[HPforGrownups] Re: Cedric, Snape and carma was re: Chapter Discussion: Prisoner of Azkaban

[Bart Lidofsky]

No: HPFGUIDX 190633

Jacob:
> When Dumblebore dueled Grindelwald and beat him to obtain the
> deathstick do you believe Grindelwald was dueling to kill?

Bart:
     I don't really follow JKR's interviews, so I don't know what she 
has said outside of canon on the subject, but frankly, based on what we 
have been told, it is clear that DD could not have beat Grindelwald in a 
straight duel (from DD's contention that Grindelwald was almost as good 
as him, the demonstration of the wand's effectiveness in its ability to 
repair Harry's wand). Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that DD used 
non-magical means to even the odds.

     Now, it has been made clear that wizards, if prepared, are pretty 
much immune to non-magical injury. Also, it has been made clear that 
wizards, even if unprepared, can be healed from pretty much any 
non-magical injury, provided they are still alive when treated (and 
maybe even a bit after that; if muggle physicians can revive the 
clinically dead if they get to them before brain injury sets in, I would 
assume so could healers (although one would also assume that Quidditch 
pitches would have some sort of spell to prevent a player from being 
killed by a fall; this does not seem to be the case). Note that this 
also does not explain why, if all the bones in an arm can be regrown, 
teeth apparently cannot. But, given Quidditch injuries that  we have 
seen, wizards can be made unconscious by conventional injury, and can 
die if not treated.

     Yet, if DD had won the duel by taking out a gun and shooting 
Grindelwald, it seems likely that it would have been mentioned somewhere.

     Now, let's go a little out of canon. Even those of us who do not 
read her interviews would be hard put to not have heard the well 
publicized statement by JKR that DD was gay. One of the comments that 
have been often made is that this piece of information was totally 
superfluous; there was nothing in the stories which would have changed 
if DD liked having sex with men, women, or goats for that matter. 
However, if DD's relationship with Grindelwald was partially sexual in 
nature, he could have used some comment alluding to that to distract 
Grindelwald just long enough to win the duel.

     And that is my guess as to what happened.

     Bart