Hypable got the scoop:
“I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment,” she says. “That’s how it was conceived, really. For reasons that have very little to do with literature and far more to do with me clinging to the plot as I first imagined it, Hermione ended up with Ron.”
::Record Scratching::
Um, what? I mean, I was never a hard core Hermione and Ron shipper, but I, like most of the mature Harry Potter readers thought it was great that Harry and Hermione’s relationship was loving, but strictly platonic. There may be a segment of the fandom that wished the epilogue didn’t exist and that fans could imagine the story continued however they wanted. The part that I really don’t get is about “wish fulfillment.” Harry Potter is a Middle Grade/Young Adult FANTASY story and fantasy stories, especially those written with a younger audience in mind, typically don’t follow realities. JK Rowling shouldn’t look back on HER own story and regret making decisions about characters because it pleased her. AGAIN, it’s a fantasy, the story in a sense, is all wish fulfillment.
However, we can totally play this game of looking at the story/plot/characters realistically. What would have happened to Harry, Ron, and Hermione after the events of The Deathly Hallows?
- What’s the magical equivalent to a junkie? After a lifetime of people trying to kill him, growing up without any affection, being used by authority figures, and seeing most of the people that finally showed love and affection die, Harry Potter spends years looking for the next fix to dull a lifetime of pain. Ginny wastes years trying to fix Harry while Harry has been cheating on her with his supplier.
- You’re an adrenaline junkie now? After years of exciting and nearly deathly adventures, regular, everyday life is a total snooze. Ron rushes off to any sign of trouble. He hears there’s some dark magic brewing in the states or in Eastern Europe or Asia, and he’s out of town before you can utter “wingardium leviosa.” How can your demons catch up with you if you are always on the run?
- Smart girls can be sexy too, right? Hermione, no longer feeling she can keep Ron’s attention (when he is actually around), starts taking broom dancing classes, which I imagine is quite similar to pole dancing. Her classes are at the same gym as Neville, who has really blossomed post-Hogwart’s. Neville has no problem giving Hermione the attention she so rightly deserves. They love affair is the talk of the wizard world.
- Raising a future psychopath. Yup, if the coupling between Harry and Ginny lead to a child, how could that child ever go to the same school? Remember that time your dad saved the world over and over again? Wouldn’t you act out a little? Perhaps get a taste for dark magic? Perhaps this perfect dad that everyone talks about never gave you the time of day. His next fix was a priority, never you. Lord Voldemort doesn’t hold a candle to the real future horror that is James Sirius Potter.
So if we are being honest, the PTSD-stricken trio likely wouldn’t have fared so well. Having a bit of wish fulfillment and fantasy is all right by me.
What are your thoughts on JK’s revelation? What do you think would have happened to Harry, Ron, and Hermione’s relationship after Voldemort was defeated?
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