A Harry Potter Essay: Did Molly Know?

For Sput!

a. And when did she know it?

b. Know what exactly?

c. And who is Molly?

That would be: a)When did she figure out that Ron had the hots for Hermione, b) that Ron had the “roaring beast” for Hermione and c) Molly is Ron mum.

I’m talking of course about Harry Potter and everyone favorite bunch of misfits redheads, the Weasleys, especially the matriarch of the family, Molly and her youngest son, Ronald Belius Weasley.

These questions popped into my head when I re-read Goblet of Fire. At the end of the book the Weasleys come to visit Harry (instead of the Durleys). They play the role of Harry’s family (as they do throughout the series).  When Molly sees Hermione, she treats her will a cold indifference bordering on hatred. None of the Weasleys (except, perhaps Percy) is known to act that way. In fact they are known for their fiery temperaments. The only other time that happens is when Ron finds out that Hermione had snugged Krum. Both show that the family member in question was really hurt by Hermione’s behavior (real or imagined). Now the simple explanation is that Molly thought of Harry as one of her own and did not like to see him hurt by anyone, even Hermione.

But was there something else?

Did Molly know (or suspect) that Ron had feelings for Hermione? I mean Hermione spent a awful lot of time with them (starting the summer between Year 3 and 4). In fact she spent every summer and multiple Xmases with the Weasleys. Molly certainly noticed how Ginny reacted around Harry when he first came into the Burrow (if eternally clueless Ron could make the connection I have no doubt Molly certainly did).  And Molly kept herself well informed about the lives of all her children, even those who had left the nest. I have no doubt that she knew about it, or at least had an inkling that Hermione and Ron’s relationship went well beyond just battling friends.

I mean, the arguing….

So, when she read Rita Skeeter’s story about Hermione playing with Harry’s affections, the reaction was not typical for Molly. Instead of telling her off the first moment she got, she treated her coldly.  I believe this is because she saw it as a rejection of Ron, who will always be her little boy (as the youngest of all the brothers although not of all her children, that honor belongs to Ginny).

Molly may think of Harry as her son, but he is not.

Molly probably thought, “Is my Ron not good enough for her?” which certainly would have hurt her and if Hermione was also hurting Harry, well that pushed Molly over the edge, beyond anger and into tranquil fury territory. Besides, she knows her children well and I suspect the reason why she allowed Hermione under her roof was that she saw in her aspects that Ron lacked, like discipline and wisdom.

There is also the part that Hermione acts very much as the mother of the Trio, which is, I suspect, the reason why her behavior irks Ron so much. Who would want to have someone mothering them 24/7?

Besides, you know what they say about Mothers, Sons and Wives….

In the end, I think Molly knew all along,although curiously she doesn’t try to interfere apart from the incident in GoF and having Hermione over as much as she could manage, she tried the same trick with Tonks and Lupin although the kids thought he was trying to distract Bill from marrying Fleur (spoiler: it didn’t work) .

I mean it so obvious, that the writers (and the actors) of the movies caught on pretty quickly, (link edited due to the fact that YouTube yanked the original).

Well that’s enough of Harry Potter for now.

Happy Holidays!