The Order of the Phoenix Re-Read: Chapter 2

[slowfox]

Still left puzzling over just how much of a Squib Arabella Figg really is: how, indeed, do Squibs operate in the magical world? Anyway, it seems clear that she can communicate with her cats (but then Filch can communicate with Mrs Norris (and as a second aside, it's interesting how Mr Tibbles and Mrs Norris both get titles, whereas none of the other pets we meet in canon do, do they? And they're both... familiars to Squibs. Hmm)), but I did think that some of the sayings were... a little forced

... well, it's no good crying over spilt potion ... but the cat's among the pixies now.

Although what's more interesting is what Mrs Figg says just before that:

... and Dumbledore said we were to keep you from doing magic at all costs ...

Aside, of course, from the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, and, I s'pose, the reasonable assumption on Dumbledore's part that Harry wouldn't necessarily have invoked magic unless under threat, it still seems an odd stricture to have imposed.

Once Harry and Duddykins are back indoors at 4 Privet Drive (with the exception of some of Big D's stomach contents), we get reminded again that Harry has a temper:

With a feeling of mingled dread and anger, Harry removed his foot slowly from the stair and turned to follow the Dursleys.

I do remember thinking that the later chapters, with CAPSLOCK!Harry were something of a surprise, but to be fair, JKR is signposting the direction for us. It's just a bit of a direction change from GoF, I guess...

...and Arthur was certainly working late, since his owl implies that he's also at the Ministry when Dumbledore arrives there, and we know it's late since it was dark outside, and this is August.

Page 33 has the big surprise:

"And what the ruddy hell are Dementors?"

"They guard the wizard prison, Azkaban," said Aunt Petunia.

I'm sure I can't have been the only person who read that for the first time and went Whu?

Throughout this whole exchange, Harry's quite testy:

"Nothing," said Harry, slightly less calmly...

"Yeah, I did, but I didn't use -" Harry began, angrily...

"How many times do I have to tell you?" said Harry, temper and voice both rising...

"FINE!" yelled Harry, and in his temper...

...said Harry, speaking fast, fighting to control his temper...

...and now his temper was rising again...

Which just seems so contrary to any Harry that we've experienced in Books I-IV, although there was his strop with Ron between the Goblet of Fire and the dragons.

Then there's Aunt Petunia's Howler: Remember my last, Petunia. Which I had hoped would get explained a little bit more than it eventually did. Nonetheless, it did go some small way towards explaining why the Dursleys didn't immediately throw Harry back out onto the street.

OTOH, it seems rather un-Dumbledore to resort to such crude threats: you'd expect him to be more Obi-Wan with it: You must do what you think is right, of course....

So at this point, Harry's been confronted by a pair of Dementors in Little Whinging, is narked that he seems to be being deliberately kept out of whatever loop just happens to including Ron and Hermione, and now has the threat of expulsion hanging over him.

We've had a single hint about the Department of Mysteries, deflected with Harry's own psycho-analysis of his dreams, and it's clear that he's got some anger management issues to deal with. It's also clear that there definitely is some value to Harry staying at Privet Drive (witness Vernon being zapped whilst trying to strangle Harry in Ch 1), and that Petunia, at least, has had to be coerced into allowing him to stay there.

Comments

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Yep, it seems bizarre, the whole 'we detected magic' thing - surely the Burrow must've been setting off alarms left, right and centre!

Yep, the Howler just seems bizarre - it's so unlike Dumbledore in tone, and fails to convey any really helpful information, aside from getting us out of the particular plot hole that's rapidly opening up here, 'well why don't the Dursleys just boot Harry out, then?'. There obviously has to be some form of coercion somewhere... was just hoping that exactly what inducement that might have been would've been made more explicit...

[aome]

I have to wonder if there was true coercion, or if Dumbledore was just really good at playing up to family guilt and sense of responsibility. Look at his own background; he clearly felt that pain and guilt all his life. So - no matter how much Petunia hated her sister and thought she was "abnormal" - perhaps there was still a sense of obligation and Dumbledore exploited that.

[slowfox]

Possibly so, but even then, Remember my last, what kind of a message is that? It's screaming for backstory at some point as to what 'his last' was... and it must've been pretty bad to get Petunia to about-face so promptly. But it just seems so out of character for Dumbledore - wouldn't have expected him to stoop to such crude thuggery, really...