also Hermione's reaction is seen as insensitive because if 
she were a proper Witch, she would have just accepted Trelawney as 
normal for this society. Instead she doesn't accept those gifts as real, 
and it causes a cultural clash with Lavender, because the two girls 
don't see where each other is coming from. I think it's a clash that 
would have happened anyway, even if this scene hadn't been coupled with 
the rabbit dying.

Someone else brought up the romantic set up of Lavender and Ron, and I 
think that is correct also. The initial reaction of Lavender and Ron 
makes sense- they are both from Wizarding families, so they 
automatically understand each other in so many ways because of their 
cultural similiarities. Ron's conflict with Hermione I think also comes 
from difference in their upbringing, and I think that is why many 
readers might have paired Harry with Hermione.

Shelley