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Author Topic: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)  (Read 62532 times)

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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #100 on: 31 Jul 2007, 18:15 »

I recall reading that the killing curse would outright destroy a Horcrux. Thus, his entire soul was destroyed, with the exception of what was left in his body. The idea that it is just removed from Harry and sent to limbo makes absolutely zero sense.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #101 on: 31 Jul 2007, 18:38 »

I have to agree with Obsessions. Voldie killed the host of a horcrux and I see that as also killing the part of the soul that was housed within the host. I think if Neville had not had Godric's sword, he still would have been able to kill Nagini and destroy that horcrux as well. That's why Dumbledore thought that Voldie putting part of his soul in a living creature (Nagini) was a bit odd, as it could be killed.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #102 on: 31 Jul 2007, 18:54 »

I get the feeling you really just don't want to like this book or you skimmed it. I recommend going back and reading it. The Horcruxes were destroyed, and with them the fragments of Voldemort's soul were destroyed utterly. If they merely moved onto the afterlife indivudally, there would be no consequence for him, as they'd be together again once all the horcruxes were destroyed.

Well, you're wrong.  I sure as fuck read the whole thing through without skimming it and sure as fuck wanted to like it.  I really wanted to like it.  You really have no idea.  I love the Harry Potter books.

What I'm saying is that no reason you guys have proposed for that "soul fragment" being there makes sense.  If the parts of Voldemort's soul that are destroyed cease to exist, then they shouldn't be in the afterlife, but neither should the soul that he's still using.  Harry only goes to the King's Cross purgatory after Voldemort curses him, so why should Voldemort's soul fragment be there since nothing has happened to it?   
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #103 on: 31 Jul 2007, 19:04 »

First off, calm down dude. I'm sorry it wasn't what you expected, but seriously, calm down. Second, it was a glimpse of what would happen if Voldemort did not feel remorse and put his soul back together. It was what was waiting for him, not what was already there. Harry saw what Voldemort was doomed to, not what was already happening.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #104 on: 31 Jul 2007, 19:35 »

If that's true, then I think the thing is superfluous.  Look guys, I don't like it.  I think there is not enough closure with Voldie.  For the most part, though, I really did like the King's Cross chapter.  It's because Dumbledore was in it, and he's her best character and plot device.  Sorry I got all huffy, but I've already stated in this thread that I tried to like the book, and I don't like it when I'm accused of skimming it.  If I had merely skimmed it, I wouldn't feel confident enough to argue about it.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #105 on: 01 Aug 2007, 06:20 »

If you didn't like it, you didn't like it, but a lot of the reasons (Outside your initial one of feeling they were meandering too much) really seem to contradict what actually happened in the book.

I don't understand how you can feel there wasn't enough closure on Voldemort. His soul was destroyed and he was killed. You don't get much more closure than dead.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #106 on: 01 Aug 2007, 13:09 »

You wanted things to happen differently- but they didn't. Aw, shucks. If you don't like it, write a fic of the final book. Ignore what really happened, according to JKR (who, by the way, came up with the entire HP universe).
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #107 on: 01 Aug 2007, 14:09 »

I don't understand how you can feel there wasn't enough closure on Voldemort. His soul was destroyed and he was killed. You don't get much more closure than dead.

I wouldn't have minded so much if she had just, you know, wrote a better book.  The whole "Voldemort closure" thing started when I said I would like to see a part of the epilogue that has Voldie going to King's Cross and then being rejected by Dumbledore and souls of his victims and banned into oblivion.  He could have had a nice conversation with Dumbledore, which would have been hells of interesting.

I suppose I'm being a bit obtuse, so suffice to say I wish that she had written a better book.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #108 on: 01 Aug 2007, 14:11 »

You wanted things to happen differently- but they didn't. Aw, shucks. If you don't like it, write a fic of the final book. Ignore what really happened, according to JKR (who, by the way, came up with the entire HP universe).

I suppose you think there shouldn't be critics, then?  I suppose you get all huffy at the teacher of your creative writing class for actually grading your work.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #109 on: 01 Aug 2007, 14:19 »

Buddy, I was serious. If you don't like it, write your own! People will read it, you know.

Heavens, no. Besides, my profs always like my writing, and I welcome criticism, since I know there is room for improvement. They always like my papers, though, even if they don't give me a high mark. Because my writing is usually very cynical and written like a black comedy, which seems to appeal to most English or Lit teachers, and I do not follow traditional conventions, but I don't rape grammar or the spellings and I can generally make it work. hm, I apologize for digressing. Back to the point: you are not JKR's creative writing teacher. You are not grading her. You are also not a critic. You are complaining on an internet forum that she will never see. What's the point? I didn't like the book either, but it's canon and we're stuck with it.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #110 on: 01 Aug 2007, 14:23 »

The point is to express my opinion.  There are plenty of music criticisms on the music forum that the artists will never see.

Honestly, I did think about writing my own epilogue about what happened to Voldemort.  But the thing is, since she created the HP universe, I wanted her to do it.  I wanted her to write a good book.  I just didn't think HP 7 was that good.  I'm really disappointed in it.  I needed to vent, and maybe it was good for me to argue with some people who disagree with me, as my friends who I've been discussing it with also disliked it.

I'm sorry about my response to your post.  I did think you were being a bit sarcastic.  But I see I was wrong.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #111 on: 01 Aug 2007, 14:37 »

I agree with you. I felt that HP7 was not nearly as good as it could have been, as it should have been. When I came across an early copy of it on the internet, I prayed that it was a hoax. A very elaborate hoax that led someone to print up a book and take a picture of each page. I was disappointed and frustrated to the point of tears.

I feel like it's not done. Plus, I'm a H/H shipper, so Harry and Ginny shacking up upset me beyond belief... and the names of their children were just ridiculous. She made her characters do things they never would do, and she stretched things pretty far (what was up with the Put-Outer?)... it was weird and disjointed and silly and full of pointless bits (why kill Hedwig?). But I've resigned myself to this, and I am going to bury myself in far better fan fics. Best part in HP7? Not my daughter, you bitch. That's it.

No, re-reading my post, it does sound like I was being sarcastic. I'm sorry, I didn't plan on it coming across that way (having a bit of an issue with a prick on another forum I'm on, so my mode of speech accidentally stayed the same over here).
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #112 on: 01 Aug 2007, 16:42 »

(what was up with the Put-Outer?)


Seriously.

Dumbledore: I'm gonna invent something that puts out lights and then turns them back on.  And you know what else?  It's also gonna lead you back to friends you've abandoned when they say you're name!

Eh???
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #113 on: 01 Aug 2007, 17:09 »

A wizard did it.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #114 on: 01 Aug 2007, 18:06 »

For those who are wanting some more information on things that happened after DH, and a bunch of other random stuff, JK did an online chat the other day with bloomsbury.com.

I'm going to have to post it in two bits so it fits.

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Webchat with J.K. Rowling, 30 July 2007


J.K. Rowling: I’m here and I can’t wait! Bring on the questions!

Leaky Cauldron: What, if anything, did the wizarding world learn, and how did society change, as a direct result of the war with Voldemort? (i.e., not as a result of Harry, Ron and Hermione’s future careers.)

J.K. Rowling: The Ministry of Magic was de-corrupted, and with Kingsley at the helm the discrimination that was always latent there was eradicated. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny et al would of course play a significant part in the re-building of wizarding society through their future careers.

Ryan Love: From your fans at www.thesnitch.co.uk. Weren’t we supposed to see Ginny display powerful magical abilities in Deathly Hallows and find out why it’s significant that she’s the seventh child? Was her main role in the books only to be Harry’s love interest?

J.K. Rowling: Hi Ryan! Well, I think Ginny demonstrated powerful magic in the final battle, and that for a sixteen year old witch she acquitted herself pretty well. I don’t remember ever saying that her ‘seventh child’ status would prove particularly important in the last book, though — are you sure I said that?!

Georgina: Did Lucius Malfoy, and all the other escaped Death Eaters, go back to Azkaban?

J.K. Rowling: No, the Malfoys weaseled their way out of trouble (again) due to the fact that they colluded (albeit out of self-interest) with Harry at the end of the battle.

Elisabeth: In the chapter of Kings Cross, are they behind the veil or in some world between the real world and the veil?

J.K. Rowling: You can make up your own mind on this, but I think that Harry entered a kind of limbo between life and death.

Renee: From reading about the original owners of the Deathly Hallows, the Peverell brothers, I’m wondering if Harry and Voldermort are distantly related Voldermorts grandfather ended up with the resurrection stone ring?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, Harry and Voldemort are distantly related through the Peverells.  Of course, nearly all wizarding families are related if you trace them back through the centuries. As was made clear in Deathly Hallows, Peverell blood would run through many wizarding families.

Fomy: What did you feel when you finally wrote the kiss, awaited so much by the fans, of Ron and Hermione

J.K. Rowling: I loved writing it, and I loved the fact that Hermione took the initiative!  Ron had finally got SPEW and earned himself a snog!

Angela Morrissey: Why is it that Albus Dumbledore can see Harry under his invisibility cloak at certain moments? (during the series is the cloak only infallible to those who do not own a Deathly Hallow).

J.K. Rowling: Dumbledore, who could perform magic without needing to say the incantation aloud, was using ‘homenum revelio’ the human-presence-revealing spell Hermione makes use of in Deathly Hallows.

Jamie Lewis: What ever happened to Winky?

J.K. Rowling: She’s still at Hogwarts, and she was one of the oncoming house-elves who attacked the Death Eaters in the final battle.

Katieleigh: Does Hermione still continue to do work with Spew and is life any better for house elves!

J.K. Rowling: Hermione began her post-Hogwarts career at the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures where she was instrumental in greatly improving life for house-elves and their ilk. She then moved (despite her jibe to Scrimgeour) to the Dept. of Magical Law Enforcement where she was a progressive voice who ensured the eradication of oppressive, pro-pureblood laws.

Tineke: Did Teddy grow up living with his grandmother?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, Teddy was raised by Andromeda. However, unlike Neville, who was also raised by his grandmother Teddy had his godfather, Harry, and all his father’s friends in the Order, to visit and stay with.

Blodeuwedd: Hi jk, first of all thank you for all the books I have enjoyed each and every one of them could you tell us what professions Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny and Luna go on to have did the trio do their final year at school and take their newts?

J.K. Rowling: Thank you! I’ve already answered about Hermione. Kingsley became permanent Minister for Magic, and naturally he wanted Harry to head up his new Auror department.  Harry did so (just because Voldemort was gone, it didn’t mean that there would not be other Dark witches and wizards in the coming years). Ron joined George at Weasleys’ Wizarding Wheezes, which became an enormous money-spinner... After a few years as a celebrated player for the Holyhead Harpies, Ginny retired to have her family and to become the Senior Quidditch correspondent at the Daily Prophet!

Camille: What or who is Peeves exactly, is he linked with the bloody Barons story?

J.K. Rowling: No, Peeves is not linked to the bloody Baron’s story. He is a spirit of chaos that entered the building long ago and has proved impossible to eradicate!

Jessie: Were the Deathly Hallows based on any realworld myth or faerie tale?

J.K. Rowling: Perhaps ‘the Pardoner’s Tale’, by Chaucer.

Alicepie: What happend to Luna, did she get married who to?

J.K. Rowling: She ended up marrying (rather later than Harry & co) a fellow naturalist and grandson of the great Newt Scamander (Rolf)!

Rosi: What does in essence divided mean?

J.K. Rowling: Dumbledore suspected that the snake’s essence was divided — that it contained part of Voldemort’s soul, and that was why it was so very adept at doing his bidding.  This also explained why Harry, the last and unintended Horcrux, could see so clearly through the snake’s eyes, just as he regularly sees through Voldemort’s.  Dumbledore is thinking aloud here, edging towards the truth with the help of the Pensieve.

Superhans: What was Dudley's worst memory?

J.K. Rowling: I think that when Dudley was attacked by the Dementors he saw himself, for the first time, as he really was. This was an extremely painful, but ultimately salutory lesson, and began the transformation in him.

Casey Kunze: Who killed Remus and Tonks I think if I knew this, I would get some closure over the very sad, but understandable, death of two of my favorite characters.

J.K. Rowling: I’m so sorry! I met a couple on launch night who had come dressed as Lupin and Tonks, and I felt dreadfully guilty as I signed their books!  Remus was killed by Dolohov and Tonks by Bellatrix.

Laura Trego: Was the absence of Snape's portrait in the headmaster's office in the last scene innocent or deliberate?

J.K. Rowling: It was deliberate. Snape had effectively abandoned his post before dying, so he had not merited inclusion in these august circles.  However, I like to think that Harry would be instrumental in ensuring that Snape’s portrait would appear there in due course.

Stephanie: If the wand chooses the wizard, then why do wands work when passed down from father to son eg Neville had his fathers wand?

J.K. Rowling: As established by Ollivander, a wizard can use almost any wand, it is simply that a wand that chooses him/her will work best. Where there is a family connection, a wand will work a little better than a wand chosen at random, I think.

James Farrell: How did Umbridge manage to conjure a Patronus while wearing the locket when Harry wasn't able to?

J.K. Rowling: Because she is a very nasty piece of work. She has an affinity for this horrible object, which would help rather than hinder her.

Tineke: What happened to Percy -  did he return to his job at the ministry?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, the new improved Percy ended up as a high-ranking official under Kingsley.

Su: How did Neville get the Gryffindor sword, is there a link to the hat?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, there is very definitely a link to the hat!  Neville, most worthy Gryffindor, asked for help just as Harry did in the Chamber of secrets, and Gryffindor’s sword was transported into Gryffindor’s old hat — the Sorting Hat was Gryffindor’s initially, as you know.  Griphook was wrong — Gryffindor did not ‘steal’ the sword, not unless you are a goblin fanatic and believe that all goblin-made objects really belong to the maker.

Steph: Will Azkaban still use Dementors?

J.K. Rowling: No, definitely not. Kingsley would see to that. The use of Dementors was always a mark of the underlying corruption of the Ministry, as Dumbledore constantly maintained.

Smallbutpowerful: On behalf of all Harry Potter fans who consider themselves to be Hufflepuffs could you please describe the Hufflepuff common room as it is the only common room Harry hasn’t visited.

J.K. Rowling: The Hufflepuff common room is accessed through a portrait near the kitchens, as I am sure you have deduced.  Sorry — I should say ‘painting’ rather than portrait, because it is a still-life. It is a very cosy and welcoming place, as dissimilar as possible from Snape’s dungeon. Lots of yellow hangings, and fat armchairs, and little underground tunnels leading to the dormitories, all of which have perfectly round doors, like barrel tops.

Camille: How is George getting along without his twin?

J.K. Rowling: Well, I don’t think that George would ever get over losing Fred, which makes me feel so sad. However, he names his first child and son Fred, and he goes on to have a very successful career, helped by good old Ron.

Jessica Lynn: Did Hagrid have to be able to see Thestrals in order to train them if so, whose death did Hagrid witness?

J.K. Rowling: Hagrid has seen many deaths in quite a long life, so yes, he can see Thestrals.

Allie: What did Dumbledore truly see in the mirror of erised?

J.K. Rowling: He saw his family alive, whole and happy — Ariana, Percival and Kendra all returned to him, and Aberforth reconciled to him.

Snapedinhalf: You promised that someone will do magic late in life in book 7. I’ve now read it three times but cant work out who it might have been! Please help!!

J.K. Rowling: I’m sorry about this, but I changed my mind! My very earliest plan for the story involved somebody managing to get to Hogwarts when they had never done magic before, but I had changed my mind by the time I’d written the third book.

Christiana: How did Voldemort get his wand back after he was in was exile?

J.K. Rowling: Wormtail, desperate to curry favour, salvaged it from the place it had fallen and carried it to him. I admit that would have been a bit of a feat for a rat, but they are highly intelligent creatures!

Amanda: Hiya, I've grown up with Harry and the gang, did any of the characters change in any unexpected ways as they grew up?

J.K. Rowling: They all became pretty much what I expected/planned them to become. Of course they changed as I wrote, but nobody surprised me very much!

Ravleen: How much does the fact that Voldemort was conceived under a love potion have to do with his nonability to understand love.  Is it more symbolic?

J.K. Rowling: It was a symbolic way of showing that he came from a loveless union — but of course, everything would have changed if Merope had survived and raised him herself and loved him. The enchantment under which Tom Riddle fathered Voldemort is important because it shows coercion, and there can’t be many more prejudicial ways to enter the world than as the result of such a union.

Lechicaneuronline: Do you think Snape is a hero?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, I do; though a very flawed hero. An anti-hero, perhaps. He is not a particularly likeable man in many ways. He remains rather cruel, a bully, riddled with bitterness and insecurity — and yet he loved, and showed loyalty to that love and, ultimately, laid down his life because of it. That’s pretty heroic!

James Farrell: Voldemort never told anyone about his horcruxes, so how on earth did Regulus Black discover his secret?

J.K. Rowling: Horcrux magic was not Voldemort’s own invention; as is established in the story, other wizards had done it, though never gone as far as to make six. Voldemort dropped oblique hints; in his arrogance, he did not believe anybody would be clever enough to understand them. (He does so in the graveyard of Little Hangleton, in front of Harry). He did this before Regulus and Regulus guessed, correctly, what it was that made Voldemort so convinced he could not die.

Jaclyn: Did Lily ever have feelings back for Snape?

J.K. Rowling: Yes. She might even have grown to love him romantically (she certainly loved him as a friend) if he had not loved Dark Magic so much, and been drawn to such loathesome people and acts.

Boggo: Would you choose the Hallow that is the cloak, like you're supposed to, and would you be tempted to use the others?

J.K. Rowling: My temptation would be Harry’s, ie, the Stone. But I believe, as does Harry ultimately, that the greatest wisdom is in accepting that we must all die, and moving on.

Cornersoul: So what happens to all the Dementors where will they go will they be destroyed if so, how?

J.K. Rowling: You cannot destroy Dementors, though you can limit their numbers if you eradicate the conditions in which they multiply, ie, despair and degradation. As I’ve already said, though, the Ministry no longer used them to torment its opponents.

Michael: Why didn't Fawkes come back to help Harry? I would have thought that since Harry was so loyal to Dumbledore, Fawkes would have been Harry's new pet?

J.K. Rowling: Something had to leave the school for good when Dumbledore died, and I decided that would be Fawkes. Dumbledore was a very great and irreplacable man, and the loss of Fawkes (and the fact that he was ‘non-transferable’!) expresses this symbolically

Roseweasley: Why was Colin Creavey still a student at Hogwarts when he was muggleborn surely he would have been locked up and interogated, not allowed back to school therefore, he shouldn't have died?

J.K. Rowling: Colin wasn’t a student. He sneaked back with the rest of the DA, along with Fred, George and the rest. He ought not to have stayed behind when McGonagall told him to leave, but alas — he did.

Delailah: How does Dumbledore understand Parseltongue?

J.K. Rowling: Dumbledore understood Mermish, Gobbledegook and Parseltongue. The man was brilliant.

Jessie: Will Lockhart ever recover?

J.K. Rowling: No. Nor would I want him to. He’s happy where he is, and I’m happier without him!

Annie: Does the wizarding world now know that snape was Dumbledore's man, or do they still think he did a bunk?

J.K. Rowling: Harry would ensure that Snape’s heroism was known.  Of course, that would not stop Rita Skeeter writing ‘Snape: Scoundrel or Saint?’

Vio91: Is Teddy Lupin a werewolf?

J.K. Rowling: No, he’s a Metamorphmagus like his mother.

Nippy23: We see socks a lot throughout the series, such as Dobby’s love for them and Dumbledore’s claim to see them in the mirror of erised, what’s the reason behind all the socks?

J.K. Rowling: Nothing deep and significant, I’m afraid. They’re just a comedy item.

Lady Bella: Whose murders did Voldemort use to create each of the horcruxes?

J.K. Rowling: The diary — Moaning Myrtle. The cup — Hepzibah Smith, the previous owner. The locket — a Muggle tramp. Nagini — Bertha Jorkins (Voldemort could use a wand once he regained a rudimentary body, as long as the victim was subdued).  The diadem — an Albanian peasant. The ring — Tom Riddle snr.

Sampotterish: Why did Dumbledore want Ron to keep his deluminator?

J.K. Rowling: Because he knew that Ron might need a little more guidance than the other two. Dumbledore understood Ron’s importance in the trio. He wasn’t the most skilled, or the most intelligent, but he held them together; his humour and his good heart were essential.

Carol: Do Dementors have souls

J.K. Rowling: No, that’s what makes them frightening!

Jess Mac: What was the third smell that Hermione smelt in the amortentia potion in hbp (ie the particular essence of Ron)?

J.K. Rowling: I think it was his hair. Every individual has very distinctive-smelling hair, don’t you find?

Natalie: Are house divisions as prevalaent in Harry’s childrens' Hogwarts as in the previous generations?

J.K. Rowling: Slytherin has become diluted. It is no longer the pureblood bastion it once was. Nevertheless, its dark reputation lingers, hence Albus Potter’s fears.

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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #115 on: 01 Aug 2007, 18:06 »

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Nithya: Lily detested Mulciber Avery.  If snape really loved her,why didn't he sacrifice their company for her sake?

J.K. Rowling: Well, that is Snape’s tragedy. Given his time over again he would not have become a Death Eater, but like many insecure, vulnerable people (like Wormtail) he craved membership of something big and powerful, something impressive. He wanted Lily and he wanted Mulciber too. He never really understood Lily’s aversion; he was so blinded by his attraction to the dark side he thought she would find him impressive if he became a real Death Eater.

Alborz: What does it mean to be the master of Death?

J.K. Rowling: As Dumbledore explains, the real master of Death accepts that he must die, and that there are much worse things in the world of the living. It is not about striving for immortality, but about accepting mortality.

Barbara: I was very disappointed to see Harry use crucio and seem to enjoy it.  His failure to perform that kind of curse in the past has been a credit to his character why the change, and did Harry later regret having enjoyed deliberately causing pain?

J.K. Rowling: Harry is not, and never has been, a saint. Like Snape, he is flawed and mortal.  Harry’s faults are primarily anger and occasional arrogance.  On this occasion, he is very angry and acts accordingly. He is also in an extreme situation, and attempting to defend somebody very good against a violent and murderous opponent.

Nicole: What do you think is the funniest moment you have written in the series

J.K. Rowling: It sounds very vain to answer this! My favourite in this book is probably that line of Ron’s ‘really captures the scope and tragedy of the thing, doesn’t it?’

Courtney: What child did Harry give the marauders map to if any?

J.K. Rowling: I’ve got a feeling he didn’t give it to any of them, but that James sneaked it out of his father’s desk one day.

Karin: What did Petunia wanted to say to Harry at the end of the Dursleys departing?

J.K. Rowling: I think that for one moment she trembled on the verge of wishing Harry luck; that she almost acknowledged that her loathing of his world, and of him, was born out of jealousy.  But she couldn’t do it; years of pretending that ‘normal’ was best had hardened her too much.

Leaky Cauldron: Please pose and answer the question you’d most like to address about the series! (a ha, turned it back on you.)

J.K. Rowling: Oooo, you’re tough.  I must admit, I always wondered why nobody ever asked me what Dumbledore’s wand was made of!  And I couldn’t say that, even when asked ‘what do you wish you’d been asked…’ because it would have sign-posted just how significant that wand would become!

Nora: Is Auntie Muriel's tiara important?

J.K. Rowling: No, sorry… except to illustrate what an old bat she is.

Nigel: Can Harry speak Parseltongue when he is no longer a horcrux?

J.K. Rowling: No, he loses the ability, and is very glad to do so.

Nikki: How did Sirius' twoway mirror end up with Aberforth or is it another twoway mirror?

J.K. Rowling: You see Aberforth meeting Mundungus in Hogsmeade. That was the occasion on which Dung, who had taken Sirius’s mirror from Grimmauld Place, sold it to Aberforth.

Tierney Roth: If Moody got a magic eye, and Wormtail got a magic hand, couldn't there be some way to form a magical ear, if only to cover up the hole and make George look more symmetrical?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, he could wear a false ear (I’m starting to giggle at the thought. Perhaps he’s better off with the hole!)

Lucy: What is Dumbledore's boggart?

J.K. Rowling: The corpse of his sister.

Pablo: What is toadface Umbridge doing now?

J.K. Rowling: Glad to see you like her as much as I do! She was arrested, interrogated and imprisoned for crimes against Muggleborns.

Tina: Do the muggles notice that there aren't any weird things going on now that Voldemort's gone?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, the world seems a much sunnier place (literally — with the Dementors gone the weather gets better!) We are having a heavily Dementor-influenced summer here in the UK.

Katie Mosher: How exactly do muggleborns receive magical ability?

J.K. Rowling: Muggleborns will have a witch or wizard somewhere on their family tree, in some cases many, many generations back. The gene re-surfaces in some unexpected places.

Maggie: Is Rita Skeeter still reporting?

J.K. Rowling: Naturally, what could stop Rita? I imagine she immediately dashed off a biography of Harry after he defeated Voldemort. One quarter truth to three quarters rubbish.

Maggie Keir: Was Hermione able to find her parents and undo the memory damage?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, she brought them home straight away.

Lola Victorpujebet: Was Minerva in love with Albus?

J.K. Rowling: No! Not everybody falls in love with everybody else…

Rachel Nell: Jkr, thank you for such amazing books! I would like to know how come no one seemed to know that Lily and Snape were friends in school they were obviously meeting for chats, etc didn't James know their past?

J.K. Rowling: Thank you for your thank you!  Yes, it was known that they were friendly and then stopped being friends. Nothing more than that would be widely known.  James always suspected Snape harboured deeper feelings for Lily, which was a factor in James’ behaviour to Snape.

Abbey: Will the Chuddley Cannons ever win the Quidditch World Cup?

J.K. Rowling: Bless them, perhaps. But they’d need to replace the entire team and down several cauldrons of Felix Felicitas.

Hayleyhaha: Why did Regulus have a change of heart?

J.K. Rowling: He was not prepared for the reality of life as a Death Eater. It was Voldemort’s attempted murder of Kreacher that really turned him.

J.K. Rowling: Scorpius has a lot going against him, not least that name. However, I think Scorpius would be an improvement on his father, whom misfortune has sobered!

Stephval: Is Scorpius as misguided as his father, or has Draco improved and taught his child(ren) better?

J.K. Rowling: Sorry, technical hitch — just answered a question before seeing it!  I am clearly getting better at Legilimency.

Lona: Did Draco and Harry lose their animosity towards eachother when Voldemort died?

J.K. Rowling: Not really. There would be a kind of rapprochement, in that Harry knows Draco hated being a Death Eater, and would not have killed Dumbledore; similarly, Draco would feel a grudging gratitude towards Harry for saving his life.  Real friendship would be out of the question, though. Too much had happened prior to the final battle.

Hannah: Why was Snape so badly groomed?

J.K. Rowling: Hmm. Good question. Poor eyesight? Did he look in the mirror and believe he was gorgeous as he was?  I think it more likely that he valued other qualities in himself!

Ea: Will the stone ever be found, since it was left just sitting on the forest floor?

J.K. Rowling: I think not. I imagine that it was squashed into the ground by a centaur’s hoof as the centaurs dashed to the aid of the Hogwarts fighters, and thereafter became buried.

Adwait313: Has the jinx on the dada teaching post at hogwarts been lifted?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, at last! Incidentally, I know some have asked about Quirrell with regard to this question. He was teaching at Hogwarts for more than a year, but NOT in the post of D.A.D.A. teacher. He was previously Muggle Studies professor.

Emily: What ever happened to Aberforth?

J.K. Rowling: He is still there, at the Hog’s Head, playing with his goats.

Lee: I recently purchsed Nimbus TwoThousand.  It has a terrible knack of veering left.  Is their anything I can do (wihout the use of a wand it was broken by a hippogriff) to repair it back to it original straight flying state?

J.K. Rowling: Hm. I would advise a trip to Arkie Alderton’s Kwik-Repair Shop. Never attempt to mend a broom at home, the consequences can be disastrous.

Abjoppotter: Is Narcissa Malfoy really a Death Eater?

J.K. Rowling: No, she never had the Dark Mark and was never a fully paid-up member. However, her views were identical to those of her husband until Voldemort planned the death of her son.

Emzzy: Did Mr Weasley ever get around to fixing Sirius' motorbike?

J.K. Rowling: Of course, and it ended up in Harry’s possession.

Lulu: Do you think Dumbledore was a little more fond of Ron than either Ron or Harry believed?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, I do. Through Harry’s account of Ron, and from reports of the professors who taught Ron, Dumbledore understood Ron better than Ron ever knew, and liked him, too.

Chelatina: Was Firenze ever welcomed back into the herd?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, the rest of the herd was forced to acknowledge that Firenze’s pro-human leanings were not shameful, but honourable.

Kristy: What was your favorite scene to write in Deathly Hallows?

J.K. Rowling: Chapter 34: The Forest Again.

Chely: James' Patronus is a stag and Lily's a doe.  Is that a coincidence?

J.K. Rowling: No, the Patronus often mutates to take the image of the love of one’s life (because they so often become the ‘happy thought’ that generates a Patronus).

Jon: Since Voldemort was afraid of death, did he choose to be a ghost if so where does he haunt or is this not possible due to his horcruxes?

J.K. Rowling: No, he is not a ghost. He is forced to exist in the stunted form we witnessed in King’s Cross.

Angela Morrissey: Were there seven horcruxes not six as Dumbledore intimated to harry if so, does this mean that Voldemort had an 8 part soul not a 7?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, Voldemort accidentally broke his soul into eight parts, not seven.

Laura Trego: Did Hermione really put a memory charm on her parents she says she did but then about 50 pages later tells ron shes never done a memory charm?

J.K. Rowling: They are two different charms. She has not wiped her parents’ memories (as she later does to Dolohov and Rowle); she has bewitched them to make them believe that they are different people.

Maura: How come Voldemort was no longer employing occlumency against Harry, as he was in the 6th book?

J.K. Rowling: He is losing control, and unable to prevent Harry seeing into his mind. The connection between them is never fully understood by Voldemort, who does not know that Harry is a Horcrux.

Gandalfxj9: Did Krum ever find love?

J.K. Rowling: Of course, though he had to go back to his native Bulgaria to do so.

Twinkletoes: Why did you feel that Hedwig's death was necessary?

J.K. Rowling: The loss of Hedwig represented a loss of innocence and security. She has been almost like a cuddly toy to Harry at times. Voldemort killing her marked the end of childhood. I’m sorry… I know that death upset a LOT of people!

Lecanard: Will we see Harry and his friends having their own history on chocolate frogs cards?

J.K. Rowling: Definitely, and Ron will describe this as his finest hour.

Mike: What is the incantation for creating a horcrux?

J.K. Rowling: I cannot possibly tell you. Some things are better left unsaid.

Samantha: Was Snape the only Death Eater who could produce a full Patronus?

J.K. Rowling: Yes, because a Patronus is used against things that the Death Eaters generally generate, or fight alongside. They would not need Patronuses.

Jess: How did Nagini could see Harry and Hermione if they were under the invisibility cloak?

J.K. Rowling: Snakes’ sense are very different from human ones. They can detect heat and movement in a way that we can’t.

Chucky: Have you had another alternatives as book title apart from Deathly Hallows?

J.K. Rowling: The two other possibilities were ‘the Elder Wand’ (used instead as a chapter title) and ‘the Peverell Quest’, which I decided against quite quickly. I think the word ‘Quest’ is a bit corny!

Iglooanne: What would your Patronus be?

J.K. Rowling: I’d like an otter, like Hermione, but I’ve got a feeling it might be a large dog.

The Stoic Cycle: Why is it that Voldemort is unaware that the gaunt ring is a hallow, when he has worn it (such as in the memory the diary shows Harry in book 2)

J.K. Rowling: Wearing the ring would not make the stone work. The stone existed outside the ring originally, and to use it you had to turn it three times in your hand.

Finchburg: Does the dark mark remain on those that Voldemort has branded after his death or does the tattoo dissapear now he is gone thanks for considering my question!

J.K. Rowling: My pleasure, Finchburg! The Dark Mark would fade to a scar, not dissimilar to the lightning scar on Harry’s forehead.  Like Harry’s, these scars would no longer burn or hurt.

Katie Mosher: How is the Quibbler doing these days?

J.K. Rowling: Pretty well, actually. It has returned to its usual condition of advanced lunacy, and is appreciated for its unintentional humour.

Camille: Dear Mrs Rowling, while I'm here I want to thank you for making me laugh, cry (a lot! Most of all for Sirius!) since I'm 11 quite a long time for me as I'm 20 Harry's magic and yours will be with me forever! Thanks!

J.K. Rowling: Thank you very much, Camille, and I’m sorry about Sirius. That man’s got a lot of fans.  Mostly female, I might add.

Nicofr: Does Winky still drink a lot of butterbear?

J.K. Rowling: She’s dried out a bit now.

Isabel: Did Bellatrix ever love her husband, or did she have love only for Voldemort?

J.K. Rowling: She took a pureblood husband, because that was what was expected of her, but her true love was always Voldemort.

jenny: How did Snape keep his Patronus secret from the rest of the order?

J.K. Rowling: He was careful not to use the talking Patronus means of communication with them. This was not difficult, as his particular job within the Order, ie, as spy, meant that sending a Patronus to any of them might have given away his true allegiance.

Darchey: Did Voldemort ever love a girl?

J.K. Rowling: No, he loved only power, and himself. He valued people whom he could use to advance his own objectives.

Leo: What would your wand be made of?

J.K. Rowling: I’d like Harry’s wand — holly and phoenix feather.

Brian: Did the DA keep the coins?

J.K. Rowling: Naturally. They would be like badges or medals of honour — proof that the owner had been at the heart of the fight against Voldemort from the start! I like to imagine Neville showing his to his admiring pupils.

Tracie: How relieved are you that you can finally talk about the series no more secretkeeping!

J.K. Rowling: I’m elated! It is great to be able to do this at last, I’ve looked forward to it for so long!

Lou: How did Snape get into Grimmauld place to get the second half of the letter, if there were protection spells on the house stopping Snape getting in?

J.K. Rowling: Snape entered the house immediately after Dumbledore’s death, before Moody put up the spells against him.

Koen Van Der Voort: Why is the scar on Harry's forehead lightning shaped?

J.K. Rowling: To be honest, because it’s a cool shape. I couldn’t have my hero sport a doughnut-shaped scar.

Louie: Did Marietta's pimply formation ever fade?

J.K. Rowling: Eventually, but it left a few scars. I loathe a traitor!

Katie B: Why was Kings Cross the place Harry went to when he died?

J.K. Rowling: For many reasons. The name works rather well, and it has been established in the books as the gateway between two worlds, and Harry would associate it with moving on between two worlds (don’t forget that it is Harry’s image we see, not necessarily what is really there.

J.K. Rowling: We seem to have over-run. We’ve had over 120,000 questions, I’ve been told!  What can I say? Thank you so much for sticking with me, and with Harry, for so long. You have made this an incredible journey for Harry’s author.

J.K. Rowling: I like this question, so I’ll take it for my last.

Tess: What muggle song do you imagine would be played at Dumbledore's funeral?

J.K. Rowling: Surely ‘I did it my way’ by Frank Sinatra.

J.K. Rowling: I’m very aware I haven’t answered everything… keep an eye on my website, and I’ll try and answer some more questions in due course!

Thanks very much everybody, I’ve had a great time, and I hope I’ve covered some of the outstanding questions (I hear a distant roar of ‘YOU DIDN’T GET TO MINE!’)

That’s it… I’m Disapparating. Bye
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #116 on: 01 Aug 2007, 19:12 »

That's really awesome. I would have never even thought to ask about the Hufflepuff common room. (Though in the interview I watched earlier this week, I remember her saying Ron had become an Auror.)
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Ernest

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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #117 on: 01 Aug 2007, 19:26 »

I agree with you. I felt that HP7 was not nearly as good as it could have been, as it should have been. When I came across an early copy of it on the internet, I prayed that it was a hoax. A very elaborate hoax that led someone to print up a book and take a picture of each page. I was disappointed and frustrated to the point of tears.

I feel like it's not done. Plus, I'm a H/H shipper, so Harry and Ginny shacking up upset me beyond belief... and the names of their children were just ridiculous. She made her characters do things they never would do, and she stretched things pretty far (what was up with the Put-Outer?)... it was weird and disjointed and silly and full of pointless bits (why kill Hedwig?). But I've resigned myself to this, and I am going to bury myself in far better fan fics. Best part in HP7? Not my daughter, you bitch. That's it.

Exactly how I feel.  Hedwig and Fred were nothing more than collateral damage.  The book was basically garbage.  I'm not going to say it was simply "disappointing," because that's going to easy on J. K.  She let us down, and she let us down big.  I wish she'd write another one and say "Ha!  The other book seven was an elaborate joke on my readers!  It was just my first draft!  I've since written 100 more drafts!"
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #118 on: 01 Aug 2007, 20:52 »

 :cry:FRED!!!!!
It was an excellent read, but Fred's death was so terrible!
Tonks and Lupin went too quickly, and Mad-Eye was so unexpected!
I absolutely LOVED the part with Snape and Lily, and when Sirius and Co came back to help him.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #119 on: 02 Aug 2007, 06:15 »

She let me down, and she let me down big."

Fixed for you. Seriously, what is it with your unending desire to feel as if you speak for anyone but yourself on this? I and most others on this thread, it would seem, quite enjoyed it. I personally thought it was an excellent wrap to a fun series of books. You've readily established that your essential reasons for disliking it are that it didn't line up with what 'your vision' was. I reiterate: the only person whose vision it had to line up with was Rowling's. She created it, she wrote it. You've yet to give a compelling argument for why it was a "bad book" outside of your own personal grievances about what you would've done and that's all rather petty when it comes down to it. Personally, I would've set the book aflame if there was some trite and cliched scene involving Voldemort being denied entrance to the afterlife by those he killed. Suffice to say: you can't please all of the people all of the time. You didn't like it, get over it; I don't think it was a personal insult to you and I'm pretty sure Rowling didn't go out of her way to fuck up the experience for you. You just come off so self important in these rants.
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Ernest

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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #120 on: 02 Aug 2007, 13:10 »

She made her characters do things they never would do, and she stretched things pretty far (what was up with the Put-Outer?)

It's shit like that that ruins the book.  I say "us" because while I believe that taste is subjective, I also believe that art can be generally good and bad.  I believe that this book was basically bullshit.  I find it hard to believe that in anyone's heart of hearts they actually like this book.  Apparently, I'm wrong.  You and some others, who seem like smart, perceptive folks to me, seem to like this book.  Whatever, I'm not stopping you, but I'm not going to stop complaining about the book, because I feel cheated.
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Ozymandias

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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #121 on: 02 Aug 2007, 14:03 »

All I'm hearing from the people who didn't like the book is that people think they understand J.K. Rowling's characters and universe better than her.

Which is, actually, among the most asinine things I've ever heard.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #122 on: 02 Aug 2007, 14:10 »

How can that possibly be the most asinine thing you've ever heard?  She wrote a goddamn shitty-ass book.  You're also spinning it.  We're not saying that we understand the characters better than she does, we're saying that she did a half-assed job wrapping the series up.
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CmonMiracle

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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #123 on: 02 Aug 2007, 17:13 »

The language being used in this thread is out of control. Also, this thread is out of control now, it's pretty much degenerated into shouting back and forth.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #124 on: 02 Aug 2007, 20:30 »

A wizard did it.

What I meant was that it was random.  It's like having a toaster that gives you dating advice.  If it had been a compass or binoculars or something you usually use to find something that's different. 
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #125 on: 02 Aug 2007, 20:53 »

The language being used in this thread is out of control. Also, this thread is out of control now, it's pretty much degenerated into shouting back and forth.

That's fine, 'cause I'm done here.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #126 on: 03 Aug 2007, 08:01 »

Good. Now maybe we can actually get back on topic.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #127 on: 03 Aug 2007, 16:35 »

recap of the whole book. pretty funny.
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Kaktion

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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #128 on: 05 Aug 2007, 00:12 »

I read it because it was given to me by a friend of the family.

There, I said it! I spent all this time trying not to get excited about it but as soon as I had the book in my hands I obsessively drank it all in. I can safely say, I dug it. I thought I'd grown out of my Potter phase, but I totally devoured this one. It was good in a way that was weird to me. It just felt like an ending I'd be okay with. The entire book made that odd epilogue worth it and I liked it. Some of the deaths were "ehh", but I enjoyed the book. I enjoyed reading all seven books all these years.

Shit, now if it wasn't that the hardcore fans embarrass me so much I could admit it to the world without the tiniest hint of shame. Eh, whatever. I'm delirious from lack of sleep, probably.

edit:

Did anyone else hear Ron Perlman with an accent while reading Voldemort? I mean, it's probably just me because every villain eventually sounds like Ron Perlman to me because he's just so good at these kinds of voices, and you know...
« Last Edit: 05 Aug 2007, 13:52 by Kaktion »
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #129 on: 05 Aug 2007, 01:26 »

I absolutely loved it. I even managed to avoid all the spoilers, real or fake. It was definately not the best book I've ever read but it (the whole series) was probably the best story I've heard.
« Last Edit: 05 Aug 2007, 01:43 by JimmytheSquid »
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #130 on: 08 Aug 2007, 13:36 »

recap of the whole book. pretty funny.

That essay brilliantly and hilariously highlighted just about everything that was wrong with the book. Now to two things that were RIGHT about it.

The massive amount of time the trio spent tramping around the country doing nothing was NOT a flaw (at least in my mind). J.K. Rowling set this up to be the exact OPPOSITE of the hero myth, in which the plot progresses linearly and the hero, by virtue of being the hero, automatically knows the right direction to travel or the correct course of action. Instead, the story unfolds much in the same way that things would happen if you or I were in the same situation. It's easier to identify with a protagonist who's shaken and uncertain, just like us, but does his best anyway — rather than some superhuman who doesn't have to struggle.

In a similar vein, notice how democratic the destruction of the Horcruxes was? Again, Rowling turns away from the hero myth. Instead of Harry on a lone journey to destroy all the Horcruxes...

Horcrux no. 1: Destroyed by Harry, long before he even knows what a Horcrux is.
Horcrux no. 2: Destroyed by Dumbledore.
Horcrux no. 3: Destroyed by Ron.
Horcrux no. 4: Destroyed by Hermione.
Horcrux no. 5: Destroyed by accident, before anyone has a chance to argue over who gets to do it.
Horcrux no. 6: Destroyed by Voldemort, as Harry voluntarily offers himself up.
Horcrux no. 7: Destroyed by Neville.
Horcrux no. 8: Destroyed by Harry.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #131 on: 08 Aug 2007, 14:53 »

We're not saying Harry should have had all the answers and known exactly what to do.  What we're saying is that she could have established the hopelessness and and lack of direction in far fewer pages than she did.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #132 on: 09 Aug 2007, 10:44 »

J.K. Rowling set this up to be the exact OPPOSITE of the hero myth, in which the plot progresses linearly and the hero, by virtue of being the hero, automatically knows the right direction to travel or the correct course of action. Instead, the story unfolds much in the same way that things would happen if you or I were in the same situation. It's easier to identify with a protagonist who's shaken and uncertain, just like us, but does his best anyway — rather than some superhuman who doesn't have to struggle.

That's an interesting take.  Still, she completely broke from the way she had written the books before.  This one a. wasn't clever, and b.wasn't written well.  Now, the first six books weren't written particularly well, either, but at least they had clever plot twists and compelling stories.  The seventh book had neither, and so the poor writing showed through much more glaringly.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #133 on: 09 Aug 2007, 10:52 »

Once again, completely disagreed.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #134 on: 09 Aug 2007, 13:29 »

I try to be realistic about the books. I'm rereading Book 7 right now, and I just got past the visit to Lovegood's house. Even the second time around, the time spent stuck in the forest doesn't seem too long.

Even so, I realize that the books as a whole have a bunch of Unforgivably Unanswerable Questions. In "Hallows," there were at least two obvious ones: (1) Y-O-Y (That's "Why oh why") didn't Voldemort hide the Horcrux in the Chamber of Secrets (a room he felt fairly certain nobody could ever get into and one that housed one of his greatest triumphs) rather than the Room of Requirement (which he must have known anybody could get into)? And (2) Do you really expect us to believe the Chamber could open for Ron?

Here are some of my favorite Unforgivably Unanswerable Questions from previous books:

Azkaban: With three fully qualified adult wizards who know what Pettigrew is capable of, and one underage wizard who's one of the most briiliant witches Hogwarts has ever seen, AND considering that Pettigrew wouldn't like being handed over to the Dementors, AND knowing that Harry wants to see Sirius cleared, Y-O-Y didn't anyone think of knocking Pettigrew unconscious so he couldn't escape. Surely the unconscious form of Snape must have given them some ideas. Surely "Stupefy" or a blow to the head would have done the trick. Considering everything that happened afterward — even Voldemort himself said he might never have been restored were it not for Pettigrew — it seems like such an idiotic blunder for no apparent reason.

Goblet: So the only reason Crouch did everything he could to get Harry to win the tournament was so Harry could be Portkeyed to Voldemort? Why did he have to do all that when ANY Portkey would have done the job? Harry could have been zapped to Voldemort at the beginning of the year, so Voldemort wouldn't have had to wait so long, AND Harry wouldn't have mastered useful skills like the Summoning Charm and resisting the Imperius curse AND Crouch could have succeeded in his mission without calling attention to himself. All he had to do was say, "Oh, Harry? I left my book in Hargid's cabin. Can you go and get it for me?" To make matters worse, we learn in the fifth book that Voldemort's return didn't go according to plan because so one was supposed to know. Wouldn't it have made more sense for Harry to disappear when nobody was watching, rather than when he had everyone in the entire school watching him?

Half-Blood: So the Patronus can suddenly be used for sending secret messages back and forth? Wouldn't it have been nice for someone to tell Harry this last year? That way, Sirius wouldn't have died.

And while this one isn't "Unforgivable," I'm just curious:

What DOES a boggart look like when nobody's around? And how come nobody ever thinks to ask Moody, who's the one person who's in a position to know the answer?
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #135 on: 09 Aug 2007, 13:46 »

Voldemort assumed he was the only one smart enough to discover the Room of Requirement. It all falls back to his arrogance.

Azkaban: If they'd knocked Pettigrew unconscious, who exactly was going to carry him? Ron was hurt and needed assistance walking. You really think they could've carried both of them?

Goblet: It's easier to explain his disappearance in the maze than any of the other trials. I seem to recall there being some other reason for the timeframe (Preperation-wise), but I don't recall exactly.

HBP: As I recall it, the Patronuses couldn't go particularly long distances. Each of the instances where someone sent a patronus, it was in reasonable proximity. Considering the apparent distance between London and Hogwart's, I don't see that this would've been any help to Sirius. Beyond that, as far as Harry knew, Sirius was at the Ministry and he had no other reason to send it.

I don't see that anyone's in a position to know exactly what a boggart really looks like. How, exactly, would anyone gain an authority on that? Everyone's afraid of something, thus it couldn't conceivably appear in its natural form to any witch or wizard.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #136 on: 09 Aug 2007, 14:19 »

J.K. Rowling set this up to be the exact OPPOSITE of the hero myth, in which the plot progresses linearly and the hero, by virtue of being the hero, automatically knows the right direction to travel or the correct course of action.

Dunno, seems like JK hewed pretty closely to the hero myth described in "Hero With A Thousand Faces":

Quote from: wikipiedia
(1) A call to adventure, which the hero has to accept or decline
(2) A road of trials, regarding which the hero succeeds or fails
(3) Achieving the goal or "boon," which often results in important self-knowledge
(4) A return to the ordinary world, again as to which the hero can succeed or fail
(5) Application of the boon, in which what the hero has gained can be used to improve the world

A story where the hero knows what to do by virtue of nothing other than being the hero isn't a hero myth.  It's crap.  Now perhaps you could claim that most of the hero stories you get these days are crap.  But still . . . .

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recap of the whole book. pretty funny.

Freakin hilarious, thanks ruyi.  But despite the attention payed to plot holes, inconsistencies, and played out language, that seemed to me more like a labor of love than a satire.  I mean, the author had a serious thing for Luna.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #137 on: 09 Aug 2007, 14:26 »

Response to Obsessions:

1) With all that other stuff sitting in the room already?

2) They "carried" Snape. They could have left him behind and magicked an unconscious Pettigrew instead.

3) The fake Moody could have made him disappear WITHOUT EVEN ENTERING HIM IN THE CONTEST! He could have turned ANYTHING into a Portkey! As in, "Oops, I left my book in Hagrid's cabin. Harry, can you go and get it for me? You know, my leg being how it is ... "

4) Not knowing how far it is from London to the Weasley home, or how far it is from Hogwarts to the lake in the woods, I'll concede your point on this one.

5) We actually see Moody, from the safety of the ground floor, looking at a boggart through the ceiling and into a cabinet where a boggart is (apparently) unaware of his presence. He really IS in a position to know what a boggart looks like when no one is around.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #138 on: 09 Aug 2007, 14:38 »

1) I've been through this a few times already.  There are a few alternative explanations.  The room of requirements may have shown Voldemort an empty room because that's what he needed and then put the tiara in the same lost and found as the other objects because that's what Harry needed.  Or else Voldemort just opened the door and threw it in without looking at what was inside.

2) I think they just understimated Pettigrew's reflexes when he woke up.  Not really unforgivable for me at least.

3) Yeah that bothered the crap out of me too.

5) I have no problem with the idea that a bogart has no real shape or appearance aside from resembling your worst fear.  So Moody might have seen his worst fear with the magic eye.  Or he saw a vaguely menacing cloud which he recognized from prior experiences with boggarts.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #139 on: 09 Aug 2007, 15:11 »

1. We don't know that stuff was in there in Riddle's time and, once again, we fall back to his biggest downfall of arrogance. He might've just assumed the room was always as it was.

3. And what exactly do you think Dumbledore's reaction would be to Harry disappearing right in the middle of the schoolyear? Dumbledore was keeping a sharp eye on both Harry and Moody. Harry disappearing during the deadly maze is one thing, but just mysteriously going missing at a random interval would be way too fishy.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #140 on: 09 Aug 2007, 19:50 »

Your all forgetting one thing: Narrativium. If Crouch Jr had just taken harry at the first chance he got the book would have been incredibly boring and only about 100 pages long.

Also remember Voldemort is incredibly smart, so he concocted a plan that got Harry spending so long looking for danger from the outside, he would never have considered that what he actually had to look out for was help.

The horcrux locations did annoy me a bit, I mean Voldemort put incredibly heavy protection on the locket (and from what Dumbledore said the ring as well), but just abandoned the diadem with nothing protecting it. Personally I would have thought it would be hidden in the orphanage, in Tom Riddle's cupboard that Dumbledore set of fire (because this was the first time he had ever seen true magic) but once again Narrativium played a part: JK needed an excuse for Harry to be at hogwarts for the final battle.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #141 on: 10 Aug 2007, 05:50 »

If you think about it, the best place to put at least one of the horcruxes would have been 2 miles underground in an unmarked hole that no one could ever find.  Or you know in a random spot in the forest outside Hogwarts which apparently renders an artifact of incredible power completely unrecoverable.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #142 on: 10 Aug 2007, 06:49 »

Narrativium beats your logic.

Oh and something about Voldemort being arragent and prideful.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #143 on: 10 Aug 2007, 07:42 »

Agreed.  I mean in any fantasy or sci fi setting there are almost always applications of the magic/science that would have rendered the plot moot, for which reason the author either didn't think of them or declined to use them.  Especially Harry Potter.  Why didn't the Order imperius Thicknesse?  Why didn't Sirius ignore Harry and Aveda Kedavra Pettigrew?  In fact, why did the good guys wait for the last half of the last book to use imperius (Harry, McGonnagal), aveda kedavra (Ron's mom), and crucio (Harry)? 

What would you prefer to have: an enjoyable, gripping book full of logic flaws and continuity errors, or an absolutely boring book that makes perfect logical sense?
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #144 on: 10 Aug 2007, 18:36 »

Guys the book kind of did suck.


Leaving aside everything else, all the wandering in forests and random breaks with characterization that had been established over 6 previous books. Leaving aside all the bullshit about horcruxes being in stupid places(wtf connection did voldemort have to Bellatrix's Gringotts vault?) and Neville suddenly going from plump buffoon to badass rebel leader.

What the fuck was that final battle scene. An army of house elves and centaurs, Giants included as an afterthought because she had mentioned them earlier? A giant army of reinforcements? Characters being killed just for effect and to bring the death toll up?

It's the problem with making books into movies while they're still being written because real talk that last battle scene was just her wanting to have a huge fucking climax to the 7th movie. There is no other reason at all for that. Also that epilouge was written worse than a lot of fan fic I have seen.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #145 on: 10 Aug 2007, 21:02 »

OMG FINALLY GOT TO READ IT TODAY.

I so so so agree about the movies.  I think they're alright, but probably could've been loads better if they had just waited a couple of years for the story to be finished eh? 


As for the book, i finished it and was satisfied.
An hour later i was super mad when i read online all this nonsense about Rowling wrapping up the loose ends of the story in televiision and online interviews.  Am i the only person who doesn't understand why she couldn't just have added another 50 pages to the book?  I'm not sure, but that bothered me a lot. 

I was content with the book but to be all "Hey i didnt want to water down the epilogue so here, let me describe on the today show how Harry Potter became an auror" just kind of ruined the magic for me i think. 
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #146 on: 11 Aug 2007, 06:10 »

(wtf connection did voldemort have to Bellatrix's Gringotts vault?)

As was explained in the book, Gringott's was a place that represented wealth, something he had never known in life. He acknowledged the inherent power of the upper class and that's why he had it there.

Quote
and Neville suddenly going from plump buffoon to badass rebel leader.

I'd hardly call it sudden. The evolution of Neville as a character has been a gradual thing that had building since the first book when he first stood up to the others when they were leaving to try and stop Snape. It started to take on a quicker pace by the point of the fourth and fifth books when details started to surface about his parents' fate.

Quote
What the fuck was that final battle scene. An army of house elves and centaurs, Giants included as an afterthought because she had mentioned them earlier?

It had been foreshadowed toward the beginning of book five that the giants would be joining Voldemort and I enjoyed seeing a bit of an actual payoff to the whole SPEW storyline, which is what I felt the house elves were involved for.

Quote
Characters being killed just for effect and to bring the death toll up?

Well, that's basically the purpose of any death in books and movies. Any writer can get by with death, but it's always been a common story device to make the stakes seem higher. Headwig's death proved early on that really no one was safe. Headwig was something seemingly integral to Harry as a character, yet minor enough that you're really never expect Rowling to bother with it.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #147 on: 11 Aug 2007, 06:50 »


Quote
What the fuck was that final battle scene. An army of house elves and centaurs, Giants included as an afterthought because she had mentioned them earlier?

It had been foreshadowed toward the beginning of book five that the giants would be joining Voldemort and I enjoyed seeing a bit of an actual payoff to the whole SPEW storyline, which is what I felt the house elves were involved for.

They didn't mention SPEW at all. And if anything, Hermione pissed off[i/] the house elves, not inspired them to fight for her, if I remember book 5. I knew the giants were joining Voldemort, but really it felt like she just added them to that scene, not to the story as a whole, because she wanted the final battle to be more epic.
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #148 on: 11 Aug 2007, 19:20 »


I was content with the book but to be all "Hey i didnt want to water down the epilogue so here, let me describe on the today show how Harry Potter became an auror" just kind of ruined the magic for me i think. 

It seems like a huge cop-out.  "I can't effectively write this into the book, so I'll just tell you about it sometime."
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Re: Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (w/Spoilers)
« Reply #149 on: 14 Aug 2007, 22:56 »

Well, that's basically the purpose of any death in books and movies. Any writer can get by with death, but it's always been a common story device to make the stakes seem higher. Headwig's death proved early on that really no one was safe. Headwig was something seemingly integral to Harry as a character, yet minor enough that you're really never expect Rowling to bother with it.

Hm?

No, death should be used as a thematic device rather than a deus ex machina sort of thing to get the plot moving or to wrench an emotion out of the reader. The difference between a writer who uses death gratuitously and one who uses death organically is that the deaths from the latter writer will always, always be more authentically moving.

The deaths of characters like Remus and Tonks were a bummer but nowhere near as crushing as the end of, say, Of Mice And Men for that reason.

I really liked the book. It was riveting, in fact. I read it in enormous chunks and could barely tear myself away from it whenever I picked it up. Rowling delivered on not only the loose story ends of the series but also the themes - love conquering death more than anything else (look how well it conqured death compared to the Hallows themselves) and greed, corruption and pride causing nothing but temporary power and permanent ruin.

The deaths were my only complaint, and not because there were too many or anything but because they sometimes just didn't feel like anything but death for death's sake - say what you will about "that's how it would happen in real life the deaths wouldn't be as important etc." but we are reading books about teenage wizards and witches. If I want realism I'll open a newspaper. If I want fiction I open a novel, and if someone important dies I better damn well feel something at their loss.
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