tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6034855245900964602.post1053479746792404206..comments2023-12-27T14:13:16.127-05:00Comments on Spinning Straw Into Gold: HPP: Of Phoenixes and Free WillChristiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18107748184124761940noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6034855245900964602.post-14435837310611030512013-11-05T00:39:42.892-05:002013-11-05T00:39:42.892-05:00I love your comments about the sinister Slytherin ...I love your comments about the sinister Slytherin statue and about phoenix song. <3<br /><br />Also, that picture of Riddle.<br /><br />Your points about Riddle's possession of Ginny were outstandingly creepy. One of my greatest horrors in life is the idea that with good intentions and a strong dedication to doing right, you can still wrong people, and you can still be made use of by evil. Scares the bejeebers out of me.Jenna St. Hilairehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04474588706124865006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6034855245900964602.post-67482688097959195242013-11-04T13:34:06.198-05:002013-11-04T13:34:06.198-05:00LIKE.
Oops, wrong forum. xDLIKE.<br /><br />Oops, wrong forum. xDChristiehttp://spinstrawintogold.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6034855245900964602.post-16179674978067484222013-11-04T12:04:06.059-05:002013-11-04T12:04:06.059-05:00oh jeez; that was even longer than I thought it wa...oh jeez; that was even longer than I thought it was going to be! OOPS. Lauranoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6034855245900964602.post-22420045672405994682013-11-04T12:02:39.230-05:002013-11-04T12:02:39.230-05:00Quick side question: why is such a despicable pers...<i>Quick side question: why is such a despicable person such as Salazar Slytherin head of Hogwarts, even if he was one of the founders? If, say, a racist bigot founded our school or town or club, we'd be in all sorts of hurry to unaffiliate with him.</i><br /><br />W. . .e. . .l . . l. . . yes, you or I probably would be -- but don't underestimate the power of "tradition" coupled with the power of unspoken bigotry combined with institutional inertia to leave things like Slytherin House untouched for a long, long time. <br /><br />I totally agree that it would have been <i>the right thing to do</i> to cut Salazar Slytherin out of Hogwarts the minute he started blathering about blood purity back in 990 or whenever it was. Barring that, at any point in the next thousand years, Slytherin House <i>should</i> have been either dismantled or renamed, and Hogwarts <i>should</i> have made an official statement disavowing the ideas of Salazar Slytherin and affirming its commitment to Wizard Anti-Racism. But! as much as I make fun of Hogwarts for holding on to a Racism and Bullying House, given that JKR invented this house, it's not super unrealistic that it continues to exist. Sentimental or straight-up bigoted Slytherin alumni (or alumni of other houses who just can't see the problem), discomfort with change even when it's for the better, a tendency to underestimate the diversity of opinion in the past and therefore let its bigots off the hook, and an unwillingness on the part of school officials, parents, the Ministry etc., to pay attention to things that don't directly affect them could all play a role.<br /><br />In the US. where I live, there are many historical bigots who have institutions named after them. I think it's probably the same deal in England. Once something's been in place for even a fairly short time, it's easy to keep hanging onto it in the name of tradition or of not making a fuss. So I'm not surprised there's still a Slytherin House -- I <i>am</i> surprised and disappointed that it's not more controversial. It makes sense for this house to persist and for some people to be attached to it. It <i>doesn't</i> make sense that <i>none</i> of the HP adults seem to really question the value of celebrating Slytherin and maintaining his House. I get that subtle bigotry is more common among wizards than most of them would like to admit, but I don't believe that they're <i>all</i> convinced that All the Houses Must Work Together.<br /><br />Whoa, that was a long comment; sorry! As you can see, I have FEELINGS about Slytherin House.<br /><br />Oh, and I agree that Tom Riddle is creepier than Voldyface. I mean, that sword and sorcery Dark Lord stuff is all well and good, but the Gifted and Talented Killer who uses people's own best qualities against them is a much better villain. And now I kind of want to see fanfic where Tom Riddle actually succeeded in some of his early goals [SPOILERS? I forget which book has Tom's early career ambitions in it].<br /><br />Poor Lockhart, though. Is he going to recover enough to learn from his mistakes? I hope so. Maybe now that he has some first-hand experience of the monster-hunting life, he'll have a little more respect for the people whose stories he's been stealing. Maybe he'll even find them and give them his royalties. His career won't even suffer from it too much; as a good-looking doofus with an ego and a loyal following, he should bounce right back in no time. His confession will make the fans love him even more for his vulnerability and belated honesty, and he can find a niche selling quack therapies for Jinxed Sneezes and Magical Menopause after sales of his next book, <i>Magical Mystery, Magical Mess: Monster Hunting's Broken Idol Comes Clean about Life, Lies, and the Healing Power of Love</i> slow to a modest trickle. <br />Lauranoreply@blogger.com