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This may be wanky, but I don't really care. This is something that has been at the back of my mind for quite a while now and I've seen it come up a lot since the release of HBP.
There seems to be a misconception among many members of this fandom. Namely, that JKR knows all about the ship debates and the various factions, that she knows and identifies H/Hr shippers (and R/Hr and H/G shippers, for that matter) as more than just a handful of fans - a significant subset of the readership of her books which she must worry herself with trying to placate.
Judging from what little she has said on the subject, this does not seem to be the case. There has been much talk lately of JKR's "coyness" in answering the question of Hermione's Mirror of Erised vision. "Why won't she just come out and SAY it?!," people cry.
The truth is quite apparent to me - Ms. Rowling doesn't realize she is being interpreted as less than perfectly clear. She doesn't know that when she says "We do now know it's Ron and Hermione," that there are people who think (or rather, pretend to think, IMO) that it's possible that "now" only implies the present tense and doesn't suggest in the slightest that this might be something that carries over to the next book. She doesn't know that after writing Hermione attacking Ron with canaries after he makes out with another girl, Hermione dating another boy specifically to annoy Ron, Ron mumbling Hermione's name in his sleep after being poisoned, and Ron holding Hermione at Dumbledore's funeral while stroking her hair, when she says "entwined with another person," it is not obvious to EVERYONE exactly who that person is.
Put simply, she is putting all of the people who have read her books in the category of people with common sense and basic deduction skills. Look at her answers to shipping questions over the years...
Look at the increased incredulity at the fact that this is still a question. Yes, she does vary in exactly how much she'll say about it, but notice that she is typically only as specific as the question requires her to be (except when the question takes her by surprise, as the "snogging" question appears to). And when she does finally say definitively "we do now know that it's Ron and Hermione," she specifically prefaces it with the part I bolded - a request that both Melissa and Emerson put a spoiler warning on the interview because she's about to say something specific about the plot (something which - amazingly! - is still up for debate in some corners of the fandom).
As to why she doesn't shout the answer from the rooftops or put a banner on the front page of her website saying "R/Hr 4EVA!" or remind everyone of it every time she speaks in public ... fictional romance is supposed to be fun. Especially in books like HP. This isn't like the comments about Dumbledore, where she's trying to be as delicate as she can (especially when she's answering a child) so as not to increase the heartache readers felt/feel about that storyline. It's much different with romance, where it's meant as relief from those other, more serious plotlines, the pairings are relatively easy to guess, and the "wink"s and "nudge"s are supposed to be reminders of what we already know. It's a shared "secret" between the author and all her readers.
People say things like what she said in the Radio City appearance all the time when talking about romance. How many times have you read (or heard in real life) someone say "She's expecting a call from a certain someone." Remember Mrs. Jennings teasing Elinor about "Mr. F" in Sense and Sensibility? It's not being cagey or sly or giving people a secret clue, it's just being polite and discreet. If we were talking about real people, it would actually be a tad rude to say "When Hermione looks into a mirror that shows the deepest, most desperate desire of her heart, she sees - in addition to seeing herself and her best friends alive and well - herself entwined with Ro-o-on."
Sure, she could have specified Ron, but as I said above, she doesn't feel she needs to. She assumes that, for anyone who has read all the books, this is a given. She's not leading people on or toying with them unnecessarily. She's just winking at the people (meaning all of her fans) that she thinks are all in on the joke. Sadly, they don't all seem to be.
There seems to be a misconception among many members of this fandom. Namely, that JKR knows all about the ship debates and the various factions, that she knows and identifies H/Hr shippers (and R/Hr and H/G shippers, for that matter) as more than just a handful of fans - a significant subset of the readership of her books which she must worry herself with trying to placate.
Judging from what little she has said on the subject, this does not seem to be the case. There has been much talk lately of JKR's "coyness" in answering the question of Hermione's Mirror of Erised vision. "Why won't she just come out and SAY it?!," people cry.
The truth is quite apparent to me - Ms. Rowling doesn't realize she is being interpreted as less than perfectly clear. She doesn't know that when she says "We do now know it's Ron and Hermione," that there are people who think (or rather, pretend to think, IMO) that it's possible that "now" only implies the present tense and doesn't suggest in the slightest that this might be something that carries over to the next book. She doesn't know that after writing Hermione attacking Ron with canaries after he makes out with another girl, Hermione dating another boy specifically to annoy Ron, Ron mumbling Hermione's name in his sleep after being poisoned, and Ron holding Hermione at Dumbledore's funeral while stroking her hair, when she says "entwined with another person," it is not obvious to EVERYONE exactly who that person is.
Put simply, she is putting all of the people who have read her books in the category of people with common sense and basic deduction skills. Look at her answers to shipping questions over the years...
Q: Do Harry and Hermione have a date?
A: No, they are very platonic friends, but I won't answer for anyone else, nudge nudge wink wink. Press Club interview (October 1999)
Q: Is it just me, or was something going on between Ron and Hermione during the last half of GOF?
A: Yes, something's 'going on'... but Ron doesn't realise it yet... typical boy. Yahooligans chat (October 2000)
Q: Does Hermione like Ron as more than a friend?
A: The answer to that is in Goblet of Fire, Zsenya! Comic Relief chat (March 2001)
Q: Any snogging with Hermione?
A: Hermione and Harry! Do you think so? Ron and Hermione, I would say have-- there is more tension there. Dateline NBC interview (June 2003)
Q: Will Harry and Hermione will be together?
A: lol Not saying... but you've had enough clues by now, surely?! World Book Day Chat (March 2004)
Q: Does Hermione love Ron or Harry?
A: I can't believe that some of you haven't worked this one out yet, but I'm not going to answer because that would spoil the arguments, which I enjoy. JK Rowling Official Site
JKR: I am not going to use the word delusional. I am however, going to say — now I am trusting both of you to do the spoiler thing when you write this up — I will say, that yes, I personally feel - well it's going to be clear once people have read book six. I mean, that’s it. It’s done, isn’t it? We know. Yes, we do now know that it's Ron and Hermione. TLC/MN Interview (July 2005)
Look at the increased incredulity at the fact that this is still a question. Yes, she does vary in exactly how much she'll say about it, but notice that she is typically only as specific as the question requires her to be (except when the question takes her by surprise, as the "snogging" question appears to). And when she does finally say definitively "we do now know that it's Ron and Hermione," she specifically prefaces it with the part I bolded - a request that both Melissa and Emerson put a spoiler warning on the interview because she's about to say something specific about the plot (something which - amazingly! - is still up for debate in some corners of the fandom).
As to why she doesn't shout the answer from the rooftops or put a banner on the front page of her website saying "R/Hr 4EVA!" or remind everyone of it every time she speaks in public ... fictional romance is supposed to be fun. Especially in books like HP. This isn't like the comments about Dumbledore, where she's trying to be as delicate as she can (especially when she's answering a child) so as not to increase the heartache readers felt/feel about that storyline. It's much different with romance, where it's meant as relief from those other, more serious plotlines, the pairings are relatively easy to guess, and the "wink"s and "nudge"s are supposed to be reminders of what we already know. It's a shared "secret" between the author and all her readers.
People say things like what she said in the Radio City appearance all the time when talking about romance. How many times have you read (or heard in real life) someone say "She's expecting a call from a certain someone." Remember Mrs. Jennings teasing Elinor about "Mr. F" in Sense and Sensibility? It's not being cagey or sly or giving people a secret clue, it's just being polite and discreet. If we were talking about real people, it would actually be a tad rude to say "When Hermione looks into a mirror that shows the deepest, most desperate desire of her heart, she sees - in addition to seeing herself and her best friends alive and well - herself entwined with Ro-o-on."
Sure, she could have specified Ron, but as I said above, she doesn't feel she needs to. She assumes that, for anyone who has read all the books, this is a given. She's not leading people on or toying with them unnecessarily. She's just winking at the people (meaning all of her fans) that she thinks are all in on the joke. Sadly, they don't all seem to be.
contemplative