What about Hermione?

[melodypottersnape]

Read Ron and Molly and thought to get opinions on her.
Personally I love her as much as I hate her.

hpps- hated how she acted high and mighty on the train,
at the table for the midnight duel,
when Harry got a broom,
when she said Harry was selfish for losing her points( can any body else see the wrongness of that statment),
were she said that they would get her out of trouble for being out after curfew,
after the fluffy thing were she acted like as ron said forced her to come along,
and how she feels she is not only better than Ron and Harry but has a right to order them around.

I love her protectiveness, logical mind, intelligence, and how she wants to help even if she goes about it wrongly.

In cos- really the only thing she could be faulted for is her school girl crush, but I find that perfectly okay. though I dont like how she lashed out at harry for his concerns for stealing. Personally couldn't she have suggested they try to order those ingrediants( at least given it a try) and she was kinda arrogant with her potion skills there. ( the potion could give a false positive result and when they drunk it could have poisoned them.)

poa- I didn't like her lack of consideration for Ron's and lavender' pets. while her heart was in the right place I believe she should have told harry her suspicions about his broom than going behind his back. Also wth did she mean when she told Remus that she had been covering for him as if she was the sole reason he was allowed to be there. Though major props for the Malfoy punch.

gof-didn't find anything wrong with that year. Major props for teaching ron a lesson for when he did your a girl spiel.

ootp- Hated that she blantantly followed Albus orders to keep Harry isolated. She could have sent something the muggle way or through Harry's little stalkers. didn't like her treatment of harry for the occlumency lesson cause I believe his failure mainly lies on snape's inability to teach. I don't like how she bullied Harry to start a club that could have got him expelled or worse with the political climate.(what if they had snapped his wand. taking away prior incantum and the wand that worked best for him.)
I loved how she thought of the trap and the contract, and I think the club was a good idea but should have been in her name incase of fallout since she is the one that thought it up.

hbp- I dont like that book flat out. I dont like how she got jealous with Harry's improved potions ability. just because he learned a new way to do something doesn't make it cheating.

I just think this book ruined everybody. Harry became an almost murderer who stalked a boy.
Ron let himself be called Won Won.
Ginny somehow wormed herself into Harry's arms( sorry I hate the pairing because it mainly came from nowhere)
Hermione became a jealous bitch.
Dumbledore's lackluster training and unability to give out important info when he knew he would be dieing soon.
Snape being forced to kill the light sides main general and Hogwarts protection.

dh- hated hermione's expectations of Harry knowing were horcruxes were, but lashed out any of his ideas, her spiel on him seeing into voldy's mind really pissed me off. though I love her "I'll do what it takes" attitude. her loyalty and preparedness.


really I like Hermione bashing fics as much as much as i dislike them if that makes sense

[Silvertongue]

really I like Hermione bashing fics as much as much as i dislike them if that makes since

I know exactly what you mean and agree.

[melodypottersnape]

It like I love them but the whole time I'm reading them I'm saying get your head on straight!
Though the funny thing is when she does I'm dissapointed because I like the bashing usually and I don't like how she is usually forgiven so easily.

[G. Novella]

I think many people overlook her flaws. It's so annoying because people inflate her and Harry into these mini-demi-god-super-fantastic-fucking-heros-that-can't-make-bloody-mistakes that people forget she's flawed.

I'm spent from defending Ron and Molly in other threads, so I'm certain I'll post a larger thing about her later, but I do agree on the point that you love Hermione as much as you hate Hermione.

[rikustark]

She was rather annoying at first, but once she became friends with Harry and Ron she wasn't so bad. I can't say I was really annoyed with her in the first book when I was younger, maybe because the movies didn't protray her to be as bad?

*Sits and waits for a thread about Harry to pop up*

[mountaingirl777]

Hermione is my favorite character of all, but I do acknowledge her bad sides. She is an only child who is spoiled, explaining her "I get what I want" attitude, which I've noticed she has. And her "by the rules" thing does turn me off on her as there is always an exception to rules at one point or another.

It does make me wonder about her home life and how her parents really treat her. Sometimes she acts like a child that is loved, but other times she acts like a child who is neglected or ignored, sort of like Harry but on a lower level. Her attitude at times makes me think she is trying to get attention, something a child who is neglected might do. And then the whole scene in book 5 where she leaves her parents to go to grimmauld place just doesn't sit right with me, if she really loved her parents then she would have stayed with them.

Going off of that, I don't really like how she treats her parents. I understand that they don't know about the Wizarding World, but if I was her and I loved my parents I would try to make them understand. Maybe that is why they, if it is true, neglected her. If I was treated like that, shunned for not knowing about something by someone I loved, I would turn my back too.

I think what I really like in Hermione is her loyalty and how she sort of acts like a sister to Harry....even though it is harsh how she treats him.

[melodypottersnape]

ya it is kinda odd that the main character is being skipped. want me to start a thread?

[sn0rkack]

I don't like stories when characters get bashed cause it ruins the feel and most are unoriginal (Ron is jealous of pretty much everything Harry has, Hermione is jealous of Harry's power or just a rule-following toerag). Still, I think Neville would have been a better friend instead of Ron and there isn't really a suitable replacement for Hermione (Luna is a year younger which pretty much puts her out of the equation), though she is annoying.

Hermione, Molly and Ron annoy me to no end. Why did they have to kill Sirius? Why couldn't they just kill Ron or Hermione (or both)?

Sirius wasn't that great of a role-model but he never really expected anything from Harry. He just wanted him to live, whereas Ron was infatuated the moment he learned Harry had the balls to call Voldemort his name and Hermione the moment she read Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts.

I look at it like this: Years of friendship between Harry and Ron, and Ron doesn't really grow up an inch (I won't even mention his betrayal of him in GoF or DH). Years of friendship between Harry and Hermione and she's still a rule-following jealous cunt (PoA and HBP anyone?). Now, a few months training under him and Neville turns into a total badass! As his friend, Neville went from shy to, well, I guess normal and not a failure. Ron and Hermione on the other hand just tried to force their own beliefs on Harry and didn't bother growing with him.

[rikustark]

Go ahead!

[Kitty279]

Melodypottersnape, you have summed up my feelings about her quite well. On the one hand, she helped Harry a lot, but on the other hand, she was too convinced of her own knowledge and superiority and sometimes annoyed me quite a bit.

One point I'd like to add to your list was her crusade to free the elves against their own will, her conviction that she has the right to decide over the fate of a whole race, not caring what anyone else said, the elves included. And the way she is fighting for elf rights, but disregarding Harry's right of his own free will when everyone else is trying to decide what he has to do.

What I don't like, either, is how she keeps answering all questions and pouting when the teacher doesn't call on her. As if she has the right to answer all questions and get all points for herself.

Hermione was always nagging Harry and Ron about studying more, but we know how it turned out when Harry was actually better than her. In hindsight, I suspect his upbringing by the Dursleys, in combination with these particular friends, was what held him back. First, the Dursley were surely not happy when the freak was better than their wonderful Diddykins. Then there is Ron, who wants to be better than his brothers, but doesn't do more than what's necessary to pass, and Hermione, who's an overachiever and way too ambitious for her own good. Harry was caught in the middle there.

Hermione's quite intelligent, but she tends to rub this in a bit too much sometimes, and she can be very rude when people believe something she doesn't (Luna!). Isn't it ironic when she then tells Ron off for his lack of tact? Look at how she pried about their marks in OotP when they didn't show her at once.

Have been wondering about her relationship with her parents, too. Either they don't get along very well, or she couldn't bear that anything happened without her knowing, and that's why she spend most of the holidays with the Weasleys, too.

She kept her (near) unfailing respect for authority way too long and tended to ignore how much said authority figures had failed them, and especially Harry, again and again.

To end on a positive note, it was amazing how she worked out things like the basilik, and she was one of the few who stood with Harry in GoF from the beginning and did her utmost to help him.

[melodypottersnape]

Yes I always hated how we get like one scene for Hermione's parents.

[kumainpink]

Me too! Rowling should have introduced us to Hermione's parents more!

[Kitty279]

It could have made a few funny scenes - Arthur would have asked them questions about the Muggle world nonstop while Molly tried to shut him up. Pity JKR never saw the potential of such an indicent!

[melodypottersnape]

There is one scene like that where Arthur goes "but your muggle" and follws them into I think the cauldron before third year

[Kitty279]

Yes, but we never did get to see anything of it, sadly. It could have been used to show Hermione with her parents and an attempt to prove that her being magical doesn't have to necessarily exclude her from the world her parents live in. It was a wasted opportunity.

[Silvertongue]

To me, I imagine her parents loving her and giving her attention but also being quite health and safety conscious, so much so as to keep her from playing in the park in case she fell off a swing or something (which wouldn't help her in getting friends), along with pushing her to study so she'd become as successful as them (possibly following them into dentistry) and so she strives to prove that she can be as smart and successful as them. The lack of playing keeps her from gaining the social skills to nteract with other people and she sees knowledge as a way to prove how worthy she is of being a friend. This is how I imagine things, definitely not saying it's canon.

[kumainpink]

I completely agree, Kitty!

[dracosfairmaiden]

Hermione is an interesting character. On one hand she's one of my favorites. On the other hand, she can be as stubborn as Ron.

I've read Rtb stories that explain that the reason she tries so hard in Hogwarts is that she's trying to prove that Muggle-borns can be as good as pure-bloods. I think that's part of the reason she tries so hard to prove herself at school. The problem is, she didn't know when to stop and came off as a showoff.

I do like her loyalty towards Harry and how she's so driven in her studies. I do wish the books showed her family life more. I mean, she spends every summer with the Weasleys. She's close enough to them that she has to hide them but what else? She's an only child. That has to impact her relationship with her family a little.

[melodypottersnape]

Jun 14, 2012 23:43:11 GMT -5 Kitty279 said:

One point I'd like to add to your list was her crusade to free the elves against their own will, her conviction that she has the right to decide over the fate of a whole race, not caring what anyone else said, the elves included. And the way she is fighting for elf rights, but disregarding Harry's right of his own free will when everyone else is trying to decide what he has to do.

Ya I thought about adding that but didn't know how to phrase it without sounding like I approved slavery ,but I totally agree. and I did hate how she spoke down to Luna. I mean I know Luna and Hermione are like oil and water, but she could have not said anything at all

[melodypottersnape]

Oh yeah I have two challenges one were Hermione is bashed and another were her path is optional. Can someone tell me if I'm putting too much in a challenge and take out some of the requirements. I just want to know if I'm not allowing enough creative space for writers in the future.

[Kitty279]

Jun 15, 2012 11:41:16 GMT -5 melodypottersnape said:

Ya I thought about adding that but didn't know how to phrase it without sounding like I approved slavery ,but I totally agree. and I did hate how she spoke down to Luna. I mean I know Luna and Hermione are like oil and water, but she could have not said anything at all

Hermione was right so far that there should be a way to help house-elves who were abused. But not all people treated their elves like Malfoy and Crouch. Look at it this way - if you do a job you love, but the boss is an abusive bastard, would you rather leave the job? Yes. But if the boss is great, would you want to leave? Certainly not. And there's the difference for me. If the elves are happy, why forcibly remove them from the job? Hermione meant well, but she went about it the wrong way. Helping abused elves, yes. But not by making all others unhappy!

There are just things you should not say at all, isn't it? Over the years, there were things where I strongly disagreed with someone or where I was just rolling the eyes about it because it was silly and childish. But I kept my mouth shut, because a) I didn't want to hurt the other's feelings and b) it would only lead to a fight and cause bad blood. That's something Hermione doesn't seem to understand, she always tries to force her own opinion on others and is too convinced she's right.

Besides, she couldn't free the Hogwarts elves because she's not their master. But what if she could? It could be considered theft if they had been so offended that they left. What then? She really never thought that through. Or what if, as many fanfictions pointed out, the elves rely on their bond to survive? Dobby could have secretly bound himself to Harry, and Winky went really downhill after Crouch threw her out, so it's not out of the question. Then Hermione could have actually seriously harmed then! And we know people don't want elves that have been released in disgrace ...

[melodypottersnape]

I do wish the books showed her family life more. I mean, she spends every summer with the Weasleys. She's close enough to them that she has to hide them but what else? She's an only child. That has to impact her relationship with her family a little.


I know to be related to such an important character their barely there showtime seems like a major plothole

[kumainpink]

I like Hermione, but I do get annoyed with her "I know best" attitude.

[dracosfairmaiden]

Same here. I love Hermione but she seemed to have a problem with blindly following authority. I also didn't like her showoff attitude at first. But now I think I understand why she did it. I think she was insecure about being muggleborn so she wanted to prove herself.

[Silvertongue]

I get annoyed with her total trust in books. She doesn't seem to get that books are written by people and those people are biased, therefore the books are biased.

[Kitty279]

Oh yes. Sometimes I wonder about her favourite book. You know they say that history is written by the victors? So you'd have to read different sources to get a real opinion of something that is at least close to the truth, and Hermone, of all people, should know it. But still, it's in a book and so it has to be her gospel. All that harping on "You can't apparate in Hogwarts" because "Hogwarts A History" says so - but didn't the elves do something like that? I seem to remember that Dobby just vanished with a crack, like apparition. So it IS possible - but the book doesn't tell her, also is it impossible. What if the elves can take someone by side-along-apparition?

Her tendency to go behind the boy's back (Firebolt, Skeeter interview) didn't help, either. Neither did her impatience when they didn't get something as fast as she did, or their feelings worked differently. First, Hermione thought older children 'childish' when she was only 11 herself, expecting them to behave like adults, which is stupid. Second, she may not have known Harry was neglected and abused, but she should have noticed that he didn't have a good home, and that Ron had an inferiority complex and was mollycoddled beyond reason. How did she expect them to be as mature as she herself acted? Again, for all her reading, she is amazingly naive.

[kumainpink]

Agreed, Kitty.

[jessieanneh2]

I liked Hermione well enough until the last three books. Mainly the way JKR wrote her. Yeah I thought she was a bit of a pill in the first four. But most really smart people are socially awkward so I didn't think much of it. But then in HBP where she was trying to hard to get Ron's attention just irked me.

[G. Novella]

She wasn't really trying for his attention in HBP, that's what irked me.

She was obsessing over grades and a book being better than the actual instructions, and then became extremely jealous over Ron dating Lavender when she gave Ron nothing to base the idea that she was interested in him. Instead, she chose to harp at Harry why he was so attractive all of a sudden. Then Ron starts dating Lavender, she flipped out. Yes, she asked him out, but for someone who claims she understands Ron's emotional range pretty well, and knows he has an inferiority complex, she could have realized sooner that Ron wouldn't realize that she asked him out because she likes him.

I'm not saying Ron wasn't at major fault in book six, it's just, Hermione seemed to be expecting quite a bit out of Ron's comprehension skills after doubting them all along.

[Kitty279]

Jun 27, 2012 12:46:59 GMT -5 G. Novella said:

I'm not saying Ron wasn't at major fault in book six, it's just, Hermione seemed to be expecting quite a bit out of Ron's comprehension skills after doubting them all along.

So true! After complaining for years that he is so thick, she should have known that he needs a bit more than what she gave him to understand. The fact that Harry was better at her in Potions seems to have seriously messed with her, and the whole Lavender thing didn't help.