Discussion: Aging in the Wizarding World

[hpgoldenage_mod]

Time for our first discussion post. :)

What does canon tell us about aging in the wizarding world and what is your own head canon on the topic? Feel free to cite canon examples as well as reference fanworks, perhaps a favorite fic that matches your head canon or made you see aging in a whole new way.

Comments

Re: *resists* Oh Sod it, wank incoming.

[torino10154]

I suspect my feelings about Pansy are rather similar to yours about Draco. I don't understand why anyone likes her at all when the most profound moment for her in canon is trying to turn Harry in to Voldemort.

I know you write her, I know you write her with Harry, I don't think it's all hate!sex but I haven't read much so I could be wrong. I presume you see more to her character than that single act of betrayal (or her clinging to Draco in HBP) and enjoy exploring her potential.

Is she popular like Draco? No, but that's not really relevant. Any fandom, any story, movie or TV show likes two characters going head to head. Draco is Harry's foil, much like Snape is in his way. Tom Felton or not, Draco was always going to be intriguing to people because of his relationship with Harry.

Re: *resists* Oh Sod it, wank incoming.

[lightofdaye]

Oh, I'll always admit to some hypocrisy in liking Harry/Pansy and disliking say.. Draco/Hermione.

But: I'd never claim there was any basis for redeeming Pansy in canon. it's just something I like to write because Pansy is more or less a blank slate and you can have some fun dynamics there.

And of course you're quite right that there's almost as much room to explore Draco in the same way. (though he's a more major character and therefore has less wriggle room for me in that regard)

Like I said in another comment, there's a difference in liking Draco for being a good foil or villian or thinking that he;s an intresting character to explore in fanfic and thinking he's not as bad in canon as he's painted. To me at least. And to loop round back the original point to think its therefore somehow spiteful or unjust for JKR to alter his appearence in the epilogue.

Re: *resists* Oh Sod it, wank incoming.

[torino10154]

OK well, to address the whole first part, I think that's what all of fanfic is for with regard to every character. People can write dark!Harry if they want or fluffy Marcus Flint. I've written many a fic that I don't "believe" in--ie that is not how I see the person in canon--but it's fun to explore the possibilities. So it's kinda slippery slope to assume the author's reasoning for writing something. Though, yes, there are some people who are apologetic to an absurd degree and I say that as a Snape fan. Whitewash all his faults and he's not half as interesting.

I adore Draco because he can be anyone I want him to be--he can be Lucius Jr or he can be like the children of Westboro Baptist Church who have left that cult and now promote everything their own family hates. I think there is room in canon for either one.

As for JKR, I honestly think it's a shame that now creators and fans *do* have interaction because I think, try as they might to ignore the buzz, it's there, even subconsciously. Even we as fanfic authors steal from each other accidentally (not taking into account borrowing on purpose).

There are certainly things she's said in interviews and on Pottermore that seem colored by her wanting to be sure fans are understanding what she intended, things fans have run with. And tbh, after the whole "Harry/Hermione fans are delusional" thing, we do know she has strong feeling about this stuff. Remus who's suddenly MADLY in love with Tonks. Holy shit, that was not in the books I read. She wanted him, they got pregnant/married (after his best friend died), and he was fucking MISERABLE the whole damn time. That relationship is so dysfunctional as to be laughable. If they'd lived, they'd have been divorced by the time Teddy was three. But you see, R/S shippers see more in canon to support *that* relationship than Remus/Tonks so it needed to be addressed. Clarified. And I am not even an R/S shipper! So yeah, I have absolutely no trouble believing there was a little bit of a dig in that toward the Draco lovers on the outside, not just Harry and friends there in the book.

OK ETA: Obviously we've gotten way off-topic here so I would be happy to continue debating but let's take this off the comm. Shoot me a PM if you like or find some post of mine that seems appropriate.

Re: *resists* Oh Sod it, wank incoming.

[sdkshelly.livejournal.com]

Erasing this because like Torino said, it's gone way off topic. Whoops! But if you'd like to reply, you're more than welcome to PM me as well.