As for Harry's moodiness, let's take a little look at what this poor kid has gone through: He witnesses a fellow student's death, which would be traumatizing enough. But on top of that, he witnesses Voldemort, the most evil and most feared wizard in history, return to full power. Umm, scary. Then he is forced to listen to Voldemort monologue about murdering his parents and about how much he wants to kill Harry. Then Voldemort tortures and nearly kills Harry, a situation from which Harry only narrowly escapes. Then he has to go back to the Muggle family that treats him like dirt, and where he gets absolutely no news from anyone, including his very best friends, who seem to be leaving him out of all of the festivities. Then he has to fight dementors, for which he is nearly expelled. Then he learns that no one believes his story and that everyone thinks he's a delusional show-off and that the Ministry of Magic is doing their best to discredit him. Then he goes back to Hogwarts, where he is supposed to feel at home, to find that his fellow students are afraid of him and that the school is coming under the tyrannical reign of Dolores Umbridge, which means that his one safe place in the entire world has been taken away from him.
Whew, that's quite a list. I think I'd be a little moody, too.
Harry's moodiness makes him real—it makes him believable. Rowling is too good of a character writer to allow Harry to be just as carefree and glib as he was before. It wouldn't have made sense. If Harry had seemed to have no lasting effects from everything that he was going through, I would have hated this book. As it was, I loved it, because I love everything about real, deep, complex, true-to-life characters. Character development is my favorite part of pretty much anything I read.
The Good: The whole opening sequence of Harry fighting the dementors and then having to explain everything to the Dursleys—the juxtaposition of the wizarding world colliding with the Dursleys' gleaming kitchen is fabulous; the war against Grimmauld Place; Luna Lovegood; Dumbledore's Army; seeing Lockhart in St. Mungo's; Harry's exclusive interview with Rita Skeeter; the way the students hide The Quibbler from Umbridge; Professor McGonagall standing up for Harry's ambition to be an Auror; the fireworks: "A sparkler floated past the tower, still resolutely spelling out the word POO"; Fred and George's exit: "Give her hell from us, Peeves"; the way the teachers don't do anything to help Umbridge; seeing Umbridge taken away by the centaurs; Ron, Hermione, Neville, Ginny, and Luna's willingness to go with Harry to the Department of Mysteries; Dumbledore showing up and saving the day; the members of the D.A. jinxing Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle; Harry's reception party and Moody threatening Uncle Vernon.
The Bad: The incredible frustration of the way Fudge treats Harry at the hearing; Sirius's anger at Harry for not being as reckless as James was; all of Umbridge's lousy Educational Decrees; Harry, Fred, and George getting banned from Quidditch; Harry's fear that he's being possessed by Voldemort; Grawp; Harry's vision of Sirius getting captured by Voldemort; Kreacher lying to Harry; Sirius going through the veil.
The Ugly: Every single little thing about Dolores Umbridge—I don't care if she's a fictional character—I still hate her (and I hate it when she shows her ugly face again in book seven); Molly Weasley's boggart; Harry's vision of Arthur Weasley getting attacked by the snake; Ron catching the brain.
2 comments:
You forgot one other VERY important part of Harry's moodiness. Every teenager at his same age goes through moodiness of some sort due to hormones etc. It would be normal for Harry to be moody without all that he's been through. When you add all his terrible experiences on top of the stage of life he's going through it would be completely unreal for him to not be moody and brooding. Every teenager feels that the world is "out to get them" at some point in their development.
Blast, I was going to mention that! I just got caught up in all the other crap he was going through. Plus, the world really is out to get Harry. Poor kid.
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