This post was written in response to the Miami Book Examiner's defense of Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley as one of the five most romantic literary couples.
Point One: Great literary romances develop in a believable way.
The Book Examiner would have you believe that because J.K. Rowling had seven books to write that the love story between Harry and Ginny developed naturally over time. To that I say prove it because what I read was not a realistic love story. (Harry Potter is not a love story at all! Even so... the "romance" between Harry and Ginny is not a good one let alone a great one.)
Ginny is all but ignored as the younger sister to Ron Weasley until book five. Book five she joins the secret DA club in order to learn how to defend herself when the Ministry was determined to make sure that the children did not know how to defend themselves. The same could be said of Cho, Luna, Hermione, and half a dozen other girls ranging from the Quidditch team to rival housemates.
Then Harry gets a green eyed monster in his stomach in book six and totally acts out of character for the whole book not just when he's around Ginny. Considering Rowling's history of introducing little seeds that explode into a major plot point, I figured it was the Amortentia potion at work. Amortentia is the most powerful love potion in the wizarding world and was used throughout book six to show how it influenced Voldemort's life. It made sense for JKR to use it as an influence on Harry's life as she has manipulated several similarities of the same ilk. (Unless there is a book eight that proves this interpretation of the sixth book to be true, Harry/Ginny can't be explained away as a the case of Amortentia. That leaves just bad writing.)
Book seven Harry and Ginny are separated and exchange no communication but by the end of the story they are happily married seventeen years later with three kids. Riiiiight.
Point Two: Great literary romances are based on a mutual admiration and respect for the other's strengths and talents.
So Harry admired feared Ginny's bat boogey hex, but honestly that spell is not the stuff of romance. Harry had more respect for Hermione's brains and puzzle solving skills. In fact, Hermione shows the most strengths and talents in the entire series and by this reasoning alone she should have been Harry's match. After all the smart and witty Elizabeth Bennet fell in love with the popular and wealthy Mr. Darcy and Hermione and Harry play those roles far more convincingly than Ginny and Harry.
Heck, Harry greatly respected Luna even if he thought she was sometimes a little weird. He took her on a date too. Why not Luna over Ginny? Luna would have been a great candidate. She shared loss with Harry and like Harry knew what it was to be lonely. She also admired him for his own worth not because of the Boy-Who-Lived nonsense Ginny was always going on about in the earlier novels.
Point Three: Great literary romances are willingly sacrificial.
What did Ginny sacrifice? Or Harry for that matter when it came to the relationship? For those that read book seven you know the ending and the sacrifice Harry made can back me up that he would have made it whether or not Ginny even existed.
Point Four: Great literary romances feature a well-matched pair.
How are Harry and Ginny a well-matched pair? She's his number one fangirl and he's the savior of the wizarding world. Her talents are limited. Rowling built up the history behind the magical meaning of number seven but never gave the 7th Weasley child anything to make her unique, except perhaps making her the only female sibling in the bunch. Hermione was the smartest witch of the age, Cho the lovliest, and Luna the most unique with the ability to see and process the world in a different way than most. Ginny can't even stand on her own two feet and say she was a challenge to him on the Quidditch Pitch because it was Cho not Ginny who battled Harry in game matches.
Point Five: Great literary romances celebrate the steadfast and unwavering love of the underdog.
Of the girls: Hermione, Ginny, Cho, and Luna. Only Hermione and Luna can be considered underdogs because Ginny and Cho were exceedingly popular in their years. Hermione was ostracized originally because of her intelligence and showy talent and Luna because she was seen as odd for her appearance, speech, and beliefs.
Conclusion:
Harry and Ginny never stood a chance against literary romantic couples. Not only because of those reasons but also because H/G had no real on page romance. Rowling condensed everything about their courtship to a few paragraphs where Harry reminisced in book six that the time spent with Ginny didn't even seem like his own life. Their total time on page is less than 2% of the whole series. Rowling's best romance was the one she didn't expressly show us and that was James Potter and Lily Evans. What are your thoughts?
 |
|
US $5.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $24.49 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $1.50 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $2.00 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $9.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $11.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $13.95 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $2.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $5.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $9.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $4.95 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $14.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $37.98 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $4.95 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $12.50 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $18.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $4.95 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $10.00 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $15.00 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $8.00 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $20.00 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $7.99 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $8.00 |
Sale |
 |
|
US $5.99 |
Sale |
Online Stores Tagged as:
amortentia,
elizabeth bennet,
ginny weasley,
green eyed monster,
harry and ginny,
harry potter and ginny,
harry potter and ginny weasley,
hermione and harry,
housemates,
j k rowling,
love potion,
miami book,
mr darcy,
mutual admiration,
plot point,
quidditch team,
ron weasley,
seven books,
seventeen years,
wizarding world
This post was written by...
Keira – who has written 1034 posts on Love Romance Passion.
Keira's favorite type of heroes are blind, scarred, and tortured... yes, she understands those should be separate, but all 3 at once is also nice! She enjoys historical romances best and adores audio books because great narrators turn books into auditory/mental movies (and she loves her romantic dramas like Pride and Prejudice/North and South!) Learn more about Keira in My Instant Turn Ons, Offs, and Ifs.
{ 264 comments… read them below or add one }
Wait, Harry marries WHO?!
I agree with you.
Yep- Harry and Ginny get married and have three kids which we see in the epilogue as they depart for Hogwarts.
I think that Harry and Ginny are equal to each other. Ginny was possessed by Voldemort and they both share that in common. Ginny also understands Harry ,and she knows when to push him and back off. Hermoione nags him all the time and Luna makes him unconfertable. Oh yea and Ginny is a powerful witch and she is smart mabe not as smart as hermione is but she is no dummie. Ginny got over her chrush on Harry when she started talking to him and saw him as just her brothers friend. I could go on but this is already really long. Oh and one last thing there were any little clues that in the books that Harry and Ginny were going to be together.
Can we just drop the insanity known as cannon. I agree with this article. I could see Harry with…Fluer’s little sister just as easily as I could with Ginny. They have just about the same amount of ‘screen time’ after all. (Until Book 6) How the blazes is someone supposed to go from ‘I don’t really care one way or the other to: I love you!!!’ In a heartbeat. Yes, Ginny may be this sweet girl. But we really know next to nothing about her.
Harry and Hermione, or Harry and Luna, or even Harry and Cho are much more realistic relations. People grow because of the people the associate with.
A marriage is based on trust.
If we ignore the epilouge We must answer this one question.
Who Does Harry trust the most (female wise)?
Would it be Hermione, who never, literally never, left his side, point just once where she truly left him, I am fairly certain it is not going to happen. Ginny who’s last words to Harry in book six were Something like…’You won’t be happy unless you’re fighting him’. (Does Harry like getting into wars or something Ginny?)
Cho, who was the leaky faucet and used Harry to get closer to Cedric, or Luna, the oddball that helped heal Harry after Sirius died.
I could go on but I don’t want to start a tirade here.
What Ginny ment in book 6 is that she knew Harry would not just sit back and wait for Voldemort to come and get him,or watch other people get hurt becuae of him. Also Harry risked his life for Ginny by finding and going in the Chamber of Secrets. Thats not really something you do for someone you don’t care about. He seamed really worried about her.When you said marriage is based on trust,so you think HArry does not trust Ginny? The other things you said about not know Ginny at all,but what do we really know about Luna or Cho ? We know just as much about Luna that we know about Ginny. How did Luna help harry heal ? She might have made him feel better for that time ,but when Harry went back home for the summer he was still greaving. He did not want to talk about Sirus at all.
I completely agree with the article. I could see Harry/Hermione or even Harry/Luna happening before Harry/Ginny, even when the books were still being written. Hermione is his only constant friend throughout the series – Harry and Ron get into a few notable fights, but he and Hermione don’t. Luna shares his pain as far as losing parents go, and while being a bit strange, they can also connect because she is an outcast and he is essentially one when they meet up in the fifth book. Ginny, on the other hand, was essentially a fangirl, who had the privilege of being younger sister to the Boy-Who-Lived’s best friend. If Harry didn’t become friends with Ron, Harry most likely would not have gone to save Ginny in the Chamber. Or if he tried to, the urgency would have been a bit less, and he probably would not have gotten there in time and she would be dead. Despite this, Ginny then disappears for pretty much two books, making a small appearance in the fifth book and then going back into the background until the 6th. The whole series could have been done without her, and frankly the adolescent romance would not have gotten in the way of the 6th book.
I agree with the article. While it is true Harry saved Ginny in the Chamber in Book 2, he did the same with Hermione, troll, in Book 1. If you’re going to say they share a connection to Voldemort in common then I’m somewhat icked to say that Harry and Ron share that same connection. There was no connection between Harry and Ginny until Book 6 at which point Harry randomly discovers he has feelings for her. If there was any hinting it was towards Cho, Luna, or Hermione. Rowling pushing Hermione at Ron shows that girls should be attracted to people they argue all the time with and have little in common with. Yeah forgive me if I don’t want to marry someone I’d likely argue with more then agree with. Cho could be pushed aside as Harry’s first crush and bad luck on getting the rebound.
Thanks Defender Paladin, Ciara, Chris! (Tracy too!)
Hermione and Ron are my second least favorite couple in the series. I could write a post on that but the title for that post would just be weird lol and Chris nails exactly what I despise most about them as a couple.
Really? Hermione wants to be with a guy that alternately cries foul that she knows more than him and then belittles her for not knowing everything he does.
Then Hermione acts towards Ron in a similar manner as Molly and that’s too weird for me . If anybody needed a mothering presence in his life it’s Harry, not Ron. Molly is plenty all on her own. lol
Harry tried to save Hermione ,but it was really Ron who saved her by knocking the troll out. I don’t really know what you mean by Harry and Ron ,but what I ment was that Harry and Ginny were the most hard hit. Yes you could argue that everyone was affected but they were the key players. The one thing I feel that is special about Harry and Ginny’s relationship is that Ginny was right in front of him the whole time and he did not notice her at all. Harry even says somthing like we could been together all long ime ago if I wasnt so dumb. Like I said before Ginny understands Harry and respects him. When he brakes up with her she just lets him ,and she dose not try to fight him about it or try to come with him because Ginny knows that he needs to do this by himself and that she would only be in the way. I really don’t think that Hermione would be able to just let Harry do his thing. I guess we have to agree to diagree. LOL HArry and Ginny are my fav couple if you can’t tell.
I think Hermoine and Ron were a better literary couple.
I love Harry, but I’m with you, not in the top 5!
The books were enjoyable even if the literary romance wasn’t, i guess you’d call it, top notch. The old patriotism found in the Hermione and Ron pairing was somewhat touching, even classical if you like the ‘love you under my words’ garble. But what upset me most was that dark space where Ginny and Harry should have been. The relationship could have been a whole lot stronger, even inspiring, if J.K. made the relation a bit more obvious and in the open. Sure there were hints, but i can’t help but feel Ginny and Harry were neglected in the whole plot of things. A repetition of their bonding would have been nice. Something of a recurrence (in all books) of their relationship would have enlightened me. Instead , the feeling like a bombshell went off near the 7th book raised an eyebrow. As for other pairings besides Ginny for Harry… eh, not quiet fond of any of them unless they’re in a fiction sense. Presumably, J.k. decided Ginny and Harry at one point for her series, so anything else would be like be like filling the king’s seat with the wrong person. Hope that’s not to contradicting to what i said earlier…
In an amazing feat of literary crap… Rowling failed in the writing of books 6 and 7. What a shame, really.
While I agree with almost everything in the article, you overlook one huge event in the story that, in fact, does set up a Ginny/Harry relationship.
That is the events of second year, in particular, the close call in the Chamber of Secrets.
Of course, the events that transpired within can be refuted and picked apart to show that, indeed, Ginny and Harry were never a romance, however… sacrifice does come into play, however briefly, and pathetically.
Ah, you’re right of course… but…
Harry noticed Hermione’s absence during the Halloween emergency in year one and forced Ron to help him find her and save her from the troll. In year four, Harry saved Gabrielle, Fleur’s sister from the mermaids. In five, Harry desired to help find Luna’s stolen things and to protect her from her classmates picked on her.
Not to mention the other people he saved throughout the series or tried too. So it could be contributed to his saving people thing more so than any romantic inclination.
i agree with everything in this article. Sorry but there is simple no way that Harry and Ginny realistically stand a chance of having a long surviving realtionship, they may get together in the end but it would soon fall apart. As far as the Chamber of secrets goes i don’t think it really mattered that it was Ginny down there, if it were anyone else boy or girl Harry would have gone down there to save them. Not to mention with the troll it was Harry who noticed Hermonie’s missing, Harry who had to drag Ron to find hermonie and Harry who jumped on the Trolls neck to distract. Comparing that to ron who had just said a magic spell which he should have gotta anyway from living surrounded by magic everyday it just doesn’t make me say oh Hermonie and ron are goign to get together
i don’t know how Ginny can understand Harry, and as far as just letting him go and fight voldemort without any help just sounds pretty cowarly to me. she knows she can’t help him. however Hermonie doesn’t let him go alone because she knows he’ll get killed, and she also knows that she is one of the few who can help him.
Also Ginny being right in front of him for most of the years but hermonie has been with him for all of those years so tracy you can see why i don’t agree but eh to each their own.
PS ignore any spelling mistakes i am running late for school so i don’t have time to fix it up laters.
Harry showed no love interest in Hermione at all. They were just friends that is all she has ever been to Harry nothing more nothing less. Your right Ginny can’t help Harry because she is underage and still has the trace on her. Ginny also knows that Harry said that he had to do it alone and that he did not want her to get hurt, and she expected him to brake up with her. She may not have wanted this but she excepted it. In the end Ginny did what she had to do and went behind everyone’s wishes and fought that’s not being a coward. I understand that a lot of people don’t like Ginny , but what I don’t see is where people say that I could have seen him with Hermione or Luna. I don’t really recall any clues that is was going to either of the two.
sorry but i disagree, there are certain parts within the series that show that harry does really care for hermione and tht she cares for harry just as much such as the troll incident, being pertfrified, helping sirius escape etc etc (though i think that the one most commonly used is the kiss at the end of the fourth book). and like i said before with Ginny she can’t possibly understand Harry because she didn’t go through the same kind of hardships that he went through hence why she is completely wrong when she said he had to do it alone why else would Ron and Hermione go with him? because they know he can’t do it alone that was pretty much the point of the power of love!. i Don’t really see Harry saying i don’t want you to get hurt just to Ginny because the type of character harry is he wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt for something he feels is responsible. Though then again you could just chalk it up to Harry believign that she is not strong enough to endure what the trio has to, which i just another point against Ginny anyway. and going behind everyone’s back fighting is pretty much a given like hell you wouldn’t do that, i would of been surprised if she didn’t.
as far as you not seeing where people say Harry could be with Hermione or Luna well that is completely up to you and how you read the books, no one will be able to change your opinion of it, only influence it. But my main point is that Harry lovign Hermione is not really told in the books so much as it is shown, yes there is friendship, there would not be a couple still together who could not say that their relationship is minimum a friendship and at most lovers. Again it comes back to how you read the books, that collective points in the series like i have mentioned above illustrate the H/Hr ship.
oh btw reading over my last comment i would like to say sorry to anyone i am have offended i was a bit of an arse in trying to express my point. So sorry
I agree with everything in this article. I loved the HP series, and it has given readers something that has been missing from children’s literature for a long time. A story that dares to tackle big questions like life and death, and love and hate.
I am not a shipper and have no real interest in who Harry ends up with. But I am a believer in Story, and whether we like it or not all stories have rules that we instinctively know to be right and which feel wrong if violated. The rules for Story are the same for life. Just as in real life we feel deceived if indications of a relationship turn out to be false, we also feel deceived if indications of a close relationship between two characters are ignored by an author in favor of an another pet character.
The fact is, the way the series was written, most readers were lead to the obvious conclusion that Harry would end up with Hermione. If Ginny really should be The One,
then we wouldn’t have to hunt through the book with a magnifying glass to find fleeting signs of interest. Nor would we have to explain to others their match. There would be no debate. Find me one person that thinks that Mr Darcy should have married someone other than Elizabeth Bennet.
Now, Ginny and Harry. It is apparent that Ms Rowling had always planned Ginny (a thinly veiled idealized version of herself, right down from the red hair to the similar consonantal sounds of their names) and Harry to meet and marry from the very start. She was as far as JK was concerned, the book’s true unsung heroine. After all, every storytelling tradition since the beginning of time has the hero marrying the heroine, no?
But, if she had intended this then why did she break the first law of the fictional heroine, by making her completely peripheral to the ENTIRE series, and giving the super intelligent Hermione (interestingly enough, a portrayal of her less idealized self) the Heroine’s role.
The heroine’s role in traditional heroic tales is not of a spunky, popular, pretty girl who is good at sports. The heroine is always the hero’s wise counsel, his help mate, his oasis and ultimately his savior. She is the one he guides him on the right path, and confronts him when he steps out of line. She is the one who is always by his side when death is staring him in the face.
If Ginny was supposed to be the heroine, the girl who at first puts her elbow in the butter then goes on ultimately to save his soul, then a skilled author would have allowed her to go on the journey WITH Harry, not allowed to languish on the sidelines till the nth hour. Then everyone would have cheered poor Ginny along the way, without FAIL.
Instead we have many fans confused because the traditional heroine role is played by Hermione! We all know it’s an authorial error, because it’s the way of story telling traditions from the beginning of time. The woman who is SHOWN to have the most growth in a story alongside the hero is the one who marries him in the end.
What she did with poor Ginny and Harry, is the literary equivalent of a Kitty Bennet marrying a Mr Darcy.
And what did Kitty do throughout the entire book apart from going to dances and being popular with boys?
And don’t get me started on the why any father would send his children to a school which was merely providing cannon fodder for Voldermort, I shall never know.
I should have said “why any father such as Harry Potter, would then send his children back to a school that ultimately provided cannon fodder for Voldemort , I shall never know.”
Ok, I’m going to do a couple of responses:
@ Tracy, #5: You say, and I quote,
“Harry risked his life for Ginny by finding and going in the Chamber of Secrets. Thats not really something you do for someone you don’t care about. He seamed really worried about her.”
First off, hate to be a nit-picker, but its seemed. Second, as Mitch brought up, Harry would have rescued anybody that was down there. Whether Hermione, or hell, even Malfoy, I believe, as Harry has his saving people thing, he would have gone down there to save him/her.
“How did Luna help harry heal ? She might have made him feel better for that time ,but when Harry went back home for the summer he was still greaving. He did not want to talk about Sirus at all.”
Right… How exactly did Ginny help Harry heal over that summer? I must have missed that.
@#6: Ciara: Yes! thank you for bringing up the fangirl. Wasn’t she more or less in love with him from like age 5? Before she even met him? I wouldn’t put it past a crazy fangirl who is sure she is in love with Harry to use Amortentia…
@#9:Tracy (again)
Ok, sure. Ron knocked out the troll. Big frickin’ deal. Would he have gone if Harry hadn’t dragged him? Who was the first to respond in the bathroom? *CoughHarryCough* Who tried to tackle a troll? (See previous cough) Who was the reason she was in there? Ron of course!
@ #16: Tracy! What a surprise!
“Harry showed no love interest in Hermione at all. They were just friends that is all she has ever been to Harry nothing more nothing less.”
Right… and lets think about something for a second. disregarding the “beast” that appeared in book 6, when did Harry show any love interest in Ginny? They were just friends, and it appeared in the fifth book it was going to stay that way.
“In the end Ginny did what she had to do and went behind everyone’s wishes and fought that’s not being a coward.”
Right… and so did Colin Creevy, and a whole bunch of others. you don’t see Harry marrying them, do you? (granted, Colin died, but still. He was the same kind of crazy fan…)
“but what I don’t see is where people say that I could have seen him with Hermione or Luna. I don’t really recall any clues that is was going to either of the two.”
Okay. that’s a valid point. no real hints are dropped that he wants to go out with either of them. Well, he does ask Luna out (though as friends), but besides that, your right.
Okay, now my questions/responses:
-anyone else weirded out by how Ginny’s description matches Lily’s pretty closely?
-Anyone have parents (I’m assuming a stable family life here, so please don’t respond if you are otherwise. not to sound cruel, but that’s a small minority) that seem to always be fighting? No. Most couples tend to trust one another with almost anything (*CoughHermione/HarryCough*)
Your right Harry does have a saving person thing and you could argue that he only went after Hermione in the bathroom because of his saving people thing too. Ginny made Harry happy by making him laugh (laughter is best medicine) She played Qudditch (I didn’t say Ginny helped him heal) the reason I said that Ginny fought in the last battle was because someone said that Ginny was a coward. I wasn’t saying that she was the only person to fight. As far as the fan girl thing goes Ginny was not the only one who got excited about Harry being a celebrity (example Ron, Fred, George) she had a crush on him she was not a fan girl Romilda Vane no thats a fan girl. I think most people talk to celerity’s and don’t get so embarrassed that they don’t talk to them. She was 11 years old it was just an innocent crush.
I just don’t get how people see Harry saving Ginny as a base for romance when Hermione said in book five or six that Harry has a “Saving people thing” If it would have been RON or HERMIONE in the chamber he would have done the SAME THING. It had nothing to do with romantic feelings and that shouldn’t have been the base for it. Harry and Ginny have essentially nothing in common aside from their love for quidditch and the heck if that makes a romance. both being in the same house doesn’t either. Ginny being brave doesn’t either because all of Harry’s friends are brave. All of Harry’s friends risked their lives, I don’t get why Ginny suddenly became his love interest when their were no real clues previously.
Honestly, I like Ron/Hermione. Their arguments may seem stupid, but their is a wonderful explanation for it. Both Ron and Hermione like their squabbles. Harry doesn’t and it may seem annoying as its from his own view because he himself doesn’t like arguing, but Ron and Hermione do. I also am a fan of Harry/Luna. I thought they’d be better than H/G.
Tracy read the books through out the whole serious she is pointing toward Harry/ Hermione. Then WHAM, he is head over heals in love with Ginny right after they learn about love potions. Also their is NOT ONE little hint about Hermione liking Ron, who by the why ruined the biggest night of her adult. Can you look me in the eye and say that you would date the guy that ruined your prom because he didn’t like your date?
didn’t think so you would have strong feeling for said idiot and i know the like wouldn’t even be in the same time zone. get real Harry with Ginny makes about as much since as Albus Servius Potter…. How stupid does Rowling think we are?
Why do people like Harry/Luna ? He laughs at her, feels embarassed for her and by her, feels pity for her and describes her in the most unattractive way possible. He also doesn’t feel that comfortable around her. How on earth would that make a good pairing ?
Shadow I have read all the books several times and don’t see how it was point to Harry and Hermione. Seriously give some examples in the books because I don’t see it. That’s ok if you don’t want to be in a relationship with someone like Ron .but Hermione does. I agree with Lina about Harry and Luna.
i dont and will never agree with this artical. It is full of balone. I think harry and ginny are a great couple. I mean sure she wasnt in a few books but still they are perfect for each other. and probable the late bloom of love and passion harry & ginny have for each other is because that love was just building and building over time.
I also think ron & hermione are a great couple. I mean sure they dont have alot in comen but they have loved each other for years are you that stupid. there were loads of sighns. In the second book book hermione huged harry because they were just friends but she didnt hug ron they just shook hands, then it got all ocwared bettwen them.
And with that i rest my case. some people are just totaly clueles wen it comes to relationships.
and i also definatly disagree with shadow mabey you should read the seventh book again mabey you will understand about albus severis potter.
I disagree with this comment. Not every story telling tradition requires a romantic ending, so I don’t see how this could be true.
I agree that Harry and Ginny had very little chemistry as a couple. (At least, in the book. I think there was more in the films, but I’d have to watch them again to be sure.) But at the same time, Harry always struck me as someone who just wanted a quiet life with a loving family. In that sense, marriage with Ginny gives him his dream.
I love that Rowling resisted the temptation to pair Hermoine up with Harry. I think there was a bit of do-I-don’t-I for harry in Goblet of Fire, but I love that Rowling keeps it platonic.
I love Ron and Hermione. I wasn’t at all surprised by this couple because they were shown spending lots of time together during their holidays. I love that the guy who’s always in Harry’s shadow gets the best girl in the end.
There was more in the movie. It’s actually quite plausible due to the acting and movie script.
Still, Ginny is very left field. She really is not in the picture until she’s suddenly in the picture.
Harry doesn’t have any real conversation with Ginny; not like with Luna.
In the movie, Ginny comes across like she cares for Harry.
The books read more like the fangirl getting her dream guy… it was just shallow.
I’m listening to the audio version of Half-Blood Prince again. I will post more observations as I hear them.
In my personal opinion, the way Rowling wrote Harry/Ginny’s romance merely seems like a highschool crush. How it sort of appears out of nowhere, yet how it seems like its a forever thing.
If Rowling fleshed out the romance a bit in the previous books, the fans of the series wouldn’t be scratching their heads and complaining like they are (no offense intended).
Lol – delusional fangirl shippers are delusional.
You seem to forget that Harry Potter is not romance literature. It is not literature about romance.
It is literature that includes (a bare minimum) of romance.
The romantic development happens off-page. Because this isn’t a story about romance.
Of course delusional HarMOANians and H/L shippers will never understand that.
(Link found via Portkey)
I don’t deny that Harry Potter is NOT romance. I wrote the article as a response (to a now invalid link) at Miami Book Examiners that put Harry/Ginny in the top 10 Romantic Literary Couples of All Time.
I am sorry that some H/G shippers (I repeat, SOME) feel the need to respond to this well written article calling anyone who doesn’t share their view “delusional”… it reflects really badly on the fans of couple, who before this comment had been discussing the issue in a completely civilized manner.
Anyway, I’m here thanks to a link posted @ Fanforum’s Couples We Dislike Thread (which, as you can imagine, is pretty much ruled by Harry/Ginny dislike) and what can I say other than wonderful article, I agree with every point. It is indeed true that both Harry/Hermione and Harry/Luna would have made far more sense.
harry wud hve saved anybody, thats who he is. he has saved malfoy ron ginny mr weasley hermione from death and in the last book alot of muggle borns while he was in the ministry. little on page action between harry and ginny. like someone said it just happened, a monster roared within his chest its just like all of a sudden out of nowhere he notices her. as for ginny rowlings did drop hints throughout the whole series that she has loved him. starting when fred george and ron take harry to the burrow and ginny runs off when seeing harry and knocks things over. in the first book ginny begs her mother to let her see him and gets excited but at the time of course we think thats only becuz hes famous. but if u look throughout the book series there are hints and its obvious this ginny/harry thing has been planned since the beginning
Lol, Harry and Luna? Many people don’t even think this pairing exist at all. Luna barely got any development in the books, she never changes and she’s this adorable loner we’re suppose to love. She’s the Mary Sue. And she’s like a child, Harry would be like a pedophile if he ever date Loony. Any pairing but this.
But what if the Harry/Ginny relationship developed after Book 7?
I mean, by the time the series is over Harry is 17 and Ginny is 16… hardly anyone has a serious relationship at that age. I didn’t start one until I was 19, with a guy I knew since I was 14… yet we never showed any romantic interest in the other until I was 18.
Hence, I agree with the article in that there wasn’t much H/G romance throughout the books and any of the other girls could have been a better romantic choice for Harry. The H/G romance didn’t seem realistic.
But again, my point is… what if Harry and Ginny didn’t really hit it off as a rightful couple until after Ginny graduated from Hogwarts? They would have a 5 year span (at least) to build a relationship before James II is born, and since there’s no Voldemort around anymore I don’t think they would have had much interruptions xD
while i agree that harry and ginny are nowhere near the top 5,let alone top 20,some of your arguments to back it up are a bit tame,especially those that think that harry would have likely ended up with either luna or hermione,i mean come on..lol..what indication in the books,a true indication down on paper was there that suggested that he would end up with one of the 2,especially luna,you surely know harry better than that.on the other hand there also was no hint what so ever about ginny.my biggest problem about the 2 is that jk never gave them a single conversation in book six to show the reasons why harry liked her to begin with,coz even though he talked about liking her and fighting that ‘monstor’ he never actually really explains the qualities that make him like her..the relationship between him and cho,though doomed for various reasons,was a lot more realistic and satisfying..this one was just…rushed..
it’s not a romance novel yes,but hello,not even a decent conversation between the 2 of them while they were a couple,apart from the break up bit?puh-lease
.)
Great article , I agree with everything you’ve said. My personal favorite would be Luna, or even better, just forget the epilogue. Without it, everyone could have made their own ending of Harry Potter and it would have been perfect, Instead we got this mushy crap fest, which was the only part in any Harry Potter book I genuinely disliked .
Wow, a lot of different opinions. First of all, I don’t really like disagreeing with the author about how the story goes or who ends up with who. Rowling saw them together in her head and she wrote it so well that I just can’t see any other couples than the ones she wrote about.
You could notice from book one that Harry and Hermoine would be and stay friends, nothing else. And about Ginny… Well, I know that there aren’t much people who like her but I liked her because she was mysterious. And after that I liked it even better, to learn more about her. To me, she is the perfect fit for Harry. She’s Ron’s sister, which makes the best friends even closer, she’s quite intelligent, and I guess that the both of them look soooo much alike with James and Lily. I could go on, but bottomline, I think they’re really adorable. Ron and Hermoine even so. They are my absolute favourites. They complete eachother, isn’t that enough? Why do you have to be similar in a relationship? Sounds like a enormous mistake to me.
I agree with this article. But I want to make a comment about being in a relationship with someone similar. It’s not always an enormous mistake. My boyfriend is very similar to me. The main differences between us is he’s a game freak and I’m a book freak. Just because your similar doesn’t mean it’s a mistake. After all not everybody who is similar is exactly alike it just means they have common interests. I’m going to quote one of my favorite authors on her comment about Love when asked why her character Alanna ended up with George instead of Jon. “It’s hard to describe a relationship like theirs to people, because most of us were raised to think love is fire, passion, and prolonged bouts of giddiness and strained emotions. The quieter kind of love looks kinda boring on the surface, even cool-hearted. Nobody wants that at first. Some people never learn how wonderful it is to be friends with a lover or spouse, to know that here is someone you can be yourself around, and they will love you anyway, sometimes not in spite of your worse characteristics, but because of them. That kind of lover will stay with you through thick and thin, will make you feel valued always, and will make any disastrous occasion seem less so because you are with that person.” That’s just a snippet but I think it fits rather well. I think it fits especially well for Harry and Hermione. They’re my favorite pairing but I can read just about any pairing. I personally just never thought that Harry/Ginny made no sense. I can agree about romance being developed but some people are forgetting that Ginny told Harry that she always knew she would end up with him. I can’t remember the exact quote now but that sounds a little like a fan-girl to me. Someone commented on Ron and the Twins getting to know him for his fame. Yes that’s true but they also got over it in his first year. Ron kept showing the signs of jealousy true but the twins never did. In fact they didn’t want to take Harry’s winnings from the Tournament he had to force them do so. Please do let me know where Ginny gets over that after meeting him? Also someone commented about the Lilly thing and I have to agree that it would be disturbing to date someone who looked like my dad. I’m a girl so obvioulsy I’ve switched it but the reasoning still stands. Also Harry appears to get jealous out of nowhere and in book 5 he didn’t care that she was dating different guys in fact I don’t believe he took much notice of it at all. Sorry for my absurdly long post. I like to chat and I also enjoy debates so I couldn’t resist adding in my own two cents.
First off Gnny never said that she always knew she would end up with him. Ginny said she never gave up hope that he would finally notice her. I also want to point out that crushes docome out of nowhere all the time. One day you could be friends with someone at the next ay you could have a crush it happens. Harry suddenly had a crush on Cho in his third year, and that came out of nowhere but people don’t complain about that. I don’t think Ron knew he had a crush on Hermione until she went out with someone else. The something happened to Harry with Ginny. She got to spend all summer with Harry and she showed her personality and they had fun together. Throughout the 6th book we get kind of see that Harry missed spending time with her because they did not really hang out with the same people at school. Harry just did not realize that he had feeling for her until he saw her kissing Dean.
True enough. You make some good points Tracy. I know some people get violent over the pairings but like I’ve said I will read just about anything. The main reason I always thought he and Hermione would be a great pair is because she was at his side through thick and thin and always looking out for him. In a way I think Hermione probably understands him better than anybody. That’s just me. I think that really Harry could end up with just about anything and on the Cho thing that would be because he’s a teenager in that book and Cho is one of the prettiest girls in the school and he probably noticed her because of the Quiditch thing. That crush was a bit more consistent than the one he had on Ginny because to me he was crushing on Cho for about 3 books. The Ginny thing kinda seemed forced to me and that was because his best friends had gotten wrapped up in their own little problems and he felt maybe a bit left out and he was still upset about Sirius’s death. Someone commented on how she knew when to not force him well sometimes you do need to force your friends to talk. After all it’s not healthy for them to keep everything bottled up inside.
I DO NOT AGREE with this atrtical at all! How do you think Harry\Luna be a good relation ship? So he took her to Slighorns party. he only took her because she was the only girl not begging him to take her. Cho betraied him. Hermione is like a sister to him. She’s his best friend. Harry and Ginny are a match made in heaven. So is Hermione and Ron. Out of the four girls either Ginny or Hermione would be his best match but Ginny is the very best. Ron and Hermione are my favorite couple and Harry and Ginny are my second. I agree all the way with Tracy.
All issues of other pairings aside, I think Harry/Ginny fails on its own merits – or lack of them. But on the whole Rowling seems to fail at her romances. She’s clearly an adventure/mystery writer and I think she probably would have done well to just avoid the subject for the most part, rather than throwing in epilogues that marry people off and weird gratuitous pairings. I mean, when you think about it, Tonks and Remus came out of nowhere and had no development, and so did Bill and Fleur. Arthur and Molly were probably her best couple and they were already well-established in their marriage. Lily and James and Lily and Snape were both romantic in their own ways but were only ever seen through fairly distant lenses, and for all we know Lily and James would have been divorced in a few years if Voldemort hadn’t killed them. Ron and Hermione had that whole love/hate thing from the get-go, but even though it was clear (to me, anyway) that she was going to pair them off from the first book, she did such a poor job actually developing the reasons why they SHOULD be together (versus the obstacles she gave them) that the whole thing just seemed pretty anti-climactic when it finally happened. In the same way Harry and Ginny might have had hints early on, but they were far more vague and subjective and in the end the pairing was poorly executed. Harry’s thoughts seemed more lustful than loving – tempered by the fact that he’s a good person, and so not an utter jerk to people he lusts after and probably unfamiliar with recognizing the difference in feelings – and none of the issues for the pairing are ever really resolved. There are too many reasons for Harry to be with Ginny that have nothing to do with Ginny. People cite her being Ron’s sister as a benefit – but Harry wants to have a family like the Weasleys, and so from a romantic perspective it actually puts a dent in the idea, because what if her appeal for him has more to do with her family than herself? It’s sort of like if someone who’s always wanted to be a head chef dates someone who owns a restaurant. Even just subconsciously they might have ulterior motives, and unless those are addressed I’m left to think that they’re unresolved. My impression of the pair is that Harry started dating her and wound up marrying her because he couldn’t break ties with her without feeling like he’d be breaking ties to her family as well. Not very romantic. Then there is, as someone mentioned, the fact that what we know about Ginny and what we know about Lily is freakishly similar. Considering the pedastal Harry puts his mother on… well, it just makes me think that he doesn’t know Ginny at all. In Chamber of Secrets when he goes to rescue her he’s not thinking about how a friend of his is in trouble. He’s thinking about how nice the Weasleys have been to him, and how Ron’s his best friend and he doesn’t want them to lose their little girl. There’s nothing to indicate that Harry’s there for Ginny in specific and not her family in general, and that holds true for the entire series.
Also, to Cris’ comment about Luna being a Mary-Sue – a Mary-Sue is a wish-fulfilment character who is unrealistic and acts as an avatar for the author (or the reader, sometimes) to insert themselves and live out a fantasy with impossible standards, either from the world they’re in or from the other characters of the story. How is that, in any way, Luna Lovegood?
Lessa, of course you don’t want to date anyone that looks exactly like your father or mother; but It was actually proved that you find people more attractive if they have the same features as your parent from the opposite sex. It’s nothing freaky or anything, just science. But you do have a point about the love thing. With some people love is passionate and for others it means stability. But I think you have to have loads of passion at first and later on, as the relationship evolves, you have other priorities. Though I believe, when in a healthy relationship, the passion never dies.
Anyways, everyone has their own opinion. I don’t mind, keeps things interesting
@#32: That is exactly what I thought when I read the crazy debate going on here. (Plus, love your ‘name’! Can’t wait for the next book!)
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion of course, but in the end Harry DID end up with Ginny. Therefore discussion about alternatives is in and of itself, ridiculous. Personally, I find Ron/Hermione to be the relational travesty in the books and not Harry/Ginny.
The majority of comments here are severely off topic, since this article isn’t about whether or not Harry and Ginny should have ended up together, and instead whether or not they should be counted as one of the great literary couples of all time. In which case I first refer back once more to Asha’s comment at #32. This isn’t supposed to be romance! And secondly say, agreed. Since they aren’t developed a romantic couple, they don’t really stand up next to couples that are (Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett being the primary example).
I totally agree with you!
Harry and Ginny was never meant to be, maybe only in Ginny’s head. Ginny was one of the most boring character there was in the JK world, she wasn’t developed very well, the readers’d always be told she was special, but in fact we’ve never really got to see it. And then their romance started out of nowhere.
I was for some time a H/Hr fan, and I still like them together, but over the years I’ve got more and more convinced that Harry and Luna should be the ones together. They just seemed to get each other. Sometimes I even think that maybe JK thought it too, but in the end she didn’t have enough courage to make them a couple.
I completely agree with this article, and in fact I am glad there are people around who like me strongly disliked the 7th book, and the romance in HP.
First of, I believed in the beginning of their adolescence that Hr/R were destined to be together. When Book 7 and Ron’s ‘betrayal’ came out though, I felt it was stupid to let the most intelligent witch of her generation and a stupid bloke who happens to be good at chess (I seriously can’t explain that talent) get together.
Now, there are arguments against and in favor of all ships, but personally I just can’t see Harry with any of the girls… Sure Hermione helps him, but… It is always a sisterly kind of love, there are some people who just can’t be romantically involved. Heck, I am a fan of HP Slash, as long as it’s well written, but Harry/Ginny… I’ll explain why it is utterly pointless immediately.
Ginny is, was, and will be, a fangirl. I agree with Tracy’s comment on how all crushes start out of the blue, but it’s just that, CRUSHES. No way can you fall in love, yet alone marry a person you met when you were 12 and realized they existed after 5 years.
There’s no dynamic in the pair. Harry is too kind, gentle, and broken from life for Ginny to understand, who grew up in a loving family and faced no true danger until the Riddle incident in CoS. She just passes off as Ron’s little sister until in Book 6 she is suddenly transformed into a rare beauty, with, I quote “her long red hair dancing behind her”. If that’s not OOC, then I don’t know what is!
I had not thought of the possibility Ginny used Amortentia on Harry… Interesting idea, and it would fit with Harry being powerful enough to fight the sudden impulses that appeared in the beginning of the school year.
Er. Tell me again, how in the blazes Ginny is the perfect match for Harry? They share nothing in common, and Ginny was turned into a Mary Sue in B6. Sarcastic, funny, with witty comebacks, a temper, beautiful, and popular. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight.
Harry is too deep and Ginny too shallow.
I don’t think H/Hr would work, as I said, siblings in my head, Luna… Haven’t read a story about them yet, I can see her with Neville more easily. If you are against slash I suppose your choices are limited, but I’m not so…
Really though, guys, JKR had to give Harry a romance acceptable by the teenagers, as I guess most H/G and Hr/R supporters are. After GoF, the books for me went downhill in regards of character development, though the plot and the Horcrux idea was amazing, not to mention the Deathly Hallows. The moment HP became the most popular book in the world, JKR had fans to please before creating the story as it was in her head. I for one believe she intended to kill Harry, thus the non-existent romance (I’m not counting Cho) and the sudden appearance of his everlasting love for Ginny. I guess it wouldn’t be a good idea to kill the hero of so many kids, so she had to follow a different course. My guess is she doesn’t even like the romance, but had no other choice.
Thankfully there’s fanfiction around!
I have to say that i agree with the author of this article entire, in fact I would say it doesn’t go far enough. I have wondered since OotP what happened to this story as less than half way into the book it was if a different author entirely took over the writing. Harry Potter started as a series for children and ended the series in a pair of books I would not let a child read.
The whole Harry/Ginny mess was…pitiful. Harry who has always hated attention and notoriety is suddenly paired with his greatest fangirl who according to the books used to play marrying Harry Potter as a child. In fact I kept flipping back and forth in the books trying to figure out where I missed the lead in to the ‘romance’ and wondering if there was a missing unpublished book or if a psychotic editor had done a hack job on the manuscript or the characters had suddenly developed schizophrenia as at times I really had trouble recognizing them as the the same characters from earlier books. I too as many have mentioned kept waiting for the Amortentia punchline and found the joke was on me.
So I wouldn’t call it ‘great literary romance’ I would in truth be hard pressed to call it even teenage hormones.
Just want to share my shallow comments. I don’t feel any chemistry between Harry and Ginny. Compared to that pairing I’d rather go for a Malfoy-Hermione pairing. Now, that would be a great story. haha..
“I had always planned that Harry’s true soul mate, which I stand by, is Ginny, and that Ron and Hermione have this combative but mutual attraction. They will always bicker, there will always be rough edges there, but they are pulled together, each has something the other needs.”
I stared at her, sensing she wasn’t finished, and a sense of foreboding crept in around the edges.
“[Kloves] felt a certain pull between them at that point. And I think he’s right. There are moments when [Harry and Hermione] touch, which are charged moments. One when she touches his hair as he sits on the hilltop reading about Dumbledore and Grindelwald, and [two] the moment when they walk out of the graveyard with their arms around each other.”
I was holding my breath at this point. She wasn’t done.
“Now the fact is that Hermione shares moments with Harry that Ron will never be able to participate in. He walked out. She shared something very intense with Harry.
“So I think it could have gone that way.”
Directly From J.K’s mouth. She preferred Ginny, but it easily could of been Hermione. One of the reasons she didn’t change it was because of how far the story was already planned for in advance. Also Hermione was based on her, Ron on her EX-husband, Harry on her current husband, and Ginny how she wished she was like back as a teenager. When looked at like that its hard to deny that Hermione and Harry had only a brother/sister connection. Even the director from blasted movies even thought that it was gonna be H/Hr.
i disagree with the article. maybe there is no conversation between harry and ginny till the 5th book,so what! ginny had always loved harry but she could never tell about it to him.harry could not realize his love for ginny because he did not spend enough time with her. but in the sixth book , harry spends time with ginny. he starts having feelings about her and feels jealous when he sees her with dean. i think harry/ginny is a great couple.
even ron and hermione is also a great couple. JKRowling had always given clues of their being 2gether. sorry for spelling and grammatical mistakes.
I totally agree. When I read the books and it became obvious these two were getting together, I kept thinking, “Where did SHE come from?” I liked Ron and Hermione, but Ginny seemed a bit bland and her character never really came to life for me.
Ginny is very generic. She’s practically a Mary-Sue if you think about it. Pretty. Popular. Sporty. Smart. She’s too good at everything to be realistic.
I disagree the article.
Ginny was possesed by Voldemort in book two. She probaley didnt have that many friends that year like Harry shuns his in book 5. Ginny is strong and knows not to push Harry like Hermione. Hermione just nags and Luna always stares off in space. Ginny makes Harry laugh and forget about all of dark lord problems when they are around each other, he said this himself in book 6. While hermione always wants to plan it and Luna just says riddles about the furture.
What people dont understand is that the book doesnt say every interaction with every character. Harry and Ginny could of talked alot during the summer to book 6 so he starts a crush that turns into jealousy with dean. J.K. Rowling knows the characters better than everyone else and she said so herself that they are ‘soul mates’ so I think we should just leave it to her to know what kind of people have the best romantic conncections.
What’s the point in getting into such a fuss over someone’s PERSONAL choices ? No wonder people say HP shippers are crazy.
It’s ironic how Harry being with his “#1 fangirl” is the very thing that made him feel for once like he wasn’t the famous Harry Potter.
Harry told Ginny that their time together was like something out of someone elses life. Being with her made him feel like a normal wizard, who didn’t have the fate of the wizarding world resting on his shoulders.
(From DH Chapter 8:
Harry’s mind wandered a long way from the marquee, back to afternoons spent alone with Ginny in lonely parts of the school grounds. They seemed so long ago; they had always seemed too good to be true, as though he had been stealing shining hours from a normal person’s life, a person without a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead.)
After all that Harry had suffered, he deserved someone that could give him that life, free of Voldemort, free of the war.
Ginny grew out of her fangirl phase, just as Harry grew out of his phase with Cho.
Also, the whole “Amortentia” excuse is really getting old! I think you’re confusing Ginny with that Romilda Vane chick.
Mary Sue? The book is told from Harry’s POV and he thought Ginny was perfect! That’s why Ginny comes off looking like a Mary Sue, when she is anything but!
to be honest, I don’t care about Harry and Ginny much. my fave couple, and not only in HP, but in the whole literature is Ron and Hermione. they really match each other. yes, they love bickering. maybe that’s because each of them tried to hide feelings for another…
I didn’t see in the books any hints on H/Hr. and I’m sure that if they’re together, they would die from boredom. both Harry and Hermione need someone who will provide lightness to their lifes. and those people are Ginny and Ron.
not to mention that Harry likes pretty girls. and he obviously never saw Hermione as one of them.
and I hate that JK listen to that idiot Kloves…
sorry for my English
I could never really see Harry with Ginny aside from the “oddly furtive look” in HBP, but I disregarded because everyone was insanely out of character. The only constant for Harry throughout the entire series has been Hermione.
Book 1, she’s with him up until the potion scene.
Book 2, she’s petrfied, but solves almost everything before she goes.
Book 3, that was her book. The entire plot centralized on her.
Book 4, even with the interest of another guy, she’s still with Harry 100% even after Ron walks away.
Book 5, she and Harry in battle together was an incredible visual and the scene where he thought she was dead was pretty powerful. They were even paired up how I thought they would be romantically in the Department of Mysteries: Harry/Hermione, Ron/Luna, and Ginny/Neville.
Book 6, when she’s wrong, she’s not off by much. Even in an argument, she’s still there for Harry. Doesn’t anyone else find it weird that she knows the way to Harry’s heart?
Book 7, three words: Bonded for Life. Need I say more?
The Epilogue? Harry and Hermione didn’t even speak. Even Malfoy got a head nod, what the heck? In fact the only person she spoke towas Ron.
Wow, I came into this one late, didn’t I?
I admit I felt cheated by the love relationships in Potterworld…they never did seem to sit right with me. I was shocked as hell when I found out that Hermione didn’t end up with Harry. I thought perhaps there might be some sort of lover’s triangle thing go on for a while with Ron, but Harry would win the day. But Ginny??? Out of left field.
@Tracy Cooper-Posey: Very left field! I think Harry and Ginny come off as a tell not a show in the writing. As in JKR went, “Dangit! I meant these two to get together from the beginning and they will because I say so!” as opposed to any actual text to show readers they were meant to be together.
@HPfan:
Exactly and that’s how it read to others. It wasn’t HP anymore it was some random bloke like Perry Rotter.
“But, Harry and Ginny ARE romantic! She loves him for the longest time and he saves her from the Chamber and then he started to notice her but they can’t be together yet and he goes off to kill the bad guy and then he comes back and marry her!” That’s what my 12-year old cousin told me in regard of H/G being romantic or not.
So, I guess Harry and Ginny ARE one of the Great Literary Romances, at least for a child, well it’s a child book to begin with anyway. But, if you analyze it with an adult point of view, yes, they seem to be something missing there…
And I think that’s why JKR jumps to 19 years later, Harry Potter is NOT a romance book.
I think there is more material that would make a Harry/McGonagall pairing than Harry/Ginny.
I think the only semi-pairing that was good was the one-sided love between Snape and Lily.
Harry/Luna or Hermoine would have made more sense. Both of them are rather knowledable about the wizarding world and they would know about books that were writen about him and his parents. The only diference between Luna and Hermoine is that Luna gently pushes Harry into the right direction whereas Hermoine forces him.
None of the pairings in the series made sense, The only married couple we saw were the Malfoys and the Weasleys. Neither of them was romantic in any way.
Read my facebook on the matter of their relationship! I agree, Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley were never meant to be together.
I’m amazed so many people just couldn’t see the Harry/Ginny coming. It just seemed so clear … anvil sized hints and all. But of course, if one things being nagged or laughing at, pitying someone and being embarassed by them has romantic potential, then maybe it’s not such a surprise.
Also, Rettop – Does Ginny not have any knowledge of the Wizarding World ? You know, being a witch all her life and not just gaining the info from books ? WTF biased much ?
I realize this is kinda late but maybe someone will come across it and agree. Anyway I always felt like the H/G and H/R romances [which I don't support] were forcing them all into being a family since Harry has no one and Hermione had her parents sent to Australia (?) but is basically alone. This way they were all incorporated and would be forever tied together. But I also felt that was stupid after everything HHR went through. Does this make any sense? Anyway I wanted Harry/Hermione or Harry/Luna and Hermione/Anyone but Ron [Actually I like Hermione/Draco but that wouldn't fit into what's been presented in the books]
Aw, I missed a great discussion.
I agree with you for the most part–the idea of Harry and Ginny as a “romantic couple,” let alone of the greatest of all time, is hi-larious. I actually do like Harry and Ginny as a couple–at least now Harry gets to be part of the Weasely family–but I was very disappointed in the way it was handled in the books. You’re right, there’s like 3 lines of, “Oh, I spent the summer with Ginny and it was awesome!” and that about it.
As for Hermione and Harry, or Hermione and Ron, I always thought it was a bit odd Harry never even thought of her as more than a friend. It’s great that we’ve reached a place in male/female relationships where boys and girls can be friends and everything’s cool, but I (vaguely) remember being a teenager, and I just can’t see any of the kids not at least playing the scenario out in their minds, you know what I mean?
Harry and Hermione I can see as a couple. Hermione and Ron…? Yeah, it’s a bit odd. He’s not really at her level.
As for the REAL epic romance in HP–urm, the one between me and Snape that goes on in my head? ;P Oh, no, wait–Snape and Dumbledore! They were having an affair the entire time. It all makes sense now….
LMAO!
Actually I think it must be Dumbledore and Grindelwald – their lurv was star-crossed, unrequited, caused Wizard World War 1, involved the most epic of epic trophy wands, a struggle between friendship and frienemies, forced one to imprison another in a tower for the rest of their freakishly long lives between two uncannily intelligent men with a knack for foolish wand waving.
That’s genius.
Oh, the tortured love life of Albus Dumbledore, always pining for Grindelwald but knowing he can never have him….
Snape might be there somewhere in the middle too – poor Snape. Caught between Voldy and Dumbledore.
Plus his unrequited love for Lily.
Oh, wow, brilliant post! Cheers to someone who thinks about these ‘so’ important matters as much as me.
I will admit it, there have been times when I wondered why, oh why, Harry and Hermione couldn’t have been meant for each other?–why Harry smelled Ginny’s scent on the Amortentia fumes in book six, for instance, while Hermione smelled…what? ( I always wondered, because it clearly signaled Ron, because she blushed and stopped talking, recognizing the connection. Dirty socks? Owl droppings? Aunt Tessie’s armpits?)
In J.K.’s defense, these things are inexplicable, no only in romance, but real life. AND, Rowling wasn’t writing a romance.
I just had to add, at the risk of people throwing tomatoes at me for being Freudian: Harry never had a mother. Genny is red-haired like his mother. She’s feisty and full of vibrancy. She’s the ‘favorite’ of Slughorn, just like Lily was.
Er…yeah, I think J.K. knew she was making these parallels.
Thanks for the fun post!
Oh, I think Snape and Dumbledore are definitely man crushing on one another. Why else would Dumbledore put up with him?
@#47 The whole passion before settling down thing doesn’t seem like as much to me. I’m probably biased but when I read The Song of the Lioness series the Heroine Alanna ended up with George because whenever she walked into a room that he was in she was home. George and Alanna had a quieter love but there was passion to it. George worried over her whereas Jon cheated on her. I also agree with the whole bit about Ginny being so popular. Ginny has very little she and Harry can share. Luna as someone pointed out has known Loss and Hermione has always been there for him and she doesn’t let him bottle everything up. She makes him let it out because it’s healthier. Ginny was raised on bedtime stories of him. They just don’t work to me.
Ginny also shares Loss with him doesn’t she ? She also tells him to STFU when he needs it where Hermione doesn’t ( aka read OOTP). And she also shares a common sense of humour with him and passion for quidditch. Finally, she is the ONLY person who shares a possession by Voldermort. Very little that she and Harry can share ? Are you serious ? Did you even READ the books ? If Luna and Harry sharing “loss” can be enough for the basis of a relationship (say what ?) then surely Harry and Ginny have the most basis because they share the most than Harry does with Luna or Hermione !
Also, she was raised on bedtime stories of him ? Not in my copy of the book – that’s your own personal projection I think – it’s never stated anywhere in the book ya know ?
Also I have to laugh at all the comments about Ginny being boring and undeveloped and then all this stuff about Luna being so great. Seriously ? That’s Luna – boring and undeveloped. Plus Harry kind of laughs at her and pities her – no way did JKR ever consider going there. Or else, woah, that’d be a major fail.
I like Harry Potter as a mystery, adventure, fantasy story I complete ignore the undeveloped, unrealistic, shallow, and forcedly written romances in this book, every single one. I always wanted Harry to die. After reading the books over and over I have come to the conclusion that Harry Potter is such a shallow jerk. Hermione is a bossy old maid, Ron is for comic relief (sidekick) Ginny is fangirl.
To be on topic I really don’t think Harry and Ginny relationship should be on the same level as Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy – that is just offensive. So I guess I agree with everything said in this article.
i agree that rowling did a shitty job writing the relationship, but i think they would have made a good couple otherwise… well to be honest, harry was too busy surviving and saving the world to have “true love” romances. it would be better if ginny was just portrayed as a distraction, as the hot piece of ass harry got to have with and enjoy for a while… and then went onto his mission. but no, she is supposed to be like his soulmate, and its sooooo terribly written!! =/
i’m a huge ron/hermione shipper though. they belong together.
why are there so many harmony shippers?? it was obvious that ron would end up with mione since the first meeting. its the takahashi couple, one that never gets old if its well handled. i think ron/hermione was well handled, or at least decently. i dont see any h/hr hints at all o.O
takahashi couple???
and ron isnt stupid. i think people are watching the movies too many times. ron is insecure about his abilities and feels like less when he isn’t, that’s why he acts stupid. he’s smarter than he acts. he and hermione balance out each other really well.
the romance in harry potter made sense to me. although yes harry ginny was not well written but when it comes out from the mouth of a bitter h/hr shipper i get annoyed.
there were many conversations between ron and mione that harry missed too. its just told from harry’s pov and we don’t see them. ron and hermione belong together in jo’s world, and maybe hermione belongs with draco in fanfiction world XD. but h/hr is ridiculous!! what are people thinking?
and ron and luna?? what? ron thinks she’s nuts. yes, he starts admiring her courage, uniqueness or whatever it is later like harry in book six, but that doesnt automatically mean romantic love. jeez…
the bickering couple… rumiko takahashi is famous for all her bickering couples, thats why i called ron/herm a takahashi couple.
Actually, I disagree. Entirely. You seriously need to read the books again, and perhaps this time you should read them a little bit more thoroughly. Throughout the entire series Harry notices little tidbits about Ginny. He watches her run after the train, notices that her eyes glitter in the fire and that she acts like a cat. They have the fact that they’ve both been posessed in common, Ginny understands what Harry has gone through more than anyone else because she was mentally raped by Voldemort her entire first year. It was slowly developed, and Ginny is the perfect person for Harry. While Ron and Hermione cower and cry when Harry gets mad at them, Ginny always stood up and put him in his place. Hermione and Harry would have been another Lily and James. Lily was the smartest witch of her age…Hermione was the smartest witch of her age. Lily frowned upon rule breaking…Hermione frowned upon rule breaking. Lily and Hermione were both book worms, both bossy, both muggle born. The only thing Ginny and Lily have in common is their red hair…which isn’t even that in common, see ing as Lily’s hair is auburn and Ginny’s is ginger. Hermione was too much of a mother for Harry, Harry didn’t need someone to coddle and worry about him nonstop, nor did he need someone like Luna who was unstable and a bit crazy. He needed someone who understood him and would let him be the hero, would let him go off and do what he needed to do because she understood what a monster Voldemort was. Read the books, and you’ll notice how often Harry’s eyes turn to Ginny.
I think Harry loved Ginny because she had the family he always wanted. There isn;t any real chemistry between them. Rowling made them out to be the next James and Lily. Like James Harry didn’t find out he loved Ginny until his 7th year and like Lily Ginny is a red-haired strong will type of girl who fight back.
To Ebony: Where on earth in the book does it say James didn’t find out he loved Lily un til his 7th year. He asked her out in fifth year, he liked her in fifth year. Not 7th year. Plus, Ginny is nothing like Lily and Harry is nothing like his dad, so therefore they are nothing like another Lily and James. The only thing Ginny and Lily have in common is that they were redheads, Hermione and Lily are far more alike.
Not to mention, Harry already had the Weasley family without having to be with Ginny. He was best friends with Ron and had saved many of the Weasley family members countless times, they already considered him a part of their family long before he realized Ginny was his ideal girlfriend. After all, in the fifth book, Molly says that Harry is as good as her son.
look you think you can tell the story better than rowling the write you own damn book….but i think she did harry+ginny justice!! (even if the movie didnt)
I can’t take any Ron/Hermione shippers complaining about Harry/Ginny seriously. I’m sorry but the complaints of a badly written, chemistry less romance describes R/Hr PERFECTLY.
I can’t help but laugh at this whole comment thread. You are arguing over something you had no control over. The Harry and Ginny ship has more basis than Harry and Hermione. Hermione is treated like a very good friend. How many people have romantic feelings for close a female (male for girls) friend? Ron has shown he had feeling for Hermione it has been subtly shown in the books. Also I am no shipper just a man with good eyes.
It’s not a matter of control — it’s about analyzing what was in the pages of the books. There really shouldn’t have been any romance at all, but especially not the ones JKR force fed. The only basis as far as I can see is JKR decided it would be Harry and Ginny and refused to even consider other possibilities.
Some readers have pointed out that Ginny was also possessed like Harry, but I am of the opinion being possessed by a 16 yr old Riddle who is only beginning to find his true power/evilness and in actuality is a shadow or a faint memory of the real deal is not like being possessed by Voldemort as we knew him in person. There really isn’t a comparison. Ginny was powerless with 5 yrs difference give or take between her age and the age of her possessor. Harry fought against and won against a stronger and much older version of Voldemort.
Keira you make it sound like she was to scared to put other couples together, but it’s her book and she made the charters up hence she gets to decided who they end up with. I get that you don’t like the couple that’s fine but don’t say she don’t have the guts to do something. That’s just makes you sound really bitter.
The second part you said about Ginny not being on the same level as Harry man she can’t catch a break can she? It may be true that he is more powerful but they both know what it’s like to have him in their head. He tricked both of them into believing something that was not true. With Ginny he tricked her into believing that she could trust him and Harry thought he was saving Sirius.
My bad I sound kind of snarkey sorry about that. I was just woundering if you have seen A Very Potter Musical on you tube and if you have do you like the way they portrayed Ginny and her relationship with Harry?
I just saw it for the first time based on your rec. A Very Potter Musical is fantastic! Right up there with Potter Puppet Pals!
Yea I love I’m always singing and making my sister mad. : ) they are making a sequel this summer. I can’t wait.
Seriously? A sequel — all the same people? YES! I loved Voldemort and Quirrell they were hilarious.
Erm, about the complaints about how Ginny being possessed by a 16 year old Voldermort means nothing .. are you freaking serious ? Quirrell couldn’t stand it and neither could the trio in DH. And he didn’t mentally rape them. Sorry but your casual dismissal of mental rape makes me just laugh at your opinion.
Um I don’t know if it’s going to be all the same people but I hope they have alto of them and add more characters to it if you want more info on them here is there website.http://www.teamstarkid.com and there is more musicals on you tube that they have done.
I totally agree. I saw no hint of any sort of relationship between the two. I saw more interaction between Harry and Luna than him and Ginny.
Now that would have been a more believable match up.
To tell the truth I saw a decline in the later books, and the epilogue just seemed to be tagged on. Giving everyone an obvious ending that everyone expected rather than an unexpected one that would have been interesting.
I actually think he was put with Ginny solelyy because she was I think the second most mentioned girl his age in the books.
lol!…have you really read the book? have you really understand every thing that is said about ginny?…pathetic insight of yours…especially about cho and ginny…
cho lost quidditch against ginny.. a ginny made it win…
who would want a relationship with a pathetic girl who’d been crying in years because her ex-beau is dead…
ginny is a smart close enough to hermione…they never know it because jkr’s attention were all hermione…
ginny is a sportsminded with brain…that’s the difference between ginny and hermione..while hermione was just the most intelligent of her age…
true, there’s nothing much about h/g relationship in the book…but it’s really obviously understandable what it says there…not to mention having a crush at the age of 11…i had a crush when I was 11…10 actually
Can people please explain the Harry/Luna ? Apart from the fact that Luna is even less developed than Ginny, and that she has even FEWER interactions, their interactions that people say would make them believable ? Hmm, let’s see. He laughs at her. Pities her. Mocks her. Describes her in the most unflattering terms ever. Doesn’t feel comfortable around her.
If this is a belieavble for you, I feel sorry for you.
harry/hermione, nuh! ron/hermione makes more sense that h/hr in the book…r/hr had been there since book 3…more so…harry/luna? doesn’t make sense…harry asked luna on the party cos he has no other choice & a friend to luna…ginny is with dean…
yeah i agree with would you date a person you think is mental?…
yeah, it’s not a romantic book, that’s why jkr didn’t concentrate on the romantic thing…which is why people didn’t understand about h/g
if i were you, read what jkr said about h/g on wikipedia..then you’ll understand…
fyi, hermione suggested ginny to date so she could gain confidence around harry…which happened…
ginny made friends with harry on Bk 5. but remember harry’s attention was with cho, so it would make sense he wouldn’t notice ginny at that time…
harry only noticed ginny at bk 6 cos that’s when ginny started making a real conversation with ginny which jkr didn’t go much details about that.which made some people really didn’t understand
you know I agree with this “tiger says:
Wow, do I agree with this, thanks for writing it up. I’ve always been a fan of this couple. In fact, this made me want to list some of my favorite things about the two and why I like them.
I think most people can agree that Harry needs someone who can offer him some comfort and solace after everything he’s seen and been through. I think Ginny gives him this. After he sees his father treat Snape horribly in the pensieve, she’s there to listen and let him open up about wanting to talk to the only other person who might have answers: Sirius. After Dumbledore dies, she’s the first one who is able to get him to move. In the beginning of Deathly Hallows, the two seek comfort in each other simply by holding hands while waiting for the others to arrive from a deadly mission. Along with offering comfort, she also snaps him out of his bad moods.
Another thing I think Harry really needs is someone with a similar sense of humor. Hermione, as much as I love her, does not share Harry’s humor. Harry relies heavily on having a good time (he didn’t miss Ron so much in Goblet of Fire for nothing!) – he even gave his winnings in the fourth book to Fred and George because he thought they could all do with more laughs. It’s clear in the books that Ginny not only likes many of the same things Harry does (Quidditch), but that they have the same sense of humor. There are many instances in the books where they’re both laughing together, before and after they are a couple. This is why I think Harry and Ginny work so well: they’re able to comfort each other in dark times and lighten up and have some laughs during the good times.
And of course, like you said, it all started with Ginny’s crush. That was what clued me into the fact they’d eventually hook up back during my Chamber of Secrets read. Like you said, people love to root for the underdog. Hermione, Cho, whoever else… they were not the underdogs concerning romance when it came to Harry. I was rooting for Ginny to get with Harry for this reason and I was lucky enough to enjoy the ride JKR set up for them. I’m sorry others weren’t, but that’s their view and they’re welcome to it like anyone else.
In regards to Ron and Hermione, I respect your opinion, although I don’t agree with it. I also enjoyed them but for different reasons. I do think the Ron and Hermione fans should relax and let you have your own opinion, though. Thank you again for writing this!
February 18, 10:55 PM”
Eh, I disagree but whatever, it’s your opinion.
But seriously, Harry/Luna is more believable ? Really ? How ? In reality he would never ever look at her twice and in the books, he only happens to realize her existence because he’s forced too. Apart from death, which is not something that is unique to them, they have no shared interests and that would lead to a pretty bad relationship. Plus, Harry needs to feel normal and yeah he’d feel like that in comparison to Luna who’s just not there but isn’t that pretty pathetic and lame ? And don’t both deserve better ?
ginny and harry are PERFECT together they understand eachother and when harry wants to talk to sirius he talks to her about it and she personally asks fred and george to find a way. also he does have fun with her and a laugh even when she calls ron a prat after he punches demelza in the mouth during quiddich practice and harry tells her not to call him a prat and she replies ” Well, you seemed to busy to call him a prat and i thought someone should” and harry forced himself not to laugh.
he sacraficed his love for her so she would be safe by breaking up with her. and when in the forest in dh he over hears dean and ted tonks saying ginny luna and neville tried to steal the sword out of snapes office and got caught and he was silently praying that someone would ask if ginny was ok. he was very thankfull to here she only got a detention with hagrid and no more hogmeads trips. he also always took out the maurauders map to follow her label around hogwarts. so he really did miss her! also in dh when aunt miriel comments on ginnys dress being far to low cut and out of the whole crowd ginny turns and winks and grins at harry. and whenever ron complimented hermione ginny and harry grin at eachother silently. so they have a great relationship even before they go out. harry also during the wedding thinks about his days at hogwarts with ginny in deserted corridors. and he leans against the pillar and watchs her dance regreting his promise to ron about not treating her like his girlfriend anymore.
ginny also clears her throat loudly when gabrellie bats her eye lashes at harry. and when victor krum comments on how beautiful ginny is harry tells him shes going out a big tough guy you wouldnt want to cross. when ginny comes into the room of requirment before the battle at the end she gives harry a winning smile and harry realised he never realised or never fully apreceated how beautiful she is. and when he is about to die in front of voldemort of all the people he loves his mind drifts to her and the feel of her lips on his. ginny is also very pleased when harry tells her he thinks dating oppertuies would be very slim while he was off finding the horcruxes. ginny also fiercely tells cho that luna can take harry up to the ravenclaw common room when cho offers to. and when harry passes her on his way to the forest he wants to talk to her but cant and she seems to scense him go by. so i really think she loves him and he loves her and that they ARE romantic not the most romantic but romantic all the same. needless to say he did also save her life in the cos!! and she also is not afraid to stand up to him by snapping at him and telling she could help him find out wether or not he is pocessed. but i think there were hints in the book and even if they were not obvious it still way to obvious that harry and hermione would get married to be true!! jkr i think reeled you in to belive that but then cut the line by completely changing it around…..AND harry smelt ginnys flowery scent in the love potion but not realising its was her until she was concerned about him and the book came over to talk to him and he smelt it…..AND she was the only one who was able to get him away from dumbledores dead body and he allowed her and only her to guide him away to the hospital wing…….. anyway i feel i have made my point feel free to comment!!
I absolutely agree with you! Harry/Ginny is the most disgusting couple that I have ever had the misfortune of reading. I actually threw my book down at the epilogue… :gag:
Romances should be like Jane Eyre or Pride and Prejudice where people can visualize the slow dance of love, not a sudden BAM! and they are married with three kids.
There’s no conceivable reason why or how he ended up with Ginny of all people. Hell, I would have been happier if he had married Draco Malfoy, at least they had spark, and he was actually in the story.
Ginny was simply his best friend’s little sister and a fan girl, which makes her the worst romantic candidate for him. I had honestly thought that their relationship was a farce in the beginning, like how people date someone and realize that she/he is not the one, and then go to the one they were meant to be with.
Out of all the girls in the story, I support Harry/Hermione the most. She’s there with him the whole way, and part of the Golden Trio. She helps him in all his obstacles and has never doubted him. Ginny is simply an outsider, always looking in on the action, but never part of it herself.
Plus, as readers, we are not involved in the growth of Ginny at all. She has grown in the series, but we don’t go through that process with her, so we are not committed to her like we are to Hermione who blossoms from a timid bookworm into a strong, intelligent, young woman who’s not afraid to stand up for her self or her ideals. It’s just really doesn’t make sense on how Ginny ends up being the one Harry falls for. All I can say is that J.K. Rowling must be delusional, smoking something, or a bad romance writer. Or she just simply lost her mind during the last two books.
stupid delusional HARMONIANs always STUPID and DELUSIONAL. never change so far i guess.
soo really there were quite a lot of hints as you can see from my last comment and that wasnt all of them eg. when he got the felxis filiuis luck potion and when ron and hermione think its good to use it to get slughorns memory for dumbledore he in this head was hoping to use it somehow to break up dean and ginny and to start going out with her and for ron to be ok with ginnys new boyfriend (harry). also when they kiss for the first time the roaring monster he had in his chest while ginny and dean were together had gone because they were now together! also ginny cant resist a long kiss from him at the burrow and he is thinking while kissing her the feel of her hair and that she is the only true thing in the world. they also find comfort in eachother just by holding eachothers hand while waiting for everyone to return from there mission. also when he returns and sees her all he wants to do even in front of mrs weasley is to hold her and never let go!! they are romantic!!
i dont think r/hr were badly written. say but you want, but it was made obvious that they were closer than harry and hermione.
i totally agree vir it was so obvious!! but i loved the way when ron had left and harry and hermione were in the graveyard and when they leave harrys parents graves they put their arms around eachother and then when ron saves harry and comes back, harry has to explain that himself and hermione were just friends and harry actually said…… “After you left, she cried for a week. Probally longer, only she didn’t want me to see. There were loads of nights where we never even spoke to eachother. With you gone… She’s like my sister,”he went on. “I love her like a sister and I reckon she feels the same way about me. It’s always been like that. I thought you knew.” so i thought that was really sweet and then they hug!! aww!!! tear tear!! :’)
I agree with the article. I think a Harry/Hermione relationship would have made more sense. THAT was devotion, IMHO. During OoTP, I think it could have gone either way, and even in the later books, I think it could have easily been re-written to end H/Hr. I’m a harmonian, so I am somewhat biased, and while I do agree with the article, I think the greater injustice was what happened to Hermione. Smartest witch of their generation with guy with the emotional depth of a teaspoon. Tragic injustice. I still believe that for any of the last 3 Harry Potter books to make believable sense, a love potion must have been involved, someway, somehow.
well………. it wasnt!! jkr always said when people asked her why chose H/G she said from the very start she had planned for them to be together and she saw R/H together from the start too and its her book soooo she can do what she likes with it…… i also was watching this program on the harry potter HBP DVD and they were actually filming her when she just finished the final book and she told the camara that she was really pleased with it and hopefully the fans would like
it too… soo shes happy so im happy!! i also am happy because i think the book is brill and i love harry and ginny together.
The main crux of the Harry/Ginny problem is that Harry’s feelings appeared without any precipitating event. They spend the summer like they always do – Harry hanging with Ron and Hermione with Ginny occasionally tagging along. Harry and Ginny do not spend any significant time together, just them. Then they continue to interact on a very basic level back at school – they’re together occasionally, but never just the two of them, and their interactions are not
deep, they’re just friendly.
Then all of a sudden, Harry sees Ginny kissing Dean and, bam, he realises he has feelings for her. These feelings came out of nowhere. Yes, there were hints
that he did have feelings for her prior to this, but theses hints equally came out of nothing – he started subconciously having feelings for her, but there
was no reason shown as to why. They shared no notable interaction prior to that point. There was nothing to indicate why, exactly, Harry started having
feelings for her.
Harry/Ginny completely violated the age-old rule of “show, don’t tell.” We were told that Harry has feelings for her. Nobody’s arguing against that. But WHY
did he have feelings for her? Nothing changed in their relationship, they didn’t especially bond over the summer, there is no interaction to justify his
feelings. We’re just told that they’re there. And then when they do get together, all the time they spend together was skipped over and condensed into a
sentence where Harry commented on how great they were. Again, we’re told that they’re great, we don’t actually see anything for ourselves. It’d like what it
would be like if we had simply been told that Voldemort was really evil, rather than actually seeing him do evil things. The readers need to see it to
believe it.
Also, I agree that Ginny’s “fangirlishness” makes her a bad choice of girlfriend for Harry. He needs somebody who sees him as “just Harry” not “the Boy who
lived”. Ginny’s crush – which he are told she never stopped having – started before she even met Harry, when all she knew was the stories of him. Her
perception of Harry is completely based on the myths of the “Chosen one” alone. Harry does not need someone like that. Which brings us back to the “show,
don’t tell” thing again. In DH, he says something along the lines that Ginny makes him feel like he’s just a normal guy. We are simply told this, but there’s
absolutely no explanation or indication as to why or how Ginny makes him feel like this – in fact Ginny seems like the least likely candidate to make him
feel like that.
And @ Luna:
“Can people please explain the Harry/Luna?”
Certainly
“Apart from the fact that Luna is even less developed than Ginny,”
What makes you say this? We know plenty about Luna – about her family, the loss of her mother and her feelings about it, her ostracisation from her peers
and how she feels about it, her feelings about the DA and the friends that it brought her, etc. Ginny had her character fleshed out a similar amount, though
probably slightly less and throughout more books. Plus when it comes down to it, Ginny’s character is much less interesting than Ginny’s. I like her and all,
but she’s very much a normal, regular Jane. Luna is anything but.
“and that she has even FEWER interactions,”
In the last three books, Luna shares more time, or at least equal time, “on-screen” with Harry than Ginny does.
OotP – H/G both at Grimmauld Place, but they’re never “together”, Ginny is just there. L and G both on the train. Both G and L are at the DA meetings, and
Luna gets more one-on-on interaction with Harry in them (see the awkward mistletoe scene). L and G both at the Dept. of Mysteries. Both at the hospital wing
afterwards. L is at the Skeeter interview, G is not. L and H share a very notable scene at the end of the book, when she comforts him about Sirius.
Conclusion: They have a roughly equal presence, but Luna probably wins out and most importantly shares more one-on-one interaction.
HBP – H/G both at the burrow, but again do not share much one-on-one interaction, G is just part of a group. Both G and L appear infrequently throughout the
book. G features at Quidditch sessiosn. H invites L to Slughorn’s party. H/G spend a lot of time together once they start dating, but it is all off-screen.
H/G share one notable scene at the end, when he breaks up with her.
Conclusion: More Ginny in this one, natural seeing as it’s supposed to be establishing and developing their romance.
DH – Both feature at the wedding – both have conversations with Harry, though Ginny’s is slightly longer. G is then absent for a massive part of the book,
while L features significantly at Malfoy Manor and Shell Cottage. Both G and L fight in the battle. G is in the epilogue, but in the background.
Conclusion: More Luna than Ginny in this book.
Then there’s PS-GoF, but you can hardly blame Luna for not being a character back then. And Ginny wasn’t noticable in any of them bar CoS anyway.
“He laughs at her.”
Er, when?
“Pities her.”
Is this supposed to be a bad thing? It’s not like he looks down on her or anything – he genuinely feels sorry that she’s bullied. What self-respecting human
being wouldn’t feel sorry for Luna in that scene?
“Mocks her.”
Again, when? Are you just making things up now?
“Describes her in the most unflattering terms ever.”
His initial description is of someone with “straggly, dirty-blonde hair and protuberant eyes”. No, not a vision of perfect beauty, but he hardly thought she
looked like a troll. It’s pretty much a simple description. And later he describes her eyes as “misty, silvery orbs”, showing that her apperance grows on
him. At Slughorn’s party he described her appearance as “quite pretty”, and at Bill and Fleur’s wedding he notes that her outfit is unorthodox but, overall,
“pleasant”. It is quite clear that he does not find her ugly whatsoever, and never describes her in an outright negative way.
“Doesn’t feel comfortable around her.”
This is complete rubbish. Yes, he is somewhat disorientated by her at first – who wouldn’t be? But she undoubtedly grows on him. By the end of the book he
feels completely comfortable talking to her about Sirius’ death – despite the fact that he didn’t want to talk to Ron, Hermione, Hagrid or Dumbledore. Then
in HBP he enjoys her company – he chats to her comfortably, praises her bravery and “coolness” at the ministry and invites her to Slughorn’s party – he could’ve taken anyone, but he invited Luna because he genuinely enjoyed spending time with her. Then in DH he is cheered up by the prospect of seeing her when they go to visit Xenophilius. Whether or not you like the idea of them as a romantic couple, to suggest that she is not a friend to him is complete rubbish.
even though i dont agree with some of your points (i dont agree with the article) you, and this is coming from the heart the_ void, make an exelent arguement you really should do debating if you dont already!!! no joke!! but i dont understand are you for the article or not or neither??? as for luna and harry as a couple i do belive that they are friends if not good friends and i do belive that they have a realtionship that will stay bonded even when they are older and married also because ginny had quite a good realtionship with luna for example when luna told harry that ginny stood up for luna when some boys were making fun of her and when ginny came up to harry after overhearing ron giving out to harry saying that he could of taken anybody and he chose lonny lovegood and she said she was pleased he was taking her because luna had told ginny how excited she was about going. luna also said while commentating the quidditch match ” and thats Smith of hufflepuff with the Quaffle, he did the commentary last time,of course, and Ginny Weasley flew into him, i think probably on purpose – it looks like it. Smith was being quite rude about Gryffindor, i expect he regrets that now he’s playing them – oh, look, he’s lost the Quaffle, Ginny took it from him, i do like her, she’s very nice” so i dont deny that they were good friends but i couldnt see them as a couple!
“even though i dont agree with some of your points (i dont agree with the article) you, and this is coming from the heart the_ void, make an exelent arguement you really should do debating if you dont already!!! no joke!!”
Hehe, thank you. I would suck at real-life debating though, I get too het up. I need time to chill and write stuff down.
“but i dont understand are you for the article or not or neither???”
On the whole, I’m for the article, I didn’t think that the Harry/Ginny romance was very good. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it (and I did hate the epilogue). And I don’t agree with the whole article – I don’t think that Hermione would have made a good romantic match for Harry.
Yes, I agree that they were good friends.
I could definitely see that friendship developing into something more though.
im the the same the_void i find it easier to comment and not debate!!! i think that for people who havent read the books and have just seen the movies or even if they i have read the books they just cant let it go that hermione and harry should be together and ginny should marry some randomer who didnt even go to hogwarts because i remember seeing harry potter cos for the first time and being convinced that harry and hermione should be together cause i was only like 7 or 8 at the time and you know how little girls are… i mean every character has to have a partner to marry and thats that!!
and to my friends and me it was always harry/hermione, ron/some random girl or no one at all…. and ginny/ now i used to think long and hard about this one because when we used to renact the scenes i ALWAYS played ginny she was my other half!! and after sitting and thinking about it i always i am ashamed to admit it but i will anyway, it always came down to ginny/DRACO!!! :S….. i know!! i mean when i think about it now i feel really really daft!! and quite stupid………. you see i thought draco would somehow turn really really good, good enough for ginny to MARRY!!! hahahahahahaha good times, good times!!
but i was sooooooooo over that when i found out harry and ginny together even when i found out ginny and micheal corner were together, i was over it actually probable way before that!!
Wow, have people here never fallen for others before ? You just start falling for someone sometimes without realizing it and it hits you in the face. Happens to me quite a bit – you don’t always know you like the person for years you know ? Never shown why ? Erm whatever.
But yes, Ginny is such a fangirl to Harry at the end. So much, that she’s not the person who tells him to STFU when needed or not take that tone with him. Such fangirl reactions. /sarcasm.
This is the moment when I personally knew it was going to be Harry/Ginny :
“Come on,” said Harry dully. “With Umbridge policing the fires and reading all our mail?”
“The thing about growing up with Fred and George,” said Ginny thoughtfully, “is that you sort of start thinking anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve.”
Harry looked at her. Perhaps it was the effect of the chocolate – Lupin had always advised eating some after encounters with Dementors – or simply because he had finally spoken aloud the wish that had been burning inside him for a week, but he felt a bit more hopeful.
“WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?”
Also, adding to the fact that Harry was always noticing Ginny everywhere in that book and even before that even though he wouldn’t notice so of his classmates.
So much for they never had a one to one conversation and that Harry never felt any different and he never confides in her (course I forget that things like that only count when It’s Hermione or Luna that they are arguing for)
Also, Luna as an alternate. Please. Chick is so overrated and boring and just … blergh. LOL at people arguing that she wins out.
Most of all – they are a fictional couple. Get over it. Especially since romance isn’t a big part of the series.
Also, Ginny just being there are Grimmauld Place and not interacting with Harry totally ignores this very notable scene where Harry actually says sorry to someone. First time we see him do that I think ?
The scene:
“Yeah?” growled Harry, his hands deep in his pockets as he watched the snow now falling thickly outside. “All been talking about me, have you? Well, I’m getting used to it.”
“We wanted to talk to you, Harry,” said Ginny, “but as you’ve been hiding ever since we got back -”
“I didn’t want anyone to talk to me,” said Harry, who was feeling more and more nettled.
“Well, that was a bit stupid of you,” said Ginny angrily, “seeing as you don’t know anyone but me who’s been possessed by You-Know-Who, and I can tell you how it feels.”
Harry remained quite still as the impact of these words hit him. Then he wheeled round. “I forgot,” he said.
“Lucky you,” said Ginny coolly.
“I’m sorry” Harry said, and he meant it. “So… so, do you think I’m being possessed, then?”
“Well, can you remember everything you’ve been doing?” Ginny asked. “Are there big blank periods where you don’t know what you’ve been up to?”
Harry racked his brains. “No,” he said.
“Then You-Know-Who hasn’t ever possessed you,” said Ginny simply. “When he did it to me, I couldn’t remember what I’d been doing for hours at a time. I’d find myself somewhere and not know how I got there.” Harry hardly dared believe her, yet his heart was lightening almost in spite of himself.
Also another moment where Ginny makes Harry feel better. So much for not showing why Harry falls for Ginny and their interactions and blah blah blah.
Also, Ginny is one of the first people, if not the first as my memory is very sketchy at the moment, Harry willingly hugs:
Laughing, Harry broke free of the rest of the team and hugged Ginny, but let go quickly.
The signs are all there.
Also compare this from OoTP :
“Well, hello there!” he said. “I expect you’d like my autograph, would you?”
“Hasn’t changed much, has he?” Harry muttered to Ginny, who grinned.
and this also from OoTP:
Ginny caught Harry’s eye and looked away quickly, grinning.
To this from PoA:
Ginny caught Harry’s eye, and they both turned away to hide their laughter as Percy strode over to a girl with long, curly hair, walking with his chest thrown out so that she couldn’t miss his shiny badge. stood back to let him on.
Notice a trend ? He kinda laughs at Luna, gets annoyed with Hermione but laughs with Ginny. Very important thing in a relationship.
I also love him being so annoyed when Ginny didn’t sit with him on the train.
@The Void:
I’m not the person you were replying to but I don’t think that poster was saying that Harry doesn’t consider Luna a friend – where on earth did you get that from ? I think you may have been reading a bit too much into it.
As for Luna vs Ginny – I really don’t agree with you in that Luna is fleshed out more than Ginny. In fact, Luna’s character is remarkably one dimensional through out and she has no character growth/arc while all the others do. She seems to exist for comic relief/personal projection/self-identification.
And I think it comes down to personal taste on who’s more interesting. For you, Luna may be interesting and unqiue but to me she’s boring, generic, unnoticeable and she just doesn’t addanything to the story for me. Remove her and everything is the same.
Generally I prefer normal characters with flaws and all. I know people claim Luna has flaws and all but meh- JKR sure doesn’t say it. Her being childish, is written as how she’s supposed to be endearing. Her being rude – oh wait, she says uncomfortable truths. So it’sall just a bug thumbs down. Her painting -slightly creepy and weird but it’s like JKR is hitting you on the head and forcing you to find her endearing.
I sound like I hate Luna but I don’t. I just don’t care for her whatsoever.
Also, I am not sure I agree with you on the whole Harry/Ginny thing either. Why does there have to be a precipitating event that makes someone fall in love with another ? Why is hanging out and having one and getting to know the person …. a bad thing and not deep and not a reason why you can start liking someone ? WTF is wrong with that ? I’ve seen a few Harry/Luna shippers say that their conversation at the end of OoTP is why they ship them and as I gather you are one also ….. why ? Harry doesn’t feel anything for her there and why would a conversation like that be a basis for a relationship ? Why is that needed ? Oh looky they had this one scene and now they can hook up ? Er what ? Why isn’t spending time with someone, liking their company and respecting them not a basis for a relationship? Not to mention, that’s so realisitc. Why does Harry fall for Ginny is clearly shown : he likes spending time with her, she makes him laugh, they have similar interests, she understands him, she can relate to Voldermort, he’s attracted to her ….. need I go on ? So why Harry falls for Ginny is quite clear – perhaps some people just required him to spell it out and list it or something. But that is how one develops feelings for someone ……. in most cases. There doesn’t need to be a precipitating event ….I can’t even think of one in any literature piece.
Just realizing you have feelings for someone else all of a sudden is very realistic, especially of teenage boys so I’m sorry but … I don’t see your point whatsoever. Especially since Harry starts noticing Ginny more and more in OoTP, starts feeling different towards her at the end of OoTP and the beginning of HBP is flirting with her, laughing with her, annoyed when she doesn’t sit with him, smells her in a potion ….. Harry/Luna would have been out of nowhere after all that. Harry/Ginny isn’t.
I think it’s quite clear that Ginny gets over her fangirl phase in OoTP. And since she lives a normal life, that makes Harry feel normal. Though I suppose Harry could feel normal in a relationship with Luna – in comparison to Luna that is. So not cool … not to mention unhealthy.
Also, I do agree that Harry/Hermione had more basis than Ron/Hermione.
At least with H/Hr, you could see that they both care for each other. With R/Hr, not so much. It’s obvious that Ron cares deeply for her, but Hermione’s feelings for him were so out of nowhere to me.
Also, I am pretty sure that Harry does laugh at Luna multiple times but I don’t recall where and when. Not bothered and busy to find it though …. but that’s what cemented me against a Harry/Luna relationship.
Come to think of it, all the three girls are not as well developed as the males. We know more about Ginny and Luna than we do about Hermione who is the least developed of the trio. We don’t even see her face her insecurities like everyone else.
Wow, that’s a lot to reply to. I’ll give it a go.
“But yes, Ginny is such a fangirl to Harry at the end. So much, that she’s not the person who tells him to STFU when needed or not take that tone with
him. Such fangirl reactions. /sarcasm.”
You say that sarcastically, but when push comes to shove, she does roll over to Harry’s wishes. Like when Harry breaks up with her, or when he tells her to
stay in the RoR in the final battle (yes I know she left eventually, but she did it in secret, in the vein of a kid rebelling against their parents. Not a
sign of a healthy relationship).
“*Insert OotP chocolate scene here*”
This is prime evidence of what I’m talking about when I said that the H/G was all tell but no substance. In this scene, Harry feels better after talking to
Ginny. Why exactly? Well, there’s no reason in particular. Ginny’s “advice” to him was, in short, rubbish. It basically amounted to “I’m sure you’ll think of
something”. That’s the kind of advice I’d expect from an acquaintance in a hurry, not my supposed soulmate. I’m not buying that advice that lame and generic
would suddenly make Harry feels better.
“Also, adding to the fact that Harry was always noticing Ginny everywhere in that book and even before that even though he wouldn’t notice so of his
classmates.”
He wasn’t always noticing her. He obviously noticed her more than before since she was now a member of the DA and was becoming more extroverted, but he
doesn’t notice her especially. And even if he did, again this would just add to the evidence that he has feelings for her – but it does not at all explain
why. Like I said: Show, don’t tell.
“So much for they never had a one to one conversation”
I never said that, I just said that they never had a one-on-one conversation “on-screen” while they were dating. In fact they didn’t have a single one
throughout HBP until the breakup scene. In the book that was supposed to be largely about developing the romance between the main character and his supposed
soulmate, there was a total of one one-on-one conversation between the two, in which they broke up.
“and that Harry never felt any different and he never confides in her (course I forget that things like that only count when It’s Hermione or Luna that
they are arguing for)”
They only count when there’s some substance behind it.
“Most of all – they are a fictional couple. Get over it. Especially since romance isn’t a big part of the series.”
OK, so if you don’t think this subject merits debating, why are you debating it? We’re here to discuss Harry Potter canonical and hypothetical romantic
relationships, if you don’t think it’s worth your time then don’t post, but don’t post telling other people not to post.
“*Insert “lucky you” scene here*”
This scene is even more flawed than the chocolate scene. Firstly, it’s not just Ginny in that scene. Ron and Hermione are there too. It is a group
intervention. That scene does not show Ginny, and solely Ginny, making him feel better, it’s the combination of all his friends.
Secondly – it is just sooo romantic that Harry goes and forgets the most pivotal and traumatic event in Ginny’s life. What a great guy he is for her. I can
almost buy Harry’s feelings for Ginny, but why exactly is she with him? He never seems to take any interest in her life beyond her firewhisky kisses, he
completely forgets about her experience with the diary, he treats her like easily breakable china (the HBP break-up and the RoR in DH), which was the very
reason she broke up with Dean. Why exactly is she with him?
Thirdly, this scene is time and time again used as evidence that the two of them have been through similar experiences and can relate to each other. Despite
the fact that the very point of that scene is to show that they have NOT been through similar things, that they can NOT relate to each other.
“Also, Ginny is one of the first people, if not the first as my memory is very sketchy at the moment, Harry willingly hugs:”
When is that quote from? I genuinely don’t remember. It sounds like it’s from OotP or later, by which time he has already hugged Hagrid, Ron, Hermione,
Sirius, Molly, and perhaps more.
“Notice a trend ? He kinda laughs at Luna, gets annoyed with Hermione but laughs with Ginny. Very important thing in a relationship.”
Yes, it is an important thing. But it’s not anywhere near the top of the list of important things. Yet it is one of the only things going for H/G. Besides,
Harry also shares the same sense of humour as Ron, does that mean they are soulmates?
“I’m not the person you were replying to but I don’t think that poster was saying that Harry doesn’t consider Luna a friend – where on earth did you get
that from ? I think you may have been reading a bit too much into it.”
Well the poster in question claimed that Harry wasn’t comfortable around Luna, which implies that he does not enjoy her company. Which is disproved by the
simple fact that they are good friends.
“As for Luna vs Ginny – I really don’t agree with you in that Luna is fleshed out more than Ginny. In fact, Luna’s character is remarkably one dimensional
through out and she has no character growth/arc while all the others do. She seems to exist for comic relief/personal projection/self-identification.”
Luna’s arc is subtle (she slowly becomes more social, more confident in herself and happier as a result of the DA and the friends she made), but it’s there.
Ginny, on the other hand, didn’t have an arc – she changed from a shrinking violet to a confident, brash, independent woman overnight, off-screen. That’s
not an arc. Also, Luna is a secondary character that was only in 3 books. Obviously she’s not going to have as big an arc as Harry, Ron or Hermione.
“And I think it comes down to personal taste on who’s more interesting. For you, Luna may be interesting and unqiue but to me she’s boring, generic,
unnoticeable”
OK, so you don’t especially like Luna and think she’s overrated. Fair enough. But “boring, generic and unnoticable”? That’s probably the last adjective you
would ever assign to Luna, except maybe “normal”. Luna is a lot of things, but boring certainly isn’t one of them. It would be like me criticising Hermione
for being too dumb, or Voldemort for being too nice.
“Remove her and everything is the same.”
Except that the wizarding world would never have started agreeing with Harry as that article would never have been published in the Quibbler, the sextet
would never have gotten to the Ministry on Thestrals, Harry would have never opened up about Sirius and would probably still be angsting about it, the trio
would still be trapped in Malfoy Manor, Harry would’ve had his soul sucked out by dementors…
“Generally I prefer normal characters with flaws and all. I know people claim Luna has flaws and all but meh- JKR sure doesn’t say it. Her being childish,
is written as how she’s supposed to be endearing. Her being rude – oh wait, she says uncomfortable truths. So it’sall just a bug thumbs down. Her
painting -slightly creepy and weird but it’s like JKR is hitting you on the head and forcing you to find her endearing.”
I’m gonna have to say I disagree. These are endearing flaws. The best kind of flaws, the flaws that make a great character, IMO. Fair dos if you don’t agree
though.
“Also, I am not sure I agree with you on the whole Harry/Ginny thing either. Why does there have to be a precipitating event that makes someone fall in
love with another?”
Maybe “precipitating event” wasn’t quite the right phrase to use. But something to show a change in the relationship dynamic, therefore sparking a change in
the feelings of one character towards another. If a character changes his feelings for another character, there must be some change in the relationship
between the two. Maybe they have a conversation, or they find out something about one another, or they go through a shared experience. In the case of H/G,
they went through the summer with the exact same relationship – she was still just Ron’s little sister that hung out with them sometimes – except in that
summer it lasted a little longer.
“Why is hanging out and having one and getting to know the person …. a bad thing and not deep and not a reason why you can start liking someone?”
It’s not bad thing. The problem is that Harry and Ginny didn’t actually get to know each other, nor did they have any conversation in HBP whatsoever before
Harry’s chest monster appeared,
“I’ve seen a few Harry/Luna shippers say that their conversation at the end of OoTP is why they ship them and as I gather you are one also ….. why?”
It’s not the be all and end all of why I ship them, but it does display many of the reasons why they are good together. I honestly don’t have the time to go
into massive detail, so I’ll give a bullet-point list instead.
a) Luna gives Harry hope. Hope that there is something beyond life, that the ones we loved and lost are still with us, still looking down on us and waiting
for us. After losing so much and living such a depressing life, Harry desperately needs that hope. She brings light and optimism into his dark and depressing
life. After the conversation, “the terrible weight in his stomach seemed to have lifted slightly”.
b) Also important is her ability to believe in the impossible. She saw the thestrals and coule hear voices behind the veil, as did Harry. She believes it,
and in that scene, so does Harry, he “almost dares himself to believe it”. Luna opens Harry’s eyes to a whole new world, and makes him happier and more
hopeful for it.
c) Harry wants to help Luna. Asking if he could help find her stuff is a tiny gesture, but hugely significant. Throughout that whole book, Harry had been in
permanent self-involved, angsty capslock mode, but in that moment he realises that even though he has problems, so do other people. He becomes less self-
involved, and more thoughtful. It shows that Luna has a positive effect on Harry, and also shows why Harry is good for Luna. He genuinely feels for her, he
can relate to her social isolation (which he experienced in CoS and OotP), and he is always kind to her. Most people at Hogwarts wouldn’t give Luna the time
of day, but Harry does.
d) It clearly shows that they have something in common. They’ve both lost parents, and this scene shows that they can use that common experience to relate to
one another, and Luna uses her experience to make Harry feel better. The loss of his parents is something that completely defines Harry’s character and his
actions, and I think he needs somebody who can understand it. Ginny, with her massive family, certainly cannot.
“Harry doesn’t feel anything for her there and why would a conversation like that be a basis for a relationship? Why is that needed? Oh looky they had
this one scene and now they can hook up? Er what?”
It wasn’t just that scene though.
Earlier she tells him that she can see the Thestrals, her ability to believe in the impossible again making him feel better.
Then later she tells him that she believes him about Voldemort, a very brave step on her part. And he doesn’t reject her support like Hermione does, he
doesn’t dismiss her opinion because of her oddities, he defends her and appreciates her like he would apprecaite anyone else.
She also suggests that they fly on thestrals to the Ministry, again demonstrating how useful her out-of-the-box way of thinking is to him.
Then in HBP he says she’s a friend and that she’s cool, again appreciating who she is and liking her for it, not asking her to change but appreciating how
great she is the way she is. He even chooses her over everyone else to take to Slughorn’s party, something that nobody has ever done for her before.
Later, in a small moment during Quidditch, he is cheered up by the roaring of Luna’s “ludicrous lion hat”. It’s a tiny moment, but it just shows the
ridiculous, bonkers, and brilliant ways that Luna can cheer Harry up.
In DH, she recognises him in polyjuice disguise from his expression alone. She clearly understands him.
When they realise Luna has been put in Azkaban, he puts his faith in her. He doesn’t try to shield her like a little girl, he notices her strength and is
confident that she’ll be alright. It seems that Harry sees Luna as much more of an equal than Ginny.
During the battle at Hogwarts, Harry is at his lowest. He’s seen good people die, the fight against Voldemort seems futile, he’s just ready to give up and
die. And who’s there by his side, being strong, helping him, giving him hope and getting him back into the fight? Luna. She is his strength. She is his
hope and light, and at his lowest she gives him the strength and hope to full off a Patronus.
After the battle, Harry wants to get away from the party and be with Ron and Hermione alone. Luna immediately recognises this, again demonstating how much
she understands Harry, and creates a distraction to allow him to get away.
Luna and Harry share several scenes that time and time again indicate to me that Luna understands him better than almost anyone, that she gives him strength
and he respects her strength in returns, that she gives him hope (which he needs more than anything), that they are equals, that he likes and respects her,
and overall that they are (IMO) perfect for each other.
“Why isn’t spending time with someone, liking their company and respecting them not a basis for a relationship?”
It’s excellent basis for a relationship. Only Harry never spent time with Ginny on-screen while or after they were dating, and only had two (flawed) scenes
together in the book before. And he doesn’t seem to respect Ginny’s skill at all, as I said before he treats her like easily breakable china – hence breaking
up with her to protect her and not letting her fight in DH.
“he likes spending time with her, she makes him laugh, they have similar interests,”
This is fair enough, but it’s hardly enough to make them soulmates. That’s the basis for a good friendship, but not a deep, meaningful relationship, and
certainly not a great literary relationship. Harry likes spending time with Ron, he makes him laugh and they share similar interests (moreso than H/G). Are
Harry and Ron soulmates? No, just great friends.
“she understands him”
Give me a scene that shows this. Explain how it shows it.
“she can relate to Voldermort”
No, as I said that scene explicitly points out that they have not been through the same thing, therefore they cannot relate to each other.
“he’s attracted to her”
Attraction =/= soulmates.
“perhaps some people just required him to spell it out and list it or something.”
Perhaps some people wanted some scenes demonstrating any of that in the actual book.
“There doesn’t need to be a precipitating event ….I can’t even think of one in any literature piece.”
If a character changes his feelings for another character, there must be some change in the relationship between the two. Maybe they have a conversation, or
they find out something about one another, or they go through a shared experience. In the case of H/G, they went through the summer with the exact same
relationship – she was still just Ron’s little sister that hung out with them sometimes – except in that summer it lasted a little longer.
“Just realizing you have feelings for someone else all of a sudden is very realistic, especially of teenage boys”
It’s not the “just realising” bit that annoys me. It’s the fact that Harry’s feelings appear despite no change in their relationship. If Harry/Ginny had had
one or two on-screen conversations early in HBP I could’ve bought it, but as they didn’t, I didn’t. Also, more importantly, I still see nothing in their
relationships that implies that they are right for each other, much less soulmates.
The set-up for H/G was fine if it was just a hormone-fuelled teenage fling, but as they were supposed to be soulmates who eventually got married, that’s
what really bugged me.
“so I’m sorry but … I don’t see your point whatsoever. Especially since Harry starts noticing Ginny more and more in OoTP, starts feeling different
towards her at the end of OoTP and the beginning of HBP is flirting with her, laughing with her, annoyed when she doesn’t sit with him, smells her in a
potion ….. Harry/Luna would have been out of nowhere after all that. Harry/Ginny isn’t.”
Again: Minor foreshadowing (and it is very minor, compared to the anvil-sized hints for R/Hr) =/= reasons why.
“I think it’s quite clear that Ginny gets over her fangirl phase in OoTP.”
Exactly! Which makes it so insulting and demeaning to her character that her getting over Harry was retconned in HBP. And rhere was nothing to indicate that
her feelings had ever changed from the childish crush/idol-worship that it was.
“And since she lives a normal life, that makes Harry feel normal.”
That’s a very poor reason. For a start, the world is full of “normal” people, so why should he be with Ginny especially? Secondly, I don’t think your
soulmate should ever be just “normal”. They should be special, at least in your eyes. The idea that Harry sees her as just normal makes their relationship
even worse.
“Though I suppose Harry could feel normal in a relationship with Luna – in comparison to Luna that is. So not cool … not to mention unhealthy.”
He doesn’t think Luna’s weird. Well, he does, but in an affection way. He doesn’t think that she’s any less of a person for her weirdness, he very much
respects her and regards her as an equal. He certainly doesn’t see himself as superior in any way.
@ISA
“Also, I am pretty sure that Harry does laugh at Luna multiple times but I don’t recall where and when. Not bothered and busy to find it though …. but
that’s what cemented me against a Harry/Luna relationship.”
I don’t recall a single time.
Well, this has certainly strayed away from the topic at hand.
Some may argue for H/G, H/Hr, H/L or whatever, but there should be universal agreement that Harry/Ginny cannot be counted as one of the great romances.
This should be common sense; Harry Potter is not a romance novel. It did not focus on romantic relationships. Hence, NO pairing (canon or not) in it can be counted as a true romance.
On the “why do people hate Ginny so” part of the discussion:
It’s not hate, per-say. Well, maybe it is. Some fans were just outraged as what they saw as an insipid attempt to draw in more readers (romance = marketable) by pairing them up.
Other fans were angry about Ginny’s total change of character. I think many people had thought of Ginny as a timid sort of girl (who definitely wasn’t super-popular), and didn’t like Rowling’s insta-changing her personality (and looks, and skills etc.) for the sole purpose of making her Harry’s romantic interest.
Yeah, I realize that it can be argued that “Ginny grew up, duh”, but that’s the point. The readers certainly never saw her growing up – and thus were clothes-lined with Rowling’s sudden and new portrayal of her. She had rarely been mentioned before becoming Harry’s interest. It broke the readers’ suspension of disbelief.
Here are some statistics:
Times names are mentioned
Philosopher’s Stone
Harry: 1318
Ron: 453
Hermione: 269
Ginny: 5
Chamber of Secrets
Harry: 1634
Ron: 694
Hermione: 319
Ginny: 114
Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry: 1986
Ron: 755
Hermione: 638
Ginny: 17
Goblet of Fire
Harry: 3162
Ron: 1040
Hermione: 870
Ginny: 46
Cho: 32
Order of the Phoenix
Harry: 4016
Ron: 1298
Hermione: 1306
Ginny: 245
Cho: 151
Half-Blood Prince
Harry: 2782
Ron: 886
Hermione: 690
Ginny: 234
Deathly Hallows
Harry: 3128
Ron: 1179
Hermione: 1222
Ginny: 121
As you see, Ginny came in from nowhere, making it hard to accept her as a legitimate character.
It’s not that her personality is bad, or that she’s a bad person. She’s just a bad CHARACTER. Why is she a bad character? Because she’s elevated to a position of importance (in our minds), that of romantic interest, with little to no depth.
Rowling starts displaying and emphasizing Ginny’s traits and personalities, realizing that to pair H/G, we needed more info on Ginny. So she told us: look at Ginny! She’s pretty, good at lots of things and she’s really popular too! But she overdid it. She forgot to actually write Ginny out to be a proper character, with her own flaws and negatives (which we, as readers, crave – in order to identify ourselves with the character). All we got was a shallow doll of a character stuffed to the brim with positives attributes.
In reality, she comes off as the hot prep-girl or cheerleader in school by Half-Blood Prince. She has no bad detractors. And if there’s one thing everyone hates, its a Mary-Sue.
Of course, had Rowling paired Harry with anyone else (with the tentative exception of Hermione – whose character is fleshed out), there would have been the same outrage, but expressed towards that character instead.
H/Hr, though, is generally bad as well. This is mostly due to fanon!Hermione. A lot of harmonian writers seem to live out their fantasies through Hermione – almost always making her smarter than she ever was, and adding traits where they see fit. Sort of like canon!Ginny.
But that’s okay, because that’s just fanon. The problem with canon!Hermione is that she’s too compatible with Harry, IMHO. You can’t have romantic tension with compatibility. It’s boring. That’s why most romances have two characters who have different social backgrounds, different opinions, and are generally irritable to the other.
In regards to Harry/Luna. It works, but only because we know almost nothing about Luna (some of her personality, some background history, some recent events). This is good, because it lets the reader ‘fill in the blanks’. You think Luna is quirky? Then she’s quirky. Batsh*t insane? Sure, why not. Secret Einstein-esque genius? Go for it. Tragically ignored truth-sayer? Why not. Harry/Luna works because Rowling gave us just enough information to make her more than a side-prop, but not enough that we couldn’t add to her personality.
Harry/AnyoneElse is very much similar to Harry/Luna. The dis/advantage (it can be either) of AnyoneElse is that they have very little characterization to speak of. This can be good: allowing the reader to build up personalities from scratch. Fleur: exotic, delicate woman? Daphne: cold, but with a heart of gold?
TL;DR: Yeah, pairings are just personal preference, but no one can deny that HP pairings cannot be counted as ‘great romance’.
On another note: Rowling needs to take ECON lessons. Her math != sense.
wow….. some of those comments were long!! i like the idea of H/G but i do agree it wasnt well organised and as a huge H/G fan i was really waiting for them to have a really intense, heartwarming, tears to the eyes sort of conversation or at least a private flipping conversation!!!!!!! but that fact that they didnt even have a proper conversation unilthey broke up annoys me!! we were told in the book that they had a nice little walk on the grounds after they kissed but im quite nosey!! details details PLEASE i want to know what happened!! and then harry said i think in the 7 book he remembered the deserted corridors he and ginny would time in……. WTH happened in them i mean i have a hunch that they just chatted and snogged a good bit but i wouldnt be that much effort to add in a little private conversation while they are a couple!!! really the only conversations they had private were the one in the libary and ginny was under the personation that she was going to cheer him up about breaking up with cho his EX!! as far as im concerned if i have liked someone since i was 10 i wouldnt want to cheer them up about their ex and put them in a good mood to forgive their ex!! but then again if i fancied my friend i would want to be a good friend………. ugh!! its debatable lets put it that way!!! and the other private one was when they were broken up but still attracted to one another and that was only like all together one page of talking and then they were snogging again!! so i would have liked a more stable and heartwarming realtionship but unlike a lot of people i really like the idea of them together!!
Regarding Ginny being a Mary-Sue: In an earlier comment with that JKR interview: “Ginny is what I wanted to be in high school.” From this line we hear that Ginny is a Mary-Sue from the Authors mouth!
About Ginny being the same as Harry by both being Possessed by Voldemort:
When Ginny was possessed by Voldemort all that happened to her was that she lost her memory.
When Harry was possessed by Voldemort at the end of OOTP Harry was aware of him being in his head and was feeling Pain not Memory Loss.
H/G vs. H/Hr
H/G: I agree with the article and the H/Hr shippers.
H/Hr: I also agree that as a Lit Romance it is not “good”, but for real life Harry should be with Hermione because he does know her the best and I believe that if Ron hadn’t been so ticked at Hermione because of the Firebolt Harry would have seen the merit of her logic.
I agree to some extent because what you have to remember is that Harry Potter is not a romance novel. It’s about Harry fighting the war and besides a lot of stuff could have happened in those the nineteen years.
Harry and Hermione are not right for each other. It’s been Ron and Hermione from the start. Harry and Luna or Cho would just not have worked.
Ginny is not a Mary-Sue! She is not perfect. Ginny has a huge family, is poor and is always being left out from things her brother does. The Chamber of Secrets thing only happened because she felt left out and poured all her thought into the diary.
Overall Ginny and Harry belong with each other. True Ginny should be more developed but still it works.
Exactly – Just another reason why H/G are not a great literary romantic couple.
“Harry Potter is not a romance novel” is the worst excuse for H/G I have ever heard. If their relationship was only ever going to be a half-hearted romance, what’s the point in adding it in in the first place? Seriously, what did it do? There’s no point doing anything by halves, and H/G was done with scraps that fell off the kitchen surface.
To explain the Harry/Luna belief, since I’m a Hufflepuff:
The first hint was that Harry and Luna had a dysfunctional family, and experienced the loss of a parent(s), evident by the thestrals and how Luna would comment on her father telling her about Snorkacks and such.
The second hint of Harry/Luna was at the end of book five, where it was not Hagrid, his friends, or Dumbledore, or Nick that gave him peace, but Luna.
As they talk during that instance, the strain of Sirius’s death in his heart lessening a bit, we discover two things– that Harry can relate to the bullying that Luna experiences, and that after the talk, Luna no longer makes him uncomfortable. In my opinion, Harry from then on was more amused at her antics, which contrasted earlier when he was annoyed with her when they were about to go to the Ministry.
In book six, he chose Luna as a date to the Slug party. Not Susan, not Parvati, Luna! He could’ve picked a less weird girl, but he picked Luna! That meant that Harry trusted her and treasured her.
Hermione is probable, but was already “assigned” to Ron, noted by the obvious hints that Rowling gave us, in the form of the ‘bickering couple ish in love’ cliche. I believed for a time that she would be his love interest, but I was proven wrong as Ron and her’s relationship developed.
Hermione and Luna were the only characters developed enough, never mind compatibility, to be Harry’s love interest. Girls like Susan Bones or Lavender Brown couldn’t be with Harry because their characters weren’t developed enough for the readers. And with Hermione crossed off, that left Luna.
Until Ginny came into the picture.
When she arrives again in book five, we have no idea who she was. We know she’s Ron’s little sister, had been posessed by Tom in 2nd year and rescued by Harry, was Neville’s Yule date, and had a massive fangirl-crush on Harry since childhood. But that says nothing about her individual uniqueness.
During her brief appearance, we assume that she had given up on Harry, noted by her casualness and by the background info on her recent dating.
Then she disappears again for the most part, until.. BOOM. Monster in Harry’s chest. Hormones? Possibility, I thought.
Let’s skip to the end of book six.
When Ginny was introduced to the books again, I was patient. (Hufflepuff!) I was sure that I’d come to like her. I read it over and over, trying to find anything that would give a reasonable answer as to why Harry was loving her.
I couldn’t. Everything about Ginny was facts, like her hair, her quidditchness, her bat-bogeyness, nothing individual about her personality. Her speech was predictable, and at times annoying.
My loyalty to the books made me deny it for a while, but I was forced to conclude that, yes, Ginny is a Mary Sue.
Of the little respect I had left for Harry, it was gone by the end of book six. It felt like he was a hormonal teen, just as embarrassing as when he was entranced by the veela at the World Cup!
Anyway, got a bit off-topic there.
I don’t believe that Ginny is a Mary-Sue, but in Book 6 she does exhibit SOME qualities of a Mary-Sue. She is highly idealised – pretty, smart, funny, kind, popular, great kisser, good at Quidditch, etc. JKR has even said that Ginny is how she wished she had been in secondary school, highlighting the self-insert “wish fulfilment” elements of a Mary-Sue. She is never once presented as being wrong, and the hero inexplicably falls for her.
However, I think that CoS show her to have major faults, therefore she cannot be a true Mary-Sue. I just think her characterisation got screwed over in HBP for the sake of H/G.
By pairing Harry and Ginny along with Hermione and Ron, JK Rowling gives Harry what he has been longing for since page one of the series….a loving family. The Weasleys and Hermione adopted him early on as such. The pairings simply put a ribbon on it and made it official….good post…Trult a “happily ever after”
…Which just highlights how shallow and offensive H/G is. Ginny is reduced from a character to nothing but a gateay to Harry’s “happily ever after”. And it’s entirely pointless anyway, as the Weasleys had always considered Harry part of the family anyway.
To be fair, Harry Potter series isn’t a romance fiction series. It’s a fantasy series. So the plot wasn’t exactly build around any romantic pairing possibility – which is maybe why there is not much build up toward H/G relationship, but this is just an assumption though. If I’m allowed to make a guess, those epilogue was thrown in as a bonus or a closure of some sort of HP fans.
Umm I’m sorry but anyone who argues that Ginny isn’t well developed but that Luna is a well developed character just looses all credibility in their argument IMO especially with comments like this that follow : “Everything about Ginny was facts, like her hair, her quidditchness, her bat-bogeyness, nothing individual about her personality. Her speech was predictable, and at times annoying.” Or if you make a comment like this : “she comes off as the hot prep-girl or cheerleader in”. Good god, where is this coming from ? LMAO, whole lot of projection going on there IMO. Because clearly Ginny is the girl you don’t identify with it you see this from what’s in canon, which is a way off interpretation IMO.
Also, who you ship ? Total personal opinion and just arguing it is really ridiculous. Harry/Ginny is canon and some people love it. Shouldn’t those of you that don’t like it focus on the ships you like and just stop freaking complaining about what you don’t like ? What a whole waste of time and energy. I think H/G works in the books very well – anything else would have been utter BS and out of nowhere and she’s the only one who Harry was compatible with ( you can go blue in the face and tell me that Luna was compatible with Harry but I would never ever agree with that – I have never seen a more mismatched couple). But whatever, I won’t deride you of your opinion.
Also, just because HP isn’t a romance novel, it doesn’t mean that people can’t think that romances from it are their favourites etc. Yes, their was very little screen time given to any romance on the whole in the books (and thank god because if I had to read about R/Hr making googy eyes at each other I’d barf) but people saw what they liked and you know what ? That is fine. And not a bad excuse or not a reason why a couple can’t be well liked etc.
Basically my point is, get over it no ?
Sigh… it’s called a discussion. You don’t want to discuss the quality of Harry/X? Fine, then don’t post here. Other people clearly want to put their various points forward, and are entitled to do so.
Hi eveyone! I just joined this little discussion thing…
Anyway…I completely disagree with this article! I’m a huge Harry/Ginny supporter! I think they’re adorable, but I may be a little biased since Ginny’s my favorite female character and my 3rd favorite character in all, but I think she rocks! She’s tough, smart, won’t take crap from anyone, and can make Harry forget he’s even Harry Potter, The Chosen One. And I’m ready for ANY trash talk ANY of you Harry/Luna or Harry/Hermione can give me! I’m ready for any opinions at all! Just tell me any opinions you have! And btw, for those fo you who are saying Harry and Ginny’s relationship happened out of no where…JKR didn’t have another 7 books to actually DEVELOP Harry/Ginny! She made it short and sweet romance which I TOTALLY love! So ANY OF YOU; Harry/Ginny is my FAVORITE pairing! Well…that’s all I have to say for now!
Also, this “discussion” to me, is more like a war! I mean, this comment in 140 or something! But that’s not to say this discussion thing isn’t fun!
“Hi eveyone! I just joined this little discussion thing…
Anyway…I completely disagree with this article! I’m a huge Harry/Ginny supporter! I think they’re adorable, but I may be a little biased since Ginny’s my favorite female character and my 3rd favorite character in all, but I think she rocks! She’s tough, smart, won’t take crap from anyone”
Yep, Ginny is awesome. Which is why she deserves someone who will treat her like an equal, and won’t patronise and mollycoddle her. Harry breaks up with her “for her own safety” and forbids her from fighting in the final battle. She canonically hates that kind of treatment, so why does she roll over and take it from Harry? Bad writing, that’s why. Ginny’s character was pidgeonholed into a place it didn’t belong. Despite Ginny in theory not taking crap from anyone, she repeatedly succumbed to Harry’s wishes.
“and can make Harry forget he’s even Harry Potter, The Chosen One.”
Again, I present my “Show, don’t tell” argument. We’re told that Ginny makes Harry feel that way, but that makes no sense. There is nothing to indicated why or how she makes him feel that way. I don’t see anything in Ginny that would make him feel that way. Quite the opposite even – she historically hero-worshipped him, and in HBP says herself that she likes him because he is heroic. She likes Harry because of his heroism, yet somehow she makes him forget his hero’s duty? These statements are somewhat contradictary.
“And I’m ready for ANY trash talk ANY of you Harry/Luna or Harry/Hermione can give me! I’m ready for any opinions at all! Just tell me any opinions you have!”
Awesome.
“And btw, for those fo you who are saying Harry and Ginny’s relationship happened out of no where…JKR didn’t have another 7 books to actually DEVELOP Harry/Ginny!”
It would hardly have been hard to develop it. Give them one or two one-on-one conversations in HBP that show them interacting on an emotional level, and we’d be able to see why exactly they are good for each other, and see that they have a deep connection beyond snogging and Quidditch.
There were so many missed opportunities with H/G. It could have been phenomenally better with just a couple of minor tweaks.
Example – End of HBP, Ginny says that she “never gave up on Harry”. This retcons her character development in OotP, makes her look pathetic because all the changes she made in herself were for Harry, and is all-round insulting to Ginny’s character. Why not simply have Ginny actually getting over Harry? Insert a small scene in HBP before they get together, where Harry is good to Ginny in some way, making her have feelings for him again – proper feelings, not hero-worship. There, now Ginny’s feelings for Harry are not a convenient retcon, but a legitimate development of her character. We also get to see why Harry is good for Ginny.
Another example – the Room of Requirement scene in DH. Harry tells Ginny not to fight in the battle. Ginny takes his crap. This scene shows how OOC Ginny has to be to fit as Harry’s LI, and how Harry and Ginny are not equals at all in any way – Harry treats Ron, Hermione, Luna, Neville, and the rest of his year as his equals, but not Ginny. Why not have Harry stick up for Ginny? Mrs Weasley tries to stop Ginny fighting, that was a great opportunity for Harry to come in on Ginny’s side. Have him say that she faced Death Eaters last year, and the year before, that she survived possession by Voldemort himself, that he trusts her completely and wants her fighting by his side. That would improve H/G tenfold. It would show us why Ginny falls for Harry – because he treats her like the strong witch she is – and would make the relationship much more equal.
So yeah, I’m not buying the “didn’t have time” excuse. Tiny adjustments that would’ve taken up no more pagetime, or a few pages at most, would have made the relationship much better. R/Hr was developed well enough in 7 books, hell, Bill/Fleur was well developed in the space of 2 or 3 pages. H/G did lack simple time to develop, but what really killed it was that the way it was written was so awful in thd first place. H/G could have been really good, it’s a few minor adjustments away. But as it stands, I think it was written badly.
I absolutely agree with this article. I would have LOVED Ginny and Harry as a couple, but it felt very forced. It’s not a good thing when the author’s intent is so completely transparent like that. I think good characters should drive the story. You could tell she put Ginny and Harry together just because “it had to happen” without doing any of the hard work of making it believable.
I would have been happy if there was no Epilogue at the end. Then, fans could have “made up” what really happened to the characters, etc. Instead we get this awl-fullness about Harry and Ginny getting married and Hermoine becoming basically a house-wife. It seriously ruined the series for me.
I can agree with the whole basis of this article — that the Harry/Ginny ship is NOT a great literary romance — but that’s beacuse I’m of the firm opinion that Harry should have ended up with someone who’s life he did not DIRECTLY save. It is emphasized in the books that Harry never liked his fame or wanted to be seen as a hero, so pairing him with some who he swooped down and saved seems shallow to me. When you save a person’s life, they’ll always think of you as their hero — because you ARE!
Moving on, I will also agree that ‘Harry Potter’ as a series is not a romance, nor is JK Rowling a romance author.
That said, I don’t approve of the Harry/Hermione ship either — she nags like she’s his mother, and cannot see how by always solving Harry’s problems for him she has shorted him. By the end of the books Harry is incredibly lazy, having had all of his awe and excitement at the thought of learning magic been sapped out of him by Hermione’s willingness to do everything for him. To me, the Harry/Hermione ship is a bit incestuous because Harry relies on her as one would rely on a parent.
As for the Harry/Ginny ship I will start by saying that I agree that there is very little MUTUAL on-screen romance between them. Ginny has loved Harry since she was young, and after he rescued her in ‘Chamber of Secrets’ her affection for him grew. I will agree that JK made Ginny’s love for Harry seem all-encompassing (even if I personally do not like the pairing), but there are very few instances where she even IMPLIES that Harry’s feeling for Ginny are the same. I dislike the pairing not because Ginny started out as a fan-girl, but because I feel like the affection Harry shows for Ginny pales incomparison for what she feels for him. To me, the Harry/Ginny romance is very much like the Lily/Snape romance in that it is painfully obvious that one party has much deeper feelings than the other does. Ginny got what she wanted in the end, but she DESERVED a realationship with someone that loved her as much as she did them.
As for the Harry/Luna ship I will say this: I like Luna as a character, but they were only ever meant to be friends. Harry doesn’t really know her, and thus, despite the shared experiences between them, he cannot really understand her.
The only pairing that seemed believeable to me were the ones between the adults. The James/Lily romance that was a long time in the making and foundation upon which the series was written; the one-sided Snape/Lily pairing, where he loved her his entire life, even after she’d died; and the Molly/Arthur ship where we see a love that supports an entire family. These are all background romances that are secondary to the main plot –the progression of Harry’s life — and that, I think, is what makes them so much better than the other pairing in the books.
I feel a little guilty, breaking the 143 comments on your page. But … I love you anyway because of your article.
I agree that Harry and Ginny have no chance against the other literary couples. Their condensed relationship was never built – sort of like a mansion hastily made out of sticks or something.
I would have really liked the HarryXGinny pairing … but like I said, their relationship was “condensed”.
I also agree that the most believable relationship was the JamesXLily pairing. Heck – almost every single one of the BACKGROUND pairings was developed better than HarryXGinny!
I need to stop right now – because if I continue, I could probably make an entire 500 word essay. Even though the arguments about the pairings are long gone.
Don’t feel guilty lol
You’re right in that the background relationships had much more meat on their bones compared to HxG. If you feel like writing 500 words on the subject, my comment box is open for your rant! 
Eh, I was fine with H/G but I can see why others aren’t because it’s all about personal preference. TBH, I can’t see him with Hermione and Luna (that’s a joke right ?) and I can see him and Ginny happily living together so …
Though for people saying Harry and Luna had a bond – remember how he had to be reminded that she’d been taken away in DH ? Can’t say that’s a viable romantic pairing at all. As for the argument that Harry shares stuff with Hermione/Luna that he doesn’t with anyone else, that’s false. In OoTP, Ginny is the only one he tells about his wish to speak to Sirius so there goes that argument.
Now I realize some people like to think that oh my preferred ship had meaningful interactions, which I don’t agree with because I’d say all ship had that, but really, you need attraction as well and Harry’s only ever attracted to Cho and Ginny. If you go looking for oh my god, we had one conversation that was all “meaningful” you may just end up going for a guy who laughs at you.
“Though for people saying Harry and Luna had a bond – remember how he had to be reminded that she’d been taken away in DH?”
He didn’t have to be reminded, he remembered, and felt bad that he, understandably, forgot, what with everything else happening at the time.
He also had complete faith in Luna that she was strong, and would be teaching all the inmates about Nargles. He puts his faith in Luna and treats her as an equal – something he does not do with Ginny.
“As for the argument that Harry shares stuff with Hermione/Luna that he doesn’t with anyone else, that’s false. In OoTP, Ginny is the only one he tells about his wish to speak to Sirius so there goes that argument.”
Harry wanting to speak to Sirius is pretty much common knowledge, it’s not exactly a big secret he’s unveiling. It would be like him confiding in Ginny that he doesn’t like Voldemort very much.
On the other hand, he is completely comfortable with talking to Luna about Sirius when he cannot talk to anyone else in the entire world.
“Now I realize some people like to think that oh my preferred ship had meaningful interactions, which I don’t agree with because I’d say all ships had that, but really, you need attraction as well and Harry’s only ever attracted to Cho and Ginny.”
And Harry complementing Luna’s appearance on two seperate occasions means nothing?
Also, this line of argument is one of the many reasons why H/G is percieved as a “superficial” relationship.
How does Harry not treat Ginny as his equal? If Harry wanting to talk to Sirius was deffetnlly not common knowledge then why was nothing done about it till after Ginny talked to Fred and George? If Ron and Hermione knew that he wanted to talk to Sirius I’m sure they would have come up with a plan before. How does Harry treat Luna like and equal? They are friends and can be nothing more because he will never understand how she sees the world, and she believes in.
“How does Harry not treat Ginny as his equal?”
End of HBP – breaks up with her to “keep her safe”. Doesn’t even tell her what he is doing.
DH – Forbids her to fight in the battle, against her wishes.
“If Harry wanting to talk to Sirius was deffetnlly not common knowledge then why was nothing done about it till after Ginny talked to Fred and George? If Ron and Hermione knew that he wanted to talk to Sirius I’m sure they would have come up with a plan before.”
Talking about it made it clear that he wanted to talk to Sirius immediately, but it was hardly a big secret he was confiding.
“How does Harry treat Luna like and equal?”
He fights alongside her in the final battle, he trusts her puts his faith in her strength, believing that she is strong enough to survive imprisonment, and is proved right.
“They are friends and can be nothing more because he will never understand how she sees the world, and she believes in.”
He doesn’t believe in most of her theories, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t understand them. And in OotP, he realises that Luna is right about several things – the Thestrals and the voices (“…Luna believed so many incredible things… Harry almost dared himself to believe her…”). And he completely respects her other beleifs, he never thinks her less of a person for them.
And I think that it’s good that he doesn’t believe in Nargles or Snorcacks. Luna believes anything as long as there’s no proof, she needs grounding. He needs her hope and idealism, she needs his cynicism. They balance each other out beautifully.
At the end of HBP Ginny did not agree with Harry breaking up with her but she respected Harry enough to go along with because she knew she is what he wanted and needed to get the job done.
In DH harry did not forbid Ginny to not fight he shook his head no. She was under age and most of her family did not want her to be in the fight. Even if harry did want Ginny to fight he would have had to change Mrs. Weasleys mind and that would have not happened. Can you really blame Harry for not wanting to her there it would be one less person he had to worry about. Also just because she wanted her to be save does not mean that he did not think she was not capable of taking care of herself.
“At the end of HBP Ginny did not agree with Harry breaking up with her but she respected Harry enough to go along with because she knew she is what he wanted and needed to get the job done.”
Yes, that’s how good relationships work. The woman doesn’t agree with what the man says at all, but she follows his wishes regardless.
“In DH harry did not forbid Ginny to not fight he shook his head no.”
That’s the same thing.
“She was under age and most of her family did not want her to be in the fight.”
So? Ginny had as much right to fight as anyone else. Did everyone just forget that she had fought the Death Eaters that last two years and survived both times? Or that Harry himself had been regularly facing evil since he was 11 years old?
“Even if harry did want Ginny to fight he would have had to change Mrs. Weasleys mind and that would have not happened.”
He could have at least made an effort. He should’ve come out on Ginny’s side, even if it was a losing battle, not Mrs Weasley’s side.
“Can you really blame Harry for not wanting to her there it would be one less person he had to worry about. ”
I don’t blame Harry. But what Ginny wants more than anything is to be respected and not treated like a little kid, or an easily breakable piece of china. Harry treats her as such, which is why I think that he is completely the wrong guy for her.
“Also just because she wanted her to be save does not mean that he did not think she was not capable of taking care of herself.”
Clearly he does not think she is capable of fighting (despite her having shown she was twice previously), else he would’ve wanted her to fight.
Besides, since when was it Harry’s decision? Ginny wanted to fight, he should’ve respected her decision. That’s how good relationships work.
I really wanted to read through all of these comments, but I just don’t have the time xD However, here’s my two cents:
Firstly, Harry/Ginny as a high school romance is okay. It makes perfect sense to me that a guy suddenly starts having feelings for a girl out of the blue. Particularly at that age, it’s a common thing, what with the fact that he’s used to baby-Ginny and suddenly, whoa, she’s actually an adult, and she’s pretty hot…
I also understand JKR’s rationale for the pairing: that Ginny’s strong enough and feisty enough to understand why he has to leave, and lets him.
What I take issue with is, sadly, the epilogue. I can’t see Harry/Ginny surviving into a marriage scenario. After Voldemort is destroyed, JKR’s rationale for the pairing is null and void. There’s no need for Harry’s partner to be someone who’ll let him go and fight, because there’s no fighting to be done. I think that immediately after the final battle, they’d try to pick up where they left off, but it would fizzle out pretty quickly and they’d part mutually, staying friends.
Just look at the fact that, after the battle is won, Harry makes no attempt to go and talk to Ginny. Luna understands him and sends him off with Ron and Hermione. That seems very incongruous with his fretting over Ginny during the whole battle, which also seemed disproportionate to his feelings for Ginny leading up to this moment.
It’s as though Harry has decided Ginny is his soulmate, but doesn’t feel the need to tell us why. I think JKR had in her head such an idea of how great Ginny was and of how the pairing just made perfect sense, that she forgot that we, the readers, weren’t privy to that knowledge – she forgot to share it with us, and that’s why it’s so hard to believe the pairing.
As for other pairings, I don’t really see Harry/Luna. It’d be cute, but not convincing – as several people have said, Luna makes Harry a little uncomfortable; he likes her, but not enough for a relationship. The only person I’d have been happy to see Harry with is Hermione, because of her constancy. But I really think that Ron/Hermione is the best relationship in the books – it was clear from the very beginning that all the chemistry was between them. If it weren’t for Ron, maybe Harry/Hermione would have happened, but as it stands, Harry has no option (whether he loves her or not).
I’d say Harry has to be with Hermione or alone. Anyone else is just an unsatisfactory comedown for the main character. I’d say leave him be. He’s already practically brothers with Ron so he has a good family with the Weasleys, and he’ll later be reconciled with Dudley. JKR seems to have made another error in assuming that for a character to be happy, he *has* to be married and have a family. Personally I don’t subscribe to that, and I’m certainly not sure Harry would want more responsibility, especially so soon.
Though I have to say, my least favourite HP pairing is definitely Lupin/Tonks. It came out of nowhere, served no purpose except to give poor Lupin yet more angst AND spoil his character in the process and then came to nothing when they both died off screen. A saddening attempt to silence us Sirius/Lupin shippers in my view
One final point: JKR has said that everyone’s free to make up their own minds about what happened afterwards. The epilogue was just her way of communicating to everyone what *she* thought would happen. In other words, JKR herself has stated that the epilogue isn’t canon. Interesting, huh? ^^
(Sorry for such a long comment!)
Erm The Void – you may want to re-read OoTP again. Harry wanting to talk to Sirius was not common knowledge and he felt very relieved after he said it – it was not something he felt like he could say. It’s in freaking text there. Geez, this is exactly why I can’t take rapid shippers seriously. In a similar vein I could say, well everyone knew that Harry was upset about Sirius’s death and so that he could talk to Luna about it means nothing.
Wanting to protect someone from fighting because they mean everything to you =/= not thinking they can’t fight. Is it Ginny’s fault that people cared for her and didn’t want her to fight ? No, Harry didn’t support her desire to fight and it’s shown that he couldn’t bear the thought of anything happening to her – he almost gives up his clear shot on Voldie to protect Ginny FFS. There’s a difference between that and not respecting someone’s abilities and I don’t see proof that Harry doesn’t respect Ginny’s abilities – what you give is just ….. nothing. Neither is there any proof that Harry understands Luna despite what you say but I cannot say that I am surprised.
“Erm The Void – you may want to re-read OoTP again. Harry wanting to talk to Sirius was not common knowledge and he felt very relieved after he said it – it was not something he felt like he could say. It’s in freaking text there.”
I’m not going to trapse through the books looking for quotes, but time and time again throughout GoF and OotP, Harry expresses a desire to talk to Sirius. It’s why he appears in the fire. It’s why they arrange to meet in Hogsmeade. It’s why Sirius gives him the mirror.
That’s the strange thing about that scene, the scene treats Harry’s revelation as though it was a big secret he’d never told anyone else, when in actual fact it’s not. The scene is fine if you don’t think about it, but when you do it makes very little sense.
“In a similar vein I could say, well everyone knew that Harry was upset about Sirius’s death and so that he could talk to Luna about it means nothing.”
Partially true, I should clarify. It was common knowledge that Harry was upset. However, it was clear that Harry couldn’t talk to anyone about it – he felt “cut off from the rest of the world”. He didn’t speak to anyone about his death, until Luna came along. And while he felt pangs of pain when Ron or Hermione or Hagrid mentions Sirius, he doesn’t mind Luna talking about him. That’s what’s important here – when Harry cannot connect to anyone else, he can connect to Luna.
“On Ginny’s abilities, Harry’s treatment of her.”
Look, I’ve said it before and I don’t like repeating myself. I am not saying what Harry did is wrong, or out of character. I’m saying that it shows that he is not the kind of guy that Ginny would not want to be with.
Ginny wants to be respected for her talents and not treated like a useless little girl. She would want to be with someone who would treat her like the powerful woman she is. She would not want to be with someone overprotective, however well-intentioned they are.
“Neither is there any proof that Harry understands Luna despite what you say but I cannot say that I am surprised.”
He understands her compltely at the end of OotP, realising that she could see the Thestrals and gaining insight into her view of the world. In HBP he notices how much the DA must have meant to her. In DH he believes in her strength to survive imprisonment and is proved right, and instantly recognises her “dancing” as batting away Wrackspurts.
I still don’t get how Harry opening about wanting to talk to Ginny is different than him opening up about Sirius to Luna ? How does one count and proove a ship while the other doesn’t ? It’s the same thing – he opens up and talks about it to the girls when he can’t to anyone else and now your argument just sounds hypocritical. He connects to both but apparently only one is right. Seriously ? Whatever.
He understands Luna better in the last three books yes, but he doesn’t get her still – her beliefs, interests and values mean nothing to him when you think about it and the ship just doesn’t make sense. Like honestly, what would he rather talk about quidditch or house elevs or imaginary creatures ?
And with that I am done.
“I still don’t get how Harry opening about wanting to talk to Ginny is different than him opening up about Sirius to Luna ? How does one count and proove a ship while the other doesn’t ? It’s the same thing – he opens up and talks about it to the girls when he can’t to anyone else and now your argument just sounds hypocritical. He connects to both but apparently only one is right. Seriously ? Whatever.”
Have I not explained this already? He had not spoken to ANYONE about Sirius’ death before he does so with Luna. On the other hand, he has told MULTIPLE PEOPLE of his wish to speak to Sirius before he does so with Ginny. Luna is the one and only he can talk to, while Ginny is one in a long line of confidantes.
“He understands Luna better in the last three books yes, but he doesn’t get her still – her beliefs, interests and values mean nothing to him when you think about it.”
“Like honestly, what would he rather talk about quidditch or house elevs or imaginary creatures?”
D) All of the above. With the woman who clearly enjoys quidditch, as evidenced by her dressing up in a costume built specifically for a match and volunteering to commentate, who speaks of Dobby’s bravery in Malfoy Manor, saying every Harry wanted to say for him, and who believes in the impossible and therefore gives Harry the strength to believe himself.
“And with that I am done.”
Nice talking.
Sorry, forgot to add a bit:
“He understands Luna better in the last three books yes, but he doesn’t get her still – her beliefs, interests and values mean nothing to him when you think about it.”
See my previous post on the subject:
http://www.loveromancepassion.com/why-harry-potter-and-ginny-weasley-are-the-least-romantic-literary-couple-of-the-age/comment-page-3/#comment-7559
Harry did not tell anyone that he wanted to talk to Sirius after he saw his Father and Mother in the pensieve but Ginny. Here is the quote from book five. ” Harry looked at her. Perhaps it was the effect of the chocolate – Lupin had always advised eating some after encounters with dementors – or simply because he had finally spoken aloud the wish that had been burning inside him for a week, but he felt a bit more hopeful…….”
“Harry did not tell anyone that he wanted to talk to Sirius after he saw his Father and Mother in the pensieve but Ginny. Here is the quote from book five. ” Harry looked at her. Perhaps it was the effect of the chocolate – Lupin had always advised eating some after encounters with dementors – or simply because he had finally spoken aloud the wish that had been burning inside him for a week, but he felt a bit more hopeful…….””
That’s true, he hadn’t spoken of it since the pensieve incident. However he had spoken of it many times before. His great secret is “I want to speak to Sirius… for a slightly different reason than the many previous times.”
That is why the chocolate scene is so emotionally empty. It’s nothing new that Harry unveils, it’s a slight variation on a theme we’d scene time and time again before. The details differ, but the wish itself stays the same.
I’m a Harmony fan and I dont mind Ginny/Harry…If Giny and Harry had more on page romance. yes, it wasnt a romance novel and such but some books that are action packed and magical like Harry DO have time to introduce the love interest. Even if Ginny came in book 2, because she was a fangirl most of the time and was barely even there, there’s no WAY that you can take that relationship seriously. If J.K. put it more on page than off page, then not many people would have a problem with it.
The reason me and other like Harmony is because of the on-page action and such. If Ginny, when she was immediately put in book 2, was more interactive with them and wasnt that much of a fangirl in the beginning, I bet that the majority of Harmonians would be on the side of Ginny and Harry. But since harry and Hermoine’s page time was RIGHT in our faces, we took that he’d end up with her. Or if he didnt, he’d end up with no one and he’d watch Ron and Hermoine’s kids off to Hogwarts at the end(or atleast i did).
There’s NO problem with subtle clues, but dont make it SO subtle that it’s almost nonexistan. That’s how I feel on that situation. Now off to read another story.
Well, I don’t think they were the best LITERARY couple, but they were also fairly realistic. They weren’t that romantic, but not all relationships are like that. Hermione and Ron were the passionate, always fighting couple, whereas Harry and Ginny are the level-headed, but still in love couple. And Harry does admire Ginny. She has courage and guts, and Harry admires this. Plus Hermione and Ron are completely created to be together, so Harry and Hermione would just be wrong. They think of eachother like brother and sister. Luna is too odd for Harry, and she’s always seemed to kind of have a crush on Ron.
And crushes come out of nowhere all the time. Yes, at first, Harry’s liking for Ginny was just a crush, but I believe it turned into more.
“Luna is too odd for Harry,”
Nope, she’s just odd enough.
“and she’s always seemed to kind of have a crush on Ron.”
This is wrong, incorrect, the opposite of true. She laughed at his joke in OotP, that got fed into the fanon machine and we ended up with this perception in fandom that Luna has a crush on Ron. She doesn’t. This is non in the story.
“And crushes come out of nowhere all the time.”
No, they don’t. They usually come out of friendships. You do not know your best friends little sister for years and barely think about her at all, then suddenly become head over heels for her at random. It’s unrealistic.
“Yes, at first, Harry’s liking for Ginny was just a crush, but I believe it turned into more.”
When? In the scene when they broke up? When the snogged in Ginny’s room? Was there a single scene in the whole books when they got to know each other better?
I TOTALLY AGREE WITH U…
According to me
“JKR could have created one of the greatest romances in fiction if she had paired Harry and Hermione…they truly understand each other and are truly made for each other…..”
H/Hr & H/L fans, just get over it already. Go outside and enjoy the day instead of spending your lives bitching for something that will never change.
And it’s hypocrisy calling Ginny an underdeveloped character but not Luna. Luna never changes/evolves throughout the series. Even the actress who plays her said that. How can someone like that work for Harry? He needs someone ‘sane’ and ‘not acting like his mom’ all the time. He needs his equal, who is Ginny.
And Harry Potter’s not all about romance. JK Rowling doesn’t have to spoonfeed every romantic detail to you. Use your brain and common sense please. If you want romance, then go and read twilight. Now there’s the book you’re looking for.
“H/Hr & H/L fans, just get over it already. Go outside and enjoy the day instead of spending your lives bitching for something that will never change.”
Erm, why don’t YOU go outside instead of bitching about what other people are doing? My God, people who come onto a discussion thread and then accuse people that go on discussion threads of being stupid are just… argh.
“And it’s hypocrisy calling Ginny an underdeveloped character but not Luna. Luna never changes/evolves throughout the series. Even the actress who plays her said that.”
Luna does change in small ways, she slowly gains friends and becomes more confident and grounded from doing so. It’s small and subtle, and what you’d expect from a character only in 3 books. And although she doesn’t change massively, her character is explored in depth and so she is very developed.
I never accused Ginny of being underdeveloped, but poorly developed. She underwent a personality transplant in OotP, which was character development that was rushed and extreme. Then she gets her development retconned away in HBP, and in DH she barely appears.
“He needs someone ‘sane’ and ‘not acting like his mom’ all the time. He needs his equal, who is Ginny.”
Ginny is not his equal, he does not treat her like an equal at all. The RoR scene in DH is concrete proof of this. It’s all well and good JKR claiming that Harry and Ginny are equals, the problems is she didn’t actually show them as equals in the actual book.
“And Harry Potter’s not all about romance. JK Rowling doesn’t have to spoonfeed every romantic detail to you. Use your brain and common sense please. If you want romance, then go and read twilight. Now there’s the book you’re looking for.”
*bangs head against wall*
If you’re not going to do something properly, don’t do it at all. This applies to everything, including romance. I don’t want a romance book! Twilight is utter cack – it has a romance even worse than H/G! I love Harry Potter, almost everything about the series is brilliant, I just happen to think that the H/G romance was poorly written.
And “use your brain and common sense” – what’s that supposed to mean? Are you just slinging out random insults in place of an actual argument? FFS, don’t be so bloody rude and arrogant, either engage in debate or leave, don’t come here and just insult anyone with an opposing viewpoint.
Don’t be so melodramatic. You’re blocking out every anvil sized hints of course you will not get it. Read the books again. It will help you. Not the fanfiction and assumptions of the anti H/G crowd from fiction alley. The real books written by JK Rowling.
“Don’t be so melodramatic.”
Don’t be so insulting.
“You’re blocking out every anvil sized hints of course you will not get it. Read the books again. It will help you. Not the fanfiction and assumptions of the anti H/G crowd from fiction alley. The real books written by JK Rowling.”
Sigh… I’ve read the books. I’m reading HBP right now. What is in the books I use to explain why I don’t like H/G. I’ve looked at what’s there, and I’ve decided that I believe the relationship is poorly written, and have written hundereds upon hundereds of words, in this comments section, using examples from the text, detailing why I think that. Frankly if you can’t be bothered to read my arguments (starting here: http://www.loveromancepassion.com/why-harry-potter-and-ginny-weasley-are-the-least-romantic-literary-couple-of-the-age/#comment-6445) and if you are more interested in insulting me and accusing me of things that are not true, I don’t see why I should bother talking to you. Again, either engage me in debate properly or just leave.
Honestly, this is not supposed to be a Romeo and Juliet. It is not a love story. Harry and Ginny are not supposed to be a perfect great literary romance. They are just teenagers that happen to fall for one another in the midst of terrors and so much more going on. This is what makes it realistic–its not some extreme love story. Harry suddenly realizes he’s in love with his best friend’s little sister, when she’s been there all along while he’s been struggling to save the wizarding world. Ginny had a crush on him forever, but he just wouldn’t notice her. This is more realistic than any great literary romance.
I think what bothers me most about the relationship between Ginny and Harry, is the fact that it wasn’t developed. I mean you could say that Harry never developed romantic relations with anyone else either, but with Ginny he never developed even their platonic friendship.
Also, I just cant see how it is healthy to marry someone you had a crush on since you were five years old. Its like getting married to the prince from your favorite childhood fairytale. When I imagine their wedding I can’t stop myself from knowing that Ginny spent that day with at least a little self satisfied smirk thinking “I TOLD mum I was gonna marry the Boy-Who-Lived”.
Also have to admit that I really like the idea of Luna with Harry, but I understand the relationship he has with Hermione might under the correct circumstances turn romantic. Either way Harry had more history and groundwork placed for hooking up with Cho, and even asking Padma to the Jule Ball than he had with the youngest Weasley.
The sad thing is, that Ginny’s and Harry’s love story COULD have been great, if only there were more scenes with the both of them, if their connection to Tom Riddle was actually USED to place them closer.
“The sad thing is, that Ginny’s and Harry’s love story COULD have been great, if only there were more scenes with the both of them, if their connection to Tom Riddle was actually USED to place them closer.”
This is very true. Tiny alterations could’ve made their romance a lot better.
here is why they are in fact meant to be together throwout the whole serie
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:GYBsQXqGwL4J:www.mugglenet.com/editorials/madampuddifoot/edit-kkearney01.shtml+harry+ginny+feelings+hint&cd=4&hl=de&ct=clnk&gl=de
Well, since everyone else seems to get so excited about this, I’ll add in my two cents.
The most distinct thing I noticed about the Harry/Ginny relationship is the odd description of Harry’s supposed feelings (which, I might add, came from nowhere). They’re described as a “monster in his chest”. Personally, I’d have to disagree with that. Any sort of loving and true relationship should not be so intense, at least not in the long run. A true romantic relationship is much softer, much more gentle, subtle. It’s like an ocean, with a smooth surface and a churning undercurrent the ebbs and flows. There are high points, waves of desire and emotion, that can either wash against you gently or crash down on top of you in an instant. No such monster.
While I will admit there were several clues and hints as to their relationship, Ginny came out of nowhere. She had virtually no significance to the plot, yet she suddenly appears as the hero’s love interest in Half-Blood Prince. She was in no way central to the storyline. She could just as easily been replaced or omitted from the books entirely.
Amortentia? That seems to be a logical explanation for Harry’s feelings in Half-Blood Prince.
By contrast, Harry and Hermione have something different. They were best friends and Hermione always stood beside Harry. In a relationship, you and your partner are supposed to be equals, and while Ginny certainly acted like Harry’s equal, she was not given such a role. Conversely, Hermione was. She stood by his side through EVERYthing. Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow, nor…well, you get the idea. Hermione was willing to risk everything, up to and including her friendship with Harry, for the sake of protecting him.
Now, I can throw a bunch of different scenes at you that hinted at Harry and Hermione getting together, including how much she was willing to sacrifice for Harry in several of the books, the fact that several of Harry’s adventures had he and Hermione separated from Ron, even alone together, and how close they were in general, but I don’t have space in this comment.
In closing, I can say, however, that Rowling wrote the books in such a way (perhaps unintentionally) that Harry could have wound up with any number of girls, including Hermione, Luna, Cho, and Ginny (listed in order of my preference). Whether a cleverly written romantic masterpiece designed to cater to the preferences of a vast fanbase, or an incredible stroke of pure luck, up until the epilogue, JK Rowling let us choose who we wanted Harry to be with.
Well the thing disturbs me most about the description of Harry’s suddenly and out of no where feelings for Ginny. Are that in past books when J K Rowlings describes Harry natural feelings it is never as an animal or creature of any sort that moves about within his body. All of the that happens inside him are his heart soars in his chest when he is excited and his stomach does flip flops about when he is nervous or sinks deep within him when he is depressed.
And the only time in the whole series before Half-Blood-Prince where we are told by Harry in his talk with Sirius about any animal rising up inside him. It is when Harry had the desire to attack Dumbledore for no reason at all before he was pulled away by the portkey at Christmas in Order of the Phoenix the book that proceeded Half-Blood-Prince .
Now everyone of us knows that when that happened it was explained away that it was an outside force namely Voldemort trying to influence Harry to do so. But now that an animal suddenly appears inside Harry what it must be a natural feel because it brings Harry to his beloved Ginny.
Of course a very good author doesn’t repeat a pattern in their characters and then forgets in when they wish to change the meaning of the pattern.
Though I guess the fact that J K Rowlings does so proves that she isn’t the so great author/ writer everyone of her defenders simply claim she is. She is and will be just a flash in the pan unable to truly write anything beyond the Harry Potter series and books connect to the series.
Oh, and before I forget to point out that Harry and Ginny seems to be a retelling of the backstory we got from Tom Riddle and Merope Guant in the same book. Which of course makes it just as sad and unromantic as possible. Rich boy barely notices poor girl though he knows alot about her family. Then one day out of no where he falls in love with the poor girl and she is a witch who has had a crush on the rich boy for who knows how long.
Of course yes I know some will argue that no where in the books does it say Ginny slipped Harry a love potion as it does say about Merope Guant doing that to Tom Riddle, but with the change in description pointed out above. There is enough evidence along with the similarities between the couples of H/G and T/M to argue the point especially to those who make claims that Harry and Ginny’s relationship developed off page and so open the door to the possible argument that Ginny slipped Harry a love potion but it happened off page.
^I think the difference is that Ginny and Harry were implied to have gotten to know each other off-page (all those “sunlit days” and crap like that), whereas there is no implication that Ginny slipped Harry a love potion.
It doesn’t make the relationship any better written…. I just think that the love potion theory is a little bit ridiculous, and stinks of desperation.
Now I don’t deny that the love potion theory is a little bit ridiculous and stinks of desperation. Just compare it to the very ridiculous and ricking of of desperation explanation given by the author for Harry and Ginny. The love potion seems to be more thought out and explains the change in description between Harry’s natural feelings to Harry’s influenced feelings that appear to happen in Half-Blood-Prince.
Now for those who would argue the old argument that the Harry Potter series isn’t at romance. Can anyone then explain why four of the seven books are heavily themed that deal with relationship and romance hmmm? I mean four out of seven is more the half the books in the series and it makes me shake my head to read someone then claim that the Harry Potter series isn’t partly about romance. Oh, and for those who wonder which of the books that I mean they are books 2,4,5 and of course 6.
Book two deals with it in the form of Hermione’s fangirl crush on Lockhart. Then there is Ginny’s fangirl/hero worship of Harry or more accurately the hero who conquer the Dark Lord. Book four of course applies to Harry’s crushing on Cho and concluded that relationship in book five. Then can supper romance and hormones charged book six that forces Harry and Ginny together. Well I am going to call this a post since I am tired but will be back again to post on the subject another time. Farewell everyone..
The “HP isn’t a romance series!” argument is ridiculous. Just thinking through all my favourite TV shows and books, none of them are romance series, but some of them have great romances. HP doesn’t have to be a romance series to have a decent central romance, it manages to have some great action sequences even though it’s not an action series, there are some very funny moments even though it’s not a comedy… etc.
A Very Potter Sequel is on youtube now if you din’t know It sounded like you like the first musical.
I agree with the article. I didn’t want her to pair up the trio (Harry, Hermione, Ron) with each other or anyone else (except casually dating) and not an epilogue with them all married with kids (yawn). They were still very young at the end of the series but had been through a lot. I’d have liked to see them take the time to have some fun in college and get to know themselves and what they wanted in life before settling down. It’s odd that Rowling was divorced herself so she knows pairings often don’t last, particularly ones made at a very early age, so why wouldn’t she want to give them time to grow and spread their wings? That said, I didn’t see Harry and Ginny as a good couple in the books, but particularly not in the movies – I just didn’t see the chemistry. I saw more chemistry with Harry and Hermione or Harry and Luna. But again, I wanted them to all have time to just be individuals before settling down with anyone. Nice article and nice conversation, thank you!
I agree with this article, for the most part.
Harry/Ginny, at least the way they are written in the books, do NOT work.
I agree with the_void in the sense that the REASON for their relationship is never explained.
Also, while I can understand that at least in the 6th book their relationship can be understood as a mere crush, there are 2 problems:
1. they way Harry acts is completely out of character. A “green-eyed monster in his chest”?! WTF is that. If his attraction towards Ginny was somewhat more…Harry-like (swooning stomach, etc) then it would have been a more believable crush.
2. their relationship consisted of him staring at her ALL THE TIME, and them snogging; which is fine for a juvenile crush. (note that these 2 points I am making are arguing that Harry/Ginny don’t even stand as a in character crush/likeness.) BUT the problem with this is how the breakup is done. Rowling over-dramatizes the breakup, somehow telling us, in the thoughts of Harry, that their relationship had been the best days of his life. that they had a connection. WHERE IS THIS CONNECTION?!
so, even the idea of them together doesn’t make sense. if j.k. rowling simply developed ginny’s character a little better, and more gradually allowed Harry to notice her instead of simply using the green eyes monster, (which, by the way, i could see some hints in book 5, as a completely unbiased reader. if she just emphasized more on those, instead of having harry act like some out of character horny teenager, then it would have been a different story) then their relationship would have more of a basis.
but yeah. again, like what the_void said, even if this happened….I don’t know. I just don’t see them as equals. Harry always kind of admired Ginny, if you could say that, but put her down as well. She was always “the little sister” and her crush on him since she was like….4 years old makes me shudder at the thought of them together. I just don’t see how they can live as a married couple for 19 YEARS. it’s ridiculous.
* ex: even when harry started to see her in a different light, he still puts her down. when ginny replaces him as the seeker in OoTP, while he admires the fact that she caught the snitch, he also belittles her by knowing that he could have caught it faster.
“Harry got into bed, thinking about the match. It had been immensely frustrating watching from the sidelines. He was quite impressed by Ginny’s performance but he felt that if he had been playing he could have caught the Snitch sooner.There had been a moment when it had been fluttering near Kirke’s ankle; if she hadn’t hesitated, she might have been able to scrape a win for Gryffindor…”
there isn’t really anything about ginny that harry finds himself in awe over. sure, she can calm him down (sometimes), but that’s about it.
whereas, with hermione, it’s her intelligence, the way they can finish each others’ sentences, and i can go on and on.
i wanted to save the fact that i’m a harmonian until the end, so no one can discredit me at least whilst they are reading what i wrote in the beginning.
I think it is brilliant what Rowling did.
She provided a Mary-Sue to fall in love with Harry.
Sure, she provided the physical discription and social status, but any girl and throw her personality into Ginny’s head and believe herself to be the perfect match for the Hero Harry Potter.
Ginny isn’t developed enough to be more than a one dimensional character. The reason people see Luna/Harry more likely than Ginny/Harry is because Luna is more developed, despite having less “screen time” as it were.
Her quirkiness and background already provide her more depth and personality than Ginny’s robotic actions.
Ginny started off as a robot, and Rowling couldn’t figure out how to get Ginny from plot device to person.
I think Rowling wrote Luna for the pure fun of Luna, and so she shined through, and captured a loyal fan base.
I completely agree with the article, I just think that Rowling did it on purpose.
She provided the clues about Amorentia (sp?) at the same time as Harry fell for Ginny to keep the readers guessing until the very end. Brilliant tactic to keep the franchise going on for years after the final novel’s publication.
Couldn’t agree with ya more, lass. Great job bringing up these points.
Sosumi, you’re pretty much completely right.
“I think it is brilliant what Rowling did.
She provided a Mary-Sue to fall in love with Harry.
Sure, she provided the physical discription and social status, but any girl and throw her personality into Ginny’s head and believe herself to be the perfect match for the Hero Harry Potter.”
It’s like Twilight, where Bella is such a non-character that any girl can put themselves into her shoes and imagine they’re getting with Edward/Jacob. Although I don’t think Ginny is a Mary-Sue, she is a very weak and undefined character.
I definitely agree with this article.
To me it should have been Harry and Hermione. My reason is because of the attachment you get to those who are fully developed as a character. Hermione was from the beginning to the end at Harry’s side. Ginny was plain and dull and even when her character finally starts developing–which doesn’t happen until like book five–there is nothing about her that makes her stand out. Hermione has such a powerful character that you grow much more attached to her.
Those who are saying Hermione nags too much are somewhat being counter-productive in their argument… first of all: every girl nags too much lol. But mostly-harry is better suited to be with someone who nags. He’s pretty reckless throughout the books and needs to be kept in line. Same with Ron, which is why she does well with him. However, Ron is seen as more of a comedic character and really isn’t portrayed as a character to be with Hermione.
At the end of the day though, they’re amazing books nonetheless. And let’s face it, no one reads Harry potter for the romance lol.
Ok let’s start off with your so called “points”.
Point 1:
Just because the romance was not rowling’s main focus wasn’t romance didnt mean that it was nonexistent. She was, afterall, writing a childrens story, and as an older sibling of 3 i know that children (namely boys) are not interested in romance as much as action. Rowling may also not have been the best writer when it comes to romance writing, her strengths lay in other areas. Not to mention that their relationship was beleivable in a way that requires the reader to read in between the lines. Something you seem to have missed.
Point 2:
How can you say that Ginny had no strengths? She had to be strong to fight in the war as an under age witch. It was clearly shown in both thebooks and th movies that she was bright and powerful women; seeing as she had 6 older brothers to stand up against. She had to have been strong to survive Voldemort at age 11. Just because the 2 had more alike than most couples seem to, doesnt mean that they didnt compliment each other well.
Point 3:
Ok so Harry didnt sacrifice himself for only Ginny. Big deal! He had a larger burden on his shoulderTHE FLIPPEN WORLD. I would die for humanity too. Their sacrifice was clearly the year they spent apart. After Harry getting a taste of what life could be like with Ginny he unwillingly broke it off for her safety. During their kiss in the 7th book it clearly shows that Harry would miss her and he wanted her but he wouldnt let himself think of her because he had to save the world. Rowling only wrote his conscience thoughts and never went into detail about his subconscience which was obviously filled with Ginny. Why else would he stare at her dot on the map???
Point 4:
How are they not well matched? Reading between the lines, you would find that all of Ginny’s hidden traits match Harry’s needs perfectly. Rowling let’s the idea of Ginny being a fangirl fade when he saves her from the chamber of secrets.(not to mention that the chamber was a sacrifice from harry, seeing as he risked his life to save her)
point 5:
In Harry’s case everyone was basically an under dog. He was famous and ‘the chosen one’. Who could compete with that? Yes, Rowling suggest that Ginny was well-known but she was also the underdog when it came to Harry. Ron and Hermione always came first in his eyes and she fought for his attention.
Conclusion:
Harry and Ginny are a supreme example of going against the grain. There is a time for cliche and a time for independent ideas to be set free. Rowling already had the entire hero journey so the girl needed to be different. From the eyes of one who only sees through past literature, yes, Hermione Granger would Harry’s match. But if you closely and from another angle, then it is obvious that Ginny is the best choice for him.
Oh and the fact that Harry and Ginny were married for the epilogue only says that they were able to work out any kinks in their relationship. Rowling never said when or how they got back together.
Last thing, insulting an author who is clearly brilliant is not very classy. I understand insulting an author in discreet ways but coming right out and saying it is disrespectful to their work.
I’m not denying she tried to incorporate romance, I’m saying it was badly done. The whole post was done to counter another blogger’s points that placed Harry/Ginny in the top 10 romances ever written. HP is not a romance as so many people have said and that alone should disqualify the couple from major league romances.
Harry/Ginny is out of the blue. The hints and so-called reading between the lines are only there for those who wanted Harry/Ginny to get together. Prove to me using quotes from the book that imply how they will get together and all you can find is her fan-girl behavior and his ignoring her as his friend’s younger sibling.
Ginny as others have said is a total Mary Sue – She goes from a Crushing Geeky Nobody to Perfect Miss Somebody of Awesome x2. Her first year is the only time she wasn’t hugely popular in Hogwarts and that could be blamed on the diary and Tom Riddle.
Speaking of the Chamber of Secrets, it could have been Ron, Justin, Ernie, Sean, Luna, Hermione, Cho, Padma, Random X House Member from Slytherin (even Draco), and Harry still would have gone to the Chamber of Secrets to save them. That’s just the type of character he is. Ron came because it was Ginny.
Did Ginny’s fangirl love for Harry go away? Or did his rescuing her from CoS merely make it larger? It seems to me Ginny got exactly who and what she wanted – Gryffindor Golden Boy, Chosen One, Boy-Who-Lived, etc. Harry got a mommy look alike…
As for her specialness in fighting during the war. Ginny was never on the front line. She like the rest of the Hogwarts students all faced the same troubles seventh year and they all had to cope. Neville led the resistance and at the Hogwarts final battle, the kill/fight that would have made her equal to Harry was stolen from her by Mrs. Weasley.
I think you’re giving Ginny far too much credit. All she seems to have done is show up. That alone should not entitle her to Harry’s affections.
I agree with everything the article has to say. In truth, I first thought Ginny had slipped Harry a Love Potion when he started obsessing over her. Surely that isn’t a good sign.
Everything Ginny did was so ‘perfect’ and ‘beautiful’ that it began to get on my nerves. I couldn’t go anywhere without hearing these Ginny-fanatics obsessing over how pretty/beautiful she is and how sporty she is. Everyone seems to have slipped into the stage where Cho Chang is a slut who only wanted Harry for good looks.
First of all, Cho was not a slut; the only boyfriend she was known to have was Cedric Diggory and it wasn’t really even confirmed if they were dating or just close friends.
I’ll cover the next point rather quickly, seeing as I’m drifting into my ‘Harry/Cho stage.’ Cho went for Harry for comfort and attraction. She really did like Harry, even loved, but needed someone to help her get over Cedric.
Now, what I hated about Ginny. Almost everything. She was so good at Quidditch, so skilled with hexes (though the only spell we are told she’s good at isn’t even seen), so everything Harry could possibly want. There were no flaws, no downsides to Ginny. She was too perfect.
Everything Ginny did made the other girls look poor in comparison. Cho lost to Ginny several times in a Quidditch match and now Ginny seems to be unbeatable?! Hermione tries to show she has some knowledge of Quidditch and Ginny snaps at her?!
I could go on and on and on about how poor a character Ginny is. The romance between them was too predictable and not even worth reading. J. K. Rowling disappointed me with the last three books in terms of Harry’s romantic life and character, for that matter.
*I am a Harry/Cho shipper, in case you’re wondering and I don’t care what anyone else says.*
Firsts things first contrary to the belief of some here on this post. It is the right and duty of those who are exposed to any media to criticize both the artist and the work of the artist. Especially if said artist seems unable or unwilling to keep the quality of the work up to a certain level that the artist has established in other works or in the continuation of a that single work.
In the case of J.K. Rowling her first five books seemed to be well thought out stories with tight and clear plots. The last two books in my opinion and others it seems is that they where just junk thrown together to first fill up the space of two books, and second to try and get the pairing of Harry and Ginny together without them being written within the series very well if at all.
Now that I have gotten out my little rant against the author’s rose tinted glasses wearing admirers of the author and her works. Time to get on subject about reading between the lines and how I’ve done that, and yet Harry and Ginny’s relationship still is unbelievable. Especially since when I read between the lines. Ginny is then more of an obsessed hero-worshiping fangirl. Who according to her own words never gets over Harry. She of course then never tried to get to know Harry for anything other then what he is because that would require her to get over him in the first place so she could see who Harry was as person and not what he was that she had a crush on.
As for Harry he barely notices Ginny for long periods of time throughout the series until book six. Then when he does take notice of her it seems to all be focus on the shallow and superficial. That behavior is strange for Harry especially if as some people I know have claimed Harry and Ginny got to know each other because of the summers Harry spent at the family home of Ginny’s.
That of course isn’t the case since Harry doesn’t have much interaction with Ginny during his visits to her family’s home or Sirius’s home as it turns out in the fifth book. That and Harry has no interest in Ginny even to remember that she was once taken over by Voldemort and had to be reminded of that event in the fifth book
I mean in what reality is it believable to have a fangirl or fanboy spend five years pinning over their crush who they barely interact with but briefly. Especially when the crush barely notices them and then have the crush turn around and return those same shallow feelings right back.
So how does that make it a believable relationship. I mean I would love for someone to explain how that is the defecation of a believable relationship. I have more I want to write but I find I must collect myself first and will continue another time and shall return to post at a later date.
Harry and Ginny together does not make sense.
First off, we know for certain that Harry is kind hearted (or at least he was in the first four books…) and Ginny is a shy, unpopular girl who has a huge crush on Harry (again, this was during the first four books). It is clear throughout the books that Harry is looking for someone who doesn’t like him for his fame or glory, which would make Cho an excellent candidate. Contrary to many ‘fans’ beliefs, Cho developed feelings for Harry, not his fame.
Ironic, isn’t it? Harry drops the only girl who was developing attraction to him, not his fame, for a girl who clearly is his number one fangirl. Why? Why would Harry like a girl who clearly liked him because he was famous? And how, you may ask, did this sudden ‘relationship’ develop? Through a crush, no less. Well, big news people, but crushes are just that: crushes.
The second reason this pairing makes absolutely no sense is that a relationship that developed between them when they were sixteen and fifteen somehow lasted twenty years into the future?! THAT DOESN’T HAPPEN IN REAL LIFE!!! Most normal people who believe they have found their soulmate at that age end up marrying a totally different person in the future, sometimes even a person they dated before they were sixteen. Such long lasting relationships only exist in poorly written romance books or fairytales for children.
The relationship made no sense: I’ve stressed that enough. If Harry had to be paired with someone, the better candidates would have been Cho, Luna, Hermione, perhaps one of the Parvati twins, or any other girl that isn’t Ginny. That’s just my opinion…
On a side note, Ginny obviously didn’t trust Harry.
If Ginny trusted Harry in fully, would she have trusted Harry to go to the Ravenclaw common room with Cho?
Just as Ginny didn’t trust Harry, Harry didn’t see her as an equal. If he did, would he have ordered her to stay in the RoR in DH when she clearly wanted to fight alongside him? Couples respect each other’s wants, though they most certainly don’t have to like them. True soulmates don’t tell one another who they can talk to, what they can do, or where they can go.
I agree with the article. Harry and Ginny didn’t make sense at all, but when does love really make any sense at all? I personally always hoped he would end up with Ginny. I loved the pairing, because JK wrote it that way. Romeo and Juliet didn’t make sense to me as well. They fall in love really fast and their love was REALLY strong. It didn’t make sense to me, but they were perfect for each other. Elizabeth and Darcy actually HATED each other in the beginning. He insulted her a lot of times especially when he was asking her to marry him! Did that make sense? He was arrogant and thought that he was way better than her. She thought he was a jerk. Did they make sense? No, not really. Were they great together? YES they were a great couple. What I’m trying to say is that even if Harry ended up with Hermione, I would have been happy, and a bit sad for ron, and if he ended up with Luna it would have been also ok, because she’s cool. If he ended up with Cho, that would have been weird, but I would have accepted it. Harry/Ginny was just a crush in the books, but who knows what happened after the war? Harry and Ginny would have had the chanse to get to know each other. Ginny was an awesom girl and I don’t think Harry would marry just anyone, no matter how much he loved the Weasleys. I think that he would have married the person he thought he would be the happiest with. I don’t think he was one of those people who could marry someone they didn’t love.
my parents didn’t even like each other when they met. But their still really in love with each other after 22 years of marriage.
My sister got married a year ago to a man she knew for a very long time, but never felt anything for him. Our families are really good friends and he always had a crush on her. Later he fell in love with her and had to wait for three years before she even noticed him. A few months later they were engaged and marries within a year. Did that make sense to me? NO! she didn’t even notice him, but she really loves him now. So I think Ginny and Harry are a great couple.
As for the whole Ginny looks like Lily.
What’s wrong with that? My father is a really great husbant and fahter. I would be very happy if my husband was someone like him. I would be very happy that my huband could be such a great dad like mine. So I don’t see what’s wrong with that. That doesn’t mean I want to marry my dad, cause that’s just creepy and gross.
I hate fangirls. I hate how they think they can get everything they want if they just dream hard enough. I hate how every fangirl gets what they want while more deserving people are pushed out of the way and given miserable lives simply for being in the way of the fangirl. And, most importantly, I HATE FANGIRLS IN HARRY POTTER!!!! And you know what that means. I. Hate. Ginny. Weasley.
This article was very well written and I’d like to bring about a few words most Ginny haters say often: Ginny is an uncaring, over the top fangirl, who would be better off living HOMELESS THAN MARRYING HARRY FREAKING POTTER!!!!!! Okay, maybe that was a bit rough… a bit… not much…
Ginny Weasley is as uncaring as you could get. I mean, who would date someone without putting their heart into the relationship? Apparently Ginny Weasley! I mean, come on! This is something Hollywood would come up with! Harry Potter felt so realistic in terms of human actions and feelings until SHE came along! What’s that? You don’t really believe me? Well, what about Dean Thomas, huh? Poor Dean: dumped because he was holding the door open for his girlfriend (or was it ‘pushing her through the portrait hole’). Either way, I am willing to bet Harry did the exact same thing for Ginny and she thought nothing of it. Gee. What a jerk.
Now, down to the whole reason I posted this. Ginny is the biggest, most obsessed fangirl I’ve ever had the missfortune of reading about. It makes no sense that Harry Potter, the boy who hates fangirls, would fall in love with his number one fangirl. Excuse me for a minute.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There. I had my nerd moment. Continue.
Now, besides the character problems, I was severely disappointed in the lack of interhouse relationships between the main characters that could have resolved a century old problem. All of the characters were paired up with characters from the same house, which is just sad.
So, nothing really was resolved for the future. Hatred and competition will continue to spread throughout Hogwarts because a single generation had the misfortune of being written to be hateful towards the other houses.
Another problem posed by Harry/Ginny is that nothing is changed. Romance was obviously a key factor in the last few books, so why didn’t Harry’s relationship with Ginny play some sort of role in the story?! Remove Ginny from the story and everything in Harry Potter’s world will remain, for all purposes of this post, exactly the same! Sure, Harry won’t have two sons and an exact replica of Ginny as a daughter, but that’s it! Considering this is from one of my favorite series, this is just sad.
So, this Weasley is a talentless fangirl created soully for the purpose of having babies with Harry. Her arguement in OotP when Harry believed he was being possessed was the most pitiful excuse for an argument I have ever read, just in case you’re wondering (which you’re probably not, but I had to get it off of my chest anyways).
Well, I’m done here. This article was brilliant and worth a read.
Harry/Ginny=great couple. period. You all are looking at it far too logically. Although I’m also a huge fan of the series, let’s not forget that it’s nothing but a story. And what’s one of the most classic elements of fictional writing? Oh yeah, it’s irony. Why wouldn’t Harry end up with his best friend’s little sister, after just barely saving her life? I mean that almost makes Harry and Ron brothers. And the situation adds to some of the fighting between Harry and Ron in the story, but all guy friends do that, and we know that our best friends are the ones who come back and we can laugh about it all later. So in conclusion, Harry/ Ginny are the perfect match in the series, almost as good as Ron and Hermione, another ironic couple.
and to go along with the whole “it’s the little things that count” idea, there was a lot of talk about quidditch, and it was very clear how important the game was in Harry’s life
I think Harry and Ginny are a very cute couple! I mean, I really think all of you are over-looking everything! I think they seem cute together, they get married, they seem happy! So I’m not going to a question what JKR has written, can anyone really say they aren’t at least a little cute? She seems to make Harry happy, why look into it deeper? I read the story to enjoy it, not to study and observe every little interaction between characters!
This is just my opinion.
If Harry and Ginny was such a great couple, why is it that I have to go back through the books with a magnifying glass to find clues to their romance? You see, great couples are unquestionably agreed upon by everyone, with strong, well developed facts presented by the author to support the pairing. J.K. Rowling did not succeed in this. Instead, she confused many readers.
As many have stated above, Hermione was shown to be THE girl for Harry through her never wavering support and friendship. If Ms. Rowling had paired Harry with Hermione, nobody would have disagreed: there’s plenty of proof that they are perfect together.
If JKR decided to pair Harry with Cho, there would have been enough evidence to support the pairing. Both love Quidditch, both are loyal to their friends, both share guilt or sorrow in Cedric’s death, etc. The pairing would also resolve some of the interhouse competition by showing that two people of different houses can form a relationship.
If Luna was picked to be with Harry, there is still enough evidence to support the pairing. Luna is supportive, just like Hermione, and gives encouragement to Harry on several occasions. Harry respects Luna and even asks her to Slughorn’s Party (admittedly Ginny was with Dean at the time, but that is of little importance). They would make a very interesting couple which I most certainly would read. As with Cho, this relationship would resolve some of the competition between Ravenclaw and Gryffindor.
Now, as you can see, there was enough similarities and support these other girls offered that could stabilize a relationship. Ginny, on the other hand, has little to no similarities with Harry. Let’s have a look:
Many fans have stated that Ginny and Harry share Voldemort since Ginny was once possessed by Voldemort (or a younger version of him). However, this is the same as saying I should end up with a girl simply because we share a hatred of a certain person. Hermione also shared experience with Voldemort, even more than Ginny, but apparently that doesn’t compare to Harry and Ginny’s connection. Luna shared experience with Voldemort by helping Harry hunt down one of the Horcruxes and fighting alongside him in the battle, but apparently that’s nothing compared to being possessed by Tom Riddle. Cho shared loss with Harry because of Voldemort, but apparently Ginny lost more while being possessed by Riddle. If you didn’t catch the sarcasm, I’ll say it plain and simple: all of these girls shared a deeper experience/loss than Ginny did throughout the entire series.
Another topic brought up by fans is that Harry saved Ginny from the Chamber of Secrets and therefore is her perfect match because he’s her hero. If Ginny was replaced by… say, Luna, would Harry go down to save her? Of course he would! Why? That’s part of Harry’s nature as hero. If it was a boy, Harry would still fight the basilisk to save him. So, this reason is complete nonsense when you look at it this way.
Now, my problems with Ginny is that her personality changed too fast, too much in the span of a single book. All of a sudden, Ginny is described as popular, drop-dead-gorgeous, and Harry’s number one desire. She becomes a goddess at Quidditch, a goddess at acquiring dates, and a rude attitude to match Harry’s in the fifth book. I’m sorry, but that just was too much to take in. I suppose, however, what bothered me the most was the series’ epilogue.
Ginny supposively replaces Hermione as one of the center characters, for I at least expected Hermione to interact more with Harry than saying nothing. If I was someone who hadn’t read the rest of the books, I would think that Ginny must have been a constant companion throughout the entire series, when in reality she really only became noticable during the sixth book, and even then she wasn’t by Harry’s side the entire time.
My conclusion: Harry and Ginny are a terrible couple. They might ‘look cute together’ but I honestly don’t care for what they look like together as much as I care about how much their experiences and personalities match up. For me, the perfect match for Harry seemed to be either Cho, Hermione, or Luna, with Cho representing Harry’s interests and personality the best. I could ramble on for ages, but the point remains that Harry and Ginny are the least romantic literary couple of the age, exactly as the article has stated.
“Both love Quidditch, both are loyal to their friends” Quote from what you wrote. This could be said about Ginny to not just Cho. Also Ginny brothers were good at Quidditch so is it really that big of a stretch that’s she is good at really? Ginny’s not rude I think she is blunt sometime same as Ron is. I also find it really funny that people have a cow over the fact that Ginny is pretty. I fleur is beautiful and nobody cares about her. I know this is pointless and it’s not going to change your mind, and we all are biased about who we like and who we don’t like. I just think it’s neat that so many people can read the same book and see it completely different than other people.
#198
Yes, I see what you’re saying. But, do take one moment, to consider the explanation for why Ginny’s so good at Quidditch. What the book tells us is that Ginny practiced when her brothers weren’t watching. Seeing as it’s hard to hide things from siblings (I know all too well), I find it hard to believe she could have gotten good at Quidditch in this manner. It’s also hard to believe she naturally inheritated the talent, though since that is the explanation for how Harry is so good at Quidditch, I’ll look this over.
But, yes. Ginny is loyal to her friends and loves Quidditch much like Cho. I suppose that wasn’t looked into as well. And it is true we’re all biased when it comes to who we like in the series. Personally, I liked Cho and Luna since we didn’t know everything about those characters and could thus invent our own story, personality, and history for these characters.
Funny how I really don’t care too much about Ginny. I mean, sure she’s not the kind of person I’d like to meet in real life, but if JKR wants Harry to end up with her, I don’t care. Maybe I may have cared a month ago, but I move on rather fast, so it’s really no suprise.
Let me right my previous wrongs by saying that by no means is Harry and Ginny one of the greatest literary couples of all time, but they most certainly seem to possess a certain charm that attracts many fans. For that reason, Harry and Ginny can be considered a great couple.
To be perfectly honest… Harry doesn’t match up well with anyone. Not Hermione, definitely not Luna, and Ginny… I deal with it, but it feels almost as if I’m looking at a blurry picture. Really, I thought the best person for Harry was the girl who asked him out in the beggining of the 6th movie. She was gone after about five minutes, but I missed them. Hermione is like the bossy older sister, Luna is like… like my reading buddy oh so long ago, and Ginny… is his best friends sister. I personally hated the ending of the HP series, though it had nothing to do with the pairing, it was more to do with the fact that Harry killed off Tom with a ‘Expeliarmus’ spell, or whatever silly spell that he did it with, and then, the names for his kids were pretty stupid too. But other than that, this series has nothing to do with romance, it was put in there because it would have been insanely unrealistic if everyone just went along and didn’t hook up with anyone, and JK’s writing isn’t all that spectacular either, it was the pure imagination and creativity that the book flourished (not saying she’s a bad writer, just not a phenomenal writer in terms of skill, not in the basis of ideas).
I hate to say it, but I don’t completely agree with this.
This paragraph particularly:
How are Harry and Ginny a well-matched pair? She’s his number one fangirl and he’s the savior of the wizarding world. Her talents are limited. Rowling built up the history behind the magical meaning of number seven but never gave the 7th Weasley child anything to make her unique, except perhaps making her the only female sibling in the bunch. Hermione was the smartest witch of the age, Cho the lovliest, and Luna the most unique with the ability to see and process the world in a way than most. Ginny can’t even stand on her own two feet and say she was a challenge to him on the Quidditch Pitch because it was Cho not Ginny who battled Harry in game matches.
I don’t agree with this specifically because, I think Ginny being usual, and normal, is why she is the perfect candidate as Harry’s lover. She is the exact opposite of what he is; she’s never used dark magic for any reason, save the Deathly Hallows, she’s not a celebrity, she’s not amazing at any one talent. She’s normal. She spent her time swooning over him, yes, but what hormonal teenage girl doesn’t do that? Remember, the wizarding world doesn’t have a ‘Justin Bieber’ or the ‘Jonas Brothers’, Harry IS their teenage dream-boy.
In response to Yellow Robins point:
If Harry and Ginny was such a great couple, why is it that I have to go back through the books with a magnifying glass to find clues to their romance?
Well, that’s the simple and whole goodness of it all. How many relationships that you know of start off with a MASSIVE leap into love? None, or very few. I think that the Harry/Ginny relationship was a romantic relief in the whole action of the series.
Now, of course I realize you are comparing them to literary couples, but who exactly? You have to realize that some of the greatest literary couples of all time were written by authors in the late Victorian – mid 1900′s, these are modern times, not every relationship starts with a curtesy and a grin, they start with some hardcore flirting and the girl’s friends flipping off the boy-of-interest.
I, of course will be biased towards J.K Rowling as the first book I ever read was Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in kindergarten, but I do realize what you are saying, and I do have to point out the flaws in your arguments.
why people blaming JK fail or doesnt have a good imagination to build romance scene just bacause she match harry with ginny not the other girls.
please noticed that from the begining JK already planned that ginny is harry’s couple,i think that’s why she put some clue on her, being “the seventh” child, has a look just like harry’s mother, have her own portion in 2nd book and so on. for me this clue is to balance the absent of their chemistry for the first five book.
what’s the matter if you crush on someone so suddenly? harry suddenly crush on cho too in the 3rd book right?
ginny’s character change so fast? i think not like that. ginny described as a shy girl in the first two book,even too shy to say hi to harry, but then she grows up and i think she turned from the #1 fangirl into a secret admire or something like that to harry, but then she decided to gave up on harry (but not her feeling i guest) when harry meet cho, support by hermione advice that she must be move on, try to have a relationship with other boy,and etc so harry maybe will be more notice her existence, and ginny do that. she become an attractive girl in fifth book and she can talk to harry better, she can do a powerfull charm, and her character keep develope until the sixth book, so what’s the matter if harry start to notice her? they share summer together, i think its normal if harry then have a crush on her and suddenly realized his feeling when he saw ginny with dean.
while hermione, yes she is a very smart, adorable and always stand by harry side. i love her character too, but when i read the books i feel that she is planned to be with ron, she complete ron in a perfect way, and i think hermione doesnt have such kind of feeling for harry. yes they have a very strong chemistry but not a chemistry to be a “couple”.even when harry crush on cho, hermione not shown some kind of jealousy, not like when ron with lavender. every story is unique, not every perfect woman in the plot must be end up with the hero, this is JK way, not a classical love story way.
Luna, she is unique, when her first appearrance i do thing that she will be the candidate for harry too, because of her unique personality and mysterious life just like harry. Luna and harry have the same feeling of loss too. but when the story goes, i change my mind, i dont think harry has such a feeling more than good friends for luna.
cho, hmmm.. without her harry’s life already miserable, harry not need a girl that always crying. simply said cho is not tough enough to be the girl that can balance harry’s hard life.
Albus severus potter? it’s sound little weird, but albus has became just like father or grandfather for harry for the last six year (that showering him with love), considering his life so miserable for 11 years and snape has became his important person after he knew the truth about him, so i think its normal if harry give his child that name, for me is not a dummy thing at all.
well that’s my opinion, i’m not ginny’s lover or something, i just say what i see in the series
I agree with this article. Harry and Ginny just doesn’t feel romantic at all. It’s like it was rushed. I mean seriously, Ginny suddenly turned mary-sue and so out of character. In book one,two and three (or four?), she was this obsessed fangirl and gets shy around harry and can’t even speak to him. In book five, she suddenly has this new personality that’s almost perfect and a bit annoying too. She acts so cool around harry when before she couldn’t even speak in front of him and suddenly everyone thinks she’s so pretty and talented when no one took notice before. I’m sorry, but she seems like a different person, frankly i liked ginny before she got perfect and popular, it would have made their love story more realistic, it would have been the “you were in front of me all along and didn’t realize it “. But sadly, no. Because Rowling created a whole new Ginny. Harry never liked the Ginny before but when she turned into this completely different person who was perfect in everything she does, that’s when harry like her. Reading Ginny/Harry romance can be annoying. All Harry ever does is remember how beautiful she is or how perfect she is for him and we see no romantic interactions that’s believable. Because every single thing Ginny does is right. And she’s become rude too. It was nice if she stayed sweet but no-it wasn’t cool enough i guess. You can’t even explain the drastic change in her personality just because she pretended not to like Harry. It’s like Crabbe and Goyle suddenly became smart after years of being dumb just because they stopped hanging out with malfoy. I mean c’mon. Ginny’s personality and looks changed that much. Has anyone ever called her pretty every single time before?no. Now she’s suddenly the prettiest girl in the school and even death eaters think she’s pretty. The quidditch too, she is a great chaser and a good seeker. How is that possible? oh yeah, she was breaking into her brother’s broom cupboard since she was six. yeah right. their house full of people and no one even noticed her? also, a six year old? really?. I’m sorry but she just turned into a mary-sue who is good at almost everything and the other characters never fail to point that out(hello,bat bogey hex?) whatever, even fred and george acts out of character when speaking to her. It’s like they can’t even tease her. So yeah, nothing is romantic about Harry ending up with a mary-sue(who no other girl could compare with). If it was the old Ginny(aka she wasn’t a mary sue), and their love story played out rather than just described, then it could have been better. Also, Harry acts out of character when around Ginny. When he had a crush on Cho,he had butterflies and it was nice to read as he tried to impress her. But with Ginny their relationship falls so smooth and planned out it just doesn’t feel romantic. Kind of like Hermione started liking Seamus because he suddenly got so handsome and smart. When it wasn’t implied before. With Harry and Ginny-it was so rushed and suddenly they’re so in love. Whatever. Ron and Hermione got the whole series to develop real feeling for each other. Also on the Chamber of Secrets thing-Harry could have saved that person even if it wasn’t Ginny. He just has that saving people thing. He saved Hermione from troll, saved fleur’s little sister etc. He just likes saving people. No romance there.
Alright, I’m only going to say this once.
Harry is not embarrassed by Luna because he thinks she’s weird. He never said that. He is embarrassed by her blunt honesty. She has no problem saying what she wants to say, and at the same time, she can avoid being rude. She is also capable of making him think of someone other than himself when he’s feeling depressed and alone. She did this twice. Once, when he was all upset thinking about Sirius, and she reminded him (without intending to either) that she could see thestrals. He remembered quite easily that she too had seen death, unlike with Ginny, who he had to be REMINDED that he’d saved her from the chamber in her first year. Don’t remember? Look back in book 6 when Ginny and Hermione fought because Harry was stupid enough to listen to directions out of a book. He’d completely forgotten one of the most tragic moments in Ginny’s life, and yet he was able to remember something as simple as what Luna had experienced.
Anyhow, that was the first time he looked outside his own little bubble and noticed hey! other people have gone through this too you know! The second time isn’t exactly the same, but in book 7, Harry was ready to give up. It was Luna, NOT Ginny, who reminded Harry that they were all still there and fighting to save the wizarding world. It was Luna’s words that brought strength back to him. I also remember Luna’s lion hat in the Quidditch match brought pride and confidence within him when it roared. I just want to know what Ginny did that makes her better than the other girls. NOTHING. She made him laugh a couple times, big deal, Ron makes him laugh all the time, I don’t see him marrying Harry. The twins amuse him too. If laughter is the best medicine, Ron and Harry should be joined in matrimony. After all, he IS the one Harry would “miss the most.”
They say Ginny brings out the best in him, but I do believe Luna does. Luna knows just what to say and Ginny simply leaves him alone. Luna is able to see through him, and even though that might get to him sometimes, he’ll need SOMEONE in the end, who understands. How the hell is that GINNY? She’s certainly not open-minded, optimistic, or anything. People say Harry/Luna wouldn’t fit because Luna has her head in the clouds, or Harry makes fun of her. Now, she may be a bit out-there sometimes, but she’s certainly not crazy. Harry knows it and so do the rest of us. Also, I don’t recall Harry ever making fun of her. In fact, I recall GINNY doing so. Well, she called her “Loony Lovegood.” Yeah, some friend, using that. I do remember only when Harry told them to stop calling her that is when Ginny stopped. And even when he was under the mistletoe with Cho, he saw fit to correct himself when he said “Loony.”
He said “I mean-Luna.”
Harry and Luna both know what it’s like to be mocked and being an outcast. She is someone who can always surprise him, never boring, never rude and raise his temper. Also, she doesn’t cry either. :3
Luna isn’t a mary-sue either. Just because someone is introduced late into the books doesn’t make them one. Just because someone is happy everytime you manage to see them, doesn’t make them a mary-sue. Luna is another strong female character in the books, and so what if you’ve never read in the books she was crying? Luna has lost a parent before in her life, you don’t think she cried when she was nine? Just because we never saw it, doesn’t mean it never happened. And Luna said herself sometimes she finds herself very sad and missing her mother, but she knows she’ll see her again one day, so it doesn’t bother her as much. People making fun of her? So, because she doesn’t fly into a frenzy and go off on people, it makes her a mary-sue? Because she can’t simply brush off the immature people who don’t understand her? Anyone who thinks she’s a mary-sue is full of it.
Anyhow, that’s what I think.
Luna isn’t a mary-sue. Ginny is. Luna is far from being a mary-sue. But Ginny in books 6-7 is a mary-sue. Don’t believe me? read the books. She was annoying most of the time. She wasn’t so mary-sue ish at book 5 yet (but she showed signs of it) but in the last two books-she became one. Mary-sues are not a good read actually, and it’s just sad because she was an alright character in books 1-4. Now all we here is how beautiful,pretty she is and how good she is at everything. And how she is absolutely so perfect for Harry. A great match. okk..whatever.
Ginny/Harry feels pushed and unnatural. Luna or Hermione(even Cho,before she turned on him)would have been more believable,they were written well and had interesting conversations with Harry. All Ginny says is what Harry wants to hear, everything she does supposedly impresses him,makes him laugh,makes him realize how perfect they are together etc.. And it feels so put together and arranged. There aren’t any conflict whatsoever (the break-up coz of voldemort not counted because it’s no real threat,you just know they will be together,she is a mary-sue). Some of what Ginny does is plain rude and bratty and no one thinks it is, but if someone like ron or malfoy does it, it is pointed out.
Ginny is a mary-sue and therefore she’s just not a very good read. Shame, the book was great, except for the “supposed” romance between Ginny/Harry.
Harry could have ended up with Luna and it’ll be sweet because frankly, they had their moments which make you think “aww they could end up together” but with Ginny it’s just like “ok we get it,they’re meant to be,can we move on please”. I could even picture Harry with Hermione or even Cho, he was her first crush(and it felt like it, he got butterflies) and it seemed sweet(although that couldn’t work coz of the Cedric issue). But not Ginny, sorry I just don’t like that character. Never really fancied mary-sues.
I agree with the article that Ginny and Harry were a weak literary couple. I really think JK Rowling could not figure out a good couple for Harry. Perhaps because she focused so much on a very perfect matching of Ron and Hermione. And although they are not actually perfect cause no couple is, i think JK Rowling really strengthened there relationship. There were numerous arguments and fights but all the while JK Rowling was developing the dynamic of their relationship and allowing the characters to basically get to know each other. And although Ron is sometimes a jerk to Hermione, it should be noted that it is often because he is just not well at communicating his true feelings for Hermione. Ron is just a typical guy with communication problems (oh and with the troll business he was just being a typical little boy jerk and in the end arrived to help hermione probably cause he knew it was fault for hurting her feelings). In the end they were a good match because of the obvious development of their love relationship. Perhaps Hermione, being the major heroine of the story, should have been with the hero, but the creation of Ron and the perfect development of their relationship completely denies my mind of ever imagining Harry and Hermione together. Ginny/Harry relationship is to me so random and thus not even believable. The beginning of their relationship is a girl fangirling over the chosen one who quite honestly is bewildered by this and does not care too much for it. Later on (like two books later) it develops into Harry being jealous cause now Ginny is snogging with a bunch of temporary boy friends and he all of a sudden realizes some dormant feelings for his used-to-be fangirl. However, Harry and Luna are so perfect for each other and JK Rowling seriously could have developed a great love relationship between the two of them. First, Harry and Luna both went through the same kind of trauma of seeing a loved one die. Second, Luna is such a more deep character than Ginny and is developed much more. Luna maybe kooky (which is why many love her) but she often shows a deep side to her in her various conversations with Harry which stems from her different point of view on life. Lastly, Luna is a perfect balance to Harry. Harry is often very emotional and portrays serious teenage angst (especially in the 5th book) while Luna is care free soul and who seems very much satisfied with her life (although she does have some problems with illogical beliefs which perhaps Harry could balance out). I would be so much happier if Harry got together with Luna. And i really think Ginny is one of the most random relationships ever with no real depth. If JK Rowling extended the trio of Harry, Hermione, and Ron, allowing Ginny to enter in perhaps the relationship would be actually possible.
Personally, when I read fanfic, I prefer Harry with an obscure character or with no one. I don’t mind Harry/Ginny or Harry/Luna. I do have an anti-ship in Harry/Hermione because that’s one of my most hated tropes. Best friends of opposite genders CAN be platonic and I appreciate that in H/Hr and prefer it remain that way.
Also, Harry would long for Ron while they they were arguing and there was a distinct passage where he said something about things not being fun when Hermione was your best friend. Also, calling her sister, hating when she nagged him etc. I think there’s more canon basis for Harry/Ron really. Ahem. Ron was the thing he’d miss most after all.
As for canon, I adore R/Hr. I see Ron’s worthiness despite of and probably because of his flaws. Hermione has glaring flaws as well and they’re acknowledged (in the books anyway) just as Ron’s are.
Despite all of Hermione’s smarts, she’s not better than Ron is or somehow worthier or more deserving. In many ways, the books showed that he was a lot of the heart of the trio. Anyways, R/Hr….They’re the poor man’s Han/Leia – nothing beats Han/Leia- and it’s a trope that I adore.
I’ll be honest. I didn’t see Harry/Ginny coming. But I saw R/Hr coming from the first book back in 1999 and I was 11. So all honesty? If you didn’t see it coming-whether you liked it or not- I would have questions about said people’s reading comprehension skills. I mean, really. The trope was glaringly obvious to an 11 year old. *kanye shrug*
I think that maybe harry and ginny make a good couple because she is the one person who isnt always in the limelight with him. he could just get away and be a normal teen with her. she was his refuge. she would not try to change him like the other girls might have and she had enough spunk in her not to let him push her around, and she was not so weird that it would be impossible to understand her…
I agree.Because ,Ginny already poured her soul to tom riddle. Luna will be best for Harry.she had pure heart.
I think the article is right when it comes to Harry and Ginny not being one of the most romantic couples in literature. The books weren’t about romance they were about love-two very different things. I’ll pick love any day over romance.
To Emilylondon:
I thank you most kindly for your reply; it made a worthy read. So, it seems only fair that I should justify the point I was trying to state, does it not?
First, consider this: most readers do NOT want to spend every waking hour by going back to the book they read the night before just to find out why two characters suddenly fell in love. Imagine if you were reading an adventure story with every sign of romance pointing towards the heroine accompanying the hero through each trial (a.k.a. Hermione) only to watch that very same hero fall in love with a girl who wasn’t by his side for most of the book and possessed the obvious qualitites of a Mary Sue (a.k.a. Ginny). If you weren’t scratching your head and wondering, “what in the world just happened,”… in all honesty, you most likely need to pay closer attention.
That was certainly my problem with Ginny: she wasn’t there for Harry. Who accompanied him to destroy Voldemort’s horcruxes? Hermione and Ron, of course! Who was there to help Harry with the Triwizard Tournament? Hermione and Ron. Are you beginning to see a pattern?
Second (and my absolute last point), what little evidence we were given to support Harry and Ginny’s relationship was complete bogus. Sure, she made Harry laugh. But, so did Ron, Fred, and George. Unless there’s another set of Harry Potter books, I don’t believe any of them ended up marrying Harry. Sure, Ginny talked about Quidditch with Harry. But, so did Ron, Fred, George, Oliver, Cho, and several others. Ginny wasn’t exactly Harry’s, “OMG!!!!# U KNOW HOW TO TALK QIDITCH WIFF ME?! WE’RE GETTING MARRYD!343!” moment. Actually, I think I’d seriously consider suicide if Harry ever said that in a conversation with someone…
Besides that, Harry and Ginny had absolutely nothing to relate to. Ginny was extremely popular, had lot’s of “friends” (That is, if Hermione can clone herself), a large family that seemed to spoil her, and several guys who would kill to date her. Harry has popularity he doesn’t even want, had a moderate amount of friends, absolutely no family, and several girls who only want to date him for his fame (*cough*Romilda Vane*cough*). “Geez. They sure are similar.”
Truthfully, the only two girls who came close to being able to relate to Harry were Cho and Luna (and Hermione, if you think about it). Cho, while she was popular for some time, lost Cedric. Rowling made ABSOLUTELY SURE we knew that she loved the poor boy, so she certainly could relate to Harry in the sense of losing a loved one. So could Luna, who lost her mother at a young age. Luna wasn’t that popular, didn’t have many friends or admirers, and was often considered insane. However, she was there for Harry much more than Ginevra Weasley and made Harry genuinely happy (or at least calmed him down). Hermione, being the closest friend Harry has, most likely can relate to anything that happens to Harry; regardless if she was there to experience it herself.
There you have it: a small portion of my discontent that Rowling would dare write such a Mary Sue in her books. For further reasons as to why Ginny doesn’t deserve Harry, I direct you to the article to which the debate on this website owes its origins to. But, if I dare say so myself, there are several more reasons to dislike Ginny, the beginning of which I have yet to scape the surface of.
From: A fellow fan of Harry Potter, who does not, in any way possible, wish to offend anyone by posting this reply.
i think ron and hermione are perfect. i’ll never understand h/hr fans
however harry/ginny was a major fail! like seriously! it came out of nowhere and its not like harry was like hey ginny’s hot i’d tap that, he was like omg ginny is the love of my life she’s SO much more important than ron and hermione and everyone else.
i ship harry/cho. at least their relationship was believable.
and not all rushed
Yes, yes. You’ve all heard it before. “Harry and Ginny are unreal,” or “Harry and Ginny are the worst pairing I’ve ever read in my life!” While I hate to continue the trend – ah, who am I kidding?! I’m going to enjoy continuing the trend! So, let’s further examine why this pairing fails dismally.
1. Harry/Ginny failed to tell the readers why they belong together.
The pairing was only built on descriptions. Harry would describe rather briefly and vaguely his time with Ginny. We don’t see why they belong together during the time they were around one another and it wasn’t description. In fact, Harry really treats her as an unequal, which brings us to our next topic;
2. Harry and Ginny weren’t equal in their relationship.
Harry/Ginny shippers can go on and on about how much Harry and Ginny belong together, but this will never make sense so long as Harry and Ginny are not equal. How? The most noticeable example is in the seventh book when Harry basically forbid Ginny from fighting. Ginny, who is known to hate being told what to do, acts out of character by bending to Harry’s will. This scene basically says that Ginny has to act out of character to be with Harry; not at all healthy in a relationship. While Ginny didn’t obey Harry, this really didn’t justify Harry or Ginny in the fact that Ginny didn’t fight alongside Harry, which would have further supported the relationship.
3. Ginny is a Mary Sue.
Not much to say there. Mary Sues, in all their perfectness, MUST NOT BE PAIRED WITH THE MAIN CHARACTER!!! Otherwise, you’ll end up with something similar to the pile of crap that is Twilight.
So, I’ve basically gone over three reasons that I find terrible in Harry/Ginny. So, I suppose I could go over thousands of reasons why I don’t like Ginny herself, but why do that when I can sum it up in a single sentence? Right, here it is; I hate everything about Ginny.
I ship Harry/Cho, as I’ve probably stated before. I dunno why I ship ‘em, but I suppose it has something to do with how I was introduced to the Harry Potter series.
Why on Earth should it matter about romance? J K Rowling was obviously making it as true to life as possible for two teenagers, one having had a troubled past and not an expert on relationships and the other having obsessed about Harry previously for years. It’s not going to be all hearts and flowers, especially as Ginny isn’t that type of girl. She’s been brought up with six older brothers, she’s not going to be the girliest of girls, is she? She’s a bit of a tom-boy and one of those people you don’t get on the wrong side of. It’s a beautiful relationship, so don’t critisize it, as I predicted they’d be together from the first book. Or second, I forget. Lots of love x
She’s sort of mostly just boring; no chemistry and no unique traits, save for the hair and bat bogey hex.
Draco/Harry, on the other hand…now that’s chemistry, the like of which the Harry Potter series has never seen.
I also don’t think that Ron and Hermione would work; she’s too intelligent for him, she’d get bored and annoyed in seconds.
I ship Harry/Draco, Hermione/Blaise, and Ron/Pansy. Slytherin/Gryff pairings are the best.
To be honest I didn’t see ginny as this supposed fan girl,she was rather more in Aww of harry and what she learned about him from her brothers who didn’t at the beginning at least knew him simply as the boy who lived. As time goes on of course their were hints of possible hermionie and harry, cho and harry, and in later books possibly Luna and harry. And the only competitor to ginny was hermionie who always seemed to have loved Ron and harry of course loved her too,but was in his own mind always picking her faults even though they we so close. Ginny was a little girl of course harry didn’t recognize it best friends sister,the brief rise and fall of cho, but in the end we feel as we feel its life I don’t think anyone has thoughts of love and romance at age 11. They are simply thoughts we gain, much like learning in school, and seeing the world for what is.
Well I hate to burst your Ginny is in aw of Harry bubble, but the fact is she is a fan girl. The proof of that is in Ginny’s first reaction upon learning who Harry was right here.
“Oh, Mom, can I go on the train and see him, Mon, oh please….”
Now honestly tell me if any young girl pleaded with her mother like that. To go see a singer/band/ dashing actor. You would have to label that girl a fan girl of said singer/band/ dashing actor, right? If you agree with that then that is all there is to it that Ginny is a boy who lived fan girl from the very beginning. Before Harry can even cross the threshold of the great hall of Hogwarts.
Oh and the argument against Harry and Hermione because Harry love but notices Hermione flaws is actually a plus. Being able to see flaws in the person you love romantically is a sign that your accepting everything about them from their good traits to bad ones. The fact that Harry can’t seems to see any flaws in Ginny really has me believing more in the love potion.
Now onto another point of order here. No one is asking for hearts and flowers just some solid foundation in which to root Harry and Ginny’s relationship. Your argument that J. K. Rowling is writing a nearly to realistic relationship for Harry and Ginny is flawed.
First reason it is flawed is that though Harry is not that quick on relationships. Harry does want a normal life and to be loved for himself not his fame. So when Ginny announced to Harry at Dumbledore’s funeral that. A) she never got over him and B) Her new behavior towards him was an act in the hope that he would notice her.
With these facts in hand half an intelligent teenage boy hormones raging would abandon the relationship. Because even if the girl was very attractive as Ginny is suppose to be the relationship is built on nothing but B.S and hormones. No not in Rowling or perhaps your twisted minds the relationship actually survives into a marriage with kids down the road no less.
Especially when Harry has someone who has been with him through thick and thin. Who sees both the good and bad traits in him and has supported him for nearly all the time they’ve known each other. Someone who called him fanciable which in British slang means sexually attractive. Someone who actually knows Harry better then he even knows himself. A girl who actually countless times picked him over the boy she marries in the series..
Now I would give everyone three guess who she is but I don’t believe anyone needs them. I am talking about Hermione. Oh and for the record their relationship wouldn’t have been marked with hearts and flowers. Especially since her cannon relationship with Ron wasn’t marked that way. Heck Ron and Hermione’s relationship was highlighted with Ron behaving towards Hermione. The way he would behave towards his sister her dating and Ginny herself in books five and six.
Well I have more to say but I am tried from writing such a long post. I would like to close by pointing out to a poster who hasn’t the skill to reread books and check before posting something. The line goes my good poster that being Hermione’s friend was less fun and certainly not fun.
There is a different between not fun and less fun but clearly in your desire to try and sway away from talking about Harry and Hermione properly you may have skipped over said difference. Of course I could be wrong it is simply that you couldn’t be bothered to do the research. In that case your a lazy a– and should not troll around to post about something you don’t have the descent to do the research on.
Well farewell for now and see you later my good fellow poster. Unless my out burst or my whole post gets me banned from ever posting again on this site. I will keep my fingers crossed that I can post again here in the future.
Okay, so I’ve had enough of the whole Harry/Luna wouldn’t work because Harry laughs at and pities Luna. FIRST of all, Harry never laughs AT Luna. He is humored by her. He was glad he brought Luna to Slughorns party because she is great fun. Luna is odd, quirky but funny. Ginny is not, I repeat is NOT FUNNY. The ONLY thing she did that was hilarious was putting her elbow in the butter dish and that was entirely by accident. Harry didn’t laugh he just pretended he hadn’t noticed to save her embarrassment. Harry doesn’t PITY Luna. He SYMPATHIZES with her. Have you all forgotten that before he was at Hogwarts, Harry thought himself the most hated person ever? His Aunt and Uncle hated him, his cousin and his friends beat him up whenever they could. He had a TERRIBLE life. Then, he comes to Hogwarts, and by book five people are against him. THAT’S why he sympathizes with Luna. He quite obviously doesn’t find her pathetic. He adores Luna and on many occasions has had “great rushes of affection” for her.
Luna makes him feel better when he’s sad too. She may not play Quidditch, but so what? So only someone who plays Quidditch should be with Harry? Luna can enjoy Quidditch and know about it. That’s all it should take. Harry doesn’t worry about Luna because he KNOWS she can hold her own. This was proven in the Department of Mysteries. I believe you all forgot Luna was the last to fall discounting Harry and Neville. Luna didn’t have a scratch on her, proving her to be more powerful than she looks. She is also perceptive, and kind. She is the better match for Harry I don’t care how the book ended up, and I don’t care if Ginny ended up with or was “meant” to be with him. It DIDN’T FIT. And it’s not like Harry found Luna ugly. He had mentioned her of looking “quite nice” and “pretty” on a couple occasions too. So what if she wasn’t described as “drop-dead gorgeous?” so looks are everything now? And [not to bash any Harmonians really] but he thought this without her changing her hair or anything. All she did was take off her earrings and put on a Luna-ish dress. That’s all it seemed to take. Harry found Luna uncomfortable at FIRST, but that’s not a basis to say she’s not right for him.
Harry also found Hermione annoying and bossy, as did Ron, and he just completely ignored Ginny. He finds Luna’s truth telling to be uncomfortable but that’s just because she’s a blunt person. She can tell it like it is without being rude. Luna is able to recognize Harry regardless of what he may be wearing or who he may look like. She noticed this strictly because of his expression. Luna isn’t afraid of Harry. She didn’t have to grow up with seven brothers to hold her own, she just can because the girls been bullied her entire life at Hogwarts. Harry’s attitude can border on intimidation and since she’s handled being bullied before, she isn’t affected by it. Ginny “handling” Harry is full of crap. So he can easily curse, yell and scream at people like Dumbledore, Ron and Hermione, but he can’t raise his voice to Miss Ginny? WHY? Bullcrap, he should have yelled loudly at her too and see how she handles it. I guarantee she would explode at him because she has that famous Weasley temper and that crap doesn’t help.
Luna is in no shape or form a Mary-Sue because a Mary-sue is someone who takes over the entire series with everyone liking them. If you read right, Luna is the most unpopular character in the series and it took Luna fighting in the DOM for them to see her as anything more than a weirdo. So how is she a Mary-sue again? She can see Thestrals because she saw her mom die? She isn’t affected by bad-talk because she knows and likes herself enough not to get riled up over immature statements? She managed to FINALLY make friends? People say it’s because she doesn’t develop but I think that is because Luna has no development to go through. She’s already happy with herself. She doesn’t need to change anything because she’s not temperamental, rude, close-minded, arrogant or anything. She found friends who saw the real her behind the quirkiness. However, Luna does learn to be less naïve when it comes to what her father says. That’s all she truly needed to change. Luna was an individual she’ll do what she likes [dressing up oddly, believing in the impossible] Ginny however, is a Mary-sue. She is popular, pretty, “funny” [not really], fiery, etc out of nowhere. Yes out of nowhere don’t even say it wasn’t because if Ginny was so darn popular, how come she couldn’t get a date to the Yule-Ball without going with Neville, who only asked her AFTER asking Hermione? If Ginny had asked Harry to the ball, he probably would have declined because he wanted to ask Cho, so that whole “we could have had years?“ I smell crap, and it stinks to high heaven.
Now Ginny only liked Harry because he was the famous Harry Potter and don’t you tell me different. It was not “just a crush because she found him cute.” If that’s the case, why was it that she paid him no real attention the first time she saw him until she found it was actually Harry Potter they’d just met? Then after that, it was “twu wuv?”
To be honest, a lot of you fans sound an AWFUL lot like Twihards: OH IT’S NOT ROMANCE! THAT EXCUSES HER CRAPPY ROMANCE PUT-TOGETHER!
No it effin doesn’t.
Sound’s a lot like:
IT’S FANTASY IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE REALISTIC! Twilight argument.
Uhm…
So, just because it’s not a romance book, you can just put people together? Would that argument hold true if Harry suddenly married Susan Bones, or Demelza Robbins? Probably not because it wouldn’t make much sense would it? But it’s not romance right?
Ginny Weasley is rather like the complete Mary Sue of Twilight, if I do say so myself. Actually, I should say ‘Ginevra’ Weasley; referring to the Ginny of OotP, HBP, and DH.
Both characters have a unique name; Bella Swan means “Beautiful Swan” and Ginevra is, well, an uncommon name that suggests importance. Both characters are described to be very fanciable to the male reader and both characters treat there friends rather poorly several times; Bella treating/describing multiple characters in poor aspects and Ginny’s crimes being dumping her past boyfriends for rather ridiculous reasons (Corner was dropped simply because he was downcast that his house had lost the Quidditch cup and Dean Thomas was dumped for ‘bumping into her’ or something along those lines) and treating her friends poorly (she did, in fact, laugh at Luna behind the poor girl’s back and I believe she referred to her as Loony Lovegood at one point, making her quite the hypocrite).
Other similarities between Bella and Ginny are their scent, to put it bluntly. Bella possesses a scent that attracts many ‘vampires’ and Ginny has a unique scent that causes Harry to suddenly have a monster in his chest. Bella is also very popular, just as Ginny is very popular (though I can’t see how seeing as the only people she ever hangs around with are Harry, Ron, and Hermione). And, finally, both characters are representations of what the separate authors wanted to be at that age, as they have stated in many interviews.
By no means do I like Twilight, for I have seriously tried to burn the poor excuse of a romance. But, I know enough about the series to effectively compare Bella and Ginny. Before I end this comment, I would also like to point out that romance has made a large portion of the Harry Potter series; from the simple crush in the Goblet of Fire to the married couple in the epilogue of Deathly Hallows. To say that romance is not important in Harry Potter and shouldn’t be debated is as to say that the last three Harry Potter books had at least a hundred pages each that were completely unimportant to the overall outcome of the series and should therefore be disregarded.
DovexLadyGlowing: you were wrong Ginny and Ron both fell after Luna. You also forget that several times that Ginny made Harry feel better too. The thing about he is not worried about Luna during the fighting is ridicules because that’s what Harry does. It doesn’t matter who you are Harry is going to try and help you or put himself in danger for them that’s was he does.
YellowRobin: as far as Ginny dumping her boyfriends for ridicules’ reasons that’s what you do when your 14. You dump your boyfriend because he didn’t write you a note back fast enough. Also who are Ginny’s friends that she has been mean to? You can’t count Ron because he is her brother and she is not the only one that is mean to him. Fred and George are mean too but they never get called out like Ginny does.
Wow. I love how this is still a hot topic years after the series is finished. I am a Harmony ‘shipper myself, for my own reasons. I will say, however, that I agree completely with this article — but for other reason.
With that said, I also have to point out that JKR is arguably one of the worst *writers* I’ve ever seen (Stephenie Myers created her own category). From the beginning, her books have been full of plot-holes, contradictions, inconsistencies, and badly-executed wish fulfillment. To wit:
1. Severus Snape: Just because he was bullied as a child does not give him license to humiliate, torture, and bully a child himself — especially after being the first link of 3 that directly resulted in the murder of that child’s parents. Add Neville Longbottom to that, mix in every house that wasn’t Slytherin, factor in being a ‘teacher,’ and you have a sadistic, mean, bully of a man who should have been fired and imprisoned after 2 days of teaching.
It wouldn’t have mattered that ‘he turned spy against Voldemort.’ His ‘love’ for Lily doesn’t make him a good guy either. Real love means wanting the other person to be happy, even if it’s without you. Torturing that person’s child because she chose someone else? Is. Not. Love.
2. Dumbledore: there are so many contradictions about him that it will make your head hurt. Fanon has frequently declared him to be ‘The Master Manipulator,’ which is very easy to see from the books.
He said he wanted Harry to enjoy his childhood (sic), but then promptly turns around and states that he knew he was condeming him to ’10 dark and difficult years.’ That’s a (semi) direct quote from OoTP, at the end.
Also: who the hell tells a child who just lost the only real father-figure he’s really had (periphrially though it was) that he has to kill or be killed by the sadistic whackjob who murdered your parents, less than 2 hours after his death?
3. The Malfoys: After everything they did — and a good portion of it was documented — Senior and Junior were both free and clear when it was all said and done? Really?
4. Spells/Charms: The Fidelius is the biggest goof here. Honestly, if you’re going into hiding, what gives with telling people? Logically speaking, there was no reason for Sirius and Peter to do their ‘trick-switch’ because no one would have known. In addition, JKR gives no background info about it, and then contradicts herself multiple times.
To specify: if Peter was the Secret Keeper, how did DD find the house? Or Hagrid? Or, actually, Sirius, come to think of it? Or, going back a bit, why wasn’t Lily or James the Secret-Keeper? It’s never mentioned that this wasn’t possible, so . . .
There are others, but this is the most aggravating for me. Gah!
5. Legilimency/Occulemency: DD and Snape are masters of these mind magics, but managed to completely miss that Moody wasn’t Moody for an entire frickin’ year? Really?
I’m stopping now because this post has gotten ridiculously long, but I want to end with: JKR, while possessing a fantastic imagination and awesome ideas, was NOT the person who should have written them (and her editor(s) should be killed).
Of the ‘pairings’ she did, Harry/Hermione was the initial lead-up — albeit unintentionally. Based on two interviews that I remember reading, what seems to have happened was ‘I wanted H/G because I wanted OBHWF, but my characters started writing themselves, and instead of growing a pair and accepting that my story parameters had changed, I grabbed the nearest shoehorn and forced it.’ Thus, the change in tone about halfway through OoTP, followed by the complete OOC fucockup that was HBP and DH.
Now, having said that, Harry/Hermione, while plausible, would need a great deal of work and change on both sides. Harry was too emotionally damaged from the Durleys when he arrived at Hogwarts to be a feasible partner for anyone, and since life-threatening events happened at least once a year, he never got a chance to stabilize (again, this is due to poor writing and worse editing).
Likewise, Hermione was too much — well, everything. Smartest witch of the age, but nothing to counterbalance that. A lot of nagging, but no real hobbies. I mean, she read a lot, but as an avid reader myself, that isn’t enough.
As for Ron . . . well . . . he had his moments of jackassery in the first 3 books, but what 11-12-13-year old doesn’t? It isn’t like Harry or Hermione were all sweetness and light. GoF, though . . . well, Ron was a first-class jerk. The reconciliation between him and Harry wasn’t because Ron was sorry for his actions. He never actually said that he knew Harry hadn’t entered his name in the tournament, just that it looked like someone was trying to kill him.
Even before that, his attitude and behavior about Harry’s money and fame were deplorable. They’d been friends for 3 years by then, after all. By then, he should have known better and grown up a little.
I don’t remember a lot about OoTP, except that everyone went stupid and the ending completely negated and ruined PoA. Then, in HPB and DH, Ron had a lobotomy (like everyone else, it seems) and a complete character transplant (see above).
Also, in DH, he ABANDONED Harry and Hermione because he was cold and hungry. Now, for me personally, I wouldn’t have accepted his ‘apology’ in GoF, but assuming I did, after he walked out that second time, I would have killed him when he came back. And people will say ‘he was wearing the horcrux,’ but Harry and Hermione did as well, and they didn’t abandon their friends or the mission. So, that doesn’t wash.
As for Ron/Hermione . . . well, maybe it’s just me, but while I’ll grant that relationship would be hot and passionate for a while, it would also end explosively — and badly. You cannot have a real relationship between people who have no respect for each other.
Ron did not respect Hermione’s knowledge, skills, or hobbies/likes. In fact, he actively derided them — until he needed them.
Hermione thought Ron was a lazy, underachieving slob. She didn’t like chess, didn’t really like quiddich, and thought an A- on a paper was one of the worst things that could happen to her. Ron aspired to a C.
When you read the books, Harry was the only thing Hermione and Ron really had in common. I’ll grant that opposites attract, but there still has to be an anchor for that to work. From what we were shown, Ron and Hermione didn’t have that anchor.
As for Ginny . . . again, bad writing and worse editing. If you start a series of books out intending to have a specific pairing, then logic dictates you SHOW the people involved. JKR didn’t, and the series suffered for it. I can see Harry/Luna, though it’s not my cup of tea, before I could believe H/G.
I don’t hate Ginny. Actually, I feel nothing about her — which is the worst thing for a character. When there’s nothing there, no emotional investment, you won’t go for anything deeper.
Still, to each his own. And I’ve gotta say, reading this comment board has been very . . . enlightening. It’s given me a lot of new things to contemplate.
Reply to comment 222:
Ginny was very rude to Ron, yes, but she did show quite a few signs of laughing at Luna. If I recall correctly, she called her ‘dear’ friend ‘Loony Lovegood’ perhaps once; the very thing she had supposedly tried to save her friend from for years. Whereas most characters, Harry included, respected her ‘weirdness,’ Ginny showed signs of finding it humorous. I don’t know about you, but if I were to laugh at one’s opinion, however strange or different, I would more than likely hurt said person’s feelings badly; especially if the person in question was a dear friend of mine. Perhaps it was merely my angry reaction to someone seeing themselves openly superior to Luna, or perhaps I was much too tired to comprehend words by the time I reached that point in the book; I dunno.
As for your explanation on how boyfriends and girlfriends are, I suppose where your reasoning comes from. However, I was raised to believe that relationships, even boyfriend/girlfriend relationships, are to be taken VERY seriously. Maybe this makes sense to you, but I find the logic JKR applied to her relationships was VERY flawed, indeed. Again, I’m not one to clarify this information, seeing as I am currently lacking experience in the field of real-life romance.
In short, I hate Rowling’s pairings in general. I thank you, however, for replying and, truthfully, your reply gave me a bit to think about. I mean no disrespect to your point of view, if you were offended by any means by my comment, that is.
I personally agree with this entire article, the H/G thing just doesn’t work. Personally, I thought the Patil twins had potential, what with the Yule Ball, even if things got mucked up there. Anyway, I’m not an expert and I can’t say I’ve looked into all this, but most of what the people who disagree said sound, to me, like excuses rather than legitimate reasons for the pairings. “There are hints…” doesn’t seem as convincing as “Here are undeniable facts that prove some sort of affection for (insert character name here) that could blossom into more…”
In my opinion, as uneducated and relatively unimportant as it is.
I have no idea if I’m a bit late to comment, but here it is anyways.
No, I am not a fan of Ginny/Harry, because it does seem a tad forced. That being said, I do appreciate the Hermione/Ron relationship. For one, it’s refreshing for the main character not to get “the girl”. Second, someone mentioned Hermione almost mothers Ron at times.
This often does happens when you like someone, there’s snappy comebacks and an edge to what you say. It usually comes with underlying jealousy issues because you aren’t sure if that person returns your feelings. So, yes, I do like their relationship and think it worked out well.
Back on Ginny/Harry though. One comparison that is repeatedly used is Mr.Darcy/Elizabeth.
A huge fact I wanted to point out if that Pride and Prejudice is a romance novel, while Harry Potter is not. The main focus of Pride and Prejudice was to develop the relationship between the two characters. The main point of Harry Potter was to defeat Voldemort and save the world. Though character relationships are very important for a good story, the romantic plots are not highly prioritized.
In my opinion, Hermione and Ron worked out well with the way the series went, and J.K Rowling probably felt she owed Harry a happy ending, with a wife and children. Most readers would’ve been upset if she had just written an anonymous “Mrs.Potter”.
Luna Lovegood could’ve filled the spot too, but because Rowling did mention that she made Harry “uncomfortable” at times, their relationship would’ve had to be explained, taking up time J.K.R probably did not have.
I think I’ll end my long rambling here, because I’m not really sure what my point is… I think what I’m trying to say is that Rowling did her best considering the circumstances and the vast audience she had to please, though it did seem forced. Perhaps she just thought they needed a sugar sweet ending to compensate for the ending?
Though honestly, I think the whole thing would’ve been better if she’d just left Harry unmarried, perhaps hinting at a romantic life at home, leaving it up to us.
I have to say that I disagree with about everything in your article. Not only do I like Harry/Ginny, but I also think you left out a lot about their relationship. I respect that you have another opinion, and I have nothing against the fact, that you (or anyone else, for that matter), don’t like them.
I just want to point out, that you’ve left out a lot about their relationship. Well, you asked for our thoughts, so I hope that it’s okay. No hard feelings.
I’ll go through your points:
“Point One: Great literary romances develop in a believable way.”
First, Ginny is not just ignored into book five. She is actually the first girl (on Harry’s age) to be introduced into the series, (before Hermione even, the female main character). In book two, she has a major plot-role; she wrote in Tom Riddle’s dairy and Harry saved her from the Chamber of Secret. She doesn’t play a very big role in either book 3 or 4, but she appears.
In the first four books, though we don’t hear that much about her (due to her crush on Harry), JK Rowling still gives us a lot of hints about her character: She defends Harry from Malfoy; she doesn’t just dump Neville, even though she had the opportunity to go with Harry to the Yule Ball, etc.
In book five, is where we really starts to learn about her character. She’s fun, mischievous, a skilled witch, a good quidditch player, etc. She joins the DA, she comforts Harry several times during that year – and she’s with him at the Ministry of Magic.
Harry’s feelings for her didn’t just appear out of nowhere. They had developed a friendship during his fifth year at Hogwarts, she was with him a the Ministry at Magic, and he had spend (and enjoyed) a lot of time with her during the summer. True, he did first realise his feelings for her, when he saw her kissing Dean, but they were already developing before that:
“He tapped Ginny on the shoulder.
‘Fancy trying to find a compartment?’
‘I can’t, Harry, I said I’d meet Dean,’ said Ginny brightly.
‘See you later.’
‘Right,’ said Harry. He felt a strange twinge of annoyance as she walked away, her long red hair dancing behind her. He had become so used to her presence over the summer that he had almost forgotten that Ginny did not hang around with him, Ron and Hermione while at school.”
“‘Hang on,’ said a voice close by Harry’s left ear and he caught a sudden waft of that flowery smell he had picked up in Slughorn’s dungeon. He looked round and saw that Ginny had joined them.
“Harry’s thoughts strayed to Ginny as they trudged up the road to Hogwarts through the frozen slush. They had not met up with her, undoubtedly, thought Harry, because she and Dean were cosily closeted in Madam Puddifoot’s teashop, that haunt of happy couples. Scowling, he bowed his head against the swirling sleet and trudged on.”
There is no way, Ginny would or could have used a love-potion on Harry. Not only would it be greatly out of character; Ginny does definitely not struck me as someone who would use love-potion, but I also think that after ‘the Chamber-incident’, Ginny would hate any kind of mind-manipulating. Besides that; Harry had already started developing feelings before her, before he realised them. Had he been under love-potion, he would not have cared in the slightest about Dean or Ron.
“Point Two: Great literary romances are based on a mutual admiration and respect for the other’s strengths and talents.”
Harry admired a lot about Ginny: He think she’s funny, that she’s a good qudditch player, that she’s a skilled witch, that she’s tough, that she’s a good liar, that she understands him well and so on….
Granted, Harry, like everyone else, admired Hermione’s brains – though honestly, that’s no surprise, seeing as Hermione is quite a genius. But he was also annoyed by her ‘know-it-all-ness’. Hermione mothers him, and she does NOT always treats him like a equal.
Harry liked Luna, but he did definitely not fancy her. He thought she was too eccentric at times, and I think it’s very important for Harry to understand the person he’s with. He was very frustrated and annoyed when he didn’t understand Cho – with Ginny, on the other hand, Harry thought they understood each other perfectly.
“Point Three: Great literary romances are willingly sacrificial.”
Ginny allowed him to break up with her. By ‘allowed’, I mean that Harry probably wouldn’t have been able to keep his decision, had Ginny not accepted.
Ginny hated it, when other people were protective of her, (that was showed several times, during the books), but she accepted that Harry needed her to be safe. That she was the best she could do for him, at that point, and she accepted it, even though she didn’t like it.
As for Harry – he fought down a basilisk, for her, isn’t that enough?
(And yes, I am aware, that their relationship was still in a very early state, and that he would have done that for almost everyone – but that doesn’t change the fact that he did it).
“Point Four: Great literary romances feature a well-matched pair.”
Harry and Ginny have a lot in common; they share the same sense of humour, they both play quidditch and they have a great understanding of each other. JK Rowling showed several times, how well they understand each other; which is something VERY important in a relationship.
She’s not ‘His #1 Fan-girl’. Granted, she had a crush on him, when she was younger (when she was ELEVEN), but she grew out of it, and it changed into deeper feelings. Although Harry didn’t know much about Ginny, she knew a lot about him; he was her older brothers best friend, and Ron had told his family a lot about Harry. Honestly, it’s not abnormal for younger girls, to be crushing on their older brothers friends.
That he was ‘The-Boy-Who-Lived’, admittedly, probably played a major role in her crush, but that doesn’t make her a fan-girl. She wasn’t stalking him, or asking for his autograph; she was just shy, when she was around him.
Ginny is a very gifted witch, she’s good a qudditch, she’s funny, etc.; she has a lot of talents. Too many, actually, in many people’s opinion.
Harry and Ginny did not play against each other in quidditch, because they both played the same team, and they were both quite talented players. Did Cho win over Harry in quidditch? I can’t really remember, to be honest…
Anyway, Ginny beat Cho (several times, in fact), so if Cho was a challenge to Harry, Ginny definitely was as well.
“Point Five: Great literary romances celebrate the steadfast and unwavering love of the underdog.”
Hmmm…. Ginny was, arguably, an underdog in that sense that she was the youngest out of 7 and came from a poor family. She also had to deal with VOLDEMORT himself (or, at least, a part of his soul), as an eleven year old. And she suffered from Harry’s unrequited feelings for years.
Is it wrong, that I don’t really care whether or not she’s an underdog? She’s not perfect, and I think Harry’s issues enough for both of them, I think.
“Conclusion:”
Well, I’ve already argued that I do, in fact, think that the Harry/Ginny relationship was developed. They understand each other well, and she is “his best source of comfort”.
Harry said that his time together with Ginny was like something out of someone else’s life, because it seemed too good to be true – not because he wasn’t into it.
Well, I’ve stated my opinion, and as I started out by saying, I’m completely fine by the fact that you, and other people, have another opinion, I just didn’t think you did them complete justice in your article. If one are to dislike something, dislike it for what it is.
That being said; Harry/Ginny being well developed, does not necessarily mean that people have to like them anyway.
No hard feelings, I hope.
No, no, no I completely disagree. Read these two essays; they’re a little old but the point still stands:
http://www.hplex.info/essays/essay-harry-ginny.html
http://www.hplex.info/essays/essay-ginny-weasley.html
All right, I am not going to sit here and monotone style drill my opinion in to all of your heads like so many of you have. I am not going to be a teacher, and bombard you with facts, figures and statistics, and wait for you to see it my way. Because to me, everyone is entitled to there own opinion on what happens in books. Everyone has a different take on book characters and whom they should love because everyone’s Harry Potter is different.
MY Harry ends up falling in love with Ginny. I can’t explain why, and I wouldn’t if I could. MY Harry is a completely different person then yours.
YOUR Harry may go on and be with whom YOU please because he is YOUR Harry. Everyone should enjoy the ending to a series because THEIR characters will continue on to grow up, doing different things then the next persons same character.
All of us have different Harry’s. The reason this fight is so full of blood lust and confusion is because we are all talking about DIFFERENT PEOPLE. My Ginny is different then any other Ginny so is my Harry, Hermione, and Ron ECT.
I think that everyone’s Harry’s has settled down with who THEY are meant to. Even though the Harry in the book is the only one that is published, that does NOT mean he is the only real Harry.
While reading this, and other posts I have picked up on a few interesting consistences. I am simply stating what I observed while reading the arguments and counter arguments, I mean no disrespect to any persons, this is simply my professional opinion.
1. The people who advocate H/G seem to be, largely, rather immature in their arguments, and stubbornly refuse to acknowledge any valid points made that contradict their views. This shows a small mindedness bordering on prepubescence.
2. The argument that is most commonly used to advocate H/G, is that the CoS incident was the proverbial building block of their relationship. This could be true, in that surviving traumatic circumstances can bring people together. However, the fact that Ginny was unconscious for the actual act of saving, Harry slaying the Basilisk and destroying the diary, would not cure Ginny of her fangirl obsession, it would in actual fact further her delusion, because her mind would create a fantasy of the battle, with Harry being her perfect prince charming.
3.The fact that Ginny receives, to the best of my knowledge, no mention in the third book, and the two do not communicate, during what should have been a long and traumatic recovery, both surviving a near death ordeal, seems to offer proof that the two would realistically find discomfort in being close to the other.
4. Finally, the similarities between Ginny and Lily where enough to turn my stomach(Oedipus Complex). Even worse, are the similarities between Ginny and Rowling, and I believe that she subconsciously took the characters in the direction she did to provide herself an ideal world, where she could be ‘herself’. There are also slight similarities between Harry, Ron, and her Ex-, and current husbands, which provide further, although circumstantial, proof of her favor of Ginny.
Please do not expect responses if you do not have a rational argument to put forth, because I do not care what the immature or unintelligent think of me.
Re: Joseph
I think everybody has the right to express and have their own opinion, and I will, personally not participate in a debate where people are being rude to each other, or stop being argumentative, and start fighting. However, I do not agree that it’s only the Harry/Ginny shippers who, sometimes, are being immature or rude?
The CoS incident were, as I see it, not meant to bring Harry and Ginny closer, and it’s was pretty clear from the books that their relationship was not based on that. As you said, it took several years before they got closer. Also it’s not like Harry went down to save Ginny, because he suddenly realised she was his soul-mate or something. He would have done that for almost everyone – that’s just how he is.
That being said, it was presumably not just a coincidence from JK Rowling’s side, that it was Ginny in the chamber. Harry and Ginny are the only people in the books (as far as I recall), who experienced that kind of connection with Voldemort.
What are the similarities between Ginny and Lilly, other the red hair? To be honest, we don’t know that much about Lilly – and neither does Harry.
JK Rowling has said that the character she identify with the most is Hermione, not Ginny. I don’t know about Ron, but I’m rather sure he was based on one of her friends, and not her ex-husband. Harry can’t be based on her husband, because she started writing Harry Potter long before she met him.
To clarify my previous points, and expand on my motivation for them, and Re: HarryPotterFan.
1. This was simply an observation of the maturity of arguments from the people who advocate the two sides, it was a generalization and not an all-encompassing statement of fact. I apologize if I caused any offence.
2. Simply a psychological analysis of the situation and closure surrounding the Camber incident.
3. A comment on JK sidelining Ginny and leaving his only real romantic interest Hermione.
4. The similarities are there but would take an essay to explain, Google it if interested.
Harry->Ex-husband
Ron->Husband
Young JK->Ginny
Older JK->Hermione
Some have commented that the characters are her fantasy of the ideal situation.
I meant no offence and was commenting on a general trend I have observed in H/G forums(fori?).
Everyone’s minds work differently and so will notice or focus on different things, and so we have different opinions.
Actually, Joseph, re: #232; JKR has stated that Hermione is (more-or-less) her, Ron is her ex-husband, and Harry is her current husband (who she is much happier with, according to her). JKR has also stated that Ginny is who she wanted to be at that age and the she was *specifically* written to ‘be Harry’s soulmate.’
Now, as someone who has done that sort of writing, I can say with 100% accuracy that this will lead, without fail, to a Mary-Sue — which Ginny Weasley is, unfortunately. Had JKR had an ounce of sense, she would have included Ginny in the books from the beginning (or 2nd year, anyway, given GW is a year behind the Trio). She didn’t. Instead, we had Hermione doing anything for Harry, Harry doing a considerable amount for Hermione, and Ron being a (somewhat) friend until GoF, wherein he became a full-on, world-class prick.
Ginny, in GoF, is really only mentioned tangentially — she was at the World Cup, but there was no real interaction with Harry, IIRC. Ditto with the Yule Ball. She went with Neville, but that’s … pretty much all we know, actually.
Even in 5th year, there was no real indication of feelings on Harry’s part — because he was still focused on Cho Chang. And, if you H/G ‘shippers will recall, he left in the middle of his date with Cho to meet Hermione. And didn’t think twice about it.
To sum up: Ginny didn’t register on Harry’s radar as a possible ‘romantic’ (and that is, in large part, why love potions was such a prevalant theory, both for H/G and R/Hr; they both came out of the proverbial nowhere) interest until book 6, when JKR realized that her characters were growing up and heading quickly to Harry/Hermione. Since that didn’t fit JRK’s ‘One Big Happy Weasley Family’ ending, she shoe-horned it and managed to destroy a large part of what made the series fun and enjoyable.
I really like this article, but most of all the discussion that it brings
I personally like the HARRY/GINNY relationship almost as most as I like the HERMIONE and RON couple.
We must not forget that this books grow with a generation, do we really find our partner on our school sweetheart from all time? Does it really has to grow since childhood to be consider true love?
I like Ginny’s character. Harry finally notice her on that summer at the burrow when she is finally herself, funny, playful and secure. She is a strong young woman, not afraid of her younger brothers… and bright with a lot of magic as well. I think JK tries to make a point she is rather independent, which is refreshing. It is true that much is not said about their romance, but again as many of you had said, this novels where more about right and wrong, death and friendship… and about growing up. Not much about teen melodrama.
The way JK presents it is that Harry likes her for what she is despite being her best friend sister. As someone said at the beginning, they had about 5 years to make this relationship grow before they had their first baby.
For Ron and Hermione, it is impossible to not see it coming from the beginning. Ron always showed an special interested in Hermione, not much at the time of the troll, but after that, once he saw how much he could hurt her with his out of place comments. He was very sad when she was petrified, he defended her against Malfloy, he was much more concern that Harry about her crazy scheduled… overall he had an special interest on her, from the beginning. They where similar in the way that they truly cared about Harry but I like the idea that they share something special between them as well. Not to mention that is rather satisfying that the heroine (Hermione) does not end up with the Hero, at the end, they both had the chance to choose who they wanted, even if according with right literature practice or not.
wait wait wait.. I’m a huge H/G shipper.. And we are not idiot.. We know they’re not romantic..
Theres something about this two..
Yeah,, they are not romantic.. but they still canon..
when ginny got riddle’s diary.. she was introduced in the dark world at quite young age,, see.. don’t you people get they were soulmates.. She understands him like only a wife could do..
About the H/Hr ship.. never mind them.. they’re just BESTFRIENDS.. and about what chris said.. Harry saving Hermione on Book 1.. wait.. Harry’s with Ron right??
in the chamber… Harry was with ron.. In the beggining.. not when facing the real enemy..
and about H/L thing.. even Luna herself.. thinks Luna is not the right for Harry… H/L shippers… Oh Yeah..when is the first time Luna had appeared?? she appeared on Book 5 right?? imagine.. BOOK 5.. how could you know her so well???
HERE IS MY MAIN POINT…
Why the hell all H/Hr and H/L shippers know more than J.K.R.?? (oh bless her she made H/G)
Because no matter how many non-shippers cry..
No Matter how many non-shippers cry..
No matter how much you protest..
GINNY WEASLEY IS THE CHOSEN ONE’S CHOSEN ONE..
SHE IS THE ONLY ONE KNOWN AS MRS.HARRY JAMES POTTER..
Here! Here!
Honestly, I don’t know who I would match up with Harry. If I’d written the series I’d have probably killed Harry off, personally.
I don’t really know what happened after book 5. Starting in book 6 all of the characters go off kilter. I suspect it was the difference between what the characters wanted to do and the direction JK had already decided the series was going to go in.
I always had hopes for Luna and Neville for some reason
I felt the same way. I mean Harry was acting like he was on a love potion in 6.
“Draco is up to something. He’s a death eater. What? You don’t believe me? But he is! I heard him say so. Draco Is Up To Something. I’ll prove it.”
“Ginny has red hair…”
“Listen to me. DRACO. IS. UP. TO. SOMETHING. He is!!!!!”
“Ginny is kinda pretty…”
“HERMIONE. RON. DRACO IS SERIOUSLY BAD NEWZ. WHY DON’T YOU CARE?”
“Wait was that Ginny?”
“DRACO IS A DEATH EATER WORKING FOR VOLDEMORT. YOU BELIEVE ME DON’T YOU DUMBLEDORE? WHAT DO YOU MEAN, NO?”
“OMG Dean kissed Ginny. Not cool.”
“I’M GOING TO BREAK INTO THE ROOM OF REQUIREMENT IF IT’S THE LAST THING I DO. DRACO. IS. UP. TO. SOMETHING. REAL. BAD. I. KNOW. IT.”
“Hi Ginny. Wanna snog?”
“HERMIONE LAY OFF THE POTIONS BOOK. THE HALF BLOOD PRINCE IS COOL, BUT DRACO IS NOT. HELP ME FIGURE THIS OUT.”
“Being with Ginny is like being someone else. It’s like it doesn’t even happen to me. Not really.”
“I told you Draco was up to something. He was plotting Dumbledore’s death and look who helped him do it… Snape. Now do you believe me?”
“Hey Ginny we gotta break up. I haz this Dark Lord to kill.”
Seriously schizo.
You’re obviously just a stupid fan girl/boy. An epilogue means YEARS later. Plenty can happen in that time. Harry Potter is different from the real world, in the way that the readers don’t expect what actually happens. That’s what makes it so amazing. I apologize, but obviously, you don’t get it.
Hmm for those who are still arguing about the paralel between Rowling’s real life and HP characters. Here is the exact quote:
“Which of the Potter characters would you marry?,” Rowling giggled. “The truth is, in my younger days, I dated Ron more than once,” she admitted, giving an inside look at why Hermione (the closest character to Rowling’s younger self) might be attracted to Harry’s best friend. “He’s fun to write, but not so much fun to date.” And once she had learned her lesson, Rowling said, “I married Harry Potter,” referring to her second husband, Neil Murray. “He’s up there [in the wings]. I just mortified him,” she laughed. “But he looks like Harry would look like, at a certain age. I married a very good person and a gutsy person. And that’s who Harry is.”
I personally think if they were real persons with this character features, then Hermione and Harry would be the endgame.
But this is a book, and we well knew that JKR stated that she planned very early that Harry with be with Ginny, and Hermione with Ron. And in the books she created such a strong bond between Harry and Hermione that can’t be overlooked, she, JKR herself said that there was the possibility. But she is a determined women so she desperately wanted the BIG Happy Weasley family so she wrote it, even if Harry and Hermione, or Harry and Luna have the potential as much or more than Ginny and Harry.
And I think if she changed her mind midway the story would be destroyed. With that I mean, Ron’s affection for Hermione was clear, his jealousy also, we saw that he turned his back on is bestfriend and his love because of jealousy. HHr would have destroyed their friendship, Ron wouldn’t bear it, maybe after a while he would have came around but nothing would have been the same, the harmony of the trio is very important part of the books, if it had been destroyed, the whole book would be destroyed .
So I think this canon pairing was more like for the shake of the story, and not where the characters really wanted to go.
I felt H/g forced and out of nowhere, but I accepted that JKR wanted it that way. But ONE thing I won’t accept is that canon shippers feels the need to abuse us for having an opinion on this subject.
JKR is great women and a terrific writer, I love her, but she isn’t flawless. And people taste in love is different, as every person is.
IF ONE THING I LEARNT FROM THIS BOOKS IS NOT TO BULLY THOSE WHO ARE DIFFERENT FROM ME. DIFFERENT ISN’T BAD! SO PLEASE IF YOU LOVE HP THEN LEARN TO RESPECT OTHERS!
wow, wrote this two years ago and still getting comments. you must have done something right.
I mostly agree with you. I had a very classical education with regards to literature so naturally I expected the Hero and Heroine to get together in the end. I still believe it would have made for a better ending. Before I say why I just wanted to mention i think the best ending would have been Harry dying at the end and being reunited with his parents and Sirius. Another thing she could have just left relationships out of it completely since she herself admitted that she sucks at writing romance.
Ron/Hermione…ok this is stupid. Ron throughout the story is the comic relief. he’s never shown to be exceedingly smart. The bickering aspect people point to bothers me in that yes playful bickering is a sign of underlying feelings but over the course of the series Ron extends past playful and says downright hurtful things. By the bickering logic then you could say that Hermione and Draco have underlying romantic tension. He belittles her intelligence which is the thing she prides herself most on. The Yule Ball explanation for their feelings doesn’t really hold either because it’s also mentioned that Harry also noticed Hermione when she first entered the ball room. As far as I could tell the only thing they have in common is they’re both magical and Harry which is hardly the basis for a strong romantic relationship.
Harry/Ginny again makes no sense in that Harry views the Weasleys as a surrogate family. Every summer he leaves his prison at the Dursleys and ends up staying with them. It’s a glimpse of the family life he was supposed to grow up with. By this logic Ginny would be seen as the sister figure not Hermione. Which would also explain why he was so anxious to go help Ron’s sister. I also agree that he would have gone down to the chamber regardless of the person down there. They barley say two words to one another up until the 5th book when Harry clearly has his sights on Cho.
Harry/Hermione to me makes the most sense if your going to have couples come out of the story. I would have had Harry die as I said. But all the most touching scenes of the series center around the Harry/Hermione relationship. There is nothing overly romantic about their relationship throughout the books but I will argue with anyone that of all the characters they had the best foundation for a relationship. Starting with the troll in first year. They hug in the hall at the end of second year(the argument that she shakes Ron’s hand because of romantic feelings is crazy. honestly barring deep psychological issues nobody has romantic feelings at 12). third year it’s harry/hermione who go save Sirius from the dementers. fourth year she never thought he put his name in the goblet, she helps him learn the accio spell, she’s shown throughout the book as concerned for his safety, and kisses him on the cheek at the end of the year. In 5 Harry/Hermione go alone into the forbidden forest with Hagrid and Harry steps in front of her protecting her from Grawp. Cho is jealous of Hermione. Through books 1-5 everything I read screamed those two getting together to me. The 6th book was just a mess. what was the point of introducing and mentioning love potions? Up until then every lesson they learned in school had a major tie in to the story of the book. The love potions in 6 have no bearing on the main story as far as Harry is concerned. Then in book 7 half the book they’re by themselves. They go to Godrics Hollow together. The bro/sis argument just doesn’t work for me. They clearly have the best foundation for a relationship. They both have a muggle upbringing. They both feel the need to prove themselves. They never leave each others side. It just makes sense.
let me end by saying. Everyone has the right to their opinion. No one is wrong for having a opinion. I have tried to express my observations from purely literary perspective as the original article did. They weren’t particularly advocating for any couple over another they were just pointing out that the Harry/Ginny relationship was terribly developed. My first choice would have been for Harry to die as it made the most sense. it would have been a happy ending with him being with his parents/sirius/dumbledore again. If I had to pick a couple I would have picked Harry and Hermione. They’re the Hero and the Heroine of the story plane and simple. In stories the comic relief sidekick doesn’t get the girl because honestly he doesn’t measure up to her. That’s not Ron’s fault it’s the way the characters were written.
I agree with your article it was well written and I admire the perspective with which you wrote it.
Thanks Tony! One of my favorite scenes in book 7 is Harry realizing he needs to die and going off into the forest to do so by Voldemort’s hands. That was a great climatic point.
Wow!! There’s a whole lot of passionate views being shared on this! So, why not add mine to the long list.
I personally, am a Ron and Hermione lover. I think, they’re relationship is amazing how it evolves. From the very first book, I never ever thought that they would end up with anyone but each other.
I see people’s main criticism of their relationship is that they bicker and Ron has a jealousy streak, some security issues etc. But honestly, as some-one who has grown up as an only girl in a house full of brothers, I just see that as typical teenage male hormones. My god, none of us are the people now that we were at thirteen, fourteen etc. and thank God for that.
People grow up, people become more settled in themselves. Personally I think it’s adorable how Ron and Hermione mature, and in the last book when they come back to Hogwarts and Ron is listing off Gamps Law and concerned with the house-elves… I mean that just shows the person he is becoming. I think the best relationships are the ones were you challenge each other to be better, where you’re taken a little bit outside your own comfort zone, to a different view point.
That’s how we grow as people, through influences throughout our lives. I think Ron and Hermione have a very Ying/Yang complex, and I think they need it to balance out some of their less attractive qualities.
As for Harry and Hermione! Never. They’re friends. They’re family. They’re the siblings they never had themselves, and I think that is a precious relationship in itself.
With Ginny and Harry, people keep saying she wasn’t mentioned enough throughout the book etc. But come-one, the books weren’t about romance for Harry. At least not at first. They were children. Certainly I wasn’t looking for the love of my life at 13/14. Like I said before, people grow and people change.
In the time between the battle and the prologue who know’s what could have happened. I like Ginny for Harry, because they both have more balanced personalities.
Why wouldn’t he begin to notice Ginny? She’s popular and pretty, and she had finally grown into her own personality. War changes people. I mean the whole series is about being true to yourself, and I think the message with Ginny is that you can’t find true love with some-one else until you completely accept yourself first.
Just my opinions! Though I will say, I never read any Ron and Hermione fan fictions, because they are my ultimate favourite couple and as far as I’m concerned no-one can write them as brilliant as J.K. did.
Ginny and Harry definitely feel like a forced literary romance, put there just to appease the audience who expect the protagonist to couple up with someone. But I do appreciate the real romance between two supporting characters (which never happens). Hermione and Ron are a great literary romance. I was pulling for them through the whole series.
actually i think that this article is not reasonable and its a stupid idea to imagne harry with luna or cho which actually loved sedric and not just because harry saved hermione in part 1 doesn’t mean that he has fealings for her and he only did that because he consedred her as a friend that he had to save and i think that harry and ginny are a perfect fet and their relashionship would have lasted if harry didn’t have to find the horcroxes and no matter what any body says i will always be a h/g huge fan
Why do people keep saying that Ginny’s smart, pretty, sporty, etc.?
Okay, she’s sporty but why didn’t it mention? Because her brothers didn’t know that she’s good at Quidditch and loves it. Heck, they assumed she didn’t know how to fly a broom and as boys, they think that most girls don’t like Quidditch because it’s a boy’s thing, therefore concluding that Ginny is part of the ‘girls don’t like manly sports and likes girly stuff and pink what-its’. That’s why in Book 5, she was able to show her talent and love for Quidditch when Harry and twins were banned.
Ginny being smart – J.K. Rowling didn’t state that she’s smart (not unless I missed something). Maybe smart in a Fred-and-George way and not smart like the Hermione-or-Percy-or-Bill way. Witty and cheeky, yes, but not smart. I know there’s not basis on what I’m saying here but that’s how I perceived in to be. She’s definitely not book-smart. Actually, she reminded me of Sirius or James in a kind of way.
Ginny being pretty – okay, it’s been mentioned. Redhead, popular among the boys (in her year and some above like Michael Corner, Dean Thomas, possibly Blaise Zabini, and lastly Harry-bloody-Potter). That’s JK. Rowling’s choice so I have nothing to say.
Ginny and her flaws – hot-tempered, that’s one thing but it’s generally known to all HP that Weasleys have bad tempers. Secondly, she’s a hypocrite to a certain extent. She defends Luna Lovegood from other students who laugh or bully her but before Luna was properly introduced, she called her Loony which I think it’s a bit contradictory. She ‘depicted’ as someone who understands but she doesn’t understand much of what’s happening (but since she’s not one of the main characters, that’s sort of given). Also, she’s mean and cruel in a way to one Ronald Weasley, who is obviously having a hard time overcoming his insecurities. Sure, it’s sibling love (that happens to my siblings and I), but she’s not the type who apologizes due to stubborness and pride. Which leads to that, Weasleys – like any purebloods, whether blood-traitor or not – are prideful and stubborn. They’re like the Malfoys but only at the other side of the lawn. And discriminatory too, if I may add. That’s how I perceived her (and I mentioned some of the other Weasley family traits and purebloods in general).
Ginny and being a ‘fangirl’ – I’ve been scratching my head for the past hour while I read some of the earlier posts (heck, I read half of the existing posts since the beginning) and I wonder why would anyone say that Ginny Weasley is a fangirl? Honestly in my own opinion, she’s been titled as such simply because she has more screen time than the rest of the girls who are crushing over Harry Potter. Okay, at the age of 10, she’s a bit nuts about Harry and seeing her for the first time, but really, it’s because Harry’s famous. Every kid ogle at him and they didn’t know what really happened in his real life or situation from his home. Ginny is, of course, a person who doesn’t know Harry Potter personally at the age of 10. It’s normal. There were books written about Harry Potter before Harry knew they were there and surely, mostly every kid read that – come on, Hermione’s a muggle-born but she knew Harry Potter – so Ginny’s an exception. It’s not her fault that Harry Potter in those magical bibliographies or what-its was being depicted as some kind of special wizards with ‘super oh-so amazing’ powers which we all know are rubbish because those authors tend to exaggerate things (example: Rita Skeeter) and therefore believed in it because it was written in a book. Also, there were rumors flying about what kind of person Harry Potter would be. Even here, in the real world, rumors fly around celebrities – some are good, others not – and in Harry’s case, it applies as well. So is it Ginny’s fault that she admires and has this crush on Harry on something that is superficial? She didn’t know Harry that well so it’s reasonable that she would think of some things that aren’t factual. I would also like to add that she wasn’t informed well by Ron or the twins – Ron may be a blabbermouth but he didn’t talk much about Harry’s personal life and what he’s like, neither were the twins. Heck, even when Ron and Harry had a row during GoF, he wasn’t badmouthing Harry around others and kept his mouth shut mostly. But that’s Ron and I’m going a bit far off from Ginny. So she had little information about Harry. Maybe during CoS summer, she might have gotten some idea of him but she was shy. Who wouldn’t? Of course, there are many ways a person can around their crushes in a more effective way but in Ginny’s case, it’s that. And I would like to give more emphasis on the fangirlishness which doesn’t exist anymore from Book 5. In Book 4, Ginny was still hopeful that Harry would notice her but when she heard that Harry asked Cho as his date (and failed) and her accepting Neville’s invitation, that was the beginning of her of moving on from her ‘pathetic’ crush on Harry-bloody-Potter. And let’s point out that Hermione advised her that it’s better if she tried to have more fun and date others rather than wait for him to notice her because it won’t be effective. On the sixth book, HBP, there was a sudden boom of Harry Potter fangirls, like Romilda Vane. Since Harry proved to the Wizarding World in Britain that Voldemort did come back and was titled as the ‘Chosen One’, it’s natural that there was sudden increase in Potter fangirl-ism. Who’s more of a fangirl? Ginny Weasley or the likes of Romilda Vane who implied that Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood aren’t ‘too cool’ to hang out with and it would better for him to stay with the likes of her and her friends. That may not be Vane’s fault since she doesn’t know the two well but Ginny wasn’t like that. One can get over their fangirlishness when they knew of the person better, right?
Harry ‘sudden’ love interest in Ginny – I would agree to H/Hr shippers that it was sudden but how about Cho Chang? Harry had suddenly got a crush of her during third year and it was mentioned once or twice. Then in fourth year, it was mentioned few times. In fifth year, when Cedric got ‘out of the way’, Harry managed to get together with her and ended disastrously. And Ginny, well, it was badly written; She got over her crush on him somehow during OotP because she’s with Michael who treated her well enough. And during sixth year, it wasn’t mentioned much on how often they hanged out with each other (with Ron and Hermione). Maybe that’s the problem with the other readers because there was no depth in how close and how often they were together during the rest of the summer. It was just…mentioned, is all. And to others, some would say that Love takes time and there should be a process but really, does it have to be that way? Love can be in many forms and it doesn’t have to be compared to Pride and Prejudice or happened like in that book (I haven’t read it honestly, but I don’t have the money to buy the book *cries*). Heck, during my HS, I have this classmate-friend and I’ve known him since second grade; during my third year in HS, I just looked at him and when he smiled towards my direction one time in class, it just struck me like a ‘Bludger hitting me on the head’ (for the record, I only know tidbits of him, like his birthday, some favorite music and hobbies, but only that). Seriously, some say there are rules with regards to love and attraction but there really is. One can’t help but like someone, even out of the blue. Harry’s case was possible to some other people and Ron and Hermione’s case was possible too. Heck, if Hermione didn’t exist, I would have paired Ron with Draco Malfoy of all people LOL. They’re…hm, more intense than Harry and Malfoy because Malfoys hated Weasleys LOL. Well, that’s just me ahahaha. Anyway, Love is different. It can be slow but it can be fast. It can be both at the same time.
I wrote too long about this article. That’s all I can say. (Oh and about Luna with Harry, I’d see Ron with Luna than with Harry. It was mentioned in the OotP in the Luna Lovegood chapter when she mentioned about Padma not enjoying the ball and implied she wouldn’t have mind if she was asked out by him himself LOL).
And no, I’m no Ginny-hater or Ginny-supporter. Just a general HP fan. Heck I love all of the characters, even Umbridge! XD
Also, I think that J.K. Rowling wanted a different approach of Romance (no matter how little and underdeveloped it was). Because in the normal ‘rules’ of pairings, the Hero is always paired up with the Heroine. In HP books’ case, J.K. Rowling decided not to on the same path because it has been used again and again. So Ron is a sidekick, what makes Hermione not a sidekick? Because she’s female? Because she’s the brightest witch in their age? Because she’s always there beside Harry no matter what happens? Honestly, those aren’t any reasons why she’s not supposed to be sidekick. She is, no matter what, a sidekick like Ron. the real ‘main’ character is Harry Potter. Hermione and Ron are his support. Anyway, just because Ron doesn’t measure up with Hermione doesn’t mean he deserved her. That’s just bad. So Hermione’s really smart and talented, and Ron’s just an average bloke who is nothing special about him – that’s wrong. Let’s see here, Ron has some qualities that Hermione doesn’t and Hermione has some qualities that Ron doesn’t. Harry is in the middle – Ron is there to give him some normalcy like enjoying life as a normal teenager or kid should be and Hermione is there to watch over him and tell him what he needs to do or supposed to do, like a mother or older sister would do to their younger ones.
It’s been mentioned that Harry gets bored when he spends too much time with Hermione because Hermione’s favorite spot is Library and Harry isn’t the book-loving type of person like Hermione. Harry likes Quidditch and likes to have Hermione. Hermione is slightly different due to her upbringing. Harry, though his childhood sucked pretty much, wanted to have fun and was mentioned or implied that he was jealous of his cousin who was doing things that he wanted to do. So with Ron, he was able to do things he wanted to do. Unlike Hermione, sure she knows how to have fun, but it rarely showed. She doesn’t play Quidditch, Gobstones (I don’t think she would play that game), use any prank product from Zonko’s or WWW’s, maybe plays some Exploding Snap (if that was mentioned) and rarely or seldom jokes around. She’s a bit stiff, likes to follow rules when in fact Harry and Ron doesn’t, is bossy at times, is easily irritated when she sees something she doesn’t like.
Ron, at least, tries to enjoy his life at Hogwarts, albeit it didn’t sound like he enjoyed some of it. So I believe Ron and Hermione balance out each other and are compatible. So yeah, not much substance but you can get what I mean right?
You are so RIGHT!!!
I do see your point, but isn’t the Harry/Ginny thing a typical “girl next door” scenario like in houndreds of films? Boy and girl knows each other for a long time, but only as friends and then suddenly the main characters sees the other in a new light and it turns out they love each other. THe thing that happens is that Ginny and harry doesn’t get to know each other propperly untio ootp when they start hanging out. This is entierly belivable because they get older, more “mature” and it’s not stupid to hang out with the kid sister annymore. Then ginny suddenly gets popular and Harry gets some competition, this makes him see her in a new light, opens his eyes to the fact that she can be desierable and makes him want her beacause he can’t have her. I don’t see how it’s not belivable that they end up married. We don’t know anything about those years, they probably got back together right after the war and over time it turned out to work out. It’s not a great romance, just boy meets girl, and it works out. Their relatuionship doesn’t have to be perfect to be belivable.
Since I was 10 and read the first book I knew it would be Harry and Ginny. I think the people who are most upset about Harry and Hermione not ending together are the people who have really liked their friends. At least, most of my friends who are H/Hr shippers liked their friends at one point. Harry and Hermione have always been like siblings. Luna Lovegood is too out there for Harry. Cho Chang is a pretty girl but that seemed like an infatuation. Ginny, on the other hand, needed to grow up a bit and move on to be herself. Plus she’s the best friend’s little sister.
Plus Ron and Hermione are perfect <3
I haven’t read all of the comments, so I will start by apologizing in advance if I refer to points already acknowledged. I’m really only trying to respond to the original article.
First off, Harry and Hermione could never have worked. They both are too serious to ever last long together. As Harry explicitly states in the 4th book, there was a lot less laughter when Hermione is your best friend. The movies especially like to paint Harry and Hermione as the best friends, but the truth is that they aren’t. Harry and Ron are. And, though Ron has walked off on Harry twice, that has only seem to make their friendship stronger. After all, what person can claim they have never lost their temper at the people closest to them? The truth is, Harry and Hermione both need Ron much more than Ron needs either of them. Ron was both of their best friends, but what, exactly, have they done for Ron? Harry and Hermione both need Ron for the same reasons; they just feel different loves for him. This is another reason why, in my mind, HHr would never work. I can’t believe a romance where there is another person they both need more than each other.
Luna and Cho were never really contenders either. As readers, there has not been an ounce of evidence to show that they were actually compatible. Harry needs someone who he can cry on, not someone who will cry on him. And, while Luna does often give him advice in critical moments, for day to day life, they seem to have little to nothing in common.
Ginny, on the other hand, has a lot in common with Harry. They both had direct contact with Voldemort, they both have been shown to overcome great hardship, and they have similar interests. But, even more importantly, they have many opposing qualities. Ginny is very socially strong. Her family has given her a solid foundation. There is little to no doubt in my mind that, had the diary not been there to suck away Ginny’s time and attention her first year, she would have developed strong friendships from the beginning. She is able to show Harry love that he has always been starved for.
Ginny has also, by the time their romance begins, become a very strong person. As I said earlier, Harry needs someone to cry on, not someone to cry on him. During the entirety of their romance, we have not seen a single instance of Ginny crying on Harry, but we have seen Harry, emotionally crippled Harry, lean on Ginny during a very hard part of his life; Dumbledore’s death.
To be perfect honest, I don’t think that Ginny and Harry were amazing, perfectly matched people. But I think that their lives and circumstances are. The Weasleys may have accepted Harry, but Ginny gives him a real place. I don’t, of course think that that is all of it, but I do think it is a part. Ginny was there at the time where Harry most needed someone, and I never really saw Harry as the type to give his heart lightly. After all, he never really gave his heart to Cho. They were barely girlfriend and boyfriend; all they went on were a couple of dates. Ginny is the one who received the real Harry, and, unless something extremely drastic happened, I can’t see them giving up on each other. Relationships aren’t easy; they require work and devotion, two things I can easily see both Harry and Ginny putting into their marriage.
Harry and Ginny are believable to me because I know several couples who are happily married whose love story began the same way. And I think that takes it off the “unbelievable” list. After all, who can argue with something that actually happened?
I also feel that Ginny and Harry respect each other. Ginny doesn’t take Harry’s crap, as seen in the 5th book as she points out how he isn’t being possessed and again with going to the Ministry, but she still respects his opinions, as seen when she allows him to break up with her. Ginny probably felt that she would be alright, even if people knew they were dating, but she let Harry break up with her because she knew that’s what he needed (which also points to sacrifice). Ginny is also painted as a light, happy sort of person. She has gone through hardships, and haven’t let them destroy her. Harry has gone dangerously close to the destruction side. None of the other people his age can really relate to the level of difficulties he has to live with, except Ginny.
And, as for the underdog, who says it’s Ginny? From where I’m standing, the underdog is Harry. Ginny is the one with a string of boyfriends, Ginny is the one who manages to at least sort of move on from the boy who saved her life, and Ginny is the one who leads a fairly normal life. Ginny is the one with everything Harry wants, not the other way around.
In conclusion, Ginny is not only the only girl in Harry’s life who he could reasonably be together with, but she’s also the best suited for him. That’s not to say that I could see them happily married the day after the final battle, but James Sirius Potter is only 12 years old in the epilogue. That leaves quite a few more years in which Harry and Ginny could have worked out all of their other problems.
I would just like to restate the the epilogue takes place 19 years later. That means James Sirius wasn’t born until Harry was 22, 5 years later. In that time, Harry (who may now be quite a different person, since his soul is his own) could concievably have fallen in love with anyone from Ginny or Hermione to Luna or Atalanta. Not everyone even knows their spouse at 17.
I, personnally, think that the most interesting outcome for Harry would have been never to marry at all. People can be happy without a spouse, and perhapse no one could “understand” Harry.
However, this is extreamelly unlikely, and I confess that I had most hoped Harry would marry Luna, and Neville, Ginny. I felt Ginny would have been good for Neville, while Luna (who, incidentally, was the one who helped Harry escape the great hall in book 7) would best engage Harry.
I totally agree with you!
That was one of the most random happenings in the entire series.
Does anybody remember how starstruck she was by him in book two? And then she was hardly mentioned for several “years” and all of sudden he is jealous and in love with her?
It would have been understandable if they actually hung out throughout the series and he grew in to a brotherly relationship and THEN maybe in love with her but here it really came out of nowhere…
I won’t say Harry/ginny are perfect couple (cuz they are not) but they are good enough for each other to last a lifetime. In Ginny Harry found all the qualities he sought in a girlfriend, she is beautiful, smart ,intelligent, strong, not weepy type, someone who respects and listens to harry instead of just lecturing or arguing with him, all the time and shares his sense of humour. However I do believe that jo should have devoted some more pages to their romance, it seemed so sudden and rushed, this the reason many people including myself find their relationship a bit unrealistic.
As for Harry/Luna or Harry/ cho, it wouldn’t have worked out because they lack all those qualities which Harry is looking for in his girfriend.
Finally about Harry/Hermione, I must confess that i was a H/HR shipper once but not anymore, in fact the beautiful thing about their deep friendship is that it never became romantic, this is the reason they were so close and comfortable with each other, as for all H/Hr shippers out there I would like you to read this articlehttp://www.hp-lexicon.org/essays/essay-hh-suited.html, this perfectly explains why Harry and Hermione are not suitable for each other and get out of the delusion that Harry and Hermione are perfect for each other, because they are not.
Finally I will repeat myself that jo should have devoted more pages to Harry/Ginny romance.
http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/features/essays/whyharrypickedginny
The above link to the site is an awesome write-up about Harry chose Ginny.
1. Ginny has probably been told about “the great Harry Potter” all her life, and made up her own pictures of the Boy-Who-Lived. I saw her as an “hyper” fangirl who went on and on about “Oh mom, can’t I see him….?” It felt like she thought Harry was a zoo animal to stare at. A prized horse?
2. The fact that Ginny always blushed, ran out of the room or away from Harry and/or put her elbow in some food items is highly frowned upon from me. That was some serious fangirl crush in play.
3. I think Harry saved Ginny because he didn’t think the Weasley family would do well without their little girl. It makes him sound selfish, but really? He didn’t know Ginny at all, and probably saved her because of his “Save people thing” and because she was Ron’s sister.
4. Why did Ginny turn from a fangirl with a silly crush on the saviour to a overall Mary-Sue? (I see her as one).
There was no romance in between them, until a raving monster suddenly explodes in Harry’s chest?(In their sixth year!) I mean.. She went from fangirl with a crush/Ron’s little sister to future wife material who sounds suspiciously perfect.
Well, I fail to see where the whole plot turned around. No romance in there. I’d rather see him with Luna. I really don’t like Hermione and fail to see Harry with her. But honestly, Harry didn’t really have time to romance right then. But why did he end up with the “overall perfect” little sister to his best buddy? He hadn’t seen really noticed her before, so why then?
I guess I don’t make much sense. But I have no idea how to get my point across, and I am not the best at English either.
The article is right mostly. But i don’t think there’s a checklist for love. Whether in real or fictional life.
And I think Harry and Ginny suit each other fairly well. It’s right that Harry probably would have gone for anybody down in the chamber, but you can’t deny:
-Ginny understands him in a way very few people could. For example how it is to be manipulated or possesed.
-They both love quidditch and can play it well. (Yes, even if that’s most people.)
-“Harry and Ginny are real soul mates. They’re both very strong and very passionate. That’s their connection, and they’re remarkable together.” – JK Rowling
And the last and most important: She makes him happy. The development can be unlikely (and i don’t think so), at first sight they can look incompatible, but she makes him really happy. That’s one of the main things in a relationship, isn’t it?
Luna’s too far away for Harry, he needs somebody more down to earth.
(And, of course, Hermione belongs to Ron. I can’t believe some of you didn’t see that one coming! Sometimes i sat in front of the book, banging my head on the table and thought: ‘It’s incredible those two still haven’t realized it…’
Hermione is his best friend and he probably trusts her most, but he spend time with her alone often (for example in the Goblet of Fire) and he said he missed Ron. Doesn’t sound like the ultimate relationship either, does it? Bored after a few days
Hi all, i was just browsing around when i bump into this article and i find it
a nice read, really intriguing in fact. so i would like to post my response
here goes…
some of you already mention reasons why Ginny is suited with Harry
and some of you mention this essay:
http://www.hp-lexicon.org/essays/essay-ginny-weasley.html
which explains in detail why Ginny is a match for Harry. I have read the whole series and i do believe and agree wholeheartedly with the essay, and i do feel that Ginny is perfect for Harry.
And then theres this essay:
http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/features/essays/whyharrypickedginny
which explains in detail as well on the other hand why Harry is attracted to Ginny,
and why she stands out in his eye, and once again i agree with the reasons the essays
pointing out.
But the QUESTIONS that i dont quite able to answer and is i believe key point to Harry and Ginny romance is:
-Is Ginny a Fan Girl???
Is she simply a Fan Girl who likes “The Boy Who Lived” instaed of “Harry”???
Is she simply like Romilda Vane who wants to go to Slughorn’s Party with Harry because Harry is this “much dabated Chosen One”???
- And if Ginny is not a fan girl and genuinely likes Harry, then theres another question,
why does she like him?? What does she see in him??
We see many reasons why Harry likes Ginny in the book 6. Once Ginny managed to get herself together when Harry’s around she shows her true color. She’s very funny, she’s tough, she’s fierce, and at same time she could be very warm and compassionate and Harry starts to enjoy her presence around him.
But on the other hand, I cant seem to find the real reason why Ginny likes Harry. We know that she likes him, Yes. Shes always had a crush on him (throughout the entire series i think!!). But why??
I know that they have a lot in common (as pointed out in the first essay above), and i believe she is the perfect match for Harry, but once again why???
Why does she want to his match at all???
Why does she like him??
I would dearly love to believe that Ginny genuinely likes Harry, not because “the boy who lived” or “the hero who conquers the dark lord” stuff, but because she likes Harry for himself, the person behind all the fame.
I had love Harry/Ginny pairing for some time but then the questions above just popped in my head and i couldn’t find the answer.
I tried to read and reread the entire series but just cant seem to find the answer, and i left me feeling rather empty with the pair of them. It just seems so vain.
Anyway those are my thoughts and if anyone understands this matter more than i do then would you please care to explain
i would really welcome any response, because i really like this pairing although i keep getting bothered by those seemingly inexplicable questions.
I agree with what you have said there in your article…to a certain extent. I remember being disappointed that Harry didnt end up with Hermione and vice versa in DH but I wasnt shattered or overwhelmed with rage at the fact that Harry ended up with Ginny I neither liked neither detested the pairing… merely found it mundane and uninteresting …. generally in love stories the heroine is either the hero’s confidante his foil and his steadfast companione or she is the supreme antagonist a challenge to him which endangers and bewitches him at the same time. Ginevra Weasley is neither.This proves the fact that on no point did J KR intend to write a star crossed mindblowing romance but a series of adventure novels for children and young adults. The romantic plot seem extremely contrived probably added as an afterthought to boost sales and make it more universally appealing or something…Now concerning Ginevra…I neither hate or like her I just find her a one dimensional ordinary charachter with no remarkable aspects that sets her apart.She is average… neither is she a brilliant bibliophile like Hermione Granger or eccentrically appealing like Luna nor beautiful like Fleur Delacour or Cho Chang . Like I said she is non descript with perhaps a flair at Quidditch( which is never shown) Many diehard H/G fanatics have likened her to Lily Evans but.. I see no resemblance between them save for the red hair… if I have to pick up a charachter who resembles Lily as far as charachter wise is Hermione both are Prefects both excell academically. It seems that the sole purpose of Ginny’s role was to integrate him into the Weasley family…. What would have made the whole thing more believable was if JKR would have relegated Hermione to the background and given Ginny her place if she was shown to have participated in Harry’s adventures and been his friend philosopher and guide. But it is Hermione who is shown to evolve along side Harry she who is potrayed as his oasis she who remains with him infallibly in times of struggle strife and vulnerability she in whom he has such an implicit faith so forgive us if we though them to be THE COUPLE. And most importantly Ginny’s love for Harry is based on the unbalanced adolescent undeveloped infatuation for The Boy Who Lived an attachment to the name the legend and not the sane balanced love of a women for Harry the man, she always sets him on a pedestal and that is how she sees him….she has no understanding of his problems of his conflicts his shortcomings…. if she had then wouldnt she have been potrayed as his confidante rather than Hermione? I will conclude not that Ginny is bad she is not good with Harry. Or if you like: JKR made the colossal mistake of not developing Ginny ‘s charachter from the commencement of the series by attributing to her the role of Harry’s best friend his confidante his equal.
Alright well I am back and ready to get going on pointing out yet again why Ginny is a fangirl, but before I do that I want to say. That was a very well written post Sreya Ray. Of course there are those in the forum who will remind you and us that the books are not romance novels. They are of course right but the books are about the slightly realistic coming of age of our hero/ protagonist Harry Potter.
His romance and the trails and tribulations there in should progress in the foreground of the story not the background as happens with Harry and Ginny. If Rowlings wanted Ginny to be Harry’s love interest it would have been better to keep Ginny in the foreground after the second book to highlight her progress from being a fangirl/hero worshiper that she remains because she never in her words in the “Half Blood Prince” gotten over him .
Now to point out to this who I am sure will object to Ginny being called a fangirl/hero worshiper to the boy who lived rather then Harry the actual boy. Let me point out the facts that it is not until after Fred and George report back to their mother about the boy they helped onto the platform and the express. That Ginny shows any interest in Harry and her reaction is to plead with her mother to go onto the train to get a look at him. Ginny had no interest in Harry when he spoke with her mother whom she was being kept close to during that time.
Other proof that is is fangirldom is the fact that when Harry arrives at the Burrow in the next book. Ron comments that Ginny couldn’t stop talking about Harry all summer long. This behavior should dispel the supposedly schoolgirl crush idea given that such behavior isn’t that sort of crushes actions especial for someone you haven’t truly talked with or met in person. Ginny only ever saw Harry in passing the year before.
As for the argument that Ginny standing up to Draco to defeat Harry is a sign that it isn’t fangirl/hero worshiping let us use another example from the same book in the form of Hermione Granger’s defense of Gilderoy Lockhart. I mean Hermione is taken into be a fangirl/hero worshiper of Lockhart because she believes he did all the heroic things written down in his books. Now of course his looks and charm also lent to that but it is the same for Ginny in regard to Harry.
Now had Ginny gotten over Harry and then fallen back in love with him for who he was rather then what he was I could expect Harry and Ginny in the book, but as it stands the relationship to me sends the wrong message to young girls out there. That it is better to love someone for what they are rather then who they are. Something for which Ginny is shown not to have learned in the books because she doesn’t get over her fangirl/ hero worshiping of what she things Harry is rather then getting to know the boy behind the legend.
Okay, now there are those out there who will claim that between the last chapter and the epilogue that Ginny could have changed. Now that is possible but so is the opposite argument that Ginny hasn’t changed from what we saw in the books especially since her for four books between Chamber of Secrets and Half Blood Prince Ginny hasn’t gotten over Harry and continued to hope for four years that he would notice her. Since she hasn’t changed that part of her in four years there isn’t any evidence that it would happen between the last chapter and epilogue.
To those who would open the can of worms by claiming Harry and Ginny’s relationship developed off page. That argument of course allows for others to make the opposite claim and even to invite their own theories like the love potion. Which they can use similarities between the sudden romantic feels of Tom Riddle Sr. to Merope Gaunt that come up in the same book as Harry suddenly falling in love with Ginny.
Now for the record I wouldn’t have minded the Harry and Ginny relationship in Half Blood Prince. If it had ended when Harry dumped her and he moved on to a more meaningful and deeper relationship. Heck I would have wanted Ginny to after dating her hero that she worshiped to be able to finally move on and give other boys a chance unlike what she did with Micheal and Dean. Oh, and for the record she didn’t give the boys a change since she still had her hopes of dating Harry and she wasn’t over her fangirl/ hero worshiping of the boy who lived and the boy who saved her from the Chamber of Secrets.
Rowlings could have truly better used all that camping in the final book to tighten the bound between two people who cared very deeply and at least from Hermione found the other sexually attractive. For my evidence to of my belief that Hermione found Harry sexually attractive. It is based on Hermione remark that Harry has never been more fanciable which is British English slang for sexually attractive. If Hermione didn’t think Harry was that she could have used the term handsome which is very neutral and is the language Mrs. Weasley used to describe Bill before he was attacked and scared in the Half Blood Prince’s book.
So that blows away the brother and sister things at least on Hermione’s part and if Rowlings had been a truly brilliant author and her defenders claim. She should have gone that route and even kept the relationship ambiguous and not claimed them to be obviously. Which gee having a girl call a boy who is just a platonic friend who she supposedly views as a brother some sexually attractive is bloody terrible writing. Though of course I see a whole lot of hedging of her bets on the relationship thing with other things.
Things like having Hermione talking about Harry alot to Victor which never got explained away especially since she used that to by Harry and Ginny shippers strength or highlight the romance between them. Though perhaps it is my problem when those things happened in the books before the series ended. I would find things that pointed to Harry and Hermione but would have those opposing it argument that they aren’t actually signs. Even when those signs reappear in their own shipping favorite and only then did it become signs of romance.
That of course I guess what the spark that truly caused the war among the ships and truly makes Harry Potter truly a load of garbage now.
People dont like Harry and Hermione as a couple because they are LIKE SIBLING yet they have no problem with Harry shagging a girl who physicaly resembles his MOTHER… yeah think about that. :p
i totally agree with this article, I think personally, Harry would have been better off single. but with so many fandoms clamoring for supremacy, Jo had to pick one. WHY she picked Ginny makes some sense considering she wanted Harry to wind up a Weasley.
But It was so sudden, Harry went from barely noticing Ginny to being totally in love with her made me ill. Luna would have made much more sense. Or one of the other little known girls. Hell even Parvati was a decent choice, I liked Harry and Hermione, until Hermione suddenly did a 180 personality wise.
I don’t HATE Harry and Ginny, I just see them more as just friends. I don’t know about anyone else but I WOULD NEVER date let alone marry a guy that looked like my father. *shivers* Ginny wasted several years crushing on an ideal, and not the reality when it came to Harry Potter.
I am going to disagree with you on so many levels. First of all, literary romances hardly ever actually exist. I like the idea that this is more realistic–instead of choosing the choice that would make most sense (Hermione, according to you), we see Harry fall for someone else. In life, there will very rarely be an actual Darcy/Elizabeth love affair. Sorry, face reality, it doesn’t happen. Yes, Harry Potter is fiction, but it is not a romance. That’s a minor detail, and the fact that it doesn’t follow the norm with the romance detail is a plus, in my opinion. It seems that the writer of this article has something against Ginny. The books and movies focused on how strong of a witch Ginny was, that her spells were very powerful. That doesn’t make Ginny a nobody. Also, it’s pretty easy to see why Harry would not choose Hermione, Luna, or Cho. Harry was way too close to Hermione. They were best friends, and usually after being that close, it’s hard to develop an intimate relationship (remember, Hermione and Ron always had a spark of hatred for each other). Luna is in another realm of reality, checking her off the list (although, I personally rooted for Luna). Cho is still obsessed with Cedric and the relationship with Harry would never grow. Furthermore, she was a jealous psycho where Hermione was concerned. It makes sense that Harry would go for a main character, as would Ron. Ron wouldn’t marry his sister, obviously, and he never had any connection to Luna. There was a budding romance from the beginning with Hermione and Ron, so you wouldn’t want to ruin that. That leaves Harry with Ginny, a powerful, attractive young witch. Not a bad choice, in my opinion. Also, the implication that the sixth book was bad writing by JK Rowling hurts my soul a bit. I think your interpretation of the love potion is farfetched, and you’re obviously upset that your hunch was incorrect. This doesn’t make Rowling a bad writer. I think it is clear that the reason Harry acts off during the sixth book is because of stress. I mean, his godfather just died and he blames himself, the Dark Lord is back, building an army and stronger than ever, and the wizarding world is practically crumbling around him. Furthermore, hormones are finally kicking in, a natural process that will make any teenage boy a little “off”. To sum up an extremely long post…. your biases are completely ridiculous. JK writes the stories, leave it to her and stop analyzing–you’re doing it wrong.
Oh my gosh–YES! YES, YES, YES! I always try to explain it to people and their response is “Bullshit! Ginny sooooo belongs with Harry! They’re just like James and Lily! It’s a sign.” What? What’s a sign? The fact that Ginny has red hair? Yeah, match made in heaven. Besides, if Harry was only together with Ginny because he reminded her of his mother…well, I think he should be in therapy. That’s weird and creepy. Anywho, one hundred percent agree and whenever I try to explain to someone why Ginny and Harry are the most retarded couple ever, I’ll give them this link.
I only disagree with one thing on your post. James and Lily are a terrible couple. I never understood why Lily would choose to date the guy who was a complete arse in school and tormented her best friend. Even if her and Severus stopped being friends by the time they got together, I can’t contemplate how she could overlook something so atrocious and her lover’s personality.
{ 1 trackback }