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Celtic Radio Community > General Discussion > Harry Potter


Posted by: azelb 17-Apr-2004, 02:29 PM
"It is not our abilities that tell us who we truly are. It is our choices."
-Richard Harris, "Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets"
What is the meaning of this quote? king.gif

Posted by: oldraven 17-Apr-2004, 02:46 PM
It's not what you can do, it's what you do with it.

Posted by: MDF3530 17-Apr-2004, 04:35 PM
I just thought it was a cool quote from Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets biggrin.gif .

Posted by: VetteGal 17-Apr-2004, 04:41 PM
I agree, great movie! I have not read the books as of yet but I know I will.

Posted by: peckery 18-Apr-2004, 08:40 AM
Read the movie, saw the book. king.gif

The quote has to do with the gutting of society by the cheese merchants who posess the tiny clay pots that hold all the lint. As long as they exist, the universe will always be fuzzy and dusty souls will walk the after life insearch of the Karmic lint brushes.

Posted by: gandster 18-Apr-2004, 11:51 AM
Hmmmmm...... to go back to the first book...Harry being new to Hogwarts and wizardary in General,merely was brainwashed about a comment that Ron had brought up prior to the sorting hat "there isnt a student that hasnt turned bad that has not been in slytherin"
this statement i believe started a chain of events that even had the sorting hat swearing up and down the griffindor was the wrong house....
Yet as Harry grew and realized what his potential was becoming(one heck of a wizard wink.gif ) His abilities as dumbldore had told him and troubled Harry, wasnt that Voldemort and him were alike ....they posessed the same skills...yet Voldemort chose a dark path....where as Harry has used his unforseen powers for good...

As you get deeper within the books you will see where Harry has many an oppurtunity to turn the skills he now has into a weapon of evil....

Yet time and time again...through blind luck or just fate...Harry outwits voldemort over/over....

Harry had the full option to side /w voldemort in "the sorcerers stone" (or philosophers stone..as the original book was titled) nothing would make him happier than to bring back his mother,father...(his first choice) think ya know the outcome of this....
see where im going smile.gif

simply put.....what seperates us from all other living things is our ability to make a "choice" ... our gift of free will

gandster



Posted by: JaneyMae 18-Apr-2004, 12:05 PM
QUOTE (MDF3530 @ Apr 17 2004, 04:35 PM)
I just thought it was a cool quote from Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets biggrin.gif .

Great movie even greater book! I'll post this in the next week or two on my white board and see what the students have to say. Wonderful quote!!

Posted by: gandster 18-Apr-2004, 12:46 PM
Lol .... i actually liked Goblet of fire the best.....even waiting over 2 years for the 5th book "order of the phoenix"

ps!!! june 4th here in wa. state anyway is the release of .. The prison of Azkhban
my wife,daughter ,and I have seen both movies and each own our own copies of all the books lol
gandster

Posted by: Annabelle 18-Apr-2004, 09:33 PM
I love Harry Potter.
Read all the books and watched the movies so many times, know the lines.
I always felt that quote from the movie for me meant we all have choices that can determine who and what we become, and how important it is to weigh those choices. Each choice can take you down different roads. And all roads lead somewhere...
Annabelle

Posted by: Kassia 18-Apr-2004, 10:53 PM
We have all the books. When Order of the Phoenix came out, we had four bookmarks going at once, and as soon as one person set it down, another family member picked it up.

Posted by: PoniesRGr8 19-Apr-2004, 05:26 AM
I'm looking forward to the 3rd movie. I hope J.K. Rowling puts out the next book at a time when I'm not in the middle of a semester at college. When I read her books, I like to sit down and read them as much as possible, until I'm done. I'm not as particular about how I watch the movies, but Rowling is such a descriptive writer, that I like to get totally engrossed in her stories smile.gif

~*Sarah*~

Posted by: Kassia 20-Apr-2004, 12:08 AM
QUOTE (PoniesRGr8 @ Apr 19 2004, 06:26 AM)
I'm looking forward to the 3rd movie. I hope J.K. Rowling puts out the next book at a time when I'm not in the middle of a semester at college. When I read her books, I like to sit down and read them as much as possible, until I'm done. I'm not as particular about how I watch the movies, but Rowling is such a descriptive writer, that I like to get totally engrossed in her stories smile.gif

~*Sarah*~

somehow it is difficult to think of JK Rowlings "putting out"..... tongue.gif

Posted by: gandster 20-Apr-2004, 04:42 PM
^^

taps finger...er....yeah....my wife loves to read out loud and her scottish accent keeps my ears wanting the next sentance.....it is ironic ...i fought reading the series till i heard it read...i was engrossed on the spot, and had to know what happend next!!...My daughter (now 10) and my wife would take turns reading....both have very soft voices but hold you on every word.... i dunno what it is to see your child read a book with such conviction that you feel part of it....
once and again a word will pop up my daughter stuggles /w only to find my wife sharing the meaning and the pronunciation.....the movies themselves just for me give me insight to the true names...like how many times did you pronounce or read herminoes name different till you knew ..... (Her-my-knee).... little things like that ...
gandster

Posted by: Annabelle 20-Apr-2004, 09:14 PM
A year and a 4 months ago I went to Alnwick Castle and Gloucheshire Abbey two of the places Harry Potter was filmed at. It actually took 4 different places to make the first two movies.
The third movie has places around Glencoe in it. They were looking for some place a bit more rugged in terraine and Glencoe Scotland fit the bill.
I have a picture of me in the hallway at Glouchesshire where they went into the Gryfendorph common house. There isn't really a door where the lady asks for the password. There is a wall there. Amazinng how they do that in the movie. I also have a picture of me pointing at the window where the spiders were supposidly going thru the window.
Amazing!

Posted by: gandster 21-Apr-2004, 03:07 AM
way cool! thumbs_up.gif

Posted by: Jaxom 21-Apr-2004, 04:38 PM
So peeps... what do you think the sixth book will be about?

Posted by: snoogans 13-May-2004, 05:38 AM
Obvious innit?
Abilities dinnae tell ye who ye are.
If ye choose tae use yir big pointy wand tae blaw somewans heid aff or make nice flowers grow...
Hmmm.
As tae the next book ah hink it'll hae mair aboot love stories as they're gettin tae that age if ye ken whit ah mean... velho.gif
Ron so fancies Hermione it's funny

Posted by: azelb 13-May-2004, 11:50 AM
The choices we are given seem to be more a matter of chance. If someone does not have an opportunity presented to make the choice that leads to success then their potential is wasted. If Harry had never been sent to Hogwarts then he would not have had the chance to make Wizardry his choice.

Posted by: gtrplr 13-May-2004, 12:50 PM
QUOTE
The choices we are given seem to be more a matter of chance. If someone does not have an opportunity presented to make the choice that leads to success then their potential is wasted. If Harry had never been sent to Hogwarts then he would not have had the chance to make Wizardry his choice.


I think you've got it backwards. It's the choices we make that determine our chances. And keep in mind that success is different things to different people. I don't have a lot of money, but I consider myself very successful. I've toured the US and parts of Canada, Mexico and Europe playing music. I got paid to see the world. I have a wonderful wife, a job I like, friends I love, and music inside me. I have all this because of choices I made. Looking back, I can see it could have been very different.

Posted by: azelb 14-May-2004, 08:21 AM
The lucky few never get a chance to join the majority who live lives of quiet desperation trying to find an opportunity to do what they know they have the ability to do. Frustration is a common problem in our society.

Posted by: gtrplr 14-May-2004, 08:37 AM
Zig Ziglar says that it's our attitude that determines our altitude. I agree. If you want to sit around feeling frustrated, go ahead. It's your choice. I see my glass as half full, not half empty.

Posted by: Siobhan Blues 14-May-2004, 08:47 AM
QUOTE (azelb @ Apr 17 2004, 03:29 PM)
"It is not our abilities that tell us who we truly are. It is our choices."
-Richard Harris, "Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets"
What is the meaning of this quote? king.gif

Aw, I'll miss Richard's Dumbledore!

I like that line, a LOT really. To me it means that we are perhaps born with certain abilities, but its what we choose to do with those abilities that makes us who we really are: who we become at maturity.
It works in the sense that if you're born with an ability to sing, if you choose to practise you may become opera-quality - personally I think of how I'd still be doing stick figures if I hadn't taken my innate ability to draw and developed it into the obsession its become. wink.gif
Harry is a gifted wizard, but his choice is this: does he become a good honorable talented wizard like his own parents or even Dumbledore? Or does he go over to the dark side like Malfoy's daddy and become a talented devious wizard?

Ah I am looking forward to the HP movie next month!! Isn't Gary Oldman perfect casting as Sirius?!?
thumbs_up.gif

Posted by: Skyclad Awen 14-Jul-2004, 10:24 PM
I think the quote can best be desribed with an example. Take 2 kids; one very intelligent and one marginal. Intelligent kid decides to do drugs, etc. Marginal kid studies his/her ass off at school and maybe plays on the soccer team. Marginal kids goes to university through hard work. Intelligent kids goes to detox. Its all about choices and new doors that open with those choices. You can have all the skill in the world but if you don't work it, it is nothing.
The Potter books rock. I have read them all to my 5 yr old daughter. I am waiting for movie 3 to go to the cheap theatre cause hey! I do have Scottish roots lol. The best one I think was The Order of the Phoenix. I think the next book may see McGonnagal helping Harry on his road to becoming an auror as she swore to do in the last book. And personally I think Ron and Hermione will become an item. They squabble like an old married couple already and he gets all choked when she mentions.......good lord what's that quiddich guys name Hermione went to the dance with.......well you all know who I mean. And that is all in my humble opinion.

Love, Awen

Posted by: Leto 15-Jul-2004, 03:12 AM
My favourite character in this book is Peeves, the poltergeist.

As far as the quotation is concerned, I guess our abilities don't tell us much, the same about choices. It is so because we are too often forced to make choices, they are hardly our own. Abilities are wasted, too. What tells us who we truly are? The way we see the world.

Posted by: Ceciliastar1 15-Jul-2004, 11:15 AM
QUOTE (Siobhan Blues @ 14-May-2004, 09:47 AM)
QUOTE (azelb @ Apr 17 2004, 03:29 PM)
"It is not our abilities that tell us who we truly are. It is our choices."
-Richard Harris, "Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets"
What is the meaning of this quote? king.gif

[color=purple

I love this quote. It is my most favorite quote ever! I like this quote because it has such a strong meaning to it. Our talents or abilities to do something does not tell who we are, we are what we choose to be. We are not forced to be anything, we choose to be whatever we are. if that makes sense. I love harry potter. It is such a great series. It's funny, I love this quote so much for a really big reason. I am Roman Catholic and there are a lot of Catholics who hate HArry Potter, they think it is evil. I go to a Catholic college and I have been condemned to hell so many times now it's quite humurous. I find that as long as I (and children) can tell the difference between reality and fantasy then I don't find the books any problem (from a Catholic standpoint, not disrespecting anyone on purpose). This quote is such a Christain quote. When people judge me for reading the books ro watching the movies I just give them this quote, which our religion can totally relate to. Our free will (aka choices) bring us closer or farthar from God, not our talents. It is our choice. If that makes any sense at all...???

usaflag.gif

Posted by: Skyclad Awen 15-Jul-2004, 11:51 PM
Ceciliastar,
I know what you mean by Christians condemning these books. I used to look after this young 9 yr old girl who was in the local Logos program at school (Christian based learning in a public school). Just for the record I am a Christian myself lol. She came home one day saying her teacher said Harry Potter was satanic. I am like whaaaaat! lol. Just about that time the 1st Lord of the Rings movie was coming out and her teacher was all fine with that tho. Her teacher said that because Harry Potter had witches and majick in them that they were satanic. I said there was wizards and majick in Lord of the Rings so what was the difference.......maybe that Tolkien was a Christian it made the subject ok or something. I dunno lol. All I could think was this is too close to the book burnings of Nazi Germany for my comfort so I called the head of the Logos program to complain. Well I met a brick wall but I felt better having vented lol. The girl and I went on to have many conversations around what she heard in school and at church and at her home and mine. So in the end I guess Harry Potter opened a whole new world for her in discussion and debate lol.......not too bad for satanic books eh?! lol

Posted by: Siobhan Blues 16-Jul-2004, 11:13 AM
QUOTE (Skyclad Awen @ 16-Jul-2004, 12:51 AM)
Just for the record I am a Christian myself lol. She came home one day saying her teacher said Harry Potter was satanic. I am like whaaaaat! lol... Her teacher said that because Harry Potter had witches and majick in them that they were satanic. I said there was wizards and majick in Lord of the Rings so what was the difference.......maybe that Tolkien was a Christian it made the subject ok or something. I dunno lol.

Knowing that Tolkien was a Christian does make the LotR trilogy more approachable for Christians (or it should, anyway) and also the fact that what Tolkien was trying to do was create a grand mythology, a great story if you will... its complexity and sheer scale are awesome to behold! His concern was heritage and inner motivation and what someone does when faced with challenges...

heart.gif Oops, my love of these tales is beginning to show...

Back to the subject, it may be of legitimate concern that the Potter stories appear to endorse witchcraft and wizardry, because they do... unlike the LotR tale, in Potter's world real kids can become real wizards & witches and it looks fun and exciting and a good way to deal with annoying cousins or nasty aunties. I still like the Potter movies well enough because its a fun fantasy story. And for the record, I have had two genuine witches tell me that the spell-casting is far too unrealistic & inacurate to steer anyone to witchcraft! They say its just story-telling. And I guess they'd know now wouldn't they...


yes.gif

Posted by: behan 18-Jul-2004, 09:58 AM
I AM A DEVOUT ATHIEST AND I FIND THE CHRISITIANS ARE BOOK BURNERS FULL STOP THEY SEEM TO OPPRESS CULTURE AND IDEOLOGY THAT DOES NOT CO EXIST WITH THEIR BIBLE ( Rag ) , THE FACT IS THAT BY 2050 THE ONLY PEOPLE MENTALLY IMMATURE AND CHILDISH ENOUGH TO BELIVE IN GOD WILL BE 70 YEAR OLD HERMITS CVASTED OUT TO THE MOUNTAINS FOR THEIR PRIMITIVE BEILEFS tongue.gif

Posted by: dfilpus 18-Jul-2004, 05:48 PM
The greatest of abilities are wasted without the proper choices.

We've played the audiobooks of the Potter books on long roadtrips. They are among the best audiobooks out there. The gentleman who reads the books does the greatest voices. He has a unique voice for each character in the books. In one interview, he talked about not having time to read one of the later books through before recording the book. He reusec one of the house elf voices for a new house elf in that book. Later, the two house elfs met. He went back and rerecorded all of the previous dialogue for the new house elf with a different voice. That is dedication.

The entire family read all of the books, as well as listening to the audiobooks.

Posted by: Siobhan Blues 19-Jul-2004, 10:44 AM
QUOTE (behan @ 18-Jul-2004, 10:58 AM)
I AM A DEVOUT ATHIEST AND I FIND THE CHRISITIANS ARE BOOK BURNERS FULL STOP THEY SEEM TO OPPRESS CULTURE AND IDEOLOGY THAT DOES NOT CO EXIST WITH THEIR BIBLE ( Rag ) , THE FACT IS THAT BY 2050 THE ONLY PEOPLE MENTALLY IMMATURE AND CHILDISH ENOUGH TO BELIVE IN GOD WILL BE 70 YEAR OLD HERMITS CVASTED OUT TO THE MOUNTAINS FOR THEIR PRIMITIVE BEILEFS tongue.gif

Whoa - what brought that on?? We were just discussing the Harry Potter movie? Our opinion of it is shaped by our faith (or lack there of)... you're welcome to comment on the subject, but I don't think ranting against people who believe different from you is called for on this forum topic.

Posted by: Ceciliastar1 19-Jul-2004, 12:26 PM
QUOTE (Siobhan Blues @ 19-Jul-2004, 11:44 AM)
ranting against people who believe different from you is called for on this forum topic.

or on any forum for that matter. It's just a matter of decent courtesy and good manners.

Posted by: dfilpus 19-Jul-2004, 05:31 PM
QUOTE (Siobhan Blues @ 19-Jul-2004, 11:44 AM)
Whoa - what brought that on?? We were just discussing the Harry Potter movie? Our opinion of it is shaped by our faith (or lack there of)... you're welcome to comment on the subject, but I don't think ranting against people who believe different from you is called for on this forum topic.

Ignore behan.

He's been ranting like that is all sorts of forums. At least one moderator has banned him. Hopefully. he will just fade away.

Posted by: azelb 20-Jul-2004, 03:06 PM
Hagrid, who was expelled from Hogwarts for no good reason must have wished to have the choice to return to school many times. But he was condemned to be the groundskeeper forever with no chance to be a wizard.

Posted by: Siobhan Blues 26-Jul-2004, 11:21 AM
I'm glad this Behan person has been banned. Thanks to all you moderators who keep an eye out for folks like that!

Now back to the Potter topic:

Hagrid was indeed expelled for no good reason, so its nice when he gets promoted to the position of professor for the Magical Creatures class, isn't it! I think the hippogriff was absolutely perfect in this most recent movie... but on the other hand, the werewolf wasn't too cool. It looked more like a giant chihuahua to me!
laugh.gif laugh.gif
I guess I prefer werewolves along the lines of American Werewolf in London or even the one in Van Helsing.

TTFN
SB



Posted by: azelb 26-Jul-2004, 12:10 PM
biggrin.gif It certainly was a lucky break that the outcast Hagrid received a better position as a Professor, but I see that as a chance happening not the result of Hagrid's choices.

Posted by: Siobhan Blues 29-Jul-2004, 08:34 AM
Quite true, it was chance.

Posted by: azelb 29-Jul-2004, 01:31 PM
Too often injustices are glossed over by phrases like the original quote. We cannot escape from the facts of our environment and our training no matter how well made our choices are.

Posted by: erickbloodax 30-Jul-2004, 12:53 PM
Throw a rock at a pack of dogs, the one who yelps is the one you hit. Old Jewish proverb.

The choices we make determine who we are. In Hagrid's case circumstance seems to throw some hard knocks his way, yet he can always be counted on to act honorably. At first glance it seems unfair that Hagrid was expelled from Hogwarts, but what would the wizard world think of a half giant full wizard? Could Hagrid then been able to travel on his secret mission to the giants without attracting too much attention?

Hagrid could have harbored bitter resentment at his unfair treatment but instead chose to serve as best as he could in a small way. Hagrid would be the first to say that he never really helps much, but it was Hagrid who picked up Harry when he was the boy who lived. I think Hagrid will have a great part to the good int the future books.

Posted by: azelb 30-Jul-2004, 03:43 PM
"If liberty and equality, as is thought by some, are chiefly to be found in democracy, they will be best attained when all persons alike share in government to the utmost."
Aristotle
If people are to be treated fairly they must have a voice in the administration of the institution, Hogwarts School for Wizards and Witches seems to be benevolent dictatorship. The example of the failure to adequately compensate Hagrid and also the failure to protect him from the abusive treatment of being expelled is an example of the consequences to powerless people, a minority in this case, half giant/ half wizard.

Posted by: Annabelle 30-Jul-2004, 04:48 PM
When I see Harry Potter's Aunt and Uncle snear at him being a warlock, I think of the prejudices people have toward each other.....silly they do when you really think about it. Poor Harry, you have to love such a innocent.

A

Posted by: azelb 06-Aug-2004, 08:42 AM
The major theme of the books seems to be overcoming prejudice. First the prejudice against intelligence (witchcraft) at Harry's foster home. Then the mixed and non-witch prejudices. That seems to imitate racism.

Posted by: Annabelle 07-Aug-2004, 04:32 PM
I really hate the way the Aunt and Uncle dislike Harry because he has talents they don't have. yes, predjudices are a good way to describe it!

A

Posted by: azelb 18-Aug-2004, 11:28 AM
Prejudice is difficult to overcome. If they were never taught the world would be a better place for everyone.

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