Category: Books

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This entry contains SPOILERS from the J.K. Rowling novel Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!

Continuing with my series on the new Harry Potter books, I’ll speak, this entry, about Albus Dumbledore. Like Karl Rove (why must I compare the two?), Albus seems to be a master planner, The Architect of Voldemort’s demise, if you will. Yet, it will be Harry Potter who gets the fame of defeating Voldemort, the one who has books written about him and his quest to rid the world of a horrible evil. In this entry, I’ll discuss Dumbledore’s behind-the-scenes contributions to this era, but also much more. I won’t comment further in this summary, because I know I risk beheading if I do. So, see you on the flip.

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On this eve prior to the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I am going to make a prediction that will be accepted by some and rejected by others, as all literary theories are. I have no inside information (and want none, therefore I’ll be disabling commenting on this blog from tonight until I get done with the book) and there are no spoilers here. I will have assumed, however, that anyone who reads has the last five books, so don’t go complaining to me if you haven’t. See you on the flip side.

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Although not unexpected, it would seem as if some people have nothing else to do.  With the imminent release of the final Harry Potter book (coinciding with my birthday no less – 2 days!), Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, spoiler kiddies are on the rampage.  People have been going around posting from what seem to be spoilers to entire “scanned” pages of the book.  Now, obviously, some of these spoilers are fake.  However, I’m willing to bet the entire amount of my bank account converted into knuts, sickles, and galleons that some of them are true (good thing my bank account is rather empty right now if I should be wrong).

None of this was unexpected.  With the rise of Harry Potter’s popularity, it’s become something of a target for the few chosen ones who’ve received advance copies of the book (listen up, librarians and book warehouses!).  So, it is not surprising the the final leg of the series would see an upturn in the amount of spoiling, be it real or fake.  Still, this is no reason to spoil something.  Now, I know that such things are common with movies, sometimes with whole portions of spoiler websites dedicated to doing this.  No author/studio/whatever really likes it, and neither do half the viewer/readership.  But this situation is different.  At least with movies, there are usually very large, very colorful font-faced warnings proceeding your entry into a spoiler.

Not with Harry Potter, or at least, not with this book of Harry Potter (though the last one saw its fair share of surprises).  No, here you have idiots going around and posting spoilers when some people may not want to see them, and without warning, too.  They could at least put them in spoiler tags, or have a warning, but no.  They think it’s sooo funny to going around and ruin a person’s experience.  I have no problem if someone wants to read spoilers.  That’s their right, they can do it if they want.  Even I am sometimes tempted by them, and yes, I do give in, I admit it.  But, in those times, it’s been by my choice to read it.  For the most part, reasonable people have been posting anything they think might be a spoiler with proper methods.  But, once in a while you have an asshole.

I do feel bad for staff member of websites who may be HP fans (I know, I’m one of them), especially with those containing forums , because it is their job to moderate, and they may be forced to see it (especially on smaller sites).  I know that around the time of the last book’s release, one of Mugglenet.com’s Chamber of Secrets forum admins got real spoiled (think it might of had to do with Dumbledore dying, as that was a big one going around then).  So, they saw it when they didn’t want to see it.

So far, I haven’t gotten any surprises (thump on wood).  However, unfortunately, even forums that I thought might have been safe may no longer be as such.  So, it goes to say that for the next three to four days, I’m treating any Harry Potter forum or topic like it contains the plague.  Not…touching…it.  And though my little voice will probably be unheard, I plea to anybody who would spoil the Potter series, I’d rather you not.  Though, that goes against what I said, so I say to the minority who’d ruin it for those of us who don’t want to know, don’t go posting surprise spoilers.  It’s rude, and inconsiderate.  You should get a life, get a girl/boyfriend, and do something else.

Well, there it is.  Let the final countdown begin…

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Well, this was going to be my second part about Vice President Richard Cheney, but then something else came up.

JK Rowling, on her website, updates it every month to show a new “Wizard of the Month.”  It seems that it has been a theme over the past few months to feature a founding member of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  So far, we’ve seen Helga Hufflepuff, Salazar Slytherin, and now, this month, Godric Gryffindor.  In the last HP book, to make his Horcruxes, we know that Voldemort probably stole a relic that originally belonged to at least three of the founders: the locket from Slytherin, and the cup from Hufflepuff have already been featured.

This month, with Gryffindor featured (with his sword, no less, which I believe has been confirmed to not be a Horcrux), we have one final founder who has not yet been shown: Rowena Ravenclaw.  Since Gryffindor’s sword is currently in Professor McGonagall’s office, we can be pretty certain it is not a Horcrux.  Furthermore, I find it very interesting that Rowling’s choice for this month was Gryffindor.  It means we’ve had three wizards who’ve had precious relics featured.  So far, neither Ravenclaw, nor her precious relic, have been featured.  Therefore, I theorize (and think the selection of founder thus far pretty much confirms) that one of the final Horcruxes is going to be from Ravenclaw.  Rowling has also been quoted as saying that Ravenclaw will “have their day.”  That house has probably been the least featured once, though they arguably have one of the most important characteristics out of all the houses.  So, book 7 will be the time of Ravenclaw, and Rowena Ravenclaw’s relic will be a Horcux.

Obviously, Gryffindor won’t be left out.  Harry is set to visit Godric’s Hollow, after all.   Speaking of Gryffindor, however, his picture on Rowling’s site has two important features: red hair, and green eyes.  It shall be interesting to see if these two features mean anything in the book.  We shall see.