There are plenty of clues as to what Draco Malfoy is up to throughout book six (his regular disappearances from the Marauder's Map the little girls that are really Crabbe and Goyle in disguise, who are stationed on guard outside the Room of Requirement), and there are also several hints as to the Half-Blood Prince's identity (Snape's suspicion on hearing of Harry's increased ability in Potions, and on witnessing his use of Sectumsempra, the spell scrawled in the margins of his old copy of Advanced Potions, are two good examples).īut those aren't the only clues in the book. Are Harry's suspicions about Snape founded, or is Dumbledore right to trust him? The central mysteries in The Half-Blood Prince are pretty clear-cut - What is Draco Malfoy up to? Who did Harry's old Potion's book belong to? - but there are also a couple of wider mysteries that the story touches upon, not least of which is the ongoing question of Severus Snape's true allegiance. Chapter Four, "The Leaky Cauldron", p.61. She also hints at a connection between Lupin, Snape, the Marauder's Map and Harry's dad, and she even sneaks in a huge hint at the end about the prophecy that acts as the main mystery in book five, The Order of the Phoenix.ġ3. Peter Pettigrew) with repeated mentions of him looking ill. Like she did with Quirrell's turban and Ginny's illness, for example, Rowling draws attention to Scabbers (a.k.a. Rather than being stated early on, the mysteries take shape as the story progresses: What's the deal with Scabbers and Crookshanks? What's the significance of the Marauder's Map? What's Remus Lupin's secret, and why does there seem to be so much animosity between him and Snape? It's a complicated, impressively written book, and you'd have to be pretty damn accomplished at divination to predict the ending before it's revealed. Unlike the first two books, it's harder to immediately unravel the core mysteries in The Prisoner of Azkaban. They're easily overlooked, but they're there if you want to find them. Being the brilliant writer that she is, Rowling leaves these scattered carefully through the story. The twist is a good one, but - with the sweet benefit of hindsight - there are a number of subtle clues that stick out on a re-reading. As the man himself gleefully says when Harry admits he thought Snape was the bad guy: "Next to him, who would suspect p-p-poor st-stuttering P-Professor Quirrell?" need to work against to protect said object (and as is the case in pretty much all of the books, they get the identity of this antagonist woefully wrong).īeing the queen of misdirection that she is, Rowling does a splendid job of throwing us off Quirrell's scent until the reveal in the final chapter. There's a mysterious magical object (the Philosopher's Stone), and - more importantly - a mysterious antagonist Harry and Co. The first Harry Potter book, which comes complete with a couple of spell-binding central mysteries and plenty of amateur detective work, perfectly sets the tone for the series as a whole.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |