Final Blog

Every time I reread The Deathly Hallows, I drag through most of the content of the novel and then am reminded how well written the final scenes are. I am not at all suggesting that the beginning two-thirds of the book are poorly written, but it is a slow part of the story that is intentional. I have heard many voicing their contempt for the epilogue. It is well written in the sense that the overwhelming normality of their lives is clear compared to previous experiences of the characters. I am not sure what is expected from the epilogue by those who dislike it. The only thing I would prefer is that there was information about some of the other characters.

One moment that never settled in my mind, is that Ron was able to open the Chamber of Secrets. I hate that this is the one thing that I cannot accept because it is one of Ron’s few moments of recognition, but this cannot go unnoticed. How can he just suddenly speak Parseltongue? Why was he able to open the Chamber of Secrets when only the descendants of Salazar Slytherin are supposed to be able to open it? It is possible that any Parselmouth is able to open the Chamber, but it is assumed that the person seeking entrance would be related to Slytherin since most Parselmouths descended from him. I am thrilled that Ron has a stroke of brilliance and is able to miraculously open the Chamber, but that chain of events and the background of Parseltongue laid out in the novels do not support each other.

I absolutely hate that Fred dies. For some reason, Tonks and Lupin’s deaths do not upset me nearly as much as Fred’s. It just seems cruel to take away someone so full of life. It was always expected that some adults and teachers would die, but I suppose a young character had to die. Since there are so many Weasleys, it would only be fair. After the loss of one, they are still much larger than a normal family! On a serious note though, the page that kills Fred is wrinkled with my dried tearsL

There were two really big surprises in the ending for me. One: Hagrid does not die. I could have sworn that he was eventually going to be eaten by one of his misunderstood creatures. Two: Snape is capable of love. The love Snape has for Lily is not an ordinary love. That kind of love is something that renders a person incapable of being happy if their love is unhappy. His happiness depends on her happiness. Somewhat. It is all fine and fuzzy to find out that Snape is actually human, and not a bat, but he still sends off a bad vibe. It is clear that the only reason Snape protects Harry is because he is Lily’s son. He does not seem to have the kind of love that a friend has for another friend’s child. This is somewhat understandable since it is pretty obvious that Snape would prefer Lily to have borne his children, but he still is not as heroic in my eyes as he is in many of those I have spoken with.

My feelings about Dumbledore, Harry, Ron, and Hermione stay unchanged. Like always, Dumbledore has some confusing reason for doing what he does that ends up making sense in the end. I will admit that in The Deathly Hallows, Ron really makes me angry. He has always been my favorite character, but he acts completely out of line in this book. Of course, his true allegiance is always to Harry and Hermione, but his betrayal is heart-breaking. As far as placing this story into a larger social/ cultural context: All I can say is that I know many British words that I did not know before.

P.s.

Sorry this is late:/