pauraque_bk | GoF 20

This is just about the halfway mark, in terms of page count. Which is far, far further than I've ever gotten in previous attempts at re-reading this book.

GoF 20: The First Task

Harry got up on Sunday morning and dressed so inattentively that it was a while before he realised he was trying to pull his hat onto his foot instead of his sock. (295)

Again with the hats. JKR remembers them only when they're convenient.

'Dragons are extremely difficult to slay, owing to the ancient magic that imbues their thick hides, which none but the most powerful spells can penetrate ... but Sirius said a simple one would do it...'

'Let's try some simple spellbooks, then,' said Harry, throwing aside Men Who Love Dragons Too Much. (295-296)

Hee.

Hides imbued with ancient plot devices, you say? Incredible.

In Chapter 19

amythis reminded me that any discussion of dragons in the Potterverse should mention the fact that Draco is a dragon.

So Harry goes to find Cedric and tells him about the dragons, explaining that everyone else knows already.

[Cedric] stared at Harry, and there was a puzzled, almost suspicious look in his eyes.

'Why are you telling me?' he asked.

Harry looked at him in disbelief. He was sure Cedric wouldn't have asked that if he had seen the dragons himself. Harry wouldn't have let his worst enemy face those monsters unprepared -- well, perhaps Malfoy or Snape...

[...]

'It's just ... fair, isn't it?' he said to Cedric. 'We all know now ... we're on an even footing, aren't we?'

Cedric was still looking at him in a slightly suspicious way[...] (298-299)

Cedric doubts that Harry's telling the truth about the dragons? He really thinks Harry would mislead him? Doesn't think very much of the kid at this point, I guess. Or maybe he doesn't like Harry's idea that two wrongs make a right.

And isn't it amazing that when Harry thinks of his worst enemies, Voldemort doesn't come to mind?

Junior overhears them and pulls Harry into his office.

'That was a very decent thing you just did, Potter,' Moody said quietly. (299)

I love this line. I'm not sure I can analyze it, but it feels like there's depth to it. Is Junior play-acting, or is he really impressed by Harry? Does he grow to respect the boy he's attempting to kill?

[Moody:] 'Secrecy Sensor. Vibrates when it detects concealment and lies ... no use here, of course, too much interference -- students in every direction lying about why they haven't done their homework. Been humming ever since I got here. I had to disable my Sneakoscope because it wouldn't stop whistling[...]' (300)

I bet he did. In PoA, Harry has to stuff some socks into his Sneakoscope because it keeps going off, detecting Peter/Scabbers in Ron's pocket.

'Oh, that's my Foe-Glass. See them out there, skulking around? I'm not really in trouble until I see the whites of their eyes. That's when I open my trunk.'

He let out a short, harsh laugh, and pointed to the large trunk under the window. (300)

Pardon? Real!Moody is in the trunk, among other things. I...don't really understand what he's saying here. Neither does Harry.

'It's all right,' said Moody, sitting down and stretching out his wooden leg with a groan. 'Cheating's a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament and always has been.' (300)

Is it, now? How interesting. Goes along with previous comments that the Goblet itself is a puzzle to be beaten -- if they really wanted to keep younger kids out they'd have a human being do it, etc.

'I've been telling Dumbledore from the start, he can be as high-minded as he likes, but you can bet old Karkaroff and Maxime won't be. They'll have told their champions everything they can. They want to win. They want to beat Dumbledore. They'd like to prove he's only human.' (301)

Oh, I like this! *claps* Dumbledore isn't quite human, of course, narratively. He acts as a deus ex machina a lot of the time, and it's hard to analyze him on a psychological/human level.

'I don't show favouritism, me. I'm just going to give you some good, general advice.' (301)

Now that he knows everyone is on equal footing about the dragons, he has to give Harry a leg up. He asks him a couple of leading questions and doesn't let up until Harry figures out that he should use his broom.

This reminds me very much of the obstacles at the end of PS/SS. Remember the bit where he has to fly around on a broomstick (provided) and catch a golden key? In the first task he flies around on a broomstick, compares dodging the dragon's fire to dodging a bludger, and catches a glittering golden egg. I'm not saying that Dumbledore intentionally set a task that would be possible for Harry, as I believe he did in PS/SS, but it is awfully convenient.

'Got a plan?' said Bagman, lowering his voice conspiratorially. 'Because I don't mind sharing a few pointers, if you'd like them, you know. I mean,' Bagman continued, lowering his voice still further, 'you're the underdog here, Harry ... anything I can do to help...' (307)

No kidding. By this point he's had ample opportunity to bet on Harry to win, and I'm no longer confused by his enthusiasm about Harry's participation. As a couple of people pointed out, his initial squeefulness might have been because he immediately thought this would be a great opportunity to make a longshot bet. This makes sense if Bagman is a gambling addict, which I'm beginning to think he is, given that he seems to have run out of money to pay back the Weasley twins.

In any case, Harry is totally unwilling to listen to any advice Bagman might have.

He felt much more aware of his body than usual; very aware of the way his heart was pumping fast, and his fingers tingling with fear ... yet at the same time, he seemed to be outside himself, seeing the walls of the tent, and hearing the crowd, as though from far away... (308)

I like the way JKR has written Harry's anxiety in general, not just here. Yes, that's right, I actually liked something about her writing. In Goblet of Fire. It occasionally happens!

Ludo Bagman -- ten.

'Ten?' said Harry in disbelief. 'But ... I got hurt ... what's he playing at?'

'Harry, don't complain!' Ron yelled excitedly.

And now Karkaroff raised his wand. He paused for a moment, and then a number shot out of his wand, too -- four.

'What?' Ron bellowed furiously. 'Four? You lousy biased scumbag, you gave Krum ten!' (315)

Oh Ludo, you bastard. He's not just biased just because he likes Harry's pretty face, of course, he's influencing the outcome because he has money riding on it. Igor's deflated score is more a counterbalance than an unfairness, if you ask me. This is also a great opportunity to observe the "wrong is only wrong if someone we don't like does it" mentality in the wild. Ron's amorality here is so blatant it's almost shocking (though admittedly he's all psyched up because he and Harry are friends again, so maybe I shouldn't be too hard on him).

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