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Unpopular opinion: Draco's arm really was seriously injured in book 3, and the accident wasn't his fault. First of all, the seriousness of the wound.
Hagrid was wrestling Buckbeak back into his collar as he strained to get at Malfoy, who lay curled in the grass, blood blossoming over his robes.
Hermione ran to hold open the gate as Hagrid lifted Malfoy easily. As they passed, Harry saw that there was a long, deep gash on Malfoy's arm; blood splattered the grass and Hagrid ran with him, up the slope toward the castle.
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, chapter 6
That is not just a little scratch. And he was in the hospital wing overnight, which I seriously doubt Madame Pomfrey would allow if it wasn't genuinely necessary. Sure, Draco told Harry and Ron he was milking it for sympathy, but consider this. His right arm - his wand arm - was in a sling, meaning that he was pretty much defenseless both physically and magically. Would you want to admit that to your rivals, especially when at least one of them is known for escalating verbal conflicts to hexes and physical violence?
Now, as for the culpability. Yes, Hagrid said not to insult the hippogriffs, but he specifically mentioned nonverbal cues like bowing and making eye contact, which Draco did, and was in fact petting Buckbeak when the attack happened. He did not say that hippogriffs could understand English, and he also slapped Buckbeak on the rump to get him to fly, which I wouldn't exactly call respectful. So, it was Hagrid's fault, both for using creatures too advanced for a third-year class and for leaving out a crucial piece of information in his lecture. Thank you for listening to my rant.
Hinny shippers are probably the most pathetic shippers in the history of fandom. I mean, their ship is endgame, so they have the privilege of having canon to back them. But they're insecure about the fact that there's pretty much zero chemistry between Harry and Ginny other than the "chest monster", so they need to bolster their confidence in their precious ship by flooding their Tumblrs with admittedly fair-to-decent fanart of stuck-up boy jock and stuck-up girl jock while hating on any popular non-canon ship that conflicts with their own.
By the way, I acknowledge that as a devout Kirisuna shipper, I also have canon shipper privilege. But unlike Hinny fans, I fully acknowledge that I'm backed by canon, and tolerate and even sometimes support other ships involving Kirito and Asuna, as long as the shippers don't actively hate on my ship or the characters involved.
Since I've already broken my promise not to post any new Potterverse content this month, I figured I'd post this. Specifically, a series of mini-rants about the "good" Slytherins in canon. It should be noted that I don't hate any of these characters (heck, Snape and Draco are in a two-way tie for my favorite), just how canon and fandom mistreat them.
Severus Snape
Ah, yes. The quintessential good Slytherin, who ultimately gave his life to help defeat Voldemort. Shame that so many fans refuse to acknowledge this, usually whining about a toad that shouldn't have been in a classroom anyway, a snarky but ultimately harmless remark about Hermione's teeth, or how he only changed sides because of Lily, even though the part that matters is that he did change sides. Naturally, these people are also fans of the Gryffindor Marauders, if you can call the ultra-progressive OCs they create "The Marauders".
Horace Slughorn
Rowling's attempt at creating a token unambiguously good Slytherin… in the penultimate book of the series, where it's too little, too late as far as I'm concerned. However, his cowardice and elitism kind of hinder that, as does the fact that he seems almost ashamed of being a Slytherin to the point of his decorating his Slug Club party in Gryffindor colors, and Harry immediately disliking him because of his house. He's also overweight - not that that's a bad thing, but it tends to be Rowling's shorthand for being a bad person, with the only positively-portrayed overweight characters I can think of being Gryffindors Neville Longbottom and Molly Weasley, and possibly Hufflepuff Pomona Sprout, depending on how you interpret her initial description as "dumpy". He does fight against Voldemort in the final battle, but not until after he's threatened by Gryffindor Minerva McGonagall. He's also arguably a worse Potions Master than Snape, if only because he goes strictly by the book and only pays attention to students he wants to add to his collection. He's definitely a worse Head of Slytherin because he only pays attention to his favorites instead of supporting everyone in his House equally. This is why, while the Slug Club is a good idea for encouraging interhouse friendships and networking and should be continued, it really shouldn't be run by a Head of House.
Regulus Black
Ah, Regulus. A willing Death Eater, complete with a Voldemort shrine in his room, who defected for the house-elf who he volunteered for a DE mission in the first place. However, people won't acknowledge this even as they whine that Snape only defected for Lily. It's been speculated that most Regulus fans only like him because they can't stand Snape being upheld as an example of a good Slytherin. Furthermore, his actions ultimately ended up hindering the Horcrux hunt because he failed to destroy the locket Horcrux, which was then thrown in the trash with the rest of the Black family's heirlooms and ended up in Dolores Umbridge's hands. To add insult to injury, he's also described as less attractive than his Gryffindor brother, and the fact that he decorated his room in Slytherin colors is treated as being as bad as the aforementioned Voldy shrine.
Andromeda Tonks
She barely appears, and is mostly treated as an extension of her dead husband, her wasted-potential daughter who she never interacts with, and her plot-device grandson. To make matters worse, some people don't even acknowledge that she is a Slytherin, especially because her main act of "goodness" is rejecting her Slytherin family members.
Lucius, Narcissa, and Draco Malfoy
Yes, they are a close and loving family, but two of them were active Death Eaters (albeit ones who defected out of familial love), and they don't actually fight for the right side in the end, just having a "Screw This, I'm Outta Here" moment, albeit a rather heartwarming one. The closest they get to redemption is Draco giving Harry a curt nod in the crapilogue, which Harry doesn't even respond to.
Phineas Nigellus Black
Dead before the start of the series, described as Hogwarts' least popular headmaster, and calls Hermione a Mudblood, although at least he doesn't say it to her face.
Alphard Black
Yes, he left his fortune to Sirius, but isn't given any characterization outside that, and considering how much of an asshole Sirius is, is leaving him a fortune really a good thing?
In addition, none of them (well, except Draco) are Lightning-era characters, which rubs me the wrong way, seeing as adults just aren't the same… they don't have the same association with their houses as students do, even the teachers and heads of houses. So, if these are the canonical examples of good Slytherin representation, is it any wonder that I cling to any positive Slytherin fanon or canonical named background Slytherins I can find, and am somewhat of a Cursed Child apologist?
Not to be confused with the 2017 cartoon… that's Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz. Anyway, this has been said to be Baum's darkest Oz book. It's definitely the darkest of the nine I've read, but a pretty good read despite the clunky title and horrific denouement. Let's-a go!
The Earthquake:
Is the titular earthquake in question really the 1906 San Francisco earthquake? A lot of fans seem to think it was, so I've come to accept that at least as fanon, if not outright canon.
"May I boil in oil/And fry in Crisco/If I ever call/San Francisco 'Frisco'" - Ogden Nash.
Thankfully, Dorothy's Baby Snookisms are toned down starting with this book.
Fun fact: Canary birds were named after the Canary Islands, not the other way around.
Apparently, keeping a kitten in a birdcage isn't a good idea… at least, according to TV Tropes.
I've actually experienced two minor earthquakes in New Hampshire. I've also experienced zero earthquakes during both of my trips to California.
I'm not sure of how exactly Dorothy and Zeb are related, but I don't think that "second cousins" is accurate.
The Glass City:
Baum did a good job describing Dorothy and Zeb's plummet into the inner earth.
NGL, I think just about everything about this part of the underground world is freakin' awesome, especially the six colored suns.
Eureka is naturally white. Yes, she is initially described as pink, but that's because of the multicolored sunlight of the inner world.
As beautiful as the glass city sounds, I still wouldn't want to live in a glass house… privacy and all that jazz.
Jim makes a good point here - food is pretty important.
The Arrival of the Wizard:
Interesting that Gwig could be considered ugly, unlike the rest of the Mangaboos, but is still in a position of authority as the Sorcerer.
"I live on top of the earth, your honor, which is far better than living inside it…" I don't like this line, because it's so judgmental, similar to Ozma's line in the previous book about not wanting to plead to the Nome King because he lives underground. And, like I've said, the Mangaboo principality seems like a pretty cool place. But that's just me.
"One Wizard is worth three Sorcerers." This does synch up with the hierarchy of magic-users given in book 2, at least.
TV Tropes thinks that the Wizard calling the Mangaboos "Gabazoos" is an example of Malicious Misnaming, but I really don't think so. However, I haven't changed that because it's really just a hunch.
It's implied that Mangaboos don't need to breathe.
The Vegetable Kingdom:
Shouldn't that be "The Vegetable Principality"? After all, it's ruled by a Prince or Princess, and we never see any sign of a King or Queen.
TV Tropes sees the Mangaboos as evil due to their lack of emotions, but I see it as a case of Blue-and-Orange Morality, for the same reason, or possibly because they're plants and can't comprehend animals in general. But then, I have a habit of Rooting for the Empire in general, so take that as you will.
The Mangaboos may have wanted to kill Dorothy and friends, but at least they were nice enough to give them a little tour of their gardens beforehand.
So, Jim claims that he won't complain about the color of the grass, but he was just described as doing so in his previous line. o_O
Plants eat. They just don't do so in the same way as animals.
Strawberries don't grow on bushes. They grow on low herbaceous plants and form a type of ground cover when they strew their runners, which is why they're called strawberries.
I like to think that the berries and melons are like pets or zoo animals to the Mangaboos, which is why they don't want the humans eating them.
Dorothy Picks the Princess:
Why does the Wizard assume that the Princess would treat them better than the Prince? After all, they're both Mangaboos…
What did happen to the Prince after he was deposed?
Why would the attraction of gravity be reduced at the center of the Earth? If anything, I would imagine it being the other way around.
"But the kitten bothered them constantly by demanding milk or meat…" Yes, how dare an obligate carnivore bother the humans by not being able to eat fruit. -_-
Island of Teenty-Weent? Yeah, that totally doesn't sound made-up…
"Fishes are not animals…" Epic science fail, Wizard… or was it Baum who failed science here?
We get it, Baum. You hate predators other than the Cowardly Lion and Hungry Tiger. We. Get. It. >:(
The Mangaboos Prove Dangerous:
This is the only place I've seen the basket of a hot-air balloon referred to as a "basket-car".
"Flabby" is kind of a strange choice of words to describe the Mangaboos… or cabbages, for that matter.
Maybe it's me, but I can't help pitying the Mangaboos for their lack of emotion, rather than hating them like the characters in this book and the TV Tropes hivemind. As I said earlier, I don't see them as so much evil as having a blue-and-orange sense of morality. It's why I want to read Melody Grandy's The Disenchanted Princess of Oz so much - because I've heard that it features a revisit to the Mangaboo city by a much less judgmental party.
In fact, it just kind of bugs me in general how uninterested Dorothy and friends are in learning about why the Mangaboos are the way they are.
Dorothy already dislikes the Mangaboo princess before she's even done anything, even though the princess expressed gratitude for picking her. For some reason, that rubs me the wrong way.
"'Oh, you cannot go away, of course; so you must be destroyed,' was the answer." I know what's coming up, and laugh at the irony.
How can a humbug wizard be greater than a Sorcerer who's implied to have, you know, real magic?
Into the Black Pit and Out Again:
Eureka is the one who saves the day here, not that anyone acknowledges it or expresses any gratitude to her.
And here's the irony I alluded to earlier - if the Mangaboos had just cast Team Dorothy into the Black Pit from the beginning, it would have been a win-win situation - they would have been free, and the Mangaboos would have been rid of them.
TV Tropes once outright lied about this book, claiming that Zeb set a fire outside the Black Pit which was implied to have killed off all the Mangaboos. Thankfully, that particular error was removed by none other than moi. :smug:
The Valley of Voices:
The fruit that turns the piglets invisible is initially described as being the size of a peach, but not as looking like one.
I'm sorry, but I really can't see the Mangaboos as "dreadful creatures". Sure, they tried to kill Dorothy and her friends, but I have a feeling that if they knew that there was a way to get rid of them without killing them, they would have sent them all into the Black Pit from the beginning. And, frankly, the Mangaboos saw the "meat people" as invading aliens, the way we would probably see non-animal creatures with completely different mindsets who came from the sky during a meteor shower that caused mass destruction. Sorry for the rant, but that's just how I feel about the whole Mangaboo plot.
Yes, the one danger in Voe is bears. Not even sapient bears… just regular, if large, bears, which are also invisible. Seems kind of weird to me.
How do the people of Voe know what a peach is?
They Fight the Invisible Bears:
Kind of a weird chapter title, if you ask me.
How do the dama-fruits make the consumer's clothes invisible?
Ianu raises a good point here. What's the point of washing one's face if one is invisible?
The Voe-ites seem pretty vain about their lack of vanity.
"Land of Naught" is such a cool name. Unfortunately, it's kind of disappointing when we actually get there…
Overman-Anu's parents must have had pretty high expectations when they named him.
Has Voe had other champions besides Overman?
Gargoyles. Gar. Goy. Les. It's a real word from Earth. You can pronounce it. -_-*
Good thing that the bears apparently don't understand English…
I wonder why the Voe bears are red when visible?
The Braided Man of Pyramid Mountain:
So, is it a cone or a pyramid? Pretty big difference between the two.
I love the description of the side of Pyramid Mountain opposite Voe. There's no denying that Baum knew how to write scenery porn…
How does Dorothy know about the Cloud Fairies?
Would a roc-sized bird even fit into the caverns?
The graphic novel is actually consistent here with the Braided Man's lack of blue ribbons, although it does give him purple ones, which is not one of the colors he listed.
They Meet the Wooden Gargoyles:
I'm sorry, but I really can't see what's supposed to be scary about wooden gargoyles.
So, is the invisibility effect of dama-fruit only applicable in Voe, or does it wear off with time, or both?
"…but I never heard of a kitten eating a pig, under ANY cir(cum)stances." I don't know… pork-flavored cat food does exist… =^_^=
Uh, Jim, you know that you're an obligate herbivore, right? If I were Eureka, I would call his bluff right there and wolf down one of the delicious little piglets.
Seriously, of all of Dorothy's mispronounciations, "Gurgles" has got to be one of the most irritating.
The Country of the Gargoyles/Land of Naught being made of dead wood is kind of an anticlimax. After all, wood was alive at one point. Now, if it were completely barren, that would be scary. As it is, it comes across as not too different from some of the whimsical lands on the surface of Nonestica.
However, the utter silence of the Land of Naught is genuinely kind of unnerving… shame that they have wooden cows, which kind of ruin the effect.
Come to think of it, where did all the wood in the Land of Naught come from, anyway?
"'So I may die with a clear conscience," returned the Wizard, gravely. "It's every man's duty to do the best he knows how; and I'm going to do it.'" Remember this sentiment for later in the series.
"But we dropped into this adventure rather unexpectedly." Pun intended?
A Wonderful Escape:
"The Gargoyles seemed to realize (that the Wizard's revolvers only had limited ammo), for they sent a few of their band time after time to attack the strangers and draw the fire from the little man's revolvers." Did they realize that on their own, or did they figure it out from him saying so?
"'I'll use the king,' said the boy…" Is the Gargoyle who Zeb bound actually their king, or is he just assuming that based on the crown-like shape of his head?
"The Wizard's sword-blade snapped into a dozen pieces at the first blow he struck against the wooden people." Not a very good sword, is it?
If Dorothy and friends did so poorly against wooden gargoyles, how would they do against stone ones… or Ultima-esque living ones, for that matter?
I'm kind of curious about this hypothetical ceremony that the Gargoyles were holding the party prisoner for.
Um, Dorothy, based on how you've been talking lately, you don't have much room to correct people on their use of language.
"'Ha, ha!' chuckled the old cab-horse; 'they're not 'Gurgles,' little maid; they're Gargoyles.'" Damn straight. Still wish that someone had corrected her sooner, though…
"If any of the Gargoyles act badly, and have to be put in jail, they are brought here and their wings unhooked and taken away from them until they promise to be good." This shows that despite what the TV Tropes hivemind thinks, the Gargoyles aren't just mindless creatures that act on instinct.
The Den of the Dragonettes:
This is probably what the troper who described the fire that wiped out the Mangaboos was thinking of - the fire that was implied to have wiped out the Gargoyles.
"Perhaps the flames will set fire to all that miserable wooden country, and if it does the loss will be very small and the Gargoyles never will be missed." Moral: Genocide is justified if you find the victims unpleasant. Stay classy, Baum. :P
Exactly how big are the dragonettes, anyway? If Eureka mistook them for crocogators, then they probably are pretty big, despite what she says.
Beauty is subjective, and what's beautiful to a dragon might not be beautiful to a human, and vice versa.
Note that a dragon who's approximately 2000 years old is widowed, has a clutch of young, and is still considered in her prime.
Yes, the dragonettes do eat people, and they are snobby about their pedigree, but they seem pretty affable as long as they're bound.
"And we are of an excellent family and have a pedigree that I challenge any humans to equal, as it extends back about twenty thousand years, to the time of the famous Green Dragon of Atlantis, who lived in a time when humans had not yet been created." Modern humans have existed for approximately 300,000 years. Or is/was the Green Dragon of Atlantis (who I've never heard of outside of this book) that old?
Hey, Dorothy, if you're so respectable, why can't you pronounce the word "respectable"? >:D
"The heads of the dragonettes were as big as barrels and covered with hard, greenish scales that glittered brightly under the light of the lanterns. Their front legs, which grew just back of their heads, were also strong and big; but their bodies were smaller around than their heads, and dwindled away in a long line until their tails were slim as a shoe-string." But how long are they?
"…and if we told you an untruth we would be naughty and deserve to be punished." Ah, but how would anyone know if you told an untruth? ;)
Ozma Uses the Magic Belt:
A tip to any writers reading this: if you're going to have one of your characters randomly truncate words, please, PLEASE, PLEASE don't write the truncated words in ALLCAPS. I'm begging you.
"Well, every day at four o'clock Ozma has promised to look at me in that picture, and if I am in need of help I am to make her a certain sign and she will put on the Nome King's Magic Belt and wish me to be with her in Oz." In the previous book, the plan was for Ozma to check on Dorothy every Saturday morning. At least this description is consistent with later books, if I recall correctly.
That being said, does this mean that Ozma has seen Dorothy on her underground adventures? If so, why didn't she, you know, summon her and ask her if she really wanted to go traipsing around the inner earth, and then send her back if she said yes? Is it because Dorothy didn't make the special sign, or just conveniently forgot about their arrangement until now?
The Sawhorse is explicitly stated to be the only horse in Oz here.
"…bathed in a grateful green light…" Again, "grateful" seems like kind of a weird word to use here.
Old Friends are Reunited:
Omby Amby is revealed to be the Soldier with the Green Whiskers, and to have gone through with his promise to cut off his whiskers.
"'She is with the Princess Ozma, in the private rooms of the palace,' replied Jellia Jamb." Yeah, I bet I know what they're doing there. ;)
There are no stables in the Emerald City palace.
The Wizard's room is revealed to be in the back of the throne room.
And so we get the Wizard's backstory, and his full name is revealed to be Oscar Zoroaster Phadrig Isaac Norman Henkle Emmannuel Ambroise Diggs, or O.Z. for short, or Oscar Z. Diggs for medium.
That being said, why didn't he shorten his name to O.D.? Or did Baum come up with the name Oz first, and then this backstory? And, in any case, why is Z the Wizard's middle initial and not his last one? Could Baum not think of any surnames starting with Z? And why am I asking so many questions in this bullet point?
I'd love to hear about the Wizard's adventures on the way to Omaha. Has anyone written about them?
Ozma claims that the ruler of Oz was always named Oz or Ozma, depending on gender. Yet her father's name was Pastoria. Or was his name actually Oz Pastoria? I know I've seen Ozma's full name headcanoned as Ozma Tippetarius at least once…
Mombi is revealed to be the former Wicked Witch of the North.
Apparently, Pastoria was never the Ruler of Oz, which could explain why he was called Pastoria and not Oz. Although I guess that some people might have called him Oz Pastoria, sort of like how Louis XVI's son was also known as Louis XVII after his father's execution despite never actually ruling.
And, with this backstory, the Wizard deposing Pastoria is officially retconned out of existence.
Is "bossed the job" a Midwestern term or an old-tymey term? After all, I've never heard it outside this book…
"'You have queer friends, seems to me,' replied the kitten, in a surly tone." Is this where the term "Friends of Dorothy" comes from, and why Judy Garland is so popular in the LGBTQ+ community?
The Woggle-Bug's school is renamed the Royal College of Athletic Science.
Jim, The Cab-Horse:
Do salamanders like soup? And what kind of soup did the servants bring Jim, anyway?
I had never heard of a turbot before reading this book, but at least was able to learn that it's a type of fish from the context.
I can relate to Jim here - I don't like fish, either.
Roast quail on toast sounds pretty good, though.
"You see, the respect shown the worn-out old cab-horse made him a little arrogant, and he forgot he was a guest, never having been treated otherwise than as a servant since the day he was born, until his arrival in the Land of Oz." A perfect explanation of why Jim because such a jerkass after arriving in Oz, albeit with some unfortunate implications - specifically, the implication that the lower class shouldn't be treated with respect or else they'll get uppity.
The Sawhorse confirms that he's the only horse in Oz.
The Hungry Tiger has purple stripes. A possible hint at some Gillikin roots?
Jim isn't a vegetarian, he's an herbivore. There is a difference.
"Gump" is no longer the antlered head's species, but the name of the flying machine it was attached to.
Are the other parts of the Gump still alive, too?
Ozma greets Dorothy with a good-morning kiss. ;)
The Nine Tiny Piglets:
Does it bug anyone else that the Oz Wiki has pages for every little thing, no matter how little description it gets in canon? Other wikis would probably use things like "List of bands in Oz" or "List of songs in Oz" instead of having tiny little dedicated pages for songs about which nothing is known but the title…
The flag of Oz is described as using pastel colors to represent three of the four countries, and white to represent the Winkie country. Or is it just a very pale yellow that appears white?
Tik-tok's name name is now hyphenated, with the second T in lowercase.
The Royal College is all-male in this book. As far as I know, this is consistent with later books, but I'm not sure.
The Royal Army of Oz has twenty-eight soldiers and no privates, because all of them have been promoted for courage and skill. So what happened to the two nameless privates mentioned in the previous book?
Is Ozma's piglet male or female? Also, said piglet is never seen or mentioned again after this book AFAIK, rendering the upcoming plot points meaningless.
Glad to see Zeb getting a Throw the Dog a Bone moment, with him getting to win his boxing match.
The Trial of Eureka the Kitten:
If Ozma really loves her piglet so much, why doesn't she name it, or at least refer to it as "him" or "her" and not "it"?
I get that Ozma is angry over the supposed death of her (nameless) piglet, but being willing to condemn her best friend/possible lover's very baby kitten to death… that's going a bit too far, if you ask me. :(
Eureka is a she, not an it.
If Ozma is the judge, then it's not a fair trial, because a fair trial requires a disinterested and impartial judge, which Ozma is not.
Were juries required to have nine members instead of twelve at some point in history, or is that just the law in Oz?
There are no lawyers in Oz.
"Yet (Eureka's) disgrace and death would not bring back the piglet, but only serve to make Dorothy unhappy." Exactly!
If all the piglets are exactly alike, does that mean that they're the same gender?
The Wizard Performs Another Trick:
The Woggle-Bug's opening statement isn't very good, seeing as it relies entirely on his mind's eye.
"If you can prove I'm guilty, I'll be willing to die nine times, but a mind's eye is no proof, because the Woggle-Bug has no mind to see with." Burn! =^_^=
The Tin Woodman's opening statement really does kind of suck. Eureka's argument was better.
That being said, it was still better than the Woggle-Bug's, IMHO. But then, I could be biased because I'm a cat person and the Tin Woodman's speech wasn't arguing for a kitten to be condemned to death.
I kind of wish that this book existed in movie or TV-show form so that LegalEagle could cover this farce of a trial.
Zeb Returns to the Ranch:
House arrest for attempted murder… seems pretty reasonable, especially considering that the attempted murderer in question was a cat and the attempted victim was a pig.
Zeb is one of the few visitors to Oz who never returns, as far as I know, and honestly I can't blame him.
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A couple things that bugged me in "Me and My Little Brain"
How come we never hear about Uncle Mark and Aunt Cathie's adopted children again? Did the adoption fail to go through or something?
John seemed to have a pretty good knack for trading to me, seeing as most of his trades were successful. The problem was that he went into his chain of deals without an end goal, and he probably could have done well raising pigs if Tena hadn't shut it down before he could get started.
That being said, I'm not sure of what John should have done, myself. Personally, I probably would have asked Seth for a favor to be named later in exchange for the bow and arrow.
"Malfoy was being absolutely foul to a first-year back there. I swear I'm going to report him, he's only had his badge three minutes and he's using it to bully people worse than ever. . ."
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, chapter 10
First of all, was this alleged first-year a Slytherin? If so, I'm impressed - if Hermione was actually showing concern for a Slytherin, it might be enough to raise her very slightly in my HP character standings.
I refer to the first-year in question as "alleged" because Draco being "absolutely foul" to him/her/them was only mentioned, not shown. Granted, "tell, don't show" is pretty much Rowling's M.O., but we're actually shown both Hermione and Ron being pretty damn foul to younger students in the same book - Hermione using her newfound authority to nag and judge others worse than ever, and Ron using his to nick things from younger students. But, of course, it's okay if a Gryffindor does it! :P
Lately, I've seen quite a few posts saying that Slytherin didn't deserve to win the House Cup in the first book because they only got their points through cheating and favoritism, that they were all entitled rich kids who needed to learn that you can't always have everything your way, and that the House was founded on elitism and "racism". Those posts really piss me off, for a number of reasons.
Snape never gives them - or anyone - any points, so he can't have "showered them with points" as one blogger put it, and the relatively small differences between the scores suggest that Slytherin did earn their points fairly, using the House's actual values of ambition, determination, and resourcefulness. Any idea that they earned points unfairly is pure unfounded speculation.
It is wrong to treat an entire House of children and teenagers, some as young as eleven, like evil, privileged, "racist" little monsters for the actions of someone who died centuries before any of them were born. Frankly, the whole "Slytherins are evil" thing absolutely reeks of self-fulfilling prophecy - the other students treat them like they're evil and shun them, and that leads them not to want to interact with the other Houses, which leads them to form an echo chamber of "racist" ideals among their own housemates instead of having friends willing to challenge their views and genuinely engage in discourse with them.
If anyone was privileged, it was the Gryffindors, especially the Golden Trio, who break rules and even laws all over the place and are rewarded for it, being the Headmaster's favorites. If anyone needs to learn that you can't always have everything your way, it's the series' title character. For more on this topic, see this tag.
I know what Rowling was (allegedly) trying to say with Slytherin about privilege and elitism in British public schools, but it just doesn't work because all four of the Houses, even egalitarian Hufflepuff, are part of one elite school, and because not all Slytherins are rich purebloods - look at Severus Snape, for one. This metaphor might have worked if there were four British wizarding schools, each representing a different type of British secondary school, but there weren't, so…
I've seen at least one post meticulously comparing Slytherin pride to Southern Pride in the United States. Even if bloodism were a valid allegory for racism, they've got the wrong freakin' country, the Americentric idiot. I bet they wouldn't even be able to find the United Kingdom on a map if it were outlined with chase lights. :P
