Walburga Black

[story645]

"For a split second, Harry thought he was looking through a window, a window behind which an old woman in a black cap was screaming" (77) This is a woman trapped by her beliefs, hurt by them, and not able to do anything but rage. This is Walburga Black, of the "Most Ancient House of Black".

Comments

[kerosinkanister]

Interesting essay. I'd never really thought much about Walburga aside from finding her painting rather annoying. Given what happened her sons and her house it's no wonder her painting rages, especially as she sees what was important to her become irrelevant. I think the nastiness her painting exhibits probably mirrors the impotence she felt in later life, now become truly impotent and only able to yell.

The Weasleys in particular probably got to her, as blood traitors, of course. But maybe she saw them as succesful to a degree in preserving their bloodline when hers essentially died.

[story645]

[quote]I think the nastiness her painting exhibits probably mirrors the impotence she felt in later life, now become truly impotent and only able to yell.[/quote]
Fabulous summation. I kept thinking of the Dylan Thomas peom "Do Not Go Gentle into the Good Night" when writing this.

The Weasley's probably drove her nuts on a number of levels. Happy family, everyone safe, alive, none of the children turning away. If Percy was alive, would she have felt malicious glee? Or a pang of sympathy?

[kerosinkanister]

That's a fantastic poem and I hadn't read it in years.

I think she'd feel torn over Percy. She'd be happy that he caused the other Weasleys pain but at the same time his rejecting what's important to the family might remind her of Sirius. When I first read your comment I had this image of Percy/Walburga. I'd say I bet no one's written that fic yet but it seems like someone has written every pairing. I stumbled across an author writing Hermione/Dumbledore tonight, ugh.

And I don't think the essay necessarily makes you a Walburga sympathizer. One doesn't have to agree with someone to be able to understand where they're coming from.

[story645]

Adultfanfic.net is the place to go (or stay away from) when it comes to OMG I can't believe someone wrote that. I'd actually like to see a fic that really had Walburga's painting thinking about Percy's rejection, or teasing the family about it, or something.

*shrugs* I take the sympathizer label as a joke anyway. I've written stuff about Percy and Peter and Malfoy, and probably most of the disliked people in fandom. I like to try to understand motivations, it makes the book more interesting when there's a story to every character.

[fernwithy]

My impression on the timing is that Mrs. Black hadn't taken side even before Regulus died--Sirius seems to think of his family (Bellatrix and Regulus aside) as people who followed Voldemort until they found out how far he was willing to go.

In other words, even Walburga Black had limits in what she was willing to do. Voldemort, after all, also was after a new world--he was tearing down the Ministry and most likely spitting in the face of all the Wizarding institutions. I guess I could see her like a British fascist during WWII. She doesn't necessarily have issues with the philosophy (even if she should), but that doesn't mean she wants to see Buckingham Palace torn down and Parliament gagged

[story645]

Hell she could have decided that yeah, Voldy may have been right, but no way was she gonna let a half-breed abomination from a family long out of favor tell her what to do and change her world. Yeah, could have been anything really. I'm with you on timing, so maybe Regulus just sealed that decision?

I agree with you on family, which makes me wonder how much of Sirius's loyalty he gets from his mother. I wonder if the Blacks were a close family, and if it was hard for Sirius to break away from them. If one of the reasons he became so close to James was to balance the break with his own family.

[fernwithy]

Even JKR draws some parallels between Sirius and his mother--when Harry first arrives, Sirius engages in a screaming match with her before he greets anyone else. He seems very engaged with her and the whole place (if in a negative way). I think the two of them were probably a lot alike in personality, just on opposite sides of the fence philosophically... which, with that personality type, is explosive.

[story645]

The screaming match is weird cause he was raised in the WW, he knows it's just a photo. It's just yelling at the wall, a fragment, and yet he still does it. That's a lot of passion for a woman he probably hasn't really interacted with in over 15 years.

[eir_de_scania]

But wizarding paintings aren't just that, like Mugle ones. They are, in a way alive. Walburgas portrait is quite capable of seeing what is happening in the house - and reacting to it.

[story645]

And do what? She can't kick anyone out of her house, she can't cast spells on them. She probably can't even really command Kreacher to do anything cause she isn't flesh and blood, so Sirius trumps her in terms of rights. She's just paint and some magic. So yeah she can react, but I already said that she does react, by yelling at the world.

[eir_de_scania]

You can't fight childhood nightmares with logic. I'm certain Sirius have too many memories of dear Mother when she was alive. I'm not surprised at his reaction, I know people who still froth at the moth when thinking about their parents who have been dead for years. Never underestimate childhood scarring

[story645]

But I don't know how much his mother scarred him. Weird was probably the wrong word to use. The scene was jarring cause it was meant to be jarring, cause yeah, you're right, there's still a lot of stuff left simmiring from that relationship.