#yes i am that petty | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

austenpoppy · 5 months

Text

Comparison of Ron and Hermione's contributions in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

I will willingly admit this post was written out of pure spite, tired that I was of seeing people claim Ron had barely contributed to anything in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, or at least way less so than Hermione.

So you know me, what do I do in this sort of case ? I decided to analyse closely what exactly Ron and Hermione did in the book, on different levels and in different ways to completely understand what went on.

Edit: I changed some scores slightly by adding or removing points, and had to recalculate everything, though it didn't change anything to my conclusions; changes are highlighted in bold

List of Ron and Hermione's accomplishments/contributions in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

So of course, to begin my analysis, I needed to list all of their concrete contributions and accomplishments. To be absolutely fair to either of them, I did not take into account feats of bravery that did not ultimately directly help or save anyone (so I did not count Ron begging Bellatrix to torture him instead of Hermione), but I did count elements in which one or the other protected, helped, or saved someone else.

I also listed any Duelling Feat or any fight Ron and Hermione had with Snatchers/Death Eaters/others that had to do with fighting against dark forces or people (I therefore did not include the fact that Ron punched Draco Malfoy during the Battle of Hogwarts).

Anything that helped Harry in the Horcrux Hunt or in getting Voldemort down was taken into account, however small, even if it was just knowledge regarding the Trace (this bit of knowledge allowed the trio to dispel the theory that Death Eaters had found them because Harry still had the Trace) or the location of the Lovegoods, or conjuring up a flask to get Snape's tears. I however omitted intelligent remarks that didn't move the plot forward directly (so for example, I did not include Ron's shrewd comment after he read Mundungus Fletcher's mind).

As Ron and Hermione's feats had to be concrete, I also omitted moments during which Ron was the buffer between Harry and Hermione, or during which one or the other recomforted/or tried to recomfort Harry/the other. I however judged that Ron leading the Horcrux Hunt for months was worthy of being listed, because he took on a major responsibility that helped the trio as they tried to move forward with the Hunt.

To make you understand how I proceeded, each point listed is a thematic element; so several actions from the same event can be listed as separate elements. The chapter in which the element listed happened/was referred to is mentioned after each element.

Ron

1. pretended to be Harry with the help of Polyjuice when he was part of the “Seven Potters” operation (“The Seven Potters”)

2. stunned a Death Eater right in the head from a flying broom (“Fallen Warrior”)

3. saved Hermione in the Tottenham Court Road Café when she didn’t notice that Rowle and Dolohov were going to attack the trio by lunging across the table and pushing her sideways (“A place to hide”)

4. cleared up the café on Tottenham Court Road with Harry after the fight, at Harry’s command (“A place to hide”)

5. gave information to Harry and Hermione regarding the Trace (“A place to hide”)

6. rugby-tackled Mundungus Fletcher when he tried to dive for the stairs (“The bribe”)

7. spied on Ministry workers with the Invisibility Cloak and heard that only the most senior Ministry members could connect their homes to the Floo network (“Magic is Might”)

8. convinced Harry and Hermione that Stunning three Ministry officials was not a good idea because a pile of unconscious bodies would be suspicious, and therefore suggested to use Fred and George’s products (“Magic is Might”)

9. snatched Red Cattermole’s bag without the latter noticing it before Reg Cattermole went back home (“Magic is Might”)

10. pretended to be Reg Cattermole with the help of Polyjuice Potion and convinced Albert Runcorn to take Nosebleed Norgat to ultimately take hair from his head (“Magic is Might”)

11. warned Harry and Hermione that Ministry officials knew there were intruders in the Ministry and that the trio had five minutes at most to leave the place (“The Muggle-Born Registration Commission”)

12. made the most of an uproar cause by the colleagues of some balding wizard to size Mrs. Cattermole and get her out of the Ministry through the fireplace, saving her and getting her away from the real Reg Cattermole – trying to deter other Ministry officials from scrutinizing the situation (“The Muggle-Born Registration Commission”)

13. prevented Harry and Hermione from saying the Taboo (Voldemort’s name) many times, after noticing that it felt like a jinx (“The thief”, “The Goblin’s Revenge”)

14. escaped from a gang of five Snatchers after being captured by them by hitting the one holding him in the stomach and grabbing his wand before Disarming the one who has his wand and Disapparating (“The Silver Doe”)

15. managed to steal a wand from Snatchers and brought the spare wand with him when he came back, which ended up replacing the one broken by Hermione (“The Silver Doe”)

16. saved Harry’s life by jumping into icy water to retrieve Harry who was drowning and by cutting the Horcrux to stop it from strangling Harry; also retrieved the sword of Gryffindor from the icy pond (“The Silver Doe”)

17. faced mental torture at the hands of Voldemort but won against Voldemort’s taunts, resisted possession and destroyed the locket (“The Silver Doe”)

18. learned about the existence of the Taboo during his time away and alerted Harry and Hermione that there was one (“Xenophilius Lovegood”)

19. knew approximatively where the Lovegoods lived (“Xenophilius Lovegood”)

20. led the Horcrux hunt for months while Harry obsessed over the Hallows, not only to search for the Horcruxes but also to gather the team’s spirit (“The Deathly Hallows”)

21. subdued Wormtail with the help of Harry, and took his wand (“Malfoy Manor”)

22. imitated Wormtail to reassure Lucius Malfoy that nothing particular was happening (“Malfoy Manor”)

23. Disarmed Bellatrix Lestrange with Wormtail’s wand (“Malfoy Manor”)

24. saved Hermione by pulling her from under the wreckage caused by the collapse of the chandelier detached from the ceiling by Dobby, and Disapparating after catching a wand thrown at him by Harry (“Malfoy Manor”)

25. was the one who suggested the trio should double-cross Griphook by swapping the real sword of Gryffindor with the fake and give the fake to Griphook to buy enough time for the trio to escape (“Shell Cottage”)

26. pretended to be Dragomir Despard during the trio’s break-out at Gringotts (“Gringotts”)

27. stunned a wizard who was lunging for Hermione’s throat (believing her to be Bellatrix) (“Gringotts”)

28. Stunned Goblins with Harry and Hermione (“Gringotts”)

29. helped Harry cast gouging spells to blast the ceiling apart and facilitate the trio’s escape from Gringotts, after they observed Hermione do it (“Gringotts”)

30. was the one who suggested that the students who were in the Room of Requirement could help them find the other Horcruxes (“The lost diadem”)

31. designed a plan to destroy the cup of Hufflepuff, by remembering the Chamber of Secrets had Basilisk fangs; told Hermione that she should destroy the cup of Hufflepuff (“The Battle of Hogwarts”)

32. managed to imitate Harry saying the word “open” in Parseltongue to open the Chamber of Secrets (“The Battle of Hogwarts”)

33. saved Gregory Goyle’s life by hoisting him on Hermione and he’s broom when the Fiendfyre conjured up by Vincent Crabbe engulfed the Room of Requirement (“The Battle of Hogwarts”)

34. grabbed Hermione with Harry to put her to the floor so she wouldn’t be hit with spells (“The Elder Wand”)

35. threw spells that collided with Harry’s and were cast to repel an Acromentula trying to get inside Hogwarts (“The Elder Wand”)

36. told Harry and Hermione to get back so they wouldn’t be hit by the galloping desks of Minerva McGonagall (“The Elder Wand”)

37. prevented Hermione from casting a spell on Grawp; had she done so Grawp would have crushed “half the castle” (“The Elder Wand”)

38. cast “Wingardium Leviosa” on a twig and waved it into the air to stop the Whomping Willow from moving around; he was spurred on by Hermione’s remark (“The Elder Wand”)

39. broke Voldemort’s Silencing Charm by standing up to him and yelling “He beat you!” (“The Flaw in the Plan”)

40. took down Greyback with Neville (“The Flaw in the Plan”)

Hermione

1. pretended to be Harry with the help of Polyjuice when he was part of the “Seven Potters” operation (“The Seven Potters”) (note: I did not consider that Hermione fought off Death Eaters - or managed to - during that operation because in my opinion, Kingsley Shacklebolt was clearly referring to his own actions when he reported what happened)

2. stole books about Horcruxes from Dumbledore’s study and told Ron and Harry what she had learned about Horcruxes from reading them (“The Ghoul in Pyjamas”)

3. packed elements that could be useful for the Hunt, including a batch of Polyjuice Potion that she stole from Mad-Eye Moody, clothes, the Invisibility Cloak, Essence of Dittany, Puking Pastilles, Nosebleed Norgat, Decoy Detonators, Muggle money, and the tent (“The Ghoul in Pyjamas”)

4. Apparated the trio to Tottenham Court Road (“A place to hide”)

5. Stunned Dolohov while she was underneath a table and out of Dolohov’s sight (“A place to hide”)

6. Obliviated Rowle and Dolohov at Harry’s suggestion (“A place to hide”)

7. cast “Diffindo” to free Ron from the ropes holding him, though she left a deep cut (“A place to hide”)

8. dragged the waitress from the café on Tottenham Court Road’s body out of sight of the windows at Harry’s command (“A place to hide”)

9. cast an “Hominum Revelio” at 12, Grimmauld Place to check whether the trio was really alone or not (“A place to hide”)

10. remembered that the locket was in the cabinet in the drawing room of 12, Grimmauld Place when the Order was cleaning the house (“Kreacher’s Tale”)

11. Disarmed Mundungus Fletchers at 12, Grimmauld Place (“The Bribe”)

12. put Phineas Nigellus’ portrait inside her bag as she remembered he could travel from Grimmauld Place to Hogwarts (“Magic is Might”); later cast a black blindfold with the spell “Obscura” on him to prevent him from seeing inside the tent (“The Goblin’s Revenge”)

13. spied on Ministry workers with the Invisibility Cloak and heard information that indicated where Umbridge’s office might be (“Magic is Might”)

14. Stunned Mafalda Hopkirk using a non-verbal spell (“Magic is Might”)

15. pretended to be Mafalda Hopkirk with the help of Polyjuice Potion and convinced Reg Cattermole to take a Puking Pastille, before yanking hair from his head when he started throwing up (“Magic is Might”)

16. pretended to be Mafalda Hopkirk with the help of Polyjuice Potion and convinced Albert Runcorn to take Nosebleed Norgat to ultimately take hair from his head (“Magic is Might”)

17. duplicated the locket with a “Gemino” spell so that Umbridge wouldn’t notice the locket was gone (“The Muggle-Born Registration Commission”)

18. cast a Patronus, though with difficulty, to help Harry deter Dementors from coming near the group comprised of Harry, Hermione and Muggle-Borns (“The Muggle-Born Registration Commission”)

19. Apparated the trio in a forest after casting a Revulsion Jinx on Yaxley because Yaxley had got hold of her and Hermione had unwillingly get Yaxley in the Fidelius Charm cast on 12, Grimmauld Place (“The thief”)

20. saved Ron’s life with Essence of Dittany after having Splinched him (“The thief”)

21. was the first to cast protective enchantments around the tent (“The thief”)

22. noticed that the locket was having a negative influence on Harry (“The Goblin’s Revenge”)

23. figured out with Harry that the sword of Gryffindor could destroy Horcruxes because it was Goblin-made and Goblin-made swords imbibe only that which strengthens them, in this case Basilisk venom, and that Dumbledore had made a fake sword of Gryffindor because he knew the Ministry wouldn’t let Harry have the sword if he put it in his will (“The Goblin’s Revenge”)

24. saved Harry’s life after Hermione cast a spell on Nagini to force the snake to get away from Harry; dived aside to avoid it from striking her and one of her spells smashed the windows; cast a Blasting Curse charm that “flew around the room, exploding the wardrobe mirror and ricocheting back at them, bouncing from floor to ceiling”, though it also broke Harry’s wand (“Bathilda’s secret”, (“The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore”)

25. took care of Harry by getting the locket, stuck to Harry’s chest, away with a Severing Charm; she also cleaned the wound caused by Nagini and put some dittany on it (“The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore”)

26. understood that the symbol of the Deathly Hallows was important after seeing it around Xenophilius Lovegood’s neck at Bill and Fleur’s wedding, on Ignotus Peverell’s headstone at Godric’s Hollows and in The Tales of Beedle the Bard (“Xenophilius Lovegood”)

27. designed a plan so that the Death Eaters who were at Xenophilius Lovegood’s house could see he was not lying about Harry’s presence: she got Ron to put on the Invisibility Cloak so that his presence wouldn’t be known, waited for Xenophilius to appear at the top of the stairs before Obliviating him and destroying the floor so that the Death Eaters could see the trio right before Hermione Apparated them away (“The Tale of the Three Brothers”)

28. cursed Harry’s face to make it unrecognizable so that the Snatchers wouldn’t see it was Harry (“Malfoy Manor”)

29. lied under torture done at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange that the sword of Gryffindor was fake (“Malfoy Manor”)

30. cast Glamour Charms on Ron to modify his appearance so he wouldn’t be recognized during their break-in Gringotts (“Gringotts”)

31. pretended to be Bellatrix with the help of Polyjuice Potion (“Gringotts”)

32. had to do most of the talking in trying to convince Travers and in trying to get the different Goblins to let the trio access Bellatrix’s vault (“Gringotts”)

33. cast a Cushioning Charm to soften the fall of the trio after they were thrown off the cart (“Gringotts”)

34. cast a Shield Charm to slower the people trying to catch the trio (“Gringotts”)

35. used “Levicorpus” to help Harry get the cup of Hufflepuff (“Gringotts”)

36. cast “Impervius” to protect Ron, Harry, the goblins and herself from being too badly burned after spells were cast on objects in Bellatrix’s vault (“Gringotts”)

37. Stunned Goblins with Harry and Ron (“Gringotts”)

38. was the first to cast gouging spells to blast the ceiling apart and facilitate the trio’s escape from Gringotts (“Gringotts”)

39. destroyed the cup of Hufflepuff (“The Battle of Hogwarts”)

40. Stunned Gregory Goyle in the Room of Requirement (“The Battle of Hogwarts”)

41. cast “Glisseo” so the trio would escape two masked Death Eaters (“The Elder Wand”)

42. cast “Duro” on a tapestry so the two masked Death Eaters pursuing the trio would face a wall (“The Elder Wand”)

43. cast a spell to blast Fenrir Greyback away from Lavender Brown (“The Elder Wand”)

44. conjured a flask and gave it to Harry so Harry could retrieve Snape’s tears (“The Elder Wand”)

Conclusions

From this you can see that in terms of sheer numbers, Ron and Hermione's contributions are roughly equal (40 for Ron, 44 for Hermione). Considering that depending on the way I managed the two lists I could have added some elements for Ron (e.g., telling Dobby to bring Dean, Luna and Mr. Ollivander at Shell Cottage in "Malfoy Manor") or removed items for Hermione (e.g., casting the "Diffindo" spell on Ron at the Tottenham Court Road café), I consider a 4-point difference to be negligible. For reference, I would consider a point difference above 8 (1/5 of Ron's contributions) significant.

Weighting-analysis of Ron and Hermione's contributions

Of course simply listing their feats and contributions was not enough, since all of them are not as impressive, were not as important, had unwanted consequences, or were the result of negligence, a mistake, or something else. So I also had to weigh on each of the items listed. To be fair to Hermione, I also added two "mistakes" for Ron that were not part of his contributions.

My point system is of course very subjective, but I think most will consider it fair. I calculated Ron and Hermione's points separately and only did the total in the end to try to be as unbiased as possible (though I did check that the number of points I would grant to one was equal to the number of points I would grant to the other for a contribution of similar nature).

Point system

+ 0.25 = small contribution

+ 0.5 = medium contribution; small duelling feat; small or medium element pertaining to the protection of others and/or reaction time in a dangerous situation and/or evaluation of a dangerous situation and/or defence or escape against unwanted forces

+ 1 or + 2 = important contribution; duelling feat; important element pertaining to the protection of others and/or reaction time in a dangerous situation and/or evaluation of a dangerous situation and/or defence or escape against unwanted forces

Bonus points

+ 0.5, + 1, + 2, or +3 for skill or particular display of intelligence or creativity (more bonus points can be added depending on the situation)

+ 1, +2 or +3 if the situation is risky and/or required particular bravery (more bonus points can be added depending on the situation)

+ 2 or + 3 if the element listed had to do with saving someone’s life, protecting someone from danger, or taking care of someone else

+ 5 for destroying a Horcrux

Malus points

- 0.25 or – 0.5 for a small mistake (especially one that hurt another person or could have endangered them)

- 1, - 2, or – 3 for a bigger mistake (especially one that really hurt another person or could have really endangered them)

Ron

1. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (the situation was very risky; Tonks and Ron were continuously and furiously followed by Bellatrix Lestrange)

2. + 2 (impressive duelling feat) + 3 (the situation was very risky; see above) + 3 (for skill)

3. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (he saved Hermione and sacrificed his own safety to do so) + 2 (the situation was risky) + 0.5 (for his rather quick reaction time)

4. + 0.25 (small contribution)

5. + 0.25 (small contribution)

6. + 0.5 (medium contribution)

7. + 1 (important contribution) + 1 (the situation was risky)

8. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (for the creativity and intelligence shown in the design of the plan); however - 0.25 (the plan backfired slightly due to Reg Cattermole's dedication to being present for his wife, though it's very likely this would have happened even if the trio had stunned him, since Stunning Spells wear off)

9. + 0.5 (medium contribution) + 0.5 (for the skill it took to take steal somebody else's bag without them noticing)

10. + 0.5 (medium contribution)

11. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky) + 2 (for his ability to get the information to Harry and Hermione rapidly)

12. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was very risky) + 1 (he got Mrs. Cattermole away from the Ministry) + 2 (for his quick-thinking)

13. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (this is one of Ron's very underrated contributions to the Hunt; think that literally every time Ron prevented Harry or Hermione from saying the Taboo, he prevented the Trio from being captured: what's more, it happened at least three times on screen, but there were undoubtedly dozens of moments like this one) + 1 (Ron's intuition told him something was off with Voldemort's name because his brain had picked up on a pattern even though he couldn't pinpoint what was amiss exactly)

14. + 2 (he escaped from Snatchers on his own) + 2 (the situation was very risky) + 3 (for the mad skill it took to escape five assailants, retrieve your wand and steal one of theirs)

15. + 2 (I already counted Ron's skill in the item above, but this was for having thought about bringing the spare wand)

16. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (he saved Harry's life) + 3 (he did so at great risks to himself) + 2 (for thinking about taking the sword of Gryffindor at such a moment)

17. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (had to endure mental torture and had to show great bravery) + 3 (he had to resist possession) + 5 (for destroying a Horcrux)

18. + 2 (important contribution)

19. + 0.25 (small contribution)

20. + 2 (important contribution)

21. + 2 (important contribution) + 1 (the situation was risky) + 1 (for his synchronisation with Harry and for thinking about taking his wand)

22. + 2 (important contribution) + 1 (the situation was risky, considering Lucius Malfoy suspected something was wrong) + 2 (for his quick-thinking) + 2 (for the skill it took to credibly imitate someone he'd barely heard)

23. + 2 (impressive duelling feat) + 3 (the situation was very risky) + 3 (for the skill it took to Disarm Bellatrix Lestrange; another underrated moment for Ron because people dismiss this considering Bellatrix was surprised, even though she had time to turn toward Ron...what do people think duelling is, exactly ?)

24. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (he saved Hermione's life) + 3 (he did so at great risks to himself, considering that he didn't have any wand at that point and had to quickly take Hermione from under tons of broken glass)

25. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (because this was a great plan)

26. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky)

27. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (he protected Hermione from being attacked and hurt) + 2 (the situation was dangerous) + 2 (for his quick reaction)

28. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky)

29. + 0.5 (medium contribution)

30. + 1 (important contribution) + 1 (because this was a good idea)

31. + 2 (important contribution) + 5 (for designing the plan that ended up with the destruction of the Horcrux) + 3 (the plan was brilliant)

32. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (for the skill it took to credibly imitate a word he had heard twice in a foreign language he didn't understand)

33. + 3 (the situation was very dangerous) + 2 (he saved Goyle's life and he alone made that choice since he was holding the broom, but other people influenced or could have influenced his decision) - 2 (he risked Hermione's life in doing so)

34. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky, spells were flying everywhere) + 2 (he prevented Hermione from getting hurt) + 1 (for his quick reaction time)

35. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky and he had just lost his brother) + 2 (for his quick reaction and skill)

36. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (he prevented Harry and Hermione from getting hurt) + 2 (for his quick reaction)

37. + 1 (important contribution) + 1 (he probably protected people from terrible unwanted consequences) + 2 (for his quick reaction and his quick-thinking)

38. + 0.5 (medium contribution)

39. + 1 (important contribution) + 3 (the situation was very risky) + 3 (for the sheer nerve of standing up to Voldemort)

40. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (the situation was very risky) + 2 (Greyback was a tough opponent, but Ron was not alone when he took him down)

Supplementary malus points:

When he Disapparated after he left the Horcrux Hunt and ended up in a gang of Snatchers: - 1 (and reminder for everybody that the person writing this does NOT hold Ron responsible for what happened with the Horcrux and for leaving the tent); it could have had very negative consequences for Harry and Hermione but effectively it had none

When he nearly yelled Dobby's name at Malfoy Manor: - 0.5 : it could have had terrible consequences had the other Death Eaters head him but effectively it had none

Total: 183.5

Hermione

1. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (the situation was very risky; Kingsley and she even got followed by Voldemort for a short while)

2. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (the information was essential, getting her hands on the books required creativity on Hermione's part and required for her to plan ahead and think about what the trio would need)

3. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (all the elements that Hermione took in her bag ended up essential in the following months and demanded that Hermione plan ahead and think about what the trio would need; stealing Mad-Eye Moody's whole stock of Polyjuice Potion also required creativity on Hermione's part)

4. + 0.25 (small contribution)

5. + 1 (duelling feat, but she was out of sight) + 2 (the situation was risky); however - 1 because her slow reaction time forced Ron to push her aside, which means he didn't have time to defend himself) - note: if you want to know more about why I say that Hermione had a slow reaction time, I suggest you take a look at my analysis of Hermione's flaws in the last book

6. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (for the skill it took to succeed in doing a spell for the first time)

7. + 0.25 (small contribution); however - 0.5 because she cut Ron deeply

8. + 0.25 (small contribution)

9. + 0.25 (small contribution) + 1 (Hermione's caution was warranted and wise)

10. + 2 (important contribution)

11. + 0.5 (small duelling feat)

12. + 1 (important contribution) + 3 (for the intelligence shown in having thought about it)

13. + 1 (important contribution) + 1 (the situation was risky)

14. + 0.5 (medium contribution) + 2 (for skill, considering she used a non-verbal spell)

15. + 0.5 (medium contribution)

16. + 0.5 (medium contribution)

17. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was very risky) + 3 (for the intelligence shown in having thought about it)

18. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky) + 2 (this helped protect others)

19. + 0.5 (medium contribution) + 0.5 (small duelling feat) + 2 (the situation was risky) + 1 (for her quick-thinking); however -0.5 because the reason Yaxley got hold of Hermione is in my opinion because her reaction time was too slow to begin with; Harry was the one who had to take her hand to get away in the first place

20. + 2 for saving Ron's life (I'm only counting +2 because what really helped Ron was to have thought about packing Essence of Dittany, and I already took that into account) + 2 (for not completely losing her wits) ; however - 3 for having Splinched him in the first place

21. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (though Harry and Ron might have thought about it, those Charms were really important in protecting the trio and she was the first to think about it)

22. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (had she not realised it, who knows what could have happened ?)

23. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (deducting those elements were essential for the next part of the Horcrux Hunt, and showed great intelligence)

24. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (she was faced with Nagini) + 3 (she directly saved Harry's life) + 2 (though not a duelling feat, her knowledge of spells and quick-thinking ought to be rewarded); however - 3 for breaking Harry's wand

25. + 2 (took care of Harry when he was delirious)

26. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (for having made the link between the different elements she had found)

27. + 1 (important contribution, but didn't have to do with the Hunt directly; the trio could have left without it impacting the Hunt) + 1 (the situation was risky, though the trio could have gotten away before it getting risky) + 2 (her plan probably protected Xenophilius Lovegood) + 3 (the plan was brilliant)

28. + 0.5 (medium contribution, it ultimately had very little impact since the trio was brought to Malfoy Manor and Bellatrix Lestrange recognized them anyway) + 2 (the situation was pressing) + 1 (this helped protect the trio if only a little) + 2 (for her quick-thinking)

29. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (the situation was awful, and she had to endure torture) + 3 (for her quick-thinking) + 3 (for the sheer nerve of lying to Bellatrix Lestrange)

30. + 1 (important contribution)

31. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky)

32. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky) + 3 (for having pulled off the Bellatrix impression)

33. + 1 (important contribution) + 3 (the situation was dangerous) + 2 (she prevented the Trio from getting hurt) + 2 (for her quick-thinking)

34. + 2 (important contribution) + 1 (the situation was pressing) + 2 (for her quick-thinking)

35. + 2 (important contribution) + 1 (the situation was pressing) + 2 (for creativity)

36. + 2 (important contribution) + 3 (the situation was dangerous) + 2 (she prevented the trio and goblins from getting hurt)

37. + 1 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky)

38. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was pressing) + 2 (for her quick-thinking)

39. + 2 (important contribution) + 5 (for destroying a Horcrux)

40. + 0.5 (small duelling feat) + 2 (the situation was risky)

41. + 2 (this helped the trio get away from Death Eaters) + 2 (the situation was risky) + 2 (for her quick-thinking)

42. + 2 (important contribution) + 2 (the situation was risky) + 2 (for her quick-thinking)

43. + 2 (important contribution) + 1 (the situation was risky, but she was under the Invisibility Cloak) + 3 (she probably saved Lavender Brown's life)

44. + 0.25 (small contribution)

Total: 170.75

Conclusion

While factoring other elements such as the importance of the contribution in helping taking down Voldemort or fighting against dark forces in general, the level of dangerousness in which the contribution happened and the levels of bravery and/or sacrifices required to accomplish the feat, the level of intelligence or creativity involved, quick-thinking, quick reaction time, the level of skill involved to accomplish the feat, mistakes... You can see that Ron and Hermione's contributions are still roughly equal (according to my point system, Ron has 182.5 points and Hermione has 171.75... This is probably due to the fact that Ron not only destroyed a Horcrux but was directly responsible for designing the plan that allowed Hermione to destroy another -granting him + 10 points directly-, and to the fact that Hermione made more mistakes with rather terrible consequences - so Hermione has more malus points), and the point difference between them may seem important, but as I said I consider a point difference to be significant when it hits the bar of 1/5 of the lowest score (here 1/5 of 171.75 = 34.35, yet the point difference between the two scores is 12.75).

Nature of the Contributions

Ron and Hermione are different, and contributed differently to the Horcrux Hunt. I decided upon 8 categories: Strategy/Tactical Thinking; Research, Planning, Knowledge; Deductions; Duelling Feats and Fights; Quick Thinking in dangerous scenarios (which does not correspond to situations requiring a quick reaction time, those are counted in different categories depending on what it ended up doing, but is more akin to "presence of mind"); Resistance against Evil; Protection of others; Leadership. I thought that to really understand Ron and Hermione's profiles, I would put each item listed above in one or more of the categories but also count the points I attributed to each item in my weighting-analysis. There are in the end certain items that did not fit any of the category and that I thought best not to include.

Ron

Strategy/Tactical Thinking: 8 (4.75 points), 25 (5 points), 30 - knowing how to use people to one's advantage - (2 points), 31 (10 points), 37 - spatial reasoning - (4 points) = 25,75 points

Research, Planning, Knowledge: 5 (0.25 points), 7, (2 points), 11 (3 points) 15 (2 points), 18 (2 points), 9 (0.25 points) = 9.5 points

Deductions: 13 (6 points) = 6 points [reminder: this is not a representation of Ron's capacity for deduction, since there are many intelligent remarks I did not include in my analysis; this category only shows deductions that moved the plot forward)

Duelling Feats and Fights: 2 (8 points), 6 (0.5 points), 14 (7 points), 21 (4 points), 23 (8 points), 27 (5 - 2 points - I deduced the points granted to him for protecting Hermione for that category = 2 points), 28 (1 point), 35 (6 points), 40 (7 points) = 43,5 points

Quick Thinking in dangerous scenarios: 3 (5.5 - 2 - I deduced the points granted to him for saving Hermione for that category = 3.5), 9 (1 point), 11 (5 points), 12 (6 points), 14 (7 points), 16 (10 - 3 points - I deduced the points granted to him for saving Harry's life for that category = 7 points), 21 (4 points), 22 (7 points), 31, (10 points), 32 (5 points), 34 (7 - 3 - I deduced the points granted to him for saving Hermione for that category = 4), 36 (5 - 2 - I deduced the points granted to him for saving Harry and Hermione = 3), 37 (4 points) = 66 points

Resistance against Evil: 17 (13 points), 39 (7 points) = 20 points

Protection of others: 1 (5 points), 3 (5.5 points), 12 (6 points), 16 (10 points), 24 (8 points), 27 (8 points), 33 (3 points), 34 (7 points), 36 (5 points) = 57,5 points

Leadership: 20 (2 points) = 2 points

Hermione

Strategy/Tactical Thinking: 27 (6 points), 34 (5 points) = 11 points

Research, Planning, Knowledge : 2 (5 points), 3 (5 points), 6 (5 points)- I'm referring to her knowledge of spells -, 13 (2 points) 14 (2.5 points) -idem-, 21 (4 points), 26 (4 points), 30 (1 point) -idem- = 28.5 points

Deductions: 10 (2 points), 12 (4 points), 22 (4 points), 23 (5 points), 26 (4 points) = 19 points

Duelling Feats and Fights: 5 (2 points), 11 (0.5 points), 19 (3.5 points), 24 (7 - 3 points - I deduced the points granted to her for saving Harry's life for that category = 4 points), 37 (3 points), 40 (2.5 points), 42 (6 points), 43 (6 - 3 points - I deduced the points granted to her for saving Lavender's life for that category) = 24.5 points

Quick Thinking in dangerous scenarios: 17 (6 points), 19 (3.5 points), 27 (7 points), 28 (5.5 points), 29 (11 points), 32 (7 points), 33 (8 - 2 points - I deduced the points I granted to her from preventing the trio from getting hurt for that category = 6 points), 34 (5 points), 35 (5 points), 37 (7 points), 38 (5 points), 41 (6 - 2 points - I deduced the points I granted to her for allowing the trio to escape for that category = 4 points), 42 (6 points) = 78 points

Resistance against Evil: 29 (11 points), 39 (7 points) = 18 points

Protection of others: 1 (5 points), 18 (5 points), 19 (3.5 points), 20 (1 point), 21 (4 points), 24 (7 points), 25 (2 points), 36 (7 points), 41 (6 points), 43 (6 points) = 44.5 points

Leadership: 0 point (I did not count what happened at the Lovegoods as "Leadership" because trusting one person at one given moment to carry out a plan does not show, to me, that they are "the leader"; otherwise I would also count other plans made by Ron as examples of him being a Leader).

Conclusion

This to me so clearly shows what Ron and Hermione's strengths are. In terms of "Resistance against evil", both have roughly the same amount of points, while the point difference in "Quick Thinking in dangerous scenarios" is not significant according to my arbitrary cut-point (above 1/5 of the lowest score), showing that both Ron and Hermione are strong-willed and are quick-thinking in dangerous situations.

Hermione is in the lead in the categories "Research, Planning, Knowledge" (with a 19 point difference, the 1/5 of the lowest score being 1.9) and "Deductions" (with a 13 point difference, the 1/5 of the lowest score being 1.2). For the first case, the reason is obvious: out of the three members of the trio, Hermione is the one who thinks about what kind of knowledge, what tools, what objects they will need. She's also generally better at casting spells/ doing magic. The second case offers a bit less insight, because Ron's observations that did not directly make the Horcrux Hunt progress/had no real impact were not included even though many of them were brilliant. However, I think it does show that between Ron and Hermione, Hermione is the one who makes deductions that help move the plot forward.

Ron is in the lead in the categories "Strategy/Tactical Thinking" (with a 14.75 point difference, the 1/5 of the lowest score being 2.2) and "Duelling Feats and Fights" (with a point difference of 19 points, the 1/5 of the lowest score being 4.9). Again, not surprising. Despite people's inexplicable tendency to think Ron only showed his Strategic skills in Book 1, Ron is a very good tactician and strategist (Hermione is a good strategist when it comes to politics, but not war). Ron, unlike Hermione, is a fighter/soldier, with quicker reaction time and more impressive duelling feats. It shows in the sequence at Malfoy Manor when Ron and Harry are fighting together; the two are completely synchronised.

Ron being ahead in "Leadership" is only a reflection of the fact that Ron is Harry's second-in-command.

The category that I was most interested in was "Protection of Others" since Ron ended up being slightly ahead, too (with a 13 point difference, the 1/5 of the lowest score being 8.9). I think it mostly reflects the fact that Hermione has knowledge that helps protect people and or save them while Ron goes above and beyond to protect people in the heat of the moment (which means Ron got more bonus points).

Overall conclusion (for now...)

The hypothesis presented that Hermione contributed much more to the Hunt than Ron is quite absurd indeed.

#hp #ron weasley #hermione granger #harry potter and the deathly hallows #yes i am that petty #i regret nothing

114 notes · View notes