Let me make my stance on Ron/Hermione quite clear: this has been my fandom OTP ever since Ron belched slugs in Chamber of Secrets. I love them to bits. And I was thrilled with the way it was handled in Book 7.

It was totally worth the 7 year wait OMG.

I’ve been reading reviews and meta here, there, and everywhere on LJ, and it looks like a lot of people enjoyed R/Hr. I’ve even seen die-hard slashers saying that they liked the way it was handled. This makes me very happy. *G* It’s nice to know that other people are enjoying something with you.

Maybe this is personal bias speaking, but I think Ron/Hermione is by far and away the most deftly, subtly, and lovingly handled ship in the entire Harry Potter series, and the Ron/Hermione in Deathly Hallows was about as perfect as I could have wished for. Now, I still don’t think Rowling’s written the best romance evar or anything, but I thought the R/Hr in this book was superbly done, and I think this is in large part due to the enormous love that Rowling has for The Trio.

I also like the fact that a ship that doesn’t involve the main character was given so much time, care, and loving attention. Who says that the protagonist’s ship has to be the main ship of the series? And is anyone else utterly charmed by the fact that this bright, spirited, intelligent girl *doesn’t* make the obvious choice (unlike practically every other girl at Hogwarts–witness the Harry fangirling in Book 6) in going for the hero, but falls head over heels for his loyal, hot-headed, awkward-and-yet-adorable best friend, whom everybody else overlooks? Because I loved it. As a Ron/Hermione fan, I’m grateful. I’m so grateful that we got seven years of wonderful build-up, with a great payoff.

I have a standard way of judging romance in books and in fanfic: if I replaced the two characters’ names with random ones like Bob and Alice, would I still be able to recognize them for who they originally were? In this respect, I think R/Hr came through in spades. Ron/Hermione in this book is very quiet, but everything that happens between them is so Ron and Hermione. They only have one major kiss in the book, but there is never any doubt that they are a couple. There’s no one *moment* where IT happens, like it did for Harry and Ginny. It’s like Harry says to Krum at the wedding when Krum asks him if they’re “together.” “Well, yeah. Sort of.” Ron and Hermione don’t cross a line into having a relationship–they’ve always had a relationship, and it just gradually changes by degrees from friendship to love. There’s a great sense of shared history between them, a feeling that they know each other inside and out. The characters are so true to themselves. It’s hard to explain, but…I really loved it.

The Build-Up

We had a long wait, didn’t we? Rowling said in her infamous TLC/Mugglenet interview in 2005 that she’d laid “subtle clues” for the ship in the first three books. (Just a note: I was thrilled when I read that, because I had believed there *were* clues, and it was nice to know I wasn’t reading too much into the text.) And because this ship was given 7 years, it really got a chance to blossom bit by bit.

p.578: “Yeah, well, food’s one of the five exceptions to Gamp’s Law of Elemental Transfiguration,” said Ron to general astonishment.

You know, I think this moment really just nails why I loved Ron/Hermione so much in this book. It’s a throwaway moment, but it shows, in such a subtle way, how their relationship has grown and matured over the years. It shows that Ron’s learning from Hermione, it shows how much he respects her, both as a friend and as a girlfriend.

Ron/Hermione wasn’t sunlit days and conspicuous snogging (except for that one during the battle, which I personally loved. *cough*). It was quiet moments, a gentle progression. Ron asking Hermione to dance. The two of them falling asleep holding hands. Hermione looking down at Ron with an expression so tender that it felt like a kiss. Ron finally understanding and respecting Hermione’s position on House-Eves. Ron hearing Hermione say his name, miles away, coming from the Deluminator. Hermione no longer being surprised at Ron’s flashes of brilliance, but calling him brilliant to his face. The two of them repeating their own wisecracks to each other. “Always the tone of surprise.” “Are you a wizard or are you not?”

The closeness, the intimacy, the love between these two was palpable, always there, unspoken, not needing to be spoken, as certain as anything can be. God, I loved it. I thought it was so well done.

The First Kiss

Utterly, utterly perfect on both a shippy and a thematic level. How great is it that:

(a) It’s Hermione who kisses Ron, and

(b) She does it because of the House Elves?

Firstly, it works in terms of character development because it’s a moment that shows how much these two have grown individually and as a couple. You can tell by the serious tone in Ron’s voice that he is actually genuinely concerned about the Elves. He’s come to see the justice and truth in Hermione’s views, and he respects them. Hermione, on her part, has stopped trying to force the Elves out of slavery, and instead helps them by treating them as equals. And once Hermione sees that Ron *gets* that, that he *gets* what she’s been trying to say for the past four years, she can’t restrain herself any longer and kisses him. *glee*

Ron/Hermione and The War

And it works on a thematic level as well, because the theme of Wizards vs. Non-Wizards, and the connected theme of Purebloods vs. Non-Purebloods, has been brewing for some time now: The golden statue of Wizarding Superiority that Harry sees in the Ministry in Book 5, House Elves and Giants in Book 4, Centaurs and Goblins and their resentment of Wizards in Book 1, The Heir of Slytherin in Book 2, and so on. And this conflict really comes to a head in Book 7. Werewolves and goblins and elves and centaurs are choosing sides. Muggleborns are being investigated by the Ministry.

And Ron and Hermione’s relationship is part and parcel of this conflict. He’s a Pureblood from one of the oldest Wizarding families there is; she’s a Muggleborn. He’s grown up in an environment where the enslavement of House Elves is seen as the norm, and wizards wouldn’t dream of allowing Goblins to have wands; She’s new to this world and horrified by the inequality and abuse she sees everywhere. And their relationship is threatened by these divisions, because in a world where Voldemort wins this war, Ron/Hermione could not exist. In fact, Hermione herself could not exist. So in a way, Ron/Hermione coming into being as a ship is like a moral victory for Harry’s side in the War.

yahtzee63 pointed out that this was foreshadowed all the way back in Chamber of Secrets, where it appeared that the Heir of Slytherin was attacking Muggleborns. It’s significant that Ron plays the part of the chivalrous hero in that book: he tries to curse Malfoy with the slugs, he leaps out of his seat and threatens to kill Malfoy with his bare hands when Draco wishes that Hermione was dead, he’s the one who explains the term “Mudbloods” and exactly what it means for witches and wizards like Hermione.

And the theme recurs in Deathly Hallows with the trial of Mrs. Cattermole, the Muggleborn witch with a Pureblood husband. It’s not a coincidence, IMO, that it’s Ron who transforms into Reg Cattermole. Rowling wants us to take note of the parallels here. I think Hermione is fully aware of this aspect of their relationship–look at how strongly she responds when Ron starts worrying about the Cattermoles.

Hermione was watching Ron fret over the fate of the Cattermoles, and there was such tenderness in her expression that Harry felt almost as if he had surprised her in the act of kissing him. (Deathly Hallows, p.275)

She knows. She knows exactly why it’s bothering him so much, even if he doesn’t. I don’t think Ron’s nearly as conscious of the parallel, firstly because as a Pureblood he’d obviously be less sensitive to the existence of prejudice in the wizarding world, and secondly because he’s not nearly as analytical and self-aware as Hermione. But I think he dimly recognizes the connection on a subconscious level, and it’s one of the reasons why he’s so concerned about the Cattermoles, and feels so guilty about them. (Although obviously he’s basically a kind-hearted boy, and would feel bad about endangering innocent bystanders in any case.)

And the story of the wizard husband and his Muggleborn wife at the Ministry, and Ron’s concern over them, and Hermione’s love of Ron for his concern…Jo just let it be. She didn’t thrust the comparisons down our throats. She just…let us take it in. I love that.

Favorite Ron/Hermione Moments

I’ve mentioned quite a few above, but I’m listing some others below.

• Ron offering himself to Bellatrix in exchange for Hermione, then freaking the hell out while Hermione’s being tortured. I could feel his pain and despair and utter frustration and OMG. It was heart-wrenching.
• “Well, all’s fair in love and war, and this is a bit of both.” Oh, Ron. *ruffles his hair*
• psychic_serpent pointed out in this entry that the Deluminator is “a very romantic sort of homing device–it leads you to the missing part of your heart, or so it seems.” I hadn’t noticed that before, but it’s such an adorable thought, isn’t it?
• Ron pulling Hermione behind him on the broomstick as they search for the Diadem. Whee!!! And as I pointed out in an earlier post–they get two broomstick rides in this book. TWO!
• Hermione restraining Ron after Fred’s death, and telling him that they will fight, but they have to destroy the Horcruxes, they have to remain focused on the mission, they have to do what needs to be done. And his grief gears her up for battle, too, because she turns around and orders Harry to do what she’s been trying to stop him from doing for the entire book: look into Voldemort’s mind. “Do it, Harry–look inside him!” Wow.
• Hermione gazing up into Ron’s face when he and Tonks return after being chased by Death Eaters. “I thought–I thought–” Aw.
• Hermione’s reaction to Ron’s return in The Silver Doe. Hee! I loved that she didn’t forgive him straight away, I loved that she was so angry and lost control. “She looked quite demented.” And then her voice escalates into a range where only bats can hear her. Hee!
• A tiny little detail, but: Hermione saves Lavender Brown from Fenrir Greyback. I’m sure that was intentional, and I liked it. I’m not completely sure how we’re supposed to see this when we’re comparing it to the only moment in the book I really disliked, which was when Ginny told Luna to go with Harry instead of Cho, to see Ravenclaw’s diadem. I’m not going to comment, or elaborate further–I’m just…leaving it there. Discuss.

  ETA: *sigh* OK, in case this wasn’t obvious, the above remark concerning Ginny and H/G is not the main point of this post. (This is clearly obvious to most of you, and most of you were kind enough to discuss it rationally and calmly, even if you disagreed with me, so I’m addressing this to the minority who has been or will be offended by what I wrote.) I happen to think that H/G (and Ginny’s characterization in general) was one of the elements of the Harry Potter series that JKR did not handle particularly well. This is just my opinion. I did not in any way mean to imply that Ginny would not have saved Cho had she been in a parallel situation to Hermione in the final battle. Of course she would. We’re talking about life and death here, not petty romantic squabbles. But (again, IMO) I think the scene with Ginny, Cho, Luna, and Harry above was both entirely unnecessary and clumsily written, and did no service to Ginny as a character, especially when contrasted to how well and subtly R/Hr was written. That’s all I was trying to say. Phew.

méme si je n’ai pas tout compris ( c’est pas avec 4 ans d’anglais que je vais tout comprendre !!^^) je trouve ça bien écrit et ça résume bien !

super! j’étais contente de pouvoir lire cela mais je ne peux pas comprendre est-ce que vous pouvez le traduire?