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But it doesn't seem likely he'll have portraits in other places. Dilys had a portrait in St Mungos because she had worked there, and Phineas at Grimauld place as a relative. From what we know and is assumed, Dumbledore's other portrait could be at the hogs head Posts: 5362 | Registered: Apr 2004
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quote:Originally posted by breyerchic04: But it doesn't seem likely he'll have portraits in other places. Dilys had a portrait in St Mungos because she had worked there, and Phineas at Grimauld place as a relative. From what we know and is assumed, Dumbledore's other portrait could be at the hogs head
Don't forget all of those darn Chocolate Frog cards.
On a completely random tangent, I was watching the 2nd movie today since it was on TV and made the belated realization that Diagon Alley is very related to the word "diagonally". Yet another clever play on words by J.K. Rowling.
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One thing I'd really like to see is a Rowling Etymological dictionary of terms. What was she thinking of when she came up with some of her terms/names/spells?
Oh, and here's a question: What is your favorite Rowling term and why?
My favorites are:
"pensieve" because it's both a seive for sifting thoughts, and the fact that pensive refers to considering your own thoughts. It's also a pen in which thoughts are contained.
"Mudblood" in part because it seems to me that a really good insult was needed to convey the mentality of the pure-blood types. The dirty blood concept also fits here. It's like a really good example of method acting: Rowling getting into the mindset of her evil characters. Also because it rhymes, it feels like childish name calling. Very appropriate in a school setting.
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quote:Originally posted by Lisa: You're kidding me. Did you realize that Knockturn Alley was "nocturnally"?
I always thought Knockturn meant more like "wrong turn." Like knock was British way of saying bad, though not necessarily British because it's part of American parlance, to say someone was "knocked" could mean insulted. So I thought it meant if you went down there you'd made a wrong turn.
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Neither did I. I knew Diagon was related to diagonally, but it never clicked that 'alley' was part of it.
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I don't think the chocolate frog cards count, nor photographs. Just Portraits, real official portraits.
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quote:Originally posted by Glenn Arnold: One thing I'd really like to see is a Rowling Etymological dictionary of terms. What was she thinking of when she came up with some of her terms/names/spells?
While I am unaware of any official ones, there are several speculative ones on teh intarweb.
This one's not bad for people, although it looks like it hasn't been updated in a while.
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My Deathly Hallows theory is the same as it has been for years: the soul & memories of the James Potter we see in the pensieve memory are now in the body of the guy we know as Snape, somehow and some way, and that will be revealed in the 7th book. "Snape" (read: James) has been protecting his son Harry but is enraged by the arrogance of his own younger years when he sees it cropping up in his son. That's why he sneers at Harry and lashes out at his pridefulness.
I know, I know -- "Luke, I am your father." But I'm pretty sure for myself that this revelation will mean everyone has to go back and reread all the books with the characters now straight to get a very different story.
As I said to Christine earlier, I'm willing to be wrong, but I await to be disproven. Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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I know Avada Kedavra is aramaic. The rest of her spell names look like a combination of latin/greek/aramaic ancient languages.
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But Harry really isn't that arrogant. In fact, he's very humble considering all he's done... Also, JKR said it wasn't so...
Also, it's so ironic that Snape hangs out with Malfoy. Malfoy is everything he hates. Arrogant, boastful, a bully. I don't get that guy.
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Are you kidding? Harry was loathsome in Order of the Phoenix. I wanted to tell him to shut up through half the book.
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: I know Avada Kedavra is aramaic. The rest of her spell names look like a combination of latin/greek/aramaic ancient languages.
It's definitely Aramaic-like. "Avada" could mean "perish", the prefix "ke" means "like", and "davra" could mean "thing", but it could also be related to a word meaning "plague" or "exterminate".
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: Are you kidding? Harry was loathsome in Order of the Phoenix. I wanted to tell him to shut up through half the book.
Yeah, but considering what he had gone through, could you blame him for being angry? At least he has never really actively picked on other kids, usually he's the one everyone is looking at sideways.
Also, I think it was mentioned somewhere on the official site, but in some interview JKR said that there is no way James would have allowed his wife to die like that while he still was alive. Also he'd need a lot of Polyjuice potion, and he tends to be crueler to kids than I think James would be.
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He didn't do any of those things intensionally though, and when he did use sectumsempra he felt very guilty afterwards, quite scared. I think Snape sneers at Harry because Harry looks like James and Snape hated james. Or maybe to throw people off, as he did rescue him a lot in book 1. Snape's too mean to be James, who was a lot nicer once he became more mature.
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: I know Avada Kedavra is aramaic. The rest of her spell names look like a combination of latin/greek/aramaic ancient languages.
It's definitely Aramaic-like. "Avada" could mean "perish", the prefix "ke" means "like", and "davra" could mean "thing", but it could also be related to a word meaning "plague" or "exterminate".
I don't remember the exact article, but I read an interview with Rowling where she specifically said it was from Aramaic, and it means something like 'to make into nothing.' That's probably terribly off what it actually was, I'm just going off memory, but I'll try to find the article if I can. I want to say it was on the leaky cauldron.
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Given that Rowling's not a linguist, I tend to take such claims as indicative more of her intent than actual translation.
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quote:Originally posted by Synesthesia: ... he tends to be crueler to kids than I think James would be.
Which James? The James of the pensieve memory (adolescent) or the James of Harry's early childhood (adult)? Because, you see, I don't think they are the same James. (see below)
quote:Snape's too mean to be James, who was a lot nicer once he became more mature.
I'd say James was a lot nicer once he "became" (i.e., was switched with) the young Snape.
quote:... in some interview JKR said that there is no way James would have allowed his wife to die like that while he still was alive.
There are always ways of reinterpreting or intentionally interpreting words in a misleading way to make that true. JKR has done this before -- recall the "Half-Blood Prince."
----
Edited to add: For example, when she said something like "there is no way James would have allowed his wife to die like that while he was still alive," she could have been referring to the older James (i.e., formerly Snape). That James could be the referent. Certainly he was the James, at least in some sense, at that time.
For all I know, perhaps Lily thought of him as "James" because she never knew of the switch. It's one possibility. Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: I know Avada Kedavra is aramaic. The rest of her spell names look like a combination of latin/greek/aramaic ancient languages.
It's definitely Aramaic-like. "Avada" could mean "perish", the prefix "ke" means "like", and "davra" could mean "thing", but it could also be related to a word meaning "plague" or "exterminate".
I don't remember the exact article, but I read an interview with Rowling where she specifically said it was from Aramaic, and it means something like 'to make into nothing.' That's probably terribly off what it actually was, I'm just going off memory, but I'll try to find the article if I can. I want to say it was on the leaky cauldron.
I always jsut assumed that it was a play on the common magic words "Abra Cadabra". Naive muggles using wizards words without knowing their meaning.
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: I know Avada Kedavra is aramaic. The rest of her spell names look like a combination of latin/greek/aramaic ancient languages.
It's definitely Aramaic-like. "Avada" could mean "perish", the prefix "ke" means "like", and "davra" could mean "thing", but it could also be related to a word meaning "plague" or "exterminate".
I don't remember the exact article, but I read an interview with Rowling where she specifically said it was from Aramaic, and it means something like 'to make into nothing.' That's probably terribly off what it actually was, I'm just going off memory, but I'll try to find the article if I can. I want to say it was on the leaky cauldron.
I always jsut assumed that it was a play on the common magic words "Abra Cadabra". Naive muggles using wizards words without knowing their meaning.
For me, the "Kedavra" always sounded like cadaver. Seemed obvious to me, but the other answers sound plausible, too.
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quote:Originally posted by mr_porteiro_head: What about the Half-Blood Prince should we recall?
The words "Half-Blood Prince" ended up referring to a "half-blood prince" who was not a "half-blood prince."
That is to say, the words "half-blood prince" were taken (and -- I think obviously -- intended to be taken) to indicate someone who was actually a prince, not just someone named Prince. But she didn't lie -- just misdirected. She parses the words she uses in spoilers and anti-spoilers carefully, just as Clinton did with "There is no improper relationship."
Well, there isn't, even if there is in the most likely way the words were to be taken.
quote:"It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is. If the--if he--if 'is' means is and never has been, that is not--that is one thing. If it means there is none, that was a completely true statement....Now, if someone had asked me on that day, are you having any kind of sexual relations with Ms. Lewinsky, that is, asked me a question in the present tense, I would have said no. And it would have been completely true."
quote:Originally posted by Synesthesia: I think Snape sneers at Harry because Harry looks like James and Snape hated james.
I think he hates Harry because Lily died saving him. But he protects Harry because he's Lily's son. It all comes down to love.
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quote:Originally posted by Little_Doctor: I always jsut assumed that it was a play on the common magic words "Abra Cadabra". Naive muggles using wizards words without knowing their meaning.
Abra Cadabra is also Aramaic.
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: I know Avada Kedavra is aramaic. The rest of her spell names look like a combination of latin/greek/aramaic ancient languages.
"Kedavra" is clearly related to "cadaver," which has Indo-European roots.
Based on what Lisa said, the phrase could mean something like "Perish, Corpse!" It could also be a pun on "avatar," I suppose.
The whole phrase is meant to recall "abracadabra."
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quote:Originally posted by Javert: I ask, because what if Dumbledore is/was an unregistered animagus...perhaps a pheonix...and is able to rise from the dead?
That's an interesting possibility.
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It only occurred to me because it would fit with what Rowling has said, that Dumbledore is really dead, while still giving him the possibility to return.
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quote:Originally posted by Lyrhawn: I know Avada Kedavra is aramaic. The rest of her spell names look like a combination of latin/greek/aramaic ancient languages.
"Kedavra" is clearly related to "cadaver," which has Indo-European roots.
I don't think it's clear at all. The form is clearly Aramaic.
I just checked out an Aramaic-English dictionary I have, and it turns out that the verb D-B-R in Aramaic doesn't mean the same thing that it does in Hebrew. In Aramaic, it means "take" or "bring". But the prefix "ke" still doesn't make sense there. Without it, it could mean something like "Destruction take you!"
quote:Originally posted by Dagonee: The whole phrase is meant to recall "abracadabra."
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I don't like to think about the etymology aspect much. It's like trying to make sense of the names in Star Trek.
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I agree with this statement, but I think that doesn't matter. The Order doesn't need him as a spy at this point. I think Snape is now in the position he needs to be in to play his part in Voldemort's downfall. He doesn't need any of the Order to know the truth. In fact, he needs all of them to believe he's evil. That's the only way he'll be able to get close enough to Voldemort to make it possible for Harry to kill him. I definitely think that Snape will end up sacrificing himself at the Crucial Moment and then Harry will be able to kill Voldemort.
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Unless Snape sacrifices himself, I have a hard time imagining an unambiguous resolution to which side Snape is on. Maybe a magically unforgeable communication from Dumbledore explaining what happened would be convincing enough.
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Repost from the new thread I started for the sake of consistency:
So I watched an interview with JK Rowling (linked to via Mugglenet) and in it she said that while she did not cry at the end of the novel, there was a chapter that, when she finished, she bawled and grabbed a bottle of champaigne from the hotel mini-bar. As I was watching her recount that experience, I naturally wondered what on earth could have happened to make her cry like that, and the first thing that popped into my head was: Hermione dies.
I know we've been spouting off a lot of theories about this and that and I've been hoping the trio comes through this alive, but that may be unrealistic. Earlier in the interview, Rowling suggested that Hermione was the most like her and I think maybe that's why I thought Hermione died in the chapter that made her cry.
Here's the full interview in two parts..it's kind of long but pretty funny:
posted
I'd be willing to guess that whatever deaths there are would cause her to cry.
There will probably be deaths along the way, but there is almost certainly going to be some sort of final huge battle or confrontation that may very well come near a 'bloodbath'. This is probably where she cried.
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Maybe she cried when (insert inappropriate slash fanfic pairing) finally confess their true feelings. After all, she grabbed a bottle of champange. It could have been tears of joy.
Is there Umbridge/Grawp fanfic? Or the tension breaks between Trelawney and Firenze. That would be the worst dialogue ever.
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quote:Originally posted by pooka: Maybe she cried when (insert inappropriate slash fanfic pairing) finally confess their true feelings. After all, she grabbed a bottle of champange. It could have been tears of joy.
Is there Umbridge/Grawp fanfic?
We never did find out what really happened with Umbridge and the centaurs...
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The universe ending in some way, either hogwarts falling down, magic ceasing to exist, or everyone knowing about magic.
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quote:Originally posted by Christine: Anyone else have a theory about what made her cry?
Snape. He's the most emotionally hurt and vulnerable person in the entire series, and his redemption and death is probably what made her break down.
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quote:The name of this curse is related to the popular "mumbo-jumbo" magical phrase Abracadabra, which is actually of Aramaic origin: abhadda kedhabhra, meaning "disappear like this word".[1] Alternatively, the Aramaic words translate as "I create as I speak".[2]
A footnote in some editions of the Vietnamese translations of the Harry Potter books state a false etymology: "avatar cadaver": see [1].
Also, Romanian translations use Abracadabra as Avada Kedavra. The reasons for this is believed to be from the Latin word cadaver, which can mean corpse.
In the Hungarian translation of Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire and The Order Of The Phoenix, Avada Kedavra is mentioned and used many times as "Adava Kedavra". It is considered as a translating mistake because in the 6th book (The Half-Blood Prince) the curse is called Avada Kedavra.
During an audience interview at the Edinburgh Book Festival (15 August 2004) Rowling said:
"Does anyone know where avada kedavra came from? It is an ancient spell in Aramaic, and it is the original of abracadabra, which means “let the thing be destroyed”. Originally, it was used to cure illness and the “thing” was the illness, but I decided to make it the “thing” as in the person standing in front of me. I take a lot of liberties with things like that. I twist them round and make them mine."
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But I'm pretty sure for myself that this revelation will mean everyone has to go back and reread all the books with the characters now straight to get a very different story. ![[Smile]](smile.gif)
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