My mom sent me an email yesterday: she recently bought Harry Potter 6, & she’s re-reading numbers 1-5 before reading 6. Now that’s willpower, man. I thought about re-reading 1-5, for about 10 seconds. Then I actually picked up #6 & opened it & that idea went right out the window. Anyway, she emailed me because something was bothering her:
The Ministry goes to a great deal of trouble to keep Muggles unaware of the magical goings-on of wizards & witches. How, then is it possible that Hermoine’s parents accompany her to Platform 9 ¾ and she is allowed to bring them back goodies from the stores in Hogsmeade? What explanation can they give to their friends as to where their daughter goes to school and what her talents actually are (although they appear quite proud of her) We know how the Dursleys respond, but aren’t there other half- and whole-muggle-borns? Has there ever been an explanation of how Muggles can produce magical children? (recessive genes, no doubt)
Anyone have any explanation for this? I suggested a non-disclosure agreement.
1 Comment
Lawrence Solomon
Given the large number of half-bloods and the general acceptance (among non-Death Eaters) of the fact that a steady infusion of Muggle blood is good for the gene pool, there really has to be more than a little bit of interaction between individuals in the two worlds, once you stop to think about it. This probably means that more Magical folks tend to socialize or even work in the Muggle world than the books may suggest. Given the ease with which we see many witches and wizards handle Muggle clothing, for instance, you have to see Arthur Weasley’s ineptitutude on the subject as somewhere in the range of affectationcluelessness.
So… coming back to the original point… I would also guess that some analogue to a non-disclosure agreement would be either explicit or implicit in any Muggle-Wizard interaction that was too non-transient to be erased by a memory charm, be it a romance or an invitation to Hogwarts for a Muggle-born.
I guess that was just a roundabout way of saying, “Me too.”