Skip to main content

harry potter - What did the Howler to Aunt Petunia mean in Order of the Phoenix?



What does "Remember my last, Petunia" mean in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix?


From what I gather, most people seem to think it refers to the letter Dumbledore left for Aunt Petunia when he left Harry at the Dursleys' doorstep -- but is it?


Aunt Petunia seems to act as if she was compelled to keep Harry at her home after listening to the Howler, but what would compel her to keep him there?


Uncle Vernon had, I suppose, made a logical decision to throw Harry out after he found out that a dangerous criminal was looking for Harry, and Harry certainly couldn't call it his home if the owner did not let him live there, which was the sole cause of the existence of the protection. Could it be that the charms that protected Harry from Voldemort at the home of his relatives was also protecting his relatives as well?


But then again, did Voldemort know about the Dursleys at all? He probably would have tried to find out where Harry went when he was away from Hogwarts, and the Ministry certainly knew where Harry was and with whom. Even if we believe Voldemort and any of his crew didn't know about the Dursleys prior to the Order of the Phoenix, Lucius Malfoy did have good connections and a certain level of control and influence over at the Ministry. Wouldn't it have been possible for him to find out about Harry's relatives after the Ministry decided to go against Dumbledore at the end of Goblet of Fire?


In Deathly Hallows, Harry states that the Dursleys should go into hiding because Voldemort might try to take them hostage to make Harry come and save them, so the Order itself takes it upon themselves to ensure the Dursleys' protection.


Even if we assume that all of the residents couldn't be harmed inside No. 4 Privet Drive (and not just Harry) by Voldemort, wouldn't it be easy for him to, say, attack uncle Vernon at the office or Dudley at school? They certainly knew about the general location of the house, wouldn't they know exactly who the residents were and where they worked?




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

harry potter - Do the Kwikspell courses work?

In Harry Potter we are introduced to Kwikspell course in The Chamber of Secrets (and never hear about it again). We see Filch taking courses, presumably by mail. The descriptions of Kwikspell make me think it is for people who are weak in magic (kind of like how Neville was supposed to be when he was younger), but had magic in them nonetheless. However, Ron's comments later in the chapter make it sound like it is mainly for Squibs to learn magic. However, it is strongly implied through out all the books that Squibs are essentially Muggles, and will never be able to do magic. How then is a Kwikspell course supposed to work? Do we have any information to know if it works at all? Is it a scam? An answer from any level of canon is welcome. Answer Kwikspell courses are (probably) useful to some wizards, but not to squibs. The Kwikspell course literature comes with two testimonials. Madam Z. Nettles of Topsham writes: ‘I had no memory for incantations and my potions were a family joke...
Post a Comment
Read more

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

game of thrones - Is Syrio Forel dead?

In the episode 'The Pointy End' (Season 1 Episode 8) when Arya runs from the Lannister guards you hear the sound of a sword being dropped (around 4:56): [embedded content] After that neither Syrio or Ser Meryn Trant is never mentioned or seen in the show again, except when Arya mentions to the Hound that Ser Meryn Trant killed Syrio. Is there any mention in the books that Syrio actually dies?
Post a Comment
Read more

tolkiens legendarium - Difference between elves and dwarves blacksmithing in the Lord of the Rings

Both the elves and the dwarves were famous for their metal work in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but what is the difference between what they made, and which one had the better skill of making amours and swords? Answer James Christopher's answer sums up the second part of your question well, but as to the difference in what they made, a little more detail is needed. Once the Elves learned to forge with steel, the shape of the sword changed, now being able to take on the form of a great broadsword or a light and agile curved sword. Additionally, they took great pride in decorating their swords. As we see in the Lord of the Rings , some swords like Sting had magical properties such as glowing blue when orcs are near. As far as the use of Mithril, lotr.wikia has two contradictory passages: Thus, Elven blades became renowned as great weapons, capable of performing deeds beyond the skill of their handlers and were even more glorious when the use of Mithril was allowed to the Elves. ...
Post a Comment
Read more