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Reader Comments: (Page 34)

Much discussion on Mad-Eye's eye and how HE could see through the cloak when others could not.

Well, He doesn't. His magical eye does, and as we see later the Magical Eye is put to use by Umbridge, ie, someone else. So if she could use it as a third person, say, then it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Mad-Eye either inherited, won, or otherwise received the eye after he lost his real one.

It is obviously powerful magic. Mad-Eye scares everyone with his whizzing eye - they recognise its magic is very strong. We don't know if this eye is also, like the cloak, a powerful entity that has been around for a long time. Something else for the encyclopedia.

Posted by Marjorie from New Zealand on July 23, 2007 10:59 PM

I loved the epilogue - finishing the book on a positive, life-goes-on note. Also, when imagining last paragraphes of the book, I described (p.3 of the postings) Harry and Ginny's children meeting up with Ron and Hermione's. OK, it was not by the express to go to Hogwarts, and I had imagined Ginny and Harry having 7 children, 6 boys and 1 girl like the Weasleys, but I was not so wrong about their names: Albus, Severus, James, the additional 3 boys were named Ron, Remus, and I forgot the last (very meaningful, of course) name. The only and youngest girl was named Lily. I guess that was pretty obvious they would pick up those names, but it feels so good when something you imagine happens to be "not that far".

Posted by Cecil from Tacoma WA on July 23, 2007 11:00 PM

Ok I have some more questions and some answers for some other people's questions....here goes....

Can someone explain to me the significance of Snape's last words "look into my eyes?" I'm having trouble figuring out what that signifies.

Someone mentioned they wondered who Teddy is "snogging" in the epilogue. I know it wasn't mentioned, but I think it must be the daughter of Bill and Fleur, because they mention "cousin".

Why was Harry naked in his little /alive whatever scene with Dumbledore? and who or what was the thing crying under the chair?

The sword was in the Sorting hat because it would make itself known to a true Griffindore in need of it, so I think that's why Neville was able to get it.

I can't believe that some thought the first few chapters were boring....wow....I had heart palpitations throught the first several chapters, and then throught the rest of the book.

Posted by Kelly from Tacoma, Wa on July 23, 2007 11:10 PM

About the theme of prejudice in the series:

It is a central theme, of course, and it is true that Harry is also prejudiced against Slytherin. The reconciliation mentioned by Cissy between Harry and Draco never happened (Draco is obviously humiliated by Harry saving his life and too proud to be grateful) but an equivalent is somewhat found with Harry reconciling with Snape, even post-mortem. Naming his son Albus Severus is a way to accept the worth of the Slytherin house - and telling his son that it would be ok if he was sorted in the Slytherin house. Harry's attitude, very "Gryffindoresque", is sometimes too impulsive and not very smart. He put the trio in mortal peril when he takes back Moody's eye from Umbridge's door, or when he shows himself at Hogwarts because a Eater spit on McGonagall. She tells him so actually! SOme Slytherin caution could be good to temper Griffindor's bravery. The fact that the 4 houses still exist after the war shows that they need to balance each other.

Posted by Cecil from Tacoma WA on July 23, 2007 11:13 PM

Heather: There definitely has been a shift of tone through the series. I suspect that this is in some measure because Ms. Rowling's aunce (including faithful readers as well as her own children) was growing older as the books were written. I think the shift be a benefit to people who read the a year apart, but may make them less good for children who read them at a faster pace.

Posted by supercat from Naperville IL on July 23, 2007 11:14 PM

I was just reading some more comments from other readers, and there seem to be several people who are upset that Harry didn't stop and reflect when Snape was , or say "thank you" or anything....but let's not forget....Harry DID NOT KNOW what Snape had done for him until he had already d, bc then Harry took the substance and went to the Pensieve and found out. He had NO IDEA when Snape was laying there . I feel really bad for Snape....i miss him as I the others...

Posted by kelly from wa on July 23, 2007 11:24 PM

someone (I dont know who) was somewhat right about the symbol, someone mentioned the triangle of evokation, the ring was craked so only the triangle and the circle were distinguishable, and it brought back the souls (and hatever else it was) of James, Lily, Sirius, an Lupin, the triangle of evokation is supposed to bring back souls so....

I think JKR put a few things in just to annoy people, (anyone keeps up with JKR's website should have noticed that) the first thing was make Remus's codename "Romulus" half the world at one point thought that he was going to be ed by his (nonexsistant) twin brother because of the legend Remus & Romulus, she debunked that rumor on her site, so she just had to put it in the book. The second one is that she made Wormtail's silver hand him, on her site she also debunked that the hand would Remus, (only a silver bullet can a werewolf...) so I think she probably changed it from what I think was the original sequence of events to that one, the original I think was wormtail came to help save Hermione from Bellatrix and he (not Dobby) was the one that was stabbed...

Posted by Anonymous on July 23, 2007 11:26 PM

To Missy from Cleveland:

Harry was supposed to be torn between finding the hallows or the horcuxes. At Shell Cottage, he had an imaginary conversation with Dumbledore, musing that Dumbledore gave Ron the Deluminator because he knew Ron always go back to help his friends, that Pettigrew have a bit of regret in the end, and he concluded that Dumbledore knew he would find it hard to resist abandoning the search for the hallows if he knew, and that Dumbledore made it this hard for him on purpose so as to give him enough time to understand that the hallows is information for him to know but not objects to claim for himself. That was why he decided to talk to Griphook first, before talking to Olivander, indicating his decision to NOT go after the elder wand.

Hermione did not screw up. Dumbledore said at King's Cross that he relied on her to slow Harry down enough to fully understand what he needed to understand.

The chapter at King's Cross is not an out of body experience. Read the last 2 lines. Harry asked if it was all in his mind. Dumbledore said yes, but it doesn't mean it's not real.

Harry lost both Hedwig and the firebolt not because Ms. Rowling wanted an expent way to get rid of them, but to illustrate that Harry was stripped of all the MATERIAL possesions he held dear, which included his holly-phoenix feather wand, which came a little later. Ms. Rowling highlighted that point (albeit subtly) with Ginny's birthday present to Harry.

p.s.: Ms. Rowling dealt with the too much Dumbledore in the story issue too. Re-read Harry's conversation with Aberforth. Harry made the decision for himself to follow Dumbledore's instructions. He thought a lot about what Dumbledore would have done, but the decisions and the resolve to see things through were all ultimately his own.

Posted by Phoebe from Philippines on July 23, 2007 11:47 PM

Just a by-the-way: a big thank-you to everyone who's taken the time and trouble to read the earlier posts before adding their own comments. It's hard, because there are so many, but not doing so makes it worse because the same issues and the same questions are coming up over and over again.

Posted by Elder Lupus from Leicester, UK on July 24, 2007 12:13 AM

Will Snape be able to have a portrait seeing as he became Headmaster of Hogwarts? I don’t see why not, all the others had one even Phinneas Niggillus who happens to be one of the most hated Headmasters ever. And I recall that a few of the books mentioned that all of the former Headmasters and Headmistresses had a portrait on the wall of the the current Headmasters office, and that they are honor-bound to give service to the current Headmaster/Headmistress. So I wonder if Snapes could be up there but not mentioned.

Posted by Heather from Charlevoix, MI on July 24, 2007 12:24 AM

I loved the book! I think some of the things people are complaining about helped make the story, really, such as:

1) JK took everything away from Harry to make his quest harder. No wise adults to lean on (Mad-eye gone, staying away from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley for their safety, estranged from Lupin). He had no way to send an owl and no broom to fly on, and no way to get to Dumbledore's portrait because Snape was there. Then he even lost Dobby, too. This made Ron, Harry, and Hermione rely on themselves.

2) The ly Hallows quest created tension in the story. If they had just gone for the Horcruxes and picked them off one by one it would have been boring. This added an extra twist for both Voldemort and Harry and made us unsure how the plot would resolve at the end.

3) Lily's eyes being important did come back up. I think when Snape was he looked into Harry's eyes because he wanted to see Lily in some fashion one more time.

4) For the person that asked, Draco was the true master of the elder wand at first because he disarmed (thus, defeated) Dumbledore on the tower at the end of HBP.

5) Snape did not lamely, he was heroic to the end because he didn't fight back and he could have. Right before Voldemort sent the snake after him he looked awful (his face a mask) because he knew he would and feared he hadn't relayed the information to Harry that Dumbledore wanted him to have. He didn't really have a choice but to though and right up to the end he begged for the opportunity to "go get Potter" for Voldemort so that he could relay info to Harry.

6) Harry and Snape could never have really resolved their relationship. It was enough for Harry to know how much Snape loved his mother. Many of us suspected it but Harry had NO IDEA whatsoever. What a gift for him to know that Snape honored her that much and realizing what Snape did for so many years and how much courage it took.

7) I think Fred, Lupin, and Tonks s were really the way they would be during a battle. Everything happens fast and we couldn't take it all in because Harry couldn't either. How could you process that in the middle of what was happening at Hogwart's that night?

8) I think the camping part of the book was slow because they were frustrated and we were, too. It emphasized a feeling of despair for them and for us, the reader, too.

9) She left tons of fodder for new potential books or fan fic which is great!

Someone could steal the elder wand again... Is Teddy a werewolf? Is Victoire (probably Bill and Fleur's child) a werewolf? Will Albus Severus be in Gryffindor or Slytherin (his initials are ASP)... What the new kids do at Hogwart's? What do Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Ron do now? What happened to George? Who else d in the battle at Hogwart's? Did Lavender Brown get bitten by Fenrir? What has happened to Draco? What has happened to Umbridge and why was she not at the battle? Is Snape's portrait in the headmaster's office?

She could totally write another book if she wanted to. There is no way she could completely close every single character out. It's fun to make our own guesses

Posted by traco from washington on July 24, 2007 12:40 AM

Wait a minute! I am rereading the last 100+ pages again, and notice Dumbledore's explanation of what happened on the night Harry d:

"Tell him that on the night Lord Voldemort tried to him, when Lily cast her own life between them as a shield, the ing Curse rebounded upon Lord Voldemort, and a fragment of Voldemort's soul was blasted apart from the whole, and latched itself onto the only living soul left in that collapsing building. Part of Lord Voldemort lives inside Harry..."

This description of Harry's survival implies that he DID NOT survive the ing curse. It clearly states that after ing LILY, the curse rebounded and the soul flew into Harry's body...but all throughout the story we are told that Voldemort tried to curse Harry AFTER ing Lily, and back in Godric's Hollow, when the letters turn to italics and it is Voldemort remembering the night he went to Harry, it states that he s Lily and then advances on Harry and curses him.

What?!

By the way, is the wording different in some books? Because Snape's last words are: "Look.....at.....me...." not "look into my eyes"...

Posted by Katie T from California on July 24, 2007 01:18 AM

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