Harry Potter - DH Chapter Discussion. Chapters 33-36. BEWARE SPOILERS ALLOWED

***Pav*** · 07-21-2007, 12:25 AM

This thread is for the discussion of chapters 33-36 ONLY, so please make sure your comments only relate to these chapters and the ones before them. This is very important, as we want to keep people from being spoiled.

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***Pav*** · 07-21-2007, 12:28 AM

33rd The Prince's Tale
34th The Forest Again
35th King's Cross
36th The Flaw in the Plan

goodnightboy · 07-21-2007, 01:28 AM

Am I the only one who's finished it thus far?

Alright, I've been reading since slightly after 9am (it's 4.16pm now). I guess I'm a fast reader

Sorry for babbling. Oh god, wow. I cried when I thought Harry would die, because I had jokingly predicted months ago that Harry would die, but it felt completely right at the same time... so to find out that he didn't die, that Voldemort died while Harry lived was a bit strange. For about a second. And then it was just lovely, because that's how it should be, right? That Good should Triumph over Evil and all that. And it did, in a lovely and convincing way. And how typically Harry to use his own wand instead of the Elder Wand, and to leave the stone in the Forest - he really was (is, whatever) selfless to the very end.

I have two questions, though...

How did Harry conquer Malfoy 'a few weeks ago'? What did he do?
And at the risk of sounding like a total idiot, I didn't really understand what the stone was, was it the Gaunt ring?

But because I have to babble on, oh, I knew Snape was good and that he would somehow die helping Harry, but I didn't realise just how good he was. And the way Hogwarts rallied around against the Death Eaters! It reminded me of book 5, where they got rid of Umbridge. It was wonderful. This book is like a mix of the fourth (the showdown with Voldemort), the fifth (the school coming together), and the sixth (the Quest, the destroying of the Horcruxes). And I don't know why I'm amazed by that, but I am.

Harry Potter has been an amazing journey, and I have laughed and cried... I tell you unashamedly that I cried many times in this book - there were times where it was positively heartwrenching - but in the end it was worth it. Harry Potter has been a journey. The wait has been worth it. I think we've all been made richer for it.

*Sooz* · 07-21-2007, 01:48 AM

goodnight boy - I actually logged in to ask the same questions as you! I'm confused about how Harry defeated Voldemort, the whole possessing the wand/conquering the owner. If someone could explain it slowly and clearly to me, I'll be a happy bunny. And the ring thing, a tad confused about that as well!!!

Anyway, I must say, I always knew Snape was a good guy really but his love for Lily knew no bounds, eh? I loved seeing inside Snape's mind again, and being given a context for his Worst Memory from OotP. Although I really think that now, they DEFINITELY should have shown the Lily/Mudblood bit in the film. It seems more important than ever. And makes me think about all those times he's been called 'coward' and labelled as a bad guy. God, he's been through some crap.

I must admit, I had a lump in my throat when Harry was choosing to die, it just seemed so noble. He was never really a favourite character of mine but at that moment I really respected him.

I shouldn't admit this probably, but I read spoilers online so I went through the book with these feeling of dread that Ron was going to die. Thank God the spoilers were wrong, I've never been more relieved in my entire life.

goodnightboy · 07-21-2007, 01:55 AM

I'm grateful that I skipped the spoilers... I can't imagine dreading that Ron died, or whatever else the spoilers said.

If you're asking about how Harry defeated Voldemort, I assume it's... ok, I don't know. I can't remember how Harry got Draco's wand. Was it when they were flying out of Crabbe's Fiendfyre? No, it's not, I just re-read that part. Argh, I'm confused. Well anyway he got Draco's wand, which was the real Elder Wand, and what Voldemort got was another wand (Draco's original?) which was the wand that had Disarmed Dumbedore. So Harry had the Elder Wand, plus he had the extra... stuff... that Voldemort didn't so of course Harry conquered Voldemort. Or something.

I know I could always go back and re-read the stone bit, but eh, I'm too lazy to find it.

*Sooz* · 07-21-2007, 02:04 AM

Heh heh. You've cleared it up in my mind a tad, if that helps.

ETA: Edited because I found the epilogue thread.

goodnightboy · 07-21-2007, 02:16 AM

No problem.

Where's everyone else? I need people to tell me about how Harry conquered Malfoy!

ETA: Just had a thought about Neville. You know how he stands up to fight against Voldemort and gets burnt (at least for a while) for his troubles... I was a bit disappointed in that JK Rowling didn't spend more time on the prophecy and the Neville/Harry thing. It would've been interesting to see Voldemort and Neville talk a bit more, considering that the Chosen One could've very well been Neville. But I guess to do that would have been to drag that chapter even longer. I don't know.

*Sooz* · 07-21-2007, 02:35 AM

Considering the sgnificance that it was Harry that Vldemort chose, I thought maybe there'd be a little more time spent on the Neville possibility.

The Harry/Voldy battle was over pretty quickly. I was expecting a long, drawn out battle to the end, although I suppose that was the point of the Elder wand. I think another thing that slightly confused me was the Killing Curse on Harry, that it only destroyed the Voldemort bit inside him. And when the kids started fighting back after that, they had the same protection as Harry after Lily died for him?

And well done Mrs Weasley for finishing off Bellatrx! I always thought Neville'd be the one to do that.

goodnightboy · 07-21-2007, 02:53 AM

Well I thought that since it was such a huge deal in the fifth book, it felt significant that Voldemort was talking to Neville. But I guess since she hardly dealt with it in book 6, it was a closed topic there. Well, no matter.

Same! I expected it to be a bit longer, though if you think about it it's quite long. Harry had to build up his nerve to die (no better way of phrasing it) and then he 'died', and then he talked to Dumbledore, and then he came back... so it was long enough.

What about the Avada Kedavra did you not understand? For some reason, Voldemort killed the Voldy part of Harry instead of the entire Harry... because by taking Harry's blood in book 4, he ensured that Harry couldn't die? Ugh, I don't fully get it either.

I liked that bit too

You'reMyDirtyLittleSecret · 07-21-2007, 03:44 AM

What confused me the most about the new book was that,
a) according to Mugglenet Harry's green eyes (like his mothers) were going to be of great importance, and I don't see how they really they were.
b) Mugglenet also promised that we would get some definative reasons on why some people become ghosts and some don't. I know Dumbledore metioned to Harry 'going on' when they were in 'Kingscross" so does that mean if he stays there then he's a ghost?

Even though I never really like Harry (I found him a little attention seeking and arrogant in some parts) I really admired him at the end. I was so relieved when Ron didn't die! Ron = so much better than Harry any day!

goodnightboy · 07-21-2007, 03:48 AM

But I'm confused - if no one knew what was going to happen in the book until today, how would Mugglenet be able to assert those claims?

*Sooz* · 07-21-2007, 04:29 AM

I think it was based on interviews with JK.

I went through the book kinda hating Harry at parts. Wrongly, I know. Every time he got distracted by the Hallows I thought: b/c of this, he's going to get Ron killed (acc. to WRONG spoilers, he gets obsessed with the Hallows). Or when he said the name Voldemort which led to their capture. I was quite ready to blame everything on him. But now, with the benefit of hindsight... well, my opinions have changed. I do think that he can be a little headstrong and argumentative, but overall a good bloke.

ETA: I did kind of like (wrong word I think...) that Lupin died. It made a sort of sense that the Maurauders (and Lily) will be reunited in death after so long apart. It gave a sense of, like how goodnight boy put it in another thread - a kind of cycle of regeneration. The old (maurauders) have made way for the new (Trio) who've made way for their family.

**Bella Cullen** · 07-21-2007, 04:41 AM

I think Lily's eyes were so important because everytime snape looked at harry he saw lily....and maybe that kind of reminded him why he had to keep looking after harry to do it for lily! He was reminded and it kept him being the double agent sort of.

I loved the whole conclusion, i hated that harry had to die but it was okay that he came back!

I felt sad for snape that he loved Lily but she didn't really love him back, i think she valued they're friendship before and cared for him in a friendly way before he started hanging out with the death eaters...its sad he destroyed that friendship when i dont think he meant too! I wonder what James thought when he noticed that snape and lily were friends???

*Sooz* · 07-21-2007, 04:44 AM

I still can't get over the fact JK destroyed the Twins either! The only real sources of constant levity throughout the books. I was certain a Weasley woud die - but I suppose I expected it to be Ginny or Ron, not Fred.

I kind of felt sorry that Snape himself inadvertently pushed away the only person he ever loved and who probably loved him back (platonically!).

**Bella Cullen** · 07-21-2007, 04:51 AM

I hated that fred died that sucked and lupin and tonks after just having a kid, even though i expected the last two but just as they had a kid and well were married! At least tonks and remus died together but because i would have hated that one was really sad if one lived.