When Hermione first comes into Harry's compartment she's "disgruntled" and announces there are "two prefects from each house. One boy and one girl." Did Hermione originally think that she and Ron were the only ones?
No, I doubt that she thought they were the only ones. This is simply a case of the author doing a rather bad job of getting info into the text that the characters are all supposed to know (since they've been going to the school for four previous years) but the reader may not know because it's never been explicitly stated in the books before. (Although it's something one can infer.) She USED to be better at this; perhaps she's taking "lessons" from Steve Kloves. (I can't believe the stupid and awkward, "Platform Nine and Three Quarters, this way," line of Molly's in the first film, as though Percy and the twins hadn't already been going to Hogwarts FOR YEARS.) Hermione could simply have said, "Well, the Slytherin fifth year prefects are Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson, the Hufflepuffs are..." Which would have sounded far more natural and communicated the idea that there was one boy and girl from each house. What's really stupid, of course, is that Hermione (and JKR, for that matter) is behaving, all through the book, as though there are no sixth and seventh year prefects, let alone a Head Girl and Boy. Why she doesn't just report any egregious Draco-behavior to the heads is beyond me; JKR created a slew of new characters for the DA; she couldn't have made two of them Head Girl and Head Boy, and made some of the others prefects in years six and seven? Sometimes her tunnel-vision view of the Potterverse is just a bit frustrating.
I do think that Ron's appointments were both foreshadowed in the first book (Mirror of Erised). He had a simple joy in seeing himself in positions of respect and authority when he looked in the mirror; hopefully he'll be able to shake off the rotten attitude of the people around him and grow into his positions in the final two books. I have a sneaking suspicion that the brain incident at the DoM might mean that he will now give Hermione a run for her money academically. Wouldn't it be nice to see her NOT always get the top marks in her year for once?
And--Dumbleodore's statement. Yeah. Complete cop-out on JKR's part. I would have been much happier if he'd said that he thought Ron had shown some excellent leadership qualities and he thought Harry was a bit too impulsive. Both are true. Harry's shown leadership qualities too, of course, particularly in OotP, but his are always of the rebel-insurgency type (leading the DA), while Ron's leadership qualities are like that of the status-quo authority figure--a prefect, in other words. Dumbledore definitely appointed the right person to be prefect. Wouldn't it be nice if he acknowledged that to both Harry and Ron? (And to Hermione as well.)
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Date: 2004-11-12 08:54 pm (UTC)No, I doubt that she thought they were the only ones. This is simply a case of the author doing a rather bad job of getting info into the text that the characters are all supposed to know (since they've been going to the school for four previous years) but the reader may not know because it's never been explicitly stated in the books before. (Although it's something one can infer.) She USED to be better at this; perhaps she's taking "lessons" from Steve Kloves. (I can't believe the stupid and awkward, "Platform Nine and Three Quarters, this way," line of Molly's in the first film, as though Percy and the twins hadn't already been going to Hogwarts FOR YEARS.) Hermione could simply have said, "Well, the Slytherin fifth year prefects are Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson, the Hufflepuffs are..." Which would have sounded far more natural and communicated the idea that there was one boy and girl from each house. What's really stupid, of course, is that Hermione (and JKR, for that matter) is behaving, all through the book, as though there are no sixth and seventh year prefects, let alone a Head Girl and Boy. Why she doesn't just report any egregious Draco-behavior to the heads is beyond me; JKR created a slew of new characters for the DA; she couldn't have made two of them Head Girl and Head Boy, and made some of the others prefects in years six and seven? Sometimes her tunnel-vision view of the Potterverse is just a bit frustrating.
I do think that Ron's appointments were both foreshadowed in the first book (Mirror of Erised). He had a simple joy in seeing himself in positions of respect and authority when he looked in the mirror; hopefully he'll be able to shake off the rotten attitude of the people around him and grow into his positions in the final two books. I have a sneaking suspicion that the brain incident at the DoM might mean that he will now give Hermione a run for her money academically. Wouldn't it be nice to see her NOT always get the top marks in her year for once?
And--Dumbleodore's statement. Yeah. Complete cop-out on JKR's part. I would have been much happier if he'd said that he thought Ron had shown some excellent leadership qualities and he thought Harry was a bit too impulsive. Both are true. Harry's shown leadership qualities too, of course, particularly in OotP, but his are always of the rebel-insurgency type (leading the DA), while Ron's leadership qualities are like that of the status-quo authority figure--a prefect, in other words. Dumbledore definitely appointed the right person to be prefect. Wouldn't it be nice if he acknowledged that to both Harry and Ron? (And to Hermione as well.)