#i just love love love that connection between harry and lupin in PoA and them sharing trans identity just adds another beautiful layer.. :') | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

senadimell · 4 years

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If you've got time to share, I'd love to hear more about your thoughts around Snape and Lupin.

@deathdaydungeon, here you are!

After a conversation with @frederick-the-great, I’ve been thinking about Lupin, Snape, and what they say about morality in HP. I’m not talking about the troublesome white hats, black hats morality, but am instead looking at from this angle: Lupin is nice and well-liked, but often lacks a backbone, whereas Snape is mean and disliked, but incredibly brave. Which is more important? I find Harry’s last sacrifice to be a useful point by which we measure their impact.

Lupin and Snape useful to compare on several important fronts.

As foils for each others’ teaching methods

The way they deal with social disadvantage

Their connections to Harry’s father and how they pass on James’ legacy

1) They both teach at Hogwarts, and are foils for each other in many ways. Snape is mean and takes away points. He’s seen as selfish. His classes are hard and unpleasant for Harry. He’s mean to Neville, and rather than encouraging him, mocks him and belittles him, which just adds to the overall disaster of Neville’s poor self-esteem mixing badly with potions class.

However, even Umbridge admits that Snape’s teaching methods work, and she’s working for Fudge who doesn’t like Death Eaters and has been defied by Snape in GoF, so we know he’s effective for a lot of people, if not Neville.

Yet, for all that, Snape saves Harry’s life multiple times. On top of that, Snape wants to keep the fact that he saved Harry’s life a secret.

“Very well. Very Well. But never--Never tell, Dumbledore! This must be between us! Swear it, I cannot bear...especially Potter’s son...I want your word!

My word, Severus, that I will never reveal the best of you? Dumbledore sighed, looking down into Snape’s ferocious, anguished face. “If you insist...”

DH 679, The Prince’s Tale

Conversely, Lupin is nice and rewards points. He’s seen as generous. His classes are fun and interesting for Harry. He’s kind to Neville, and expresses confidence in him that leads him to succeed and do well. That confidence is a huge part of Neville’s character development. I doubt he’d grow into the resistance leader in DH if not for the many times teachers expressed confidence in him, like Dumbledore in PS, Lupin in PoA, Fake!Moody in GoF, and Harry in OotP. Harry certainly approves of his methods:

“You’re the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we’ve ever had!” said Harry. “Don’t go!”

PoA 424, Owl Post Again

However, it’s worth noticing that Hermione does worse on his exam than we ever see. She fails the Boggart test, and she and Harry were the only two people not permitted to experience the Boggart in class. Lupin’s teaching methods aren’t foolproof. Despite that, he’s overall seen as a nice guy and good teacher.

Yet Lupin endangers Harry’s life. The secrets he keeps are dangerous: his secret to keep is that he’s a werewolf and actively endangered three students lives with his negligence, as well as the fact that he hid a secret about a believed and convicted mass murderer to save face with Dumbledore.

“That was still really dangerous! Running around in the dark with a werewolf! What if you’d given the others the slip, and bitten somebody?”

“A thought that still haunts me,” Lupin said heavily. “And there were near misses, many of them. We laughed about them afterwards. We were young, thoughtless--carried away with out own cleverness.

“I sometimes felt guilty about betraying Dumbledore’s trust, of course....he had admitted me to Hogwarts when no other headmasters would have done so, and he had no idea I was breaking the rules he had set down for my own and others’ safety. He never knew I had led three fellow students into becoming Animagi illegally. But I always managed to forget my guilty feelings every time we sat down to plan our next month’s adventure. And I haven’t changed...

Lupin’s face had hardened, and there was self-disgust in his voice. “All this year I have been battling with myself, wondering whether I should tell Dumbledore that Sirius was an Animagus. But I didn’t do it. Why? Because I was too cowardly. It would have meant admitting that I’d betrayed his tryst while I was at school, admitting that I’d led others along with me...and Dumbledore’s trust has meant everything to me. He let me into Hogwarts as a boy, and he gave me a job when I have been shunned all my adult life, unable to find paid work because of what I am. And so I convinced myself that Sirius was getting into the school using Dark Arts he learned from Voldemort, that being an Animagus had nothing to do with it...so in a way, Snape’s been right about me all along.”

PoA 355, Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

Plan is emphasized because those trips that ended in “near misses” weren’t some impulsive romp. They were planned and coordinated in advance.

“I just saw Hagrid,” said Harry. “And he said you’d resigned. It’s not true, is it?”

“I’m afraid it is, said Lupin. He stared opening his desk drawers and taking out the contents.

“Why?” said Harry. The Ministry of Magic don’t think you were helping Sirius, do they?”

Lupin crossed to the door and closed it behind Harry.

“No. Professor Dumbledore managed to convince Fudge that I was trying to save your lives.” He sighed. “That was the final straw for Severus. I think* the loss of the Order of Merlin hit him hard. So he--er--accidentally let slip that I am a werewolf this morning at breakfast.”

“You’re not leaving because of that!” said Harry.

Lupin smiled wryly.

“This time tomorrow, the owls will start arriving from parents ....They will not want a werewolf teaching their children, Harry. And after last night, I see their point. I could have bitten any of you...That must never happen again.

“You’re the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we’ve ever had!” said Harry. “Don’t go!”

PoA 424, Owl Post Again

What strikes me about this conversation is how Lupin shifts the blame around. This doesn’t start with an admission of guilt. He’s not leaving because the parents are right. He’s not leaving because he’s seen how dangerous he can be, or because he owns up to making an incredibly dangerous decision. He’s leaving because Snape forced his hand. If Snape didn’t do that, he would do the same thing he’s always been doing: sweeping his misdoing under the rug and promising himself privately that he’s going to change, but never doing it.

It’s always someone else’s fault for Lupin. That’s a neat tie in to the next point of comparison:

2. Lupin and Snape both experience marginalization in wizarding society, but in very different ways. Lupin faces socio-legal** marginalization and Snape faces socio-economic marginalization.

Lupin’s a werewolf. We see how prejudice affects his life, from his inability to find a job and his worn out clothes to his people-pleasing nature. He’s always acting nice and harmless. He does nothing to play into the condemning stereotypes he’s faced since childhood. Despite that, he still can’t find a job. Nobody will hire him, and people are scared to interact with him. From the way he talks about werewolves, it’s implied that this prejudice is held blindly across Wizarding society. Both Ron and Hermione are horrified to learn Lupin’s a werewolf. *** Later on, he’s legally limited in the kinds of jobs he holds and the kind of magic he’s allowed to perform. Lupin has no control over his transformations, and did not choose his condition.

Lupin’s not really wrong when pities himself. The odds really are stacked against him when he’s treated as if he’s a wolf 24/7, not just a few predictable times a month. His prospects are honestly awful.

The problem is, his condition is dangerous. Thus, the issue of victim blaming is particularly thorny for Lupin. He can’t just accept that he’s a monster for something he has no say over, and yet he can’t escape the fact that sometimes he is monstrous for reasons out of his control. He feels guilty for the people he could have hurt, but also seems to resent that people blame him for something that’s not his fault. The problem is that he carries that lack of accountability into spheres where he should be accountable, like not taking his medication and endangering children because of it.

Snape’s story is very different. He is poor in both the wizard and muggle worlds, and half-blooded, and was sorted into Slytherin as a child. He doesn’t have one condition against him, but checks boxes that make it hard for any one side to accept him. He’s too impure and poor to survive on his own for the Slytherin, but is a Slytherin with Death Eater friends and housemates interested in dark magic, which means he’s never going to fit in with the Order of the Phoenix crowd, especially when some of its members torment him at school. ****4

This essay makes a convincing point that the wizarding world is not a meritocracy, and that people like Snape need powerful patronage to advance if they don’t have the money to support themselves.

I don’t consider the sorting a proper choice. I know Harry does, but I’m of the opinion that at age 11, very few people have been taught how to analyze different perspectives and make an informed decision. Most 11-year-olds are trained to obey their parents and accept their family’s ideology. Harry’s choice rests on very little evidence--most of what he knows is what Hagrid told him, and that he doesn’t want to be sorted into Voldemort’s house along with Draco Malfoy, someone who reminds him of Dudley. I don’t think Snape was very informed either (I’d love to know why), because he doesn’t realize why it Lily wouldn’t be sorted into Slytherin.

“You’d better be in Slytherin,” said Snape, encouraged that she had brightened a little. DH 671, The Prince’s Tale

Either the pureblood rhetoric just wasn’t strong in those days, or his mother didn’t tell him about that.

...“Where are you heading, if you’ve got the choice?”

James lifted an invisible sword.

“’Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!’ Like my dad.”

Snape made a small, disparaging noise. James turned on him.

“Got a problem with that?”

“No,” said Snape, though his slight sneer said otherwise. “If you’d rather be brawny than brainy--”

DH 671-2, The Prince’s Tale

It seems that most people just follow familial preferences. As to why Snape wants to be in Ravenclaw over Slytherin, my preferred interpretation is that he had a family legacy, knew that Slytherin rewarded the ambitious and clever, and that Slughorn, the head of Slytherin house, had a knack for making the kind of connections that a poor, clever boy would need to succeed.

Nevertheless, once Snape was in Slytherin, the odds were stacked against him. The house in that era was full of people who would later be Death Eaters. “Dark Magic” wasn’t frowned upon among his housemates, and siding with Voldemort wasn’t yet widely acknowledged as a transgression by wider society.

“No, no, but believe me, [Sirius’ parents] thought Voldemort had the right idea, they were all for the purification of the wizarding race, getting rid of Muggle-borns and having pure-bloods in charge. They weren’t alone either, there were quite a few people, before Voldemort showed his true colors, who thought he had the right idea about things.…” OotP 112

Additionally, people like Bellatrix were in the years above him, and given how Fred and George acted with younger students, I think it’s highly likely younger students had to find a place in the hierarchy or be the target of ‘pranks.’ He was a halfblood, after all, and dirt poor.

Snape knew these people. He ate with them, slept with them, and went to class with them. It is so much easier to understand and befriend someone you spend time with. I’d say that most people who subscribe to problematic ideologies aren’t just awful to be around all the time, or else these movements wouldn’t gain any traction. They’re likely funny and nice to be around if you’re not on their bad side.

In addition to strong peer pressure to befriend the people who would be death eaters, he was also bullied four to one. His bullies received protection from the headmaster when he was nearly killed or permanently maimed. They were popular and well liked.

The best analogy I’ve heard to describe Snape's Hogwarts situation is that he’s a kid in a rough neighborhood who joins the local gang. It provides protection and the hope of social mobility, and from his perspective, the other gang fights just as dirty (his treatment by the marauders). He doesn’t stop to think that the system is flawed, or that the gang’s very existence indicates the failure of authority and threatens its members. He just sees himself as a kid with nothing who needs help with protection and advancement. We know that Voldemort hasn’t shown his true colors, and it’s possible he showed different faces to different people.

‘Now, yer mum an’ dad were as good a witch an’ wizard as I ever knew. Head Boy an’ Girl at Hogwarts in their day! Suppose the myst’ry is why You-Know-Who never tried to get ’em on his side before ... probably knew they were too close ter Dumbledore ter want anythin’ ter do with the Dark Side.

‘Maybe he thought he could persuade ’em ... maybe he just wanted ’em outta the way. All anyone knows is, he turned up in the village where you was all living, on Hallowe’en ten years ago. You was just a year old. He came ter yer house an’ – an’ –’ (“The Keeper of the Keys”)

Dumbledore’s cited as the reason they turned him down, not their blood status. I think there’s evidence that the wholesale anti-muggleborn campaign wasn’t a huge part of the first wizarding war, and wasn’t implemented until the second, even if there was anti-muggle propaganda. (Muggle=/=muggleborn). It’s implied that Tobias is abusive and that Snape hates him for what he did to him and his mother; it’s implied that faced class prejudice by the muggles around him as well:

“I know who you are. You’re that Snape boy! They live down Spinner’s End by the river,” she told Lily, and it was evident from her tone that she considered the address a poor recommendation.

DH 665, The Prince’s Tale

When you read stories about people who are able to escape cycles of gang violence and poverty, there’s almost always someone who lifts them out. There’s someone who pushes them, or extends a hand, or believes in them. There are community outreach programs, or churches, or an English teacher that pushed them to do better and try out for a scholarship. That person is usually someone who knows what it’s like and knows how hard it is to get out.

Snape doesn’t seem to get that support anywhere. Slughorn doesn’t seem to notice him, for whatever reason. Lily doesn’t approve of his friends, but also doesn’t understand at all what the pull is--that it’s hard to swim against the current of what everyone else is saying, despite the fact that she feels the same pressure to end her friendship with Snape.

“… thought we were supposed to be friends?” Snape was saying. “Best friends?” “We are, Sev, but I don’t like some of the people you’re hanging round with! I’m sorry, but I detest Every and Mulciber! Mulciber! What do you see in him, Sev, he’s creepy! D’you know what he tried to do to Marry Macdonald the other day?”

DH 673, The Prince’s Tale

In the very same conversation, the fact that Snape is not allowed to share what happened to him with Lupin and the werewolf incident means that Lily will never be able to understand what Snape is facing: That the leader of the good guys makes excuses for and protects people who recklessly endanger the lives of others.

“And you’re being really ungrateful. I heard what happened the other night. You went sneaking down that tunnel by the Whomping Wollow, and James Potter saved you from whatever’s down there--”

Snape’s whole face contorted and he spluttered, “Saved? Saved? You think he was playing the hero? He was saving his neck and his friends’ too!...”

DH 674, The Prince’s Tale

Later in the year after SWM, she tells Snape this:

“None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you.”

DH 675 The Prince’s Tale

She expects him to reject all of his classmates and stand against the tide, despite the fact that she knows how hard it is to do that and can’t comprehend why he sticks with his classmates. She expects him to be grateful to James Potter as if what he did was altruistic, because the Headmaster swore Snape to secrecy and he keeps his promises, despite the fact that someone else was spreading the story. (The fact that she says she heard it instead of talking about it like its common knowledge implies that she heard it from a friend, so our friends the Marauders likely weren’t keeping their lips zipped even if Snape was.)

I don’t say this to shift the blame away from Snape to Lily in regards to Snape joining the Death Eaters. I just want to point out that Lily wasn't someone who could help him break the cycle. He didn’t squander some chance she offered him. She just wasn’t enough to break him out--not empathetic, motivated, or well-informed enough. (I think the fact that they were peers plays a big role in that).

Ultimately, Snape did choose to join the Death Eaters. He did yield to peer pressure. He did obey his assignment and report the prophecy to Voldemort. He spent his youth yielding, following the path in front of him, and choosing what was probably the easier choice: stick with your group, find powerful friends, do what they want, and don’t ask too many questions about their methods. That’s what makes his decision to betray Voldemort so powerful to me.

Here’s part of the passage when Snape betrays Voldemort:

...The adult Snape was panting, turning on the spot, his wand gripped tightly in his hand, waiting for something or for someone...His fear infected Harry too, even though he knew that he could not be harmed, and he looked over his shoulder wondering what it was that Snape was waiting for--

Then a sliding, jagged jet of white light flew through the air. Harry thought of lightning, but Snape had dropped to his knees and his wand had flown out of his hand.

“Don’t kill me!”

DH 676, The Prince’s Tale

He was terrified. He knew he was caught between the world’s two most powerful wizards, but it was worth it if he could save his childhood friend.

Then when Lily dies:

“Her son lives. He has her eyes, precisely her eyes. You remember the share and color of Lily Evans’s eyes, I am sure?”

“DON’T!” bellowed Snape. “Gone...dead...”

“Is this remorse, Severus?”

“I wish..I wish I were dead....”

“And what use would that be to anyone?” said Dumbledore coldly.

DH 678, The Prince’s Tale

Whatever motivation Snape had before is gone. A person’s life who is not his own is worth more than his own, and he’s drowning in guilt. From now on, Snape works to be useful in saving Harry’s life, and later many lives, at risk of death. His choices are a black mark on his record, likely making it difficult for him to get a job when he’s been tried as a Death Eater, and all of his wizarding connections are Death Eaters or their associates. He has no money or influence. Dumbledore hires him.

So Lupin has a single ailment and faces constant social and legal discrimination. He constantly tries to undermine people’s expectations about werewolves by being mild, but unfortunately is too afraid of rejection and its consequences to stand up against bad behavior or take full responsibility for his failings. He has friends who support him, but do it by engaging in risky behavior. He does not stop them. Perhaps he fears exposure and expulsion. Perhaps he just likes belonging for once. Either way, he does not come clean until forced to.

Snape is different; instead of facing outright rejection, he’s from a poor background and grows up surrounded by peers who join something somewhere between a gang and a cult while being bullied by people groomed by a rival organization. The headmaster of his school supports the rival organization and swears him to secrecy about an incident when they endangered his life, sending the message that his life is worthless. That same group continues to publicly bully him. He continues down this path until he realizes that it endangers something he cares about, and makes a decision that puts him at risk of being killed by the two most powerful wizards alive. He changes course.

Snape seems to view his problems as challenges facing him, whereas Lupin sees his problems as part of who he is, and not something he can change. Lupin seems to accept what happens to him in a fatalist kind of way. He sees what happens as inevitable and somewhat out of his control, whereas Snape never seems to blame his circumstances for him becoming a death eater, even though they clearly limited his options. I think that attitude matters. However, because Lupin’s facing a fictional magical malady, it’s difficult to fully blame him for that attitude.

Both Lupin and Snape have to react to powerful societal pressure that makes it difficult for them to succeed. Comparing them is apples and oranges at best, because their circumstances were so different. I don’t think you can judge either’s morality based on group identity, though.

3. Finally, they both act as a window on James: who he was, and what he means to Harry, who never knew him. That means in some way, they help pass on his parental legacy to orphaned Harry.

Hogwarts is Harry’s home, which means that the teachers are more than just teachers, but play a symbolic parental role in his life.

Hogwarts was the first and best home he had known. He and Voldemort and Snape, the abandoned boys, had all found home here.

DH 697, The Forest Again

You can’t understand Harry without realizing what he lacks: a loving home and living parents. He’s always looking into the past to find his parents, and is saddled with a legacy he struggles to understand--why did he live, who were his parents, and what does he need to do now?

Lupin and Snape also share a connection with Harry that goes beyond a normal teacher-student relationship, unlike McGonagall or Flitwick. Snape and Lupin are more personally connected to Harry than the other professors because they know Harry’s parents and went to school with them. I will mostly focus on James from here on out since we know so little about Lily personally and Harry mostly tries to emulate or avoid his father’s behavior and legacy.

They’re also the last people who knew James to survive, and they die almost at the same time. They’re the only teachers apart from Dumbledore who give Harry private lessons. More importantly, these lessons are all tied thematically to Harry’s past. Harry’s experience with dementors and the patronus charm are his first re-encounter with his parents and his past.

Terrible though it was to hear his parents’ last moments replayed inside his head, these are the only times Harry had heard their voices since he was a very small child. But he’d never be able to produce a proper patronus if he half wanted to hear his parents again.

PoA 243, The Patronus

In the end of PoA, Harry sees himself and mistakenly thinks it’s his father.

“Come on!” he muttered, staring about. “Where are you? Dad, come on--”

But no one came. Harry raised his head to look atet he circle of dementors across the lake. One of them was lowering its hood. It was time for the rescuer to appear--but no one was coming to help this time--

And then it hit him--he understood. He hadn’t seen his father--he had seen himself--

Harry flung himself out from behind the bush and pulled out his want.

“EXPECTO PATRONUM!” he yelled.

PoA 411, Hermione’s Secret

So the patronus itself is linked up with Harry’s past, and his coming-of-age. He doesn’t rely on others to save him, but must do it himself. (Though Harry’s never really trusted the adults to save him.) It’s interesting to note that Harry actually learns the Patronus charm under Lupin’s tutelage.

On the other hand, Snape introduces Harry to the unpleasant side of his father’s legacy. Through Snape, we see that James wasn’t just a little cocky, but a bully.

“Apologize to Evans!” James roared at Snape, his wand pointed threateningly at him. “I don't want you to make him apologize,” Lily shouted, rounding on James. “You're as bad as he is.” “What?” yelped James. “I'd NEVER call you a--you-know-what!” “Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can--I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK.” She turned on her heel and hurried away.

....

He had no desire at all to return to Gryffindor Tower so early, nor to tell Ron and Hermione what he had just seen. What was making Harry feel so horrified and unhappy was not being shouted at or having jars thrown at him; it was that he knew how it felt to be humiliated in the middle of a circle of onlookers, knew exactly how Snape had felt as his father had taunted him, and that judging from what he had just seen, his father had been every bit as arrogant as Snape had always told him. OotP, Snape’s Worst Memory, emphasis added

It’s interesting note that Harry fails to learn Occlumency from Snape. (In fact, we never see Harry use magical skills he learned from Snape apart from Expelliarmus, which is...important). At the same time, he gains an important perspective.

You can’t have James without this part of him. However kind James was to Lupin, however brave James was when he saved his wife, he was neither kind nor brave when he bullied Snape. It’s uncomfortable and awkward, but it’s important.

When he had finished, neither Sirius nor Lupin spoke for a moment. Then Lupin said quietly, “I wouldn’t like you to judge your father on what you saw there, Harry. He was only fifteen —”

“I’m fifteen!” said Harry heatedly.

OotP

Harry rejects the idea that actively bullying someone is just folly of youth. He knows what it’s like to be disenfranchised. Regardless of what Snape and James’ relationship was, he didn’t deserve that kind of humiliation. And Lupin watched, and defends him. Harry has to grapple with that.

Ultimately, Snape and Lupin do more than just connect him to his past. They also teach him his two signature spells, Expelliarmus and Expecto Patronum. One saves his soul, and one saves his life and frees the wizarding world from Voldemort because of Voldemort’s fractured soul.

Snape and Lupin as moral counterpoints

How do we evaluate this:

“I’d never have believed this,” Harry said. “The man who taught me to fight dementors--a coward.”*****5

DH 213, The Bribe

and this?

“Albus Severus, you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew.

DH 758, Seventeen years later

Ultimately, I don’t think it’s really that useful to pit two people with different backgrounds against each other. At the same time, they represent two different halves of a question: when it comes down to it, should we try to be kind or brave? I don’t think you have to pick one, but when pursuing the two, there are bound to be moments of conflict.

I always come back to the lyrics to Last Midnight from Sondheim’s Into the Woods.******6

You're so nice You're not good You're not bad You're just nice I'm not good I'm not nice I'm just right I'm the witch You're the world

Snape doesn’t care about being nice. I think this is where most non-Snape fans start pulling out the pitchforks and torches. Snape isn’t nice, and he’s not nice to kids. He’s not nurturing.*******7 He’s abrasive, allergic to coddling, and petty when he can get away with it. In fact, most of the people he’s ‘nice’ to are significantly more powerful than him, or someone he needs to be on good terms with.

Lupin is nice. He’s mild. He’s often kind. However, he often picks being liked over standing up for something.

What does that result in? He doesn’t stand up for Snape. The bullying continues and keeps Snape firmly on his path. He wins the respect of the Gryffindors with the Snape Boggart incident but loses whatever credibility he had to tell Snape to ‘put their past behind him.’

On the other hand, Neville’s bravery in DH was nurtured by Lupin’s confidence. Neville kept hope alive and led a rebellion. Lupin is one of the few adults that Harry fully respects and trusts up until the Grimmauld place confrontation. (He likes Hagrid and Molly, but doesn’t necessarily trust them to make decisions in their best interest, while he usually respects Lupin’s judgement). Harry loves him, and it’s because he loved him and watched him die that he needs to act and fight back against Voldemort.

Ultimately, Harry’s relationship with James and the adults who pass on his legacy is one of the most important symbolic relationships in the book. The thematic resolution of the series is Harry’s act of sacrificial love.

He did not know what to feel, except shock at the way Snape had been killed, and the reason for which it had been done....

...He could not bear to look at any of the other bodies, to see who else had died for him. He could not bear to join the Weasleys, could not look into their eyes, when if he had given himself up in the first place, Fred might never had died...

He turned away and ran up the marble staircase. Lupin, Tongs...He yearned not to feel....He wished he could rip out his heart, his innards, everything that was screaming inside of him.

To escape into someone else’s head would be a blessed relief....Nothing that even Snape had left him could be worse than his own thoughts.

DH 660-662, The Prince’s Tale

He rushes to the headmaster’s office to escape into Snape's memories. His memories convince Harry that sacrificing himself is the expedient thing to do, and he heads to the Forbidden Forest. To enable is last sacrifice, he uses the Resurrection stone to witness his parents and his father’s friends. Their combined testimony is enough to ameliorate his personal fears about following through with this final act.

Lupin and Snape leave entirely different legacies behind. Lupin encourages and inspires. As an authority figure, he gives people like Neville space to grow and his compassion towards Harry gives him the strength to face his demons. Harry’s decision in DH to die must have something to do with the kindness he was shown, and the sacrifices people who loved him made for him, of which Lupin is a part. Despite what he saw in Princes’ Tale, Snape wasn’t one of the people who’d make an appearance with the Resurrection stone.

Yet Snape sacrificed his life for Harry and the wizarding world, entities that Snape didn’t seem to like and that certainly weren’t kind to him. His form of bravery is about endurance, tenacity, and willingness to do what is right even when you hate your allies and no one else is going to credit you for what you do. And that’s very Harry. Even if he hates Draco, he’s not about to let him die if he can help it. Harry has much more in common with Snape than Lupin, I think.

Since this is about souls, let’s return to the Patronus charm. Snape’s not the kind of person who typically inspires that kind of emotion required to cast a Patronus in others, at least from what we see in Harry’s perspective. Yet because he has experienced that love, he can cast it and shows Harry what needs to be done. Snape enables Harry to dive under the ice. Lupin’s the kind of person who can inspire a patronus, but isn’t the one to make the sacrifice play until after Harry confronts him about his duty to his family. Ultimately, though, they both sacrifice themselves in the Battle of Hogwarts.

* Ever since I realized how blatantly tangential Order of Merlin must be to Snape’s character motivation, that line has frustrated me to no end. There’s no way frothing-at-the-mouth PoA Snape just really coveted that Order of Merlin. He’s often petty, yeah, but if Lupin believes it’s just about that and has nothing to do with Snape’s real conviction about how dangerous Lupin’s actions were, he’s deluding himself. I hate that he passes it on to his students.

**Yes, I am making up words today. Lupin’s faces prejudice and discrimination on a social level enforced by increasingly powerful discriminatory laws.

*** It’s worth noting that if we take every book as equally valid canon, then there’s either widespread ignorance towards lycanthropy, as Lockhart convinces everyone he was able to “cure” the Wagga-Wagga werewolf, and as teenage Horcrux!Riddle said Hagrid raised werewolf cubs under his bed, or else lycanthropy is actually a wide range of conditions under a wolfy umbrella ranging from treatable to incurable. Lupin is our primary source for lycanthropy: he’s the one who tells us about Greyback, for example. If we hold the first two books as equally valid, then perhaps we only know about Lupin’s particular type of condition. That’s the Watsonian analysis, anyways.

****4 These footnotes are getting ridiculous. Basically, there’s no consensus on what Dark Magic is, and on what basis it’s Evil. This essay goes into things that are labelled as curses. I’m inclined to believe that the vast majority of Dark Magic is just Magic We Don’t Like for Reasons.

The definition of what is and isn't considered Dark Magic is never explained: often it just seems to mean "a curse I don't approve of". Even "curse" has never been satisfactorily defined, but we can certainly say that not all curses are regarded as evil, since some appear to be on the Hogwarts curriculum, and are certainly performed without censure.

*****5 While I paired the quotes at the top of this section together for dramatic effect, it’d be a shame not to look at the context of the Lupin fight.

“I thought you’d say [that your mission was top secret],” said Lupin, looking disappointed. But I might still be of some use to you. You know what I am and what I can do. I could come with you to provide protection. There would be no need to tell me exactly what you were up to. Harry hesitated. It was a very tempting offer.

Hermione then asks about Tonks.

“I’m pretty sure my father would have wanted to know why you aren’t sticking with your own kid, actually”... ...“I’d never have believed this,” Harry said. “The man who taught me to fight dementors--a coward.”

...“Parents shouldn’t leave their kids unless--unless they’ve got to.”

...“I know I shouldn’t have called him a coward.”“No, you shouldn’t,” said Ron at once. “But he’s acting like one. “ “All the same...” said Hermione.

“I know,” said Harry. “But if it makes him go back to Tonks, it’ll be worth it, won’t it?”

He could not keep the plea out of his voice. Hermione looked sympathetic, Ron uncertain. Harry looked down at his feet, thinking of his father. Would James have backed Harry in what he had said to Lupin, or would he have bene angry at how his son had treated his old friend?

DH 213, The Bribe

Harry feels personally betrayed that someone who has a family and child would abandon them. Here he is unyielding and accusing to someone he cares about in the hopes that they re-evaluate what matters. It’s a rather Snape-like tactic, actually. Or else a Dumbledore one.

I love the dialogue in this scene, but have some major issues with how Harry’s internalization drops out the window for shock value. JKR does the same thing when has Harry pull the Veritaserum trick in HBP. I don’t like it.

******6 The witch and Snape aren’t perfect analogues, since she’s decidedly more amoral in my opinion, but they’re both contractually-motivated characters whose humanity is shown by their (platonic/familial) love for a more “innocent” character and the guilt at the innocent character’s sacrificial death. Guilt doesn’t lead the witch to do anything productive, and for Snape it does, which is where they diverge on the character path.

*******7 Draco may be an exception to this. However, watching Snape struggle to build rapport with Draco in HBP leads me to think that while Snape’s been on Draco’s side, he’s still not “nurturing,” or in other words, good at cultivating trust and encouraging the strong and wholesome parts of someone’s personality to grow.

#hp meta #snape #pro snape #severus snape #remus lupin #i haven't figured out how to make this appear above the cut...

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gwenpendragns · 3 years

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gimme all the recs for hp and sw, im starving for content

Okay so these aren’t all completed and some of them include smut and other potentially triggering topics so make sure to read the tags before you proceed but here you go! These are all on ao3 and are all over 10,000 words. I’ll probably have more sw ones to rec in a bit but this is what I’ve got now! I don’t read any canon pairing or canon character/canon character fic bc it doesn’t interest me so these are all either oc or reader insert!

Harry Potter

A Wolf’s Soul (Remus Lupin) - this one was really good to read but it is a Student/Teacher romance; the character is of age but still

We Are the Choices We Make (Harry Potter) - this is basically a complete re-write starting at GOF where Harry gets a bodyguard. It’s extremely well written and so good!!

Full Moon and Quidditch Matches (Remus Lupin) - okay unfortunately this is orphaned but it’s got like 200,000 words and might be one of the best fics I’ve read. It starts in POA with Sirius’s younger sister starting as a professor

Into Red and Emerald (Sirius Black) - this is a short one shot of 30,000 words of Sirius on the run and it’s very cute!!

Arresto Momentum (Draco Malfoy) - this is a very cute, passionate love story between an American transfer and Draco with a Draco redemption arc written in

Dog Days (Sirius Black) - an of age student-reader stumbles upon Padfoot during POA, shenanigans ensue. It’s very cute and wholesome!!

If Only Love Was Easy (Neville Longbottom) - Bellatrix and Rodolphus Lestrange’s daughter is best friends with Neville, who worries about her way too much

Star Wars

Eventide (Anakin Skywalker) - Post-Original Trilogy, older Anakin Skywalker AU where Luke finds a caretaker for his father who just wants to die and be at peace. Ripped my heart straight out of my chest and had me sobbing at 4am

Ashes (Obi-Wan Kenobi) - Obi-Wan falls for Anakin’s older sister, Adrina. This was very cute and very well written!!

Isolation (Obi-Wan Kenobi) - Post-Prequels, Exile!Obi-Wan meets reader and the force reacts in strange ways (this isn’t finished but it’s very enticing!!)

Choosing Sides (Obi-Wan Kenobi) - Sith!Obi-Wan, enough said.

What About Now (Luke Skywalker) - An undercover royal friend of Leia’s goes to Tatooine with R2 and C3PO - her and Luke are connected from the beginning. 10/10

My Best Friend’s Sister (Luke Skywalker) - Han Solo’s sister and Luke Skywalker fall in love. Includes himbo Luke and comedic misunderstandings

Across the Stars (Luke Skywalker) - very pure, passionate love story told through flashbacks

#type: fic rec #emily reads #type: asks #tw hp #universe: harry potter #universe: Star Wars #Remus Lupin #Sirius black #Harry Potter #Draco Malfoy #anakin skywalker #obi wan kenobi #Luke Skywalker #fic recs #long post

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carewyncromwell · 3 years

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5, 13, and 20 for the potter asks?

Pro or anti Marauders?

Pro overall, but let’s break this down by characters --

Remus Lupin is my favorite male character in the entire book series. He not only reminded me of my best teachers growing up, but I felt so, so much for him as a character too. I always felt kind of marginalized and different from my peers growing up, so it’s kind of unsurprising that I’ve had a soft spot for “outcast” characters since I was very little, and Remus is no exception. I completely understood why his friends meant so much to him and therefore felt SO much for him that, in the end, he had to lose all three of them and end up alone. Even his flaws, showcased best in the Snape’s Worst Memory chapter of OOTP and especially in Deathly Hallows, only serve to make him more real and human -- it broke my heart when he considered leaving Tonks and Teddy to help the Trio with their Horcrux hunt, but Remus wanting to “bury himself in his work” (which, honestly, this was -- he was a member of the Order, after all!) rather than face his worst fear of possibly dooming another person (namely, his son) to live a life like his made perfect sense with the characterization established, however horrible and wrong of a choice it was. It made me side with Harry so much in scolding Remus, yet I also felt compassion for the feelings behind Remus’s initial impulse. And of course, I was so proud of him when he overcame that fear and stood by Tonks and got to know his son before he died. I’m still not over the fact that my bb Remus had to die, AUUUUUGH, he and Sirius and Harry should’ve lived together as one happy makeshift family togetherrrrr. DX

Peter Pettigrew...that bloody rat. >> I’m sure just about everyone feels a lot of justified resentment toward Peter for what he did to the Potters, and I definitely agree with that sentiment...but at the same time, there’s still a part of me that finds him very interesting. Mainly because...I’d love to see him at his best, now that we’ve seen him at his worst! He was a Marauder, same as Sirius, Remus, and James, and we should never forget that -- he might have been a bit of a tag-along, but none of the other three, Lily, or anyone else thought that Peter would ever have been the type to turn on his friends. McGonagall disparaged Peter for his magical talent, but she openly grieved for him when she thought Sirius had killed him. Everyone was ready to believe Sirius -- who clearly adored James -- could be the traitor, before suspecting Peter. Sirius even suspected Remus before Peter...and this is when their connection in the books is so strong that HP fans have shipped Wolfstar since POA was first published back in 1999! Even when you read the books, you can see flickers of remorse in Peter at points, if you’re reading carefully. In Goblet of Fire, Peter seems noticeably uncomfortable around the rest of Voldemort’s supporters -- his efforts to bring Voldemort back to his body really seem to be out of obligation rather than any kind of enthusiasm. And of course, as we see in Deathly Hallows, Peter even as a Death Eater still retains enough honor to hesitate when Harry reminds him that he owes him his life. Gryffindor house does preach chivalry as well as courage, and in a twisted way, one could read Peter’s “loyalty” to Voldemort not just being about desperation as his friends now want nothing to do with him, but also because Peter’s standing by the choice he made...not unlike how Percy stood by the Ministry as long as he did, rather than by his family. This doesn’t justify what Peter did at all -- he is a despicable coward who destroyed so many lives and is responsible for bringing back the Dark Wizard whose return resulted in even more deaths -- but it does give his characterization as a villain interesting nuance. There’s a well-established internal logic to how Peter behaves, one I would frankly LOVE to see more of in a future Marauders-centric property.

Sirius is arguably the most polarizing of the Marauders, but honestly? I love him to pieces. He is a very, VERY flawed character -- he’s got a real mean streak, a hot temper, and more aggression than the average person. Him encouraging Snape to “go after Remus” was an indisputably terrible, stupid, callous thing to do, not just because of the endangerment to Snape’s life, but the flagrant betrayal of Remus’s friendship. The way Sirius treated Kreacher was completely uncalled for, regardless of how much the elf reminded him of his terrible home life. Sirius also can be really immature and can get really surly and passive-aggressive when he’s upset. But despite all of this, I love Sirius anyway. In a lot of ways, Sirius reminds me of my father, who I also love a lot despite his many flaws. Sirius lacks empathy for those different from him, but he’s also the only member of his immediate family who rejected the idea of pureblood superiority and fought in the Order of the Phoenix against Voldemort. Sirius was a bully and even as an adult could be incredibly petty and mean-spirited, but he also was the first person in Harry’s life who really felt like family to him -- who he could write to for help when he was sad, afraid, or insecure. Sirius was a hot-tempered, rash person who rarely thought through the consequences of his actions, but he also would’ve done absolutely anything to protect the people he loved. He without question loved James, Lily, and Harry more than his own life. Despite being raised in a cold, hate-filled, prejudiced, unaffectionate, abusive home, Sirius understood unconditional love, and he understood his godson in a way no one else could, not just because he was such close friends with the parents he’d lost at such a young age, but because he’d lived Harry’s experience as a neglected, unloved child himself.

And now we come to the often maligned James Potter. Honestly, this guy gets such a bad rap in the fandom, almost exclusively based on Snape’s memories, and I don’t think it’s really fair. Snape is really the only person who has a sour image of James, and even if we disregard the testimonials of fellow Marauders like Sirius and Remus, people like McGonagall, Dumbledore, Mad-Eye Moody, and even Cornelius Fudge had nothing but nice things to say about James, and those people don’t have reason to speak well of James at Snape’s expense. And of course, even Snape’s perceptions are bound to have their own slant to them. Pensieve memories are just that: memories. A Pensieve is not a pocket dimension that perfectly recreates the past, hence why Slughorn was able to badly modify his memory, Hokey the house elf’s memories were tampered with by Riddle, and even in Snape’s own memory, we follow Snape throughout the memory and we’re only able to hear what the Marauders are saying because he was close by. And if we judge James solely based on his no-doubt worst moment in Snape’s Worst Memory, we’re bound to get an incomplete picture -- just as we did for Hagrid, after seeing Tom Riddle’s memory of him confronting Hagrid for supposedly opening the Chamber of Secrets. Would we judge Harry solely for Malfoy’s recollection of the Sectumsempra incident, or Hermione solely for Marietta’s recollection of the time Hermione hexed her face to read “SNEAK” across it? Of course not. James was a bully and what he did in Snape’s Worst Memory was no doubt horrible -- but this is also a young man who without hesitation gave Sirius a home after he ran away from his terrible family, who supported Remus financially when he couldn’t find work, and who selflessly put himself between Voldemort and his family just to give them a chance to escape, even though he didn’t even have his wand on him. I would frankly love to learn more about James and see more of the arc he must’ve gone through as a character for someone like Lily to have fallen in love with him and for people like Remus and Sirius to feel such strong platonic love for him themselves, if a Marauders-centric property was ever created.

Who was the bravest character in Harry Potter and why?

Oh gosh...hm...that is a real challenge. There are a lot of very brave characters! Harry, Ron, Hermione, Remus, Sirius, McGonagall, Hagrid, Dobby, Cedric...but I think I’m going to nominate Neville. While Hogwarts was taken over by Snape and the Carrows and the students were no doubt being brainwashed a la the Hitler Youth to regurgitate blood-purist talking points rather than learning anything that could defend themselves against the Dark Arts or that was even remotely true about Muggles, Neville decided to face that undeniable hopelessness -- worsened all the more by the students’ lack of independence and freedom while being housed in the castle’s walls without their families and the threat of losing both their families and all hope for a future constantly dangled over their heads -- head-on and reform Dumbledore’s Army with Ginny and Luna to stand against it. Then, even as his group’s members got picked off one by one and were forced to hide in the Room of Requirement, he stuck to his guns and kept resisting because he knew -- as a Pureblood -- he was in a position he could use to fight for others and wasn’t afraid to stand up for those who couldn’t stand up for themselves and others. It was only when his grandmother was forced to flee and the Carrows realized that Neville was too much of a threat to keep in check that he went into hiding himself. Then, when everyone thought Harry was dead and many others would’ve despaired, Neville fearlessly and fiercely stuck both by Harry, his parents’ memory, and his own convictions and refused Voldemort’s offer to join him, even keeping his head enough after getting burned by the flaming Sorting Hat to fulfill his promise to Harry and kill Nagini. And this was the kid who people said shouldn’t have been Sorted into Gryffindor at all, in his first year! What a beautiful transformation.

Favourite Death Eater?

*cringes* Mmm...well, character-wise, I’d say I’ve always found Lucius a very compelling character, in the books. The Malfoy family in general struck me as interesting anti-villains, since they are indisputably unpleasant, prejudiced, awful people, but their one silver lining to me is how deeply and sincerely they love each other. That aspect is really lost in movie!Lucius, since the films try to portray him much more two-dimensionally bad and that interpretation has since colored the fandom’s view of Lucius as an abusive father when there is NO textual evidence of that in the books. And I kind of find it a shame, because as much as I adore Jason Isaacs in his role, it did serve to make Lucius a bit less complex and interesting in the films than he was in the books. Admittedly as well I have a bit more of a soft spot for Lucius after taking on the challenge of writing the guy and his family a redemption arc in my way-too-long AU fic Harry Potter and the Lack of Lamb Sauce. XD

HP Ask!

#hp ask #opinion #ooc #lucius malfoy #sirius black #remus lupin #james potter #peter pettigrew #neville longbottom

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returquoise · 6 years

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Cracky Harry Potter theory for the masses: Sirius Black is Voldemort's son.

A lot of these pieces fit very neatly and logically together. Not all of them, but a lot. I don’t think this is actually true, but once I had the initial idea, I had a lot of fun coming up with the rest of it. Also, imagine all the drama if this was actually true.

Why? Walburga Black (Sirius’s mum) is a year older than Voldemort and without a doubt was in Slytherin. This means that they shared 5 or 6 years of school together (depending on Walburga’s month of birth, which is not stated). Walburga was from a Sacred 28 family, rich and influential – who wouldn’t want to be friends with her? Especially a poor but ambitious orphan boy who wants to make connections in a new world.

Voldemort stated in CoS that his closest friends already called him Voldemort in school and we could presume that he had also told them he was the heir of Slytherin (because what kind of Slytherin would take the possibility that Rubeus Hagrid was the heir seriously?). This prestigious background and clear intelligence would make him interesting to Walburga.

But would she get romantically involved with him? She married her second cousin Orion but I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t stop her from cheating on him in 1959 and 1960 (assuming Sirius and Regulus share a father, I somehow get the impression that they looked similar enough to have the same parents – of course they might also have different fathers). Riddle was handsome, intelligent and charming, I’m pretty sure he could talk himself into bed with pureblooded ladies if he wanted to and Walburga looks like a good catch. Maybe this way he could get extra support for his new movement. Walburga might have just been having fun and cheating just because (seems to happen in the real world too) or she and Orion might have had a fight and she did it out of spite.

There’s also the interesting detail of Death Eaters originally being called the Knights of Walburgis. It does have German and Dutch witch myth explanation floating around the internet, but I’m not totally sure Voldemort would go looking abroad for name inspiration. Although Voldemort in itself is French so maybe he would. Or maybe that’s just the convenient explanation he uses to cover up his relationship with Walburga Black.

Voldemort most definitely did not love her and would have been only interested in her resources; the family name, influence and money. Flattery will get you anywhere and all that, especially if the cause is named partially after you.

But are there any similarities between Voldemort/Riddle and Sirius?

Sirius was, I believe, at one point mentioned as one of the most handsome male characters in the books. Judging by the way Riddle was written, he was handsome too. Both have black hair and are pale, their eye colour does differ but nothing stops Sirius from inheriting Walburga’s eye colour so that covers looks. Both were very intelligent – Sirius became an Animagus during his fifth year at Hogwarts and Riddle opened the Chamber of Secrets in his sixth year and created a Horcrux. Both also have somewhat troubled relationships with their families; Sirius being an outcast and a disappointment and Riddle having grown up in an orphanage. There’s also this delicious contrast; Riddle growing up in a Muggle orphanage and coming to hate Muggles and being sorted into Slytherin, whereas Sirius grew up in a pureblood family, came to hate their ideologies and was sorted into Gryffindor.

Is Sirius a parselmouth? Well, we never see him with living snakes but he does hate the decor at Grimmauld Place. He could be and if he was, he would definitely hide it. He certainly didn’t seem bothered by Harry’s ability.

Was Regulus also Voldemort’s son?

Maybe, but probably not. Voldemort would probably have been a tad more interested about what was going on with him if he was.

Would they know of the connection?

I want to say yes.

It gives Sirius one extra reason to hate the blood purity ideology. Also his certainty that Voldemort would go after him to figure out where the Potters were hiding. Sure it could just be explanation he gave in the book, but if a Fidelius secret cannot be tortured out of the secret keeper… maybe he had an additional reason to not want to be the secret keeper? A Star Wars-y ”I am your father” scenario might be an extra incentive because Voldemort might be especially intent on torturing or turning him because of the connection in which case he would be at greater risk of revealing the Potter’s location.

As for Voldemort… well, Sirius being a Gryffindor would be a huge disappointment to him and it might make him extra interested in going after his friends personally. The Prophecy and Dumbledore’s explanation of it did imply, that the Potters had personally crossed wands with Voldemort three times. And while Potters appear to be an influential Light side family, having their best friend be Voldemort’s own son would make them extra interesting as targets.

Why would they hide it?

Well Sirius’ reasons for hiding this would be very obvious and has been mentioned above.

Walburga would probably keep her mouth shut to protect the Black family reputation – or at least her own reputation, considering how much time she spent complaining about Sirius’ affect on it. I doubt she would want to be known as a cheater. Blacks as a family never did officially, as a whole, join Voldemort so she or Orion must have seen something questionable about it. Maybe Walburga found out Voldemort is a half blood and now that one quarter Muggle blood had sullied Sirius oops. And keeping quiet about the connection would keep Aurors from investigating them and then revealing it to all and sundry who Sirius’ father actually was.

As for Voldemort… he doesn’t seem to care that much about families as a concept – probably the orphanage thing – and Sirius was a Gryffindor so telling about it would sully his reputation. And he only really started going all out with the blood purity campaign in 1970s when Sirius was at Hogwarts. So before that it might have been an ace in a hole sort of thing – there’s an heir lined up, awesome, but no need to tell anyone so they don’t try to kill you and hold your heir into whatever they want. And then said heir proved to be unsuitable.

Why to gloat about it to at the very least Harry? There was no reason to bring it up in PS, in CoS young Riddle didn’t know anything, in PoA Voldemort was MIA, in GoF there were more prudent things going on, and in OotP by the time Voldemort showed up Sirius was dead and Dumbledore showed up pretty much immediately. After that there was really no use bringing it up to Harry.

Did someone else in the Order know?

James Potter was a very potential knower, just due to how close he and Sirius were. I don’t think it likely that Wormtail would have known. Lupin, maybe. I’m a bit torn if he knew before 1981 – it would explain his readiness to believe Sirius was evil but then again, Sirius suspected Remus of dublicity due to the werewolf thing so not telling him is just as likely. I find it more likely that Sirius would have told Lupin during OotP, if he ever told him.

Dumbledore probably knew and here’s why:

He didn’t get Sirius a trial in 1981.

Bellatrix Lestrange – a huge Voldemort supporter – got a trial, Igor Karkaroff – who was somewhat inconsequential – did too. Sirius was an alleged huge Voldemort supporter, giving him a trial to air all of his dirty laundry would make sense. But it didn’t happen. Why?

Because Dumbledore, for some reason, wanted to be sure that he wouldn’t pull a Lucius Malfoy and use money or influence to escape punishment and abscond with his godson, the Boy-Who-Lived Harry Potter. If Dumbledore believed Sirius was the secret keeper and knew Sirius was Voldemort’s son, then he probably didn’t try as hard as he should have to get him a trial. He was probably still a bit scared of this fact – and Azkaban’s effects – after PoA, which is why Sirius didn’t get a trial then either.

#Harry Potter #voldemort #tom riddle #Sirius Black #theory #crack theory #fan theory #walburga black #Albus Dumbledore #I spent way too much time on this

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halekingsourwolf · 6 years

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1/9 So this started as a joke & then it fit until it didn't & now I don't know what to do so I'm sending it to you. You don't have to answer it if you don't want to, just take it as a fun (?) ramble. This'll probably be long, sorry. So I was in this conversation about how Teen Wolf missed out on having a big bad. The series long villain. And I made the joke "Well, they could've always stolen from Harry Potter, if they'd wanted to". And then I started thinking about it, if Teen Wolf *had* stolen

from Harry Potter how would that've worked out?

Hey anon! Since this is long, I’m gonna be breaking your ask down and responding to the individual pieces instead of trying to respond to it all at once at the end. Your parts will be bolded and mine won’t be.

First off, I think this is a really fun idea, I love thinking about how characters would fit in other situations. This will be extra tricky, though, since we’re trying to not only parallel characters but also individual season arcs to each of the books. I think what we’re going to end up with, probably, is a lot of elements that we can say connect (this situation is like that situation, this character is similar to that other character in some way) but might not really tie into a coherent narrative on its own. If we want to, we can look at it again later to see how TW could work if it broke more from its own structure and just became more of a loose Harry Potter AU, but for this one I’m mostly just going to focus on similarities and differences.

Let’s see how we do!

One problem is how you would count the seasons. Are seasons 3A&B 1 season or 2? Either way it doesn't fit. You either end up with 6 seasons and 7 books or with 9 seasons and 7 books. So I took the first option, which leaves me 1 season short. But if TW *had* stolen from HP maybe they would've been more successfull *shrug*. So in the 1st book (very, very roughly summarised) the hero goes against the severely weakened big bad who (we later find 3/9 out) put the hero in this position in the 1st place. When applied to TW season 1 you get: Peter. (Sorry Peter fans, I like him too but for this ramble he's gonna be our big bad.)

There are definitely some fun parallels here.

We start off with Scott, a slightly awkward and out of place teen, definitely more optimistic than Harry but also in a better place physically than Harry, until one day he’s attacked by a crazed, half-feral Alpha werewolf (just as Harry was attacked by Voldemort, albeit earlier) and is introduced to the supernatural world. This attack, we’ll eventually learn, starts our hero down the path toward becoming a Super Special Chosen One/”True Alpha.” If neither of them had been attacked, chosen, by the Big Bad, this wouldn’t have happened). Scott’s skeptical at first, to say the least, but he’s introduced to new mentors and learns how to start harnessing his new abilities.

Throughout this, Scott seems to have a mysterious connection to the unseen enemy, shown in flashes of headache and visions of what the Alpha is doing. Scott suspects his brooding mentor figure Derek as being the enemy, due to his harsh and closed off attitude, but eventually realizes Derek’s been doing his best to protect him (so yes, Derek’s Snape in this, at least for book one). Eventually they have a showdown with the Big Bad (Alpha Peter and Voldemort), burning him (molotov and physical contact) and seemingly destroying him for good.

(If we wanted to change things up a little at the series’ start to tie in more with HP, we could have Rafael McCall still living with Scott. Having the drunk and generally abusive father still around would pull in more parallels between Scott’s pre-magic home life and Harry’s, and once he learns to harness his abilities he could use them to shift and scare the man into shaping up or getting out.)

The 2nd book: the hero fights a phantom of the big bad, a girl gets possesed by said phantom & a big snake petrifies people. Ok, so that kinda fits. Peter is still the big bad. The only thing that would need to change in seasons 1 & 2 is that Peters resurrection *doesn't* work (that comes later). So no Peter in 4/9 season 3 (what did he do in 3A besides narrate the flashback? who would narrate it now? Cora? what did he do in 3B? show Scott how to enter Stiles mind & anything else?).

This book/season is my favorite for parallels.

Ginny/Lydia (both redheaded secondary characters at this point) get taken in by a shadow of the seemingly defeated Big Bad, who appears as an attractive, charismatic young man to gain their trust while insidiously taking over their minds and forcing them to do his bidding and try to resurrect him.

Meanwhile, various people in Beacon Hills are targeted and paralyzed by a snakelike creature, and the heroes make it their mission to discover the guilty party. CoS has a recurring location/theme of bathrooms, while TWs2 has a recurring theme of swimming pools. …I don’t know what to do with that, except that it popped into my head as vaguely parallel :P

There are also a few smaller parallels, like the ineffectual Dueling club Snape and Lockhart co-run, which could be paralleled to Derek’s training sessions with his new betas, and the slightly stalker-esque photographer who runs around after our heroes, snapping pictures. (Yes, poor Colin Creevey is being tied in to Matt here.)

Book 3: a person from the heros past who they think is a villain isnt, a animal is a human and later helps the big bad to life. So for 3A we have, Scotts dad and for 3B Malia? (I kinda get a laugh out of making Scotts dad Sirius, but making Malia Pettigrew? maybe if she had been a villain in TW but with how everyone hates 5/9 her now, ugh) So Peter doesn't show up in 3A&B. Allison doesn't die (yet). Kate doesn't come back. (In HP the dead *stay* dead.) I guess Malia could kidnap Derek but better to keep Mexico for the end of season 4.

Well, you know I would have loved it if M ended up being a villain, or if there was something more complex to her story to explain all the things that don’t make sense. But... ok, that said, focusing on what actually happened in TW, we could potentially pull in Jennifer as Peter? Someone our group trusts, with a specific tie to one group member in particular, who ends up betraying them and kidnapping some of our heroes to be used in a dark ritual to gain power, there are definitely parallels there. Granted, that’s tying together books three and four, and that’s where this whole parallel starts to break down because I think there are definitely some elements from season three that fit better with book four, for example; not to mention that 3A and 3B are completely different stories with independent villains and climaxes, so trying to fit them both into PoA is just a recipe for confusion. I’m gonna put my focus on 3A, I think.

So we have Jennifer as Pettigrew, disguising herself as a friend until she’s revealed as the murderous Darach. We have our main characters’ loved ones waiting to be executed by dark magic (dementors), with Stiles, Allison, and Scott subbing in for Harry and Hermione to perform potentially dangerous magic (ice bath/time travel) to set them free.

I really want to tie Lupin in to someone but no one’s coming to mind unfortunately.

Which brings me to the next question... do I skip 3B (my favorite season) entirely, or do we try to parallel 3B to book 4? That would fix the six season/seven book problem. But for now I’m gonna stick with season 4/book 4 since that’s what you did.

So book 4: A competition keeps the heros occupied while the big bad plots his resurrection with someone the hero thinks is on his side & in the end a "friend" dies. So deadpool (hitlist!) = turnament & Meredith is Moody? The season ends in Mexico were Peter with the help of a 6/9 Banshee, kidnapped Derek & *something* from Scott resurrects himself. Maybe Allsion dies. How would Peter resurrect with only Scott knowing? idk

I’m going to jump in and mention that in the end of season four someone does die dramatically: Derek. And while he does revive afterward (...somehow), he leaves Beacon Hills, leaving the pack noticeably floundering and Stiles in particular moody and desperate to cling to the people he has left. So as far as s4=book 4, I think Derek holds up as a good parallel for that loss. (If we were doing 3B=book 4, Allison would be a good fit.)

The end of the season I think is the best parallel between this book and this season, since the hero is swept away to a new place unexpectedly and made part of a dark ritual. I know you mentioned not wanting Kate back, but she would make a good parallel for someone the group thought was dead (Barty Crouch Jr) who abducts the hero to complete the ritual.

Berserkers sub in for Death Eaters, and as for Peter’s resurrection... however nonsensical, Kate and Peter working together in s4 is canon. And Peter wanted Scott gone and to gain his Alpha power back (at least... I think? His motivation was so nonsensical in s4 but what else is new) so making a deal with Kate to make that happen ties together as well.

So then book 5 (here is where the stories stopped fitting & I couldn't make them either, if you have any ideas go plot): everyone but the hero thinks the big bad is still dead, the hero and the big bad are "connected", a evil teacher appears, there's a prophecy and another "ally" dies. TW season 5: doctors experiment on teenagers, Theo tries to 7/9 get Scott killed, Mason turns into a beast, Peter doesn't show up & a Nazi escapes. So yeah. I got nothing. With Peter as the big bad it could've been interesting. Nobody belives Scott that Peter is back, Peter and Scott share a pack bond, no idea about the prophecy or the teacher, Scotts dad dies?

So just a reminder/heads up that I stopped watching the show after s4. What I know from the rest of the seasons come from other Tumblr users talking and gifs I’ve seen floating around. s5 was also another split season, meaning we can either choose one arc to parallel the book or try to blend them together into a muddy mess. The main parallel I can think of would be Stiles subbing in for Harry in this one, becoming moody and emotional after a traumatic loss (Derek), damaging his relationships with his closest friends.

Beyond that... yeah, I’m getting nothing.

So onward to book 6: the hero learns how to take the bid bads plot armour, a good guy may be a bad guy afterall & the mentor dies. TW season 6A&B: the wildhunt takes everyones memories, a 8/9 Nazi-werelion (omg) eats peoples brains, an anchient god of fear turns people into stone & Deucalion dies. (This show, I swear). So how would the new season 6A&B work? What is Peters plot armour (Hocruxes)? Does Deaton die? Who is Snape in this scenario? idk but I wish I did. What that season could've been.

Again, I’m going off very minimal information from these seasons. The mentor dying could be Deucalion (though... again, I can’t really deal with the fact that everyone’s so cool with him now after what he did in 3A. At least Derek wasn’t around and didn’t have to deal with everyone being buddy-buddy with Erica and Boyd’s murderer. *sigh* Pushing aside my issues, I am...)

The weird fear creature could be Dementors, though they didn’t really play a role in book six (here, again, we have the issue of trying to parallel specific books to seasons instead of tying in general themes). For book six.. maybe the liquid Dumbledore drinks that’s protecting Gaunt’s ring? It makes him fearful, pulls up some bad memories from his past, and more or less paralyzes him, weakening him while he drinks it.

Since Peter’s not actually a villain at this point in the season, it’s hard to pull up a parallel to the Horcruxes for him.

Which leaves book 7: the hero (& friends) find & destroy plot armour, get some info about the mentors life & all ends in a big battle not everyone survives. This would be TW fictional 9/9 season 7 (or TV movie?): Scott finally defeats Peter (& Stiles& Derek finally kiss, ofc). There you have it, well partly. I hope this was a fun read for you. Sorry, if I bothered you with it.

Overall I found this analysis really interesting, but I do think we were battling through the problem of balance between making our own story using TW elements and HP themes, or just pulling in parallels from the existing content, which makes it hard to build a coherent story.

#teen wolf #harry potter #derek hale #stiles stilinski #sterek #Anonymous #ask hks

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whitewolfofwinterfell · 6 years

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What’s your favorite vs least favorite HP books and movies? My favorite books and films are POA and GOT. And my least favorite books is probably the Deathly Hallows and the Half Blood Prince and the best of the movies are pretty much on the same level for me, though I think the Chambers of Secret and the Half Blood Prince is the ones I like the least.

Ooh, this is an interesting question to answer, thanks for asking!

When it comes to the movies, my favourites aren’t necessarily the ones that I view as being the best but the ones I’ve got more of an attachment to mostly due to rewatching them over and over as a child. So it’s a toss up between the Chamber of Secrets and the Goblet of Fire. I have no idea why these were the two movies I gravitated to most as a child, but I watched them repeatedly and now I have such a nostalgic and fond feeling when I watch them that I think I’ll always consider them as being my favourites.

I remember getting GOF on DVD for Easter from my mom (usually she gets me an Easter egg but I begged and begged and begged her to spend the extra to get me the DVD and managed to win her over) and it was in my DVD player for the next 6 months. I never even took it out I just watched it over and over. GOF wins out as being the best movie for me based on Voldemort’s return alone. The first time I saw that scene I was just in awe and I watched it over and over. The Triwizard Tornament is also an interesting plot that kind of separates it from the other movies in my mind. I also love it because I feel like it’s the turning point where things start to get darker. Chamber of Secrets is a weird one because I’m aware that it’s probably considered the worst movie in the series by most people. I think a lot of it is to do with the fact that it came out when I was 9 years old and when I was just reading the books and really getting into it, so when the new movie came out I fixated on it. I enjoy the lightheartedness of COS that is lost pretty quickly by the time we get to POA and GOF. Harry and Ron stealing the car and getting caught in the Whomping Willow, the introduction of Gilderoy Lockhart and Dobby and the polyjuice potion plot always made me laugh as a kid. But at the same time there was the plot with Ginny and the diary which had me gripped and it introduced us to a new side of Voldemort by showing us Tom Riddle. I just feel like COS is very representative of the childness of Harry Potter which I think gets lost in the later movies and I think watching it as a child that’s why I loved it so much.

As an adult, I developed a love for POA (but as a child it was one of my least favourites out of the movies) because obviously it is amazing. I think POA is so good and well loved because we get to meet Sirius and Lupin and it steps up from COS which as I said was very childlike, to incorporate darker themes. I love the time travel, Buckbeak, The Death Eaters, Sirius’ plot, Harry’s relationship with Lupin, the Marauders Map. Like so many amazing things are introduced or expanded on in this movie and it really is enjoyable pretty much from beginning to end unlike a lot of the others that lose their oomph in parts.

My least favourite movies are basically all of the later ones. I really don’t know why, but I never connected to or enjoyed the later movies in the same way as the early ones (by which I mean the first 4). I feel like by the time we got to OOTP they’d lost that Harry Potter feeling to me. Deathly Hallows part 2 is by far the best movie of the later half of the series because it’s the big finale to everything and payoff for everything that happened. But OOTP, HBP and Deathly Hallows part 1 are all meh to me. I appreciate OOTP for the simple fact that Sirius is in it and I love Sirius, but I feel like nothing at all really happens. HBP is pretty much the same in terms of nothing much happening. When I sit here and think about HPB literally the only thing that comes into my head is “Sir!” because that scene is honestly probably the funniest one across the 8 movies and I still laugh at that now even as an adult. Deathly Hallows part 1 is probably my very least favourite. I can’t recall liking a single thing about that movie. It’s boring, Ron annoys the shit out of me, there’s too much Harry/Ron/Hermione, Dobby dies (will never forgive JKR, why!?) and nothing at all happens. I think all of these movies feel like filler in the build-up to Deathly Hallows part 2 and they’re just so forgettable.

When it comes to the books, it’s harder for me to say which are my favourites and least favourites because I actually haven’t read them since I was at school and I’m sure if I re-read them now as an adult my opinions and tastes would be different. So I’m basing this on my younger self, but the Deathly Hallows is definitely my favourite. Harry Potter as a general book series is well paced but there are times when it bored the shit out of me, but Deathly Hallow really picks up in pace (particularly in the second part). One of my lecturers at uni who’s a huge HP fan was actually talking about her favourite book and she’s convinced that JKR didn’t even write the last one because it was such a huge jump in quality and change in writing style. I can’t say whether or not I agree with that because it’s been a while since I read it, but I do agree that it’s quite a jump in quality.

My least favourite book is ironically GOF. I don’t know how it can be my favourite movie but not my favourite book, but man, that book draaaaaags. Like I said, if I re-read it now maybe I’d appreciate it more because I think the length did just put me off when I was younger. But I think that as the books continued JKR tried to bush the boundaries and see how long she could make the books, but she seemed to forget the target audience was kids and what kid wants to read a book that big? It’s too daunting for a lot of kids.

If I’m being honest (and I’ll probably be burnt on the stake by the HP fandom after saying this) I’m a huge advocate for the movies being equal (if not better) than the books. The books are good to add to your understanding of the movies and learn more about the characters or read about characters that were completely cut out of the movies, but I feel like the movies do an overall good job at depicting the story, particularly considering how limited they are with time in comparison to the books. I think people tend to jump on the bandwagon preaching about how amazing the books are and how they’re so much better than the movies, but in my opinion, it’s simply not true. HP is by far the best series I know that’s been transferred from book to screen and the only downfall I can see of the movies is that they had to cut back on the material in order to condense it down, there are some small inconsistencies due to different directors working on different movies and it restricts people’s imagination by providing visuals (which isn’t an issue if you’re like me and read the books before the movies and have a good imagination anyway). But in terms of overall quality, I don’t think the books are any better than the movies. The two just simply offer different experiences of the story and depending on the person, some will find more enjoyment in the books and others in the movies.

This isn’t me hating on the books either, because I love the story of HP and what JKR created with the HP universe, but I just don’t find her writing to be that compelling. I have tried to re-read the books as an adult, but the truth of the matter is that I just haven’t been able to get through them because they don’t hold my attention. But since I’ve finished the semester I’m determined to give them another go for old time’s sake. I might even start with GOF just to see if my opinion has changed.

Sorry for the long response by the way, I hope I didn’t bore you too much haha.

#answered #my meta #hp meta

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stacks-reviews · 7 years

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New Releases 10/3/17

Happy New Release Day!

In Books --The Name of the Wind 10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition by Patrick Rothfuss “My name is Kvothe. I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that would make the minstrels weep. You may have heard of me. So begins a tale unequaled in fantasy literature - the story of a hero told in his own voice. It is a tale of sorrow, a tale of survival, a tale of one man’s search for meaning in his universe, and how that search, and the indomitable will that drove it, gave birth to a legend.”

This book more than likely did not require me to provide a description. But I just love the description so much that I just had to put it up. This is my current top favorite book. I really love it and I am very excited to see an anniversary edition for it. I have been wanting to retire my mass market paperback for a while. I did get to meet Pat at a book signing a few years back and got that copy signed, as well as my copy of The Wise Man’s Fear, and my hardcover of A Slow Regard of Silent Things. I’ve been wanting to retire these signed copies so that nothing happens to them so this anniversary edition is just what I’ve been waiting for. At least until I can meet him again and get this one signed.

This edition has a new cover by designer Paul Buckley and artist Sam Weber. I’m not crazy about the cover. I prefer the standard cover used now. I’m having some trouble trying to understand just what all the images represent in the story so that’s what is really making me not like it as much. There is also some never before seen illustrations by artist Dan Dos Santos. Nate Taylor created a updated and detailed map of the world. An appendix of the calendar system, the currencies, and a pronunciation guide was added. And Pat wrote a new author’s note for this edition.

As of this writing (around 10:30pm Monday) it has not arrived at any of the bookstores near me but I have seen where it it out at other locations. I’m hoping it will arrive near me sometime today. Then I guess I’ll have to plan a fourth (or maybe a fifth. I don’t remember) reread of it soon.

--Anime Supremacy! by Mizuki Tsujimura “Japanese animation - the globally acclaimed, family-friendly theatrical features are the exception rather than the rule for a TV-oriented industry that has been pushed into late-night slots in an era of fragmented audiences. When only three titles among fifty might turn a profit, topping the charts is hardly an overambitious aim. Yet as three women, a producer, a director, and an animator, survive in a business infamous for its murderous schedules, demoralizing compromises, and incorrigible men, moments of uplift emerge against all odds - and how. More than just a window into an entertainment niche, here’s a kickass ode to work.”

A new; though only volume, manga about the animation industry in Japan. It sounds like a good look into this industry and it follows three women as they try to make their way in an industry full of ‘incorrigible’ men. Which this might be the first manga to follow women in this industry. I’m not positive but I’m fairly sure most of the manga that has used this type of story has mainly followed men. I can think of maybe one or two that has some ladies but I can’t recall for sure.

--Assassination Classroom Volume 18 by Yusei Matsui “Nagisa and Karma travel to the International Space Station in hopes of learning the secret to saving Koro Sensei’s life. Meanwhile, Yanagisawa and the upstart Grim Reaper II train ever harder to assassinate him. Then, when academic setbacks lower the spirits of his students, Koro Sensei comes up with an ingenious - or perhaps idiotic - way to cheer them up. Next, Valentine’s Day arrives! Will any of the 3-E students or teachers find true love? And will the meddling and teasing of the others help or hinder Cupid’s arrow in finding its target...?”

I’m reading this volume right now. But in Volume 17 Nagisa and Karma faced off in their fight to determine if they should save or assassinate Koro Sensei. Nagisa won and they learned that information about Koro Sensei was on the ISS that could potentially help them save his life. It ended with Nagisa and Karma sneaking into a rocket prototype to retrieve said information. Which was handed over fairly easily in this volume. The part with Yanagisawa and the Grim Reaper were short which is for the best to keep us wondering what they will try to do to kill Koro Sensei. I last left off during the start of the Valentine’s Day chapters which I will finish sometime today.

--Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Illustrated Edition by J.K. Rowling and illustrated by Jim Kay Finally! I love the illustrations in these editions and just how full and how many are used in them. PoA is my favorite of this series, mainly because of this is when we are introduced to Sirius (my favorite) and Lupin.

Though as the rest of these are released I start to wonder how much longer they will be released as a single volume. At some point; either for money or for the binding of the books, they will probably be split into volumes. For my bookshelf’s well-being, I hope that is not the case but it could happen.

--The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli “In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laugher wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be dark - and so there was also the Iskari. The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death bringer. These are the legends that Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, has grown up hearing in hushed whispers, drawn to the forbidden figures of the past. But it isn’t until she becomes the fiercest, most feared dragon slayer in the land that she takes on the role of the next Iskari - a lonely destiny that leaves her feeling more like a weapon than a girl. Asha conquers each dragon and brings its head to the king, but no kill can free her from the shackles that await her at home: her betrothal to the cruel commandant, a man who holds the truth about her nature in his palm. When she’s offered the chance to gain her freedom in exchange for the life of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard, she finds that there may be more truth to the ancient stories than she ever could have expected. With the help of a secret friend - a slave boy from her betrothed’s household - Asha must shed the layers of her Iskari bondage and open her heart to love, light, and a truth that has been kept from her.”

I have a few questions regarding this book. Mainly revolving around the Namsara since it isn’t mention again in the description except in the beginning. Is Asha’s betrothed the only one who knows that she is the Iskari? If so, is she being blackmailed into marrying him? My theory right now is that by killing all these dragons it makes her the Iskari but since light and dark are two sides of the same coin, she has the possibility to turn into the Namsara. Cause I expect the legends to end up saying that it was the same person. It sounds like it could be pretty good. There’s dragons, fights with dragons (don’t kill dragons cause they are awesome), and the classic light vs dark.

--The Water Dragon’s Bride Volume 3 by Rei Toma “Unable to return home, Asahi grows into a lovely young woman. As a priestess, she must spend time with the water dragon god for a ritual every year, but because of her connection to the water dragon god’s power, someone kidnaps her! Will Asahi be able to escape unscathed?”

Such a cute and still surprisingly dark series. The first two volumes were kind of dark because her best friends; Subaru, mother tried to have her killed a few times. And the water dragon god didn’t care if she lived or died. He only really intervened when the other gods started annoying him.

This volume came out early where I live so I read it over the weekend. The volume was mostly about Asahi being kidnapped, then rescued by Subaru, which then started a war between her village and the one that kidnapped her. The water dragon god does sorta intervere and helps them out a little. But he slowly seems to be changing and might eventually develop feelings for Asahi. Which will interesting since Subaru obviously loves her and she him. Though she may not realize that herself yet.

--Yona of the Dawn Volume 8 by Mizuho Kusanagi “Jaeha, the Green Dragon, joins Yona’s party after their harrowing adventure together in Awa. Now the group must find the Yellow Dragon - the last dragon from the prophecy that Ik-su told Yona! Meanwhile, Su-won visits Chishin Palace and tells General Geun-tae, chief of the Earth Tribe, that he should hold a mock battle and festival. But what could be the true intent behind Su-won’s proposition?”

I think the last volume I read was six. Seven never came in near where I live and I haven’t been able to order it. Last I read was Yona and Yoon got themselves onto the pirates boat so that they could try and send a signal for the others to attack the right boat.

I can’t wait to see what the Yellow Dragon is like and I’m interested to see what this mock battle will be about.

In Movies --Revolutionary Girl Utena Set 1 (Blu-Ray) “‘Never lose that strength or nobility, even when you grow up.’ When Utena was just a child and in the depths of sorrow, she found salvation in those words. They were the words of a prince, who wrapped her in his rose-scented embrace and bestowed upon her both a ring and the promise that it would lead her to him again. She never forgot the encounter. In fact, she was so impressed that she aspired to like the prince and also help those in need. Now a spirited teenager, Utena attends the prestigious Ohtori Academy. However, her strong sense of chivalry soon places her at odds with the school’s student council and thrusts her into a series of mysterious and dangerous duels against its members.”

For the first time the hit anime is being released on blu-ray. I have only seen the series and the movie once. One of my friends can explain it a lot better than I can. The next time I watch it I will not be putting so much time in between each season. There is a lot of symbolism throughout the show so it can be easy to forget or miss something. It is a really good show and worth checking out. The manga of the same name (by Chiho Saito) that it was based on is also available in an awesome box set that was released by Shojo Beat.

This set contains the first twelve episodes. Set two is not street dated until 11/7/17 but is now available on Rightstuf. Set three is set for 12/5/17, might also be out before that day but not at this moment of writing, and includes the movie. There is also a box set coming out on 12/5/17 that contains the complete series, the movie, a replica Rose Crest Ring, a replica Black Rose ring, and a 264 page art book with sliver foil numbering.

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hogwartswelcomesyou · 7 years

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Slytherins Speak: Favorite Harry Potter Book/Movie

Tory (Slytherin Mod)

Favorite HP book and why?

Prisoner of Azkaban, hands-down. I’ve read it more than any of the other books combined, and you can tell just by looking at my copy – the covers are all frayed, and there are even pages that have come out of the binding and now just sit loose between the still-connected pages. This book has so many of my favorite scenes in the entire series – Harry receiving birthday cards for the first time; Professor Lupin’s classes; Harry sneaking into Hogsmeade; the Marauder’s Map sassing Snape; Gryffindor finally winning the Quidditch Cup; the Shrieking Shack confrontation and exposition; Sirius promising Harry that they’ll be a family; and of course Harry finally summoning a Patronus to save Sirius, his friends, and himself from the dementors. Something I really love about the book is how it transfigures Sirius Black, a terrifying, treacherous Dark Wizard who has gone mad and wants to kill Harry, into a brave, deathly loyal father figure and friend. This is also the first book where we really got to learn about Harry’s father’s past (which we hadn’t known previously) – I love everything to do with the Marauders and their history! Remus Lupin and Sirius Black are two of my favorite characters in the whole series, and I just love their beginnings in this book and how much Harry bonds to both of them and how much he learns about his family from them.

Favorite HP movie and why?

Order of the Phoenix. Although POA is my favorite book, I don’t think the POAmovie does it justice at all (seriously, the whole Shrieking Shack scene is so sloppily scrunched up that barely any of it sinks in, not to mention all the plot holes made by the abrupt continuity changes, the overly dark tone, Harry using magic to light up his wand not getting him in any trouble and yet he does get in trouble for blowing up Marge, the bizarre design of the werewolf, Hermione wearing the Time Turner out in the open even though it’s supposed to be a secret, the cinematographer’s sudden obsession with monochromatic grays, Remus talking about Harry’s mum more than his dad even though he was CLEARLY James’s friend and not Lily’s, the removal of Ron and Hermione’s argument that took up a good chunk of the book and explained so much about Scabbers and so Crookshanks was basically pointless, AND Hermione stole Ron’s best line in the whole series! ARGH!!). Order of the Phoenix, however, which was based on my second favorite book in the series, does. It cut A LOT from the original book, which is understandable as OOTP has the most pages in the series, but in my opinion it matched the overall spirit of its respective book the best. The film has a very good balance of light and dark – we have a lot of levity and talk about love and friendship that is then inter-spliced with real danger, suspense, and loss. Even if the world is becoming darker, we care about our characters because they are the light in this dark world, and we want to see them make it through. In some parts of the films I find that the darkness used by the filmmakers overwhelms everything else to the point that we almost forget how likable and charming the main characters are, but in this film, that doesn’t really happen. And yet the darkness is still threatening, lying in wait so that it can attack at the right moment. Imelda Staunton is a perfectly brilliant Umbridge, and all of her scenes make her just as despicable as she is in the book. I also like a lot of the stylistic choices made for this film – the final battles between the Order and the Death Eaters and Dumbledore and Voldemort were really creative in their choreography, pacing, and visuals. I particularly like the part where Voldemort shatters all of the glass around him, making it puncture the huge poster of Fudge hanging in the background. I still think the movie oversimplifies some themes and cuts out some important moments (Marietta betraying the D.A. willingly to protect her parents’ jobs, Neville’s character development, Umbridge’s prejudice against “half-breeds,” and Harry blowing up at Dumbledore, for example), but I think it got most of the feelings from the original book down, even if it skipped over a lot of the details.

Squish (Slytherin Mod)

Favorite HP book and why?

Deathly Hallows honestly -- just the way it starts, how you begin in the middle of something and you get that feeling of excitement like ‘ooh, it’s going down’. I’m all about Sherlock Holmes and things like that, so that book was really the most satisfying for me. I don’t like the movie as much, since the book explains so much more (as books tend to do). How Dumbledore explains himself and how...well…just everything fell into place was absolutely brilliant. I remember reading the very end of it in a small Vietnamese restaurant, closing the book, and just looking around examining each person’s face. I remember thinking, ‘I just went through so much, yet you all have no idea. Yeah, eat your soup and let me silently drown in my emotions.’ Also, when you compare the writing, how the characters talk and think to the first book, it’s all so different. I love how Rowling did that, as if the first book was written for an eleven year old, while the last one may have been written for a seventeen year old. It really makes you feel like you’ve watched the Golden Trio grow up, like you’ve raised a child. It brings you to cling to the characters more. You finally see it all.

Favorite HP movie and why?

Probably The Goblet of Fire. I think that movie really signifies the beginning of Harry’s journey. It’s the starting point to which the children suddenly mature and that effects the watcher by showing them more, It’s the emotion the actors show. It’s the way Harry wept over Cedric Diggory’s dead body, it’s the way Mr. Diggory called out his son’s name and how you could almost see his heart break in two as he realizes his son is dead. He’s gone. He’s not coming back. All these memories you have of him are suddenly going to matter even more because you can’t make any more. Also the way Hermione shows the way she really thinks of Harry as a brother. They really emphasized that in this movie, with Rita Skeeter. I like how it shows that they are friends and there is such thing as a girl and a guy just being friends. That’s one of the reasons I really like the Golden Trio; the Hero isn’t the one who ends up with the girl who helped them for once, but he still respects her and would probably try to kill anyone who even tries to get close. Otherwise I really like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them because OMG THE EFFECTS AND THE TIME ERA IS JUST AMAZING AND I LOVE IT SO MUCH OMG NEWT IS MY SMOL CHILD AND MUST BE PROTECTED.

#Slytherin pride #Prisoner of Azkaban #The Order of the Pheonix #The Deathly Hallows #The Goblet of Fire #text #Tory Speaks #Squish speaks

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maroonsweateredknight · 7 years

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The original GoF graveyard scene

I first read GoF in 2003, well after the first edition mistake at the end of GoF had been removed. I remember reading about the mistake on Mugglenet and instantly wanting to find one of the “rare” first editions that still had the mistake in it.

I’d always thought the mistake was just JKR forgetting the order that James and Lily had died in, that it overall had no effect on the story except as a continuity error. But now that I’ve finally found a first edition and compared the two versions of the Priori Incantatem scene, I wish JKR and editors had found a way to keep her original intent while fixing the order, because it makes so much more sense emotionally.

Just in case you’ve never heard of The Mistake, here’s a little background. Feel free to skip down to the bolded sections if you know.

In the first edition of GoF, James and Lily appear from Voldemort’s wand in the wrong order. Priori Incantatem is meant to make spells regurgitate in reverse order, most recent back. Since Lily died second, she should regurgitate first. In the first edition, James appeared first. Eagle-eyed fans spotted the mistake and immediately began questioning what had happened....did Voldemort not kill James before moving on to Lily?? How did James die if he didn’t die before Lily’s sacrifice?? Was James possibly...alive???? Realizing her mistake, JKR fixed the order in subsequent editions.

So let’s breakdown the differences and lament the change:

The “Fixed Version”, bold emphasis mine

And now another head was emerging from the tip of Voldemort’s wand...and Harry knew when he saw it who it would be...he knew, as though he had expected it from the moment when Cedric had appeared from the wand...knew, because the woman was the one he’d thought of more than any other tonight...

The smoky shadow of a young woman with long hair fell to the ground as Bertha had done, straightened up, and looked at him...and Harry, his arms shaking madly now, looked back in to the ghostly face of his mother.

“Your father’s coming,..” she said quietly. “Hold on for your father...it will be alright...hold on....”

And he came...first his head, then his body, a tall man with untidy black hair, the smoky form of James Potter blossomed from the end of Voldemort’s wand, fell to the ground...”

I bolded the main points of change between the two versions. Now, here is the Original Version for comparison:

And now another head was emerging from the tip of Voldemort’s wand...and Harry knew when he saw it who it would be...he knew, as though he had expected it from the moment when Cedric had appeared from the wand...knew, because the man was the one he’d thought of more than any other tonight...

The smoky shadow of a tall man with untidy black hair fell to the ground as Bertha had done, straightened up, and looked at him...and Harry, his arms shaking madly now, looked back in to the ghostly face of his father.

“Your mother’s coming,..” he said quietly. “She wants to see you...it will be alright...hold on....”

And she came...first her head, then her body, a young woman with long hair, the smoky form of Lily Potter blossomed from the end of Voldemort’s wand, fell to the ground...”

The two versions put a totally different emphasis on Harry’s relationship with his parents’. I submit that the original version actually makes way more sense.

Who Harry Draws Strength From

In the “fixed version”, Harry says that Lily is the one he’d thought of more, but that doesn’t truly gel with Harry’s experiences that night. The only time Harry thinks specifically of Lily is when Voldemort points out that Harry is alone, with no one to sacrifice for him. Harry agrees. This is not an empowering moment; yes, he thinks of Lily and her sacrifice but it is with the realization that Lily can’t protect him this time. It’s fear that drives him to think of Lily.

However, Harry does draw strength from the memory of James:

Harry crouched behind the headstone and knew the end had come. There was no hope...no help to be had. And as he heard Voldemort draw nearer still, he knew one thing only, and it was beyond fear or reason: He was not going to die crouching here like a child playing hide-and-seek; he was not going to die kneeling at Voldemort’s feet...he was going to die upright like his father, and he was going to die trying to defend himself, even if no defense was possible...

It makes so much more sense for James to be described as “the one [Harry’d] thought of more than any other” because Harry actually draws strength from James. We had seen it in PoA when Harry’s Patronus turns out to be his father’s stag form and we see it again now in GoF: James is the source of Harry’s strength and bravery in dire situations. Harry and James should have that moment of connection in the graveyard where they look into each others’ faces because as Hagrid later puts it, Harry had done “no less than [his] father would have done”. Hagrid considers James the pinnacle of bravery (”I can’t give no higher praise than that”) and Dumbledore tells Harry that he “shouldered a man’s burden” in the graveyard. How much more fitting is it to have James be the one to encourage Harry to keep fighting (”it will be all right...hold on”), since it was James who gave Harry the strength to fight in the first place? How much more appropriate is it for James to be the one Harry has thought of all night, when the other characters will later compare Harry’s bravery to his?

This small change also affects the later books. Having Harry experience this connection with James and to explicitly acknowledge how much Harry depends on his father’s heroic example makes Snape’s Worst Memory all the more devastating for Harry. Not only did his adult friends (Hagrid, Dumbledore, Lupin, etc) repeatedly idolize a man Harry now realizes was no saint, Harry also faces the brutal evidence that the man who gave him the courage to escape his taunters and torturers was guilty of taunting and torturing Snape. The original intent of the graveyard scene makes it clear that James is the one Harry’d thought of and drawn strength from, making James’ fall off the pedestal an even more devastating moment for Harry.

Lily’s Love for Harry

In the original version, James encourages Harry to continue holding on to the wand for a very specific reason. Lily wants to see Harry. Isn’t this in keeping with what we know of Lily?

Lily’s smile was widest of all. She pushed her long hair back as she drew close to him, and her green eyes, so like his, searched his face hungrily, as though she would never be able to look at him enough.

We get the same sentiment in DH that we lost in GoF...that Lily wants nothing more than to see Harry....so it’s not revealing some truth about Lily or some dynamic of the mother/son relationship between them that we didn’t learn some other way. But I can’t help lamenting the emotion that we lost here. For the first time, Harry gets to experience how much Lily loves him. It’s a completely different emphasis from the first version, in which Lily appears and then immediately starts talking about James. Although we know that Lily loves Harry, we lose that desperation she feels to see him when James isn’t the one to introduce her.

We also lose some of the emotion behind Harry continuing to hold on to the wand. Lily encourages Harry to hold on for James...James appears....James gives Harry advice about how to escape. Harry’s payoff for holding on to the wand is very practical but it isn’t as emotionally satisfying. Harry isn’t holding on explicitly because James wants to see him or because James is the one to give him strength...he’s holding on because James has the advice Harry needs to get home. It’s still a great moment in the “fixed” version when James tells Harry how to escape. James still gives Harry the strength to escape that night but the original intent was so much better. In the original, James could have given Harry the advice at any time. Harry’s payoff for holding on, for continuing to struggle, is his first memory of his mother’s love.

And like the original James’ moment having increased impact later, this moment of Harry experiencing Lily’s love for the first time pays off emotionally later in the book. Harry finally admits what’s been bother him all night--Cedric is dead because Harry was being “noble” and offered to share the cup with him. Molly comforts Harry with a hug.

Harry had no memory of being hugged like this, as though by a mother.

in the same night, Harry experiences a mother’s love twice -- first through Lily’s desperation to see him and later, through the surrogate mother he’s found in Molly. Given Rowling’s penchant for writing strong mother figures, it can’t be a coincidence that Harry experiences his first memories of maternal love when he is at his most vulnerable. And how heartbreaking...for the first time, Harry interacts with his mother (even if it is just a shadow) but he still can’t fully experience a mother’s love. He can’t touch Lily’s shadow. But Molly is there, Molly can offer him what literally no one else in the story can. A mother’s love.

TL;DR: The original Priori Incantatem scene in GoF re-confirms that James gives Harry the will to fight back and also re-confirms Lily’s deep love for Harry. This makes more sense given what actually happens in the graveyard and also has a significant emotional impact later in the stories.

#james potter #lily evans potter #gof #harry potter #goblet of fire #jily

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