I’m SO Curious... How DO You Think Gender Plays A Role In Harry And Ginny’s Respective Interactions

I’m SO curious... how DO you think gender plays a role in Harry and Ginny’s respective interactions with Voldemort? I’d never thought of it, and now I’m fully invested🤩

i honestly wanna write a fucking academic paper with like, sources™, on this some day because there’s so much there. but i’m thrilled you asked so here are some thoughts to get us started:

(cw for gendered violence and abuse, nothing graphic)

so i picked out harry and ginny specifically because many of their peers only know voldemort as this far-away, larger-than-life villain: like, he’s the wizard fascist they read about in the daily prophet, whose goals and views they’re opposed to and which they might be personally affected by, yes (losing loved ones to fighting him, directly suffering under voldemort’s regime because they’re muggleborn etc.), but they don’t know that guy personally, and he doesn’t know them either. it’s been pointed out before, and it bears repeating here, that even ron and hermione don’t even lay eyes on the guy until book 7.

harry, being our protagonist, gets personally singled out thanks to the prophecy and the ensuing boy who lived / chosen one shenanigans. he gets to have his very own hero’s journey™, gets personally antagonised by voldemort and ultimately tasked with his defeat. this makes a larger-than-life figure out of harry as well, a symbol of hope and resistance, an opposing force to voldemort’s evil.

ginny also encounters voldemort as a personal evil, but that experience differs from harry and voldemort in some significant ways: that dynamic is well-known and witnessed by the public: he’s famous for his part in this ultimate fight of good vs evil, and he literally defeats voldemort in front of an audience and then goes down in history for it. the struggle of ginny vs tom goes almost entirely unnoticed and unwitnessed, except for a few close friends and family members, if it all. (yada yada yada lucky you.) we’re around for harry’s fight against voldemort from start to finish, the books are constructed around it, and hardly witness ginny’s. most of the diary stuff happens off-page and we don’t even find out until it’s too late to prevent it, and then again, too late to give her some sort of company in the aftermath.

(not to go on a whole tangent on the gendered dichotomy of (feminine) private and (masculine) public spheres in (for example) victorian literature but that's part of what i’m getting at here.)

(if it wasn’t glaringly obvious from this and also everything else i have ever posted on this blog, i’m a million times more interested in reading harry and ginny as two sides of the same coin than i am harry and malfoy. fuck that guy and get me more ginny meta)

ginny’s own villain actually isn’t voldemort: it’s very specifically a memory of riddle, and while voldemort makes no secret out of antagonising harry, the riddle in the diary uses ginny by pretending to be her friend. so ginny’s dynamic with riddle is full of themes of gaslighting, manipulation and loss of bodily autonomy (when she’s being possessed), and while none of that is exclusive to women, of course, being gaslit or manipulated by abusive or violent men, especially trusted men, is a familiar experience to a lot of women and often appears in tandem with patriarchal structures and misogyny. think about how women murdered by men tend to die at the hands of their partners or ex-partners, for example. even given that he isn’t one, riddle shares a lot of characteristics with a textbook abusive ex-boyfriend.

that’s not even getting into the gendered horror tropes, specifically, that surround ginny! like literally getting possessed! like the accusations of insanity that likely followed! oh my god! and that part is very interesting because harry actually also experiences that starting in ootp. let me comb through a dozen papers on the topic and get back to you later with conclusions, i’m just going to leave that here for now. separate dissertation on ginny as a horror protagonist, yes i absolutely have thoughts on that, will be saved for another time.

there’s absolutely more, but i’m leaving it at that for now and if i can’t help myself i’ll make a part two, but i’m also supposed to be writing a whole multichapter fic exploring all of this, so we’ll talk about this more in 2029, probably.

More Posts from Cmoneman and Others

1 month ago

thinking about how in gof, sirius says “ever since i found out snape was teaching here, i’ve wondered why dumbledore hired him” and goes onto explain how snape was famous for the dark arts at school and part of a slytherin gang that all turned out to be death eaters (who we later find out were attacking students with dark magic). so he’s one of the only people to immediately be like “why the fuck is dumbledore letting snape teach children”. then says that as far he knows snape was never even accused of being a death eater but many of them were never caught. but when ron keeps insisting that snape must be a death eater, sirius disagrees and reasons it out, because he doesn’t think it makes sense based on the facts, and also because: “there’s still the fact that dumbledore trusts snape, and i know dumbledore trusts where a lot of other people wouldn’t, but i just can’t see him letting snape teach at hogwarts if he’d ever worked for voldemort.” (so even while questioning dumbles, sirius clearly still has way too much faith in him. which makes everything in ootp extra infuriating). anyways, sirius was willing to give snape the benefit of the doubt on being a death eater, like, he’s perfectly capable of being rational about snape and not jumping to conclusions despite his hatred of him!

and then at the end of gof he finds out that snape WAS in fact a death eater, and sirius has no proof or reason to believe that snape has actually changed, all he has to work off of is that Dumbledore Trusts Snape, even though all sirius knows is that snape literally tried to hand him (and remus) to the fucking dementors and outed remus, and witnessed snape going unhinged at his godson and two other teenagers in the same scene.

and now he has to work alongside snape knowing that he apparently paid no consequences for his death eater past, wasn’t even so much as accused of being one (not unlike lucius malfoy and karkaroff and the others who did deals with the ministry and clearly haven’t changed their ways, who sirius shows bitterness towards in gof) while sirius was branded as one by the ministry and the whole wizarding world and unjustly imprisoned for it for 12 years without even getting a trial.

and snape is constantly taunting him about the fact that he can’t leave the house and help the order because of the world STILL thinking that sirius is a death eater and murderer because of that very same unjust imprisonment that the fascist hate group snape joined directly fucking caused, and snape the actual former death eater is able to do these things and live freely because he got away with it all. and he might complain about it but sirius still puts up with all of that for months along with all the other shit he has to deal with in ootp.

then he’s told that snape has to teach harry occlumency, and makes sure to sit with harry rather than letting snape talk to him alone, and is apparently the ONLY one to question this clearly terrible stupid ass decision and ask why dumbledore can’t teach him instead. yeah sirius starts off with a petty comment or two but harry even looks to sirius to intervene on his behalf, and sirius does. sirius calmly and firmly warns snape not to use occlumency lessons to give harry a hard time, to which snape responds by insulting not only his fifteen year old godson but his dead best friend, that voldemort, who snape WORKED FOR, literally murdered, to sirius’s face. OF COURSE SIRIUS IS GONNA LOSE IT. ANYONE WOULD. and the first thing sirius says is “i don’t care if dumbledore thinks you’ve reformed, i know better” and refers to snape being lucius malfoy’s lapdog bc he knows they were fellow death eater buddies at hogwarts and during the war, like wow i wonder why sirius would have doubts about snape’s loyalties, especially after what he just said??!? this is not an example of sirius’s supposed ~crazy uncontrollable temper~, any normal person would want to throw down at something like that, personally i think sirius showed an impressive amount of self control for managing to wait that long to try to hex snape. AND he makes sure to give harry the mirrors specifically so harry can contact him if snape treats him badly, because that’s all sirius can do at that point when he’s powerless and his input is being completely ignored.

anyways it’s truly a tragedy that sirius never even got to find out that snape was the death eater who told voldemort about the prophecy, i think sirius deserved to know and go completely unhinged at snape!!! as was his right!!!!!

2 months ago

"who radicalized you" ever since i was a child i wanted other people to be treated nicely and fairly because i didnt understand why theyd deserve otherwise and it fills me with disgust seeing how people treat their fellow human beings sometimes

2 years ago
221115 RM’s Instagram Stories
221115 RM’s Instagram Stories

221115 RM’s Instagram Stories

Image 1 Translation:

Things I know Kang Ik-joong

The sky is light green just before a storm When I am lost coming out of the subway, I should go the opposite way of where I think I should go The best smell is the smell of a pencil board you just bought at a stationary store in front of the school The compliments you hear at a young age stay with you for a long time The ratio of garlic chives to pork when making dumplings is two to one No matter how much of a rush you’re in, you should not run in front of someone who is physically unwell Stars in the night sky are not Christmas decorations Stage fright occurs when I try to show a greater side of myself You do not hear farts on an airplane Rich people are good at straightening out their cash Good ideas come out of morning showers People who are impatient always get the bill first  Anything under the sky is psychology Opportunities come around again There aren’t a lot of things that you really need

Trans cr; Annie & Aditi @ bts-trans © TAKE OUT WITH FULL CREDITS

Image 2 Translation: It will come true  Kang Ik-joong

It comes true when you draw it in your heart It will come true when you draw it on a paper It comes true when you are full  It will come true when you share it first  It comes true when you are diligent  It will come true when you are relaxed from time to time  It comes true when the water in your heart is calm  It will come true when the you see yourself in that water  Above all, it will come true when you love  Even if it’s a nameless wild flower Even if it’s a wind that passes by Also It will come true when you look at the moon

Trans cr; Annie @ bts-trans © TAKE OUT WITH FULL CREDITS


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1 month ago

controversial headcanon is that Sirius black didn’t play quidditch while at Hogwarts

4 months ago

By popular demand (😂) Best Trope Ever rec list is back for Part 2: “Jily from Snape’s POV” *everybody cheered*! (See Part 1 here)

change the prophecy by ninazenikcult

Severus overhears an intimate conversation between Lily and James at the end of Seventh Year that confirms his worst fear; that he has lost Lily Evans forever.

Eavesdropping by @sofargoneao3

Severus watches as Lily falls for James.

Slipping Away by @yallthemwitches

Snape didn't think his life could get much worse---until Lily was falling in love with James Potter right before his eyes. A compilation of 3 particular moments between 6th and 7th year.

Not a Bang, But a Whimper by yallofthemwitches

During their sixth year, Severus Snape goes out after curfew to give information to Lily that he thinks will bring them back together. Unfortunately, he finds her already with someone else. A companion piece to my other oneshot "Slipping Away" for Jily Week 2024, Day 7: Continuation Station

Legilimens by yallofthemwitches

Perhaps the real James was doing it on purpose--using memories of Lily to either drive him insane or to push away the real secrets that hid beyond. If it was true, he was succeeding on all accounts. During a duel, Snape attempts Legilimency on James. Canon compliant. Oneshot

Playing Dirty by yallofthemwitches (big thanks for feeding this trope!)

When Lily won against Potter during dueling practice, Snape couldn't think of a better way to finally rekindle their friendship. But Potter was a sore loser and Lily seemed far too willing to entertain him.

Rumor Has It by @tedwardremus

Severus doesn't believe the rumors that Lily finally agreed to go out with James Potter.

inevitability by peachiekeens

The snotty one tried to trip him on the way out, and Lily stamped on his foot hard enough to elicit a gasp as they emerged into the corridor. “That’s what Gryffindors are like, Lily.” Severus said matter-of-factly as the door closed behind them. Lily nodded, but her eyes were far away. Severus had a sinking feeling in his chest. They didn’t talk about the sorting again. OR The development of James and Lily's relationship, as seen through Severus Snape's eyes.

4 months ago

Arguing that James Potter’s death meant nothing is such a fundamental misunderstanding of the narrative that it makes me wonder if people have even read the books.

This is a man who ran headfirst toward his death in a desperate attempt to give his wife and son a chance to escape. A selfless, brave act of love that stands in contrast with Voldemort's personal war against death and Snape's desperate plea to bargain for the life of Lily while not caring if her husband or child dies.

James isn’t just a character who dies early, off-page, before the main character is introduced—he becomes a specter who haunts the entire story.

James’s absence profoundly shapes Harry’s journey as he struggles to define himself. His sense of masculinity and self-worth is deeply tied to the father he never knew but constantly strives to emulate. Sirius and Remus, broken by their shared loss, are mere shadows of their former selves, their lives forever marked by James’s death. Even Voldemort acknowledges James with a twisted form of respect when he taunts Harry in the graveyard.

To say James’s death means nothing disregards the emotional heart of the series. Harry’s story is fundamentally about grief—his desperate longing to connect with the family stolen from him, and his eventual journey toward acceptance. It’s about learning to live fully in the face of loss, choosing life over despair, and understanding death not as an enemy but as an inevitable companion.

James’s death isn’t meaningless—it’s pivotal. It echoes throughout the series.

James’s death means everything.

2 months ago

I'm in love, your honor

8 for Quidditch is for Losers <3

Did any real people or events inspire any part of Quidditch is for Losers?

One time, when my daughter was young and I was sleep-deprived, I watched her play in a mirror. She was delighted. She gazed at her hands, flipped them back and forth. She giggled at the way her fingers wriggled. She made faces, laughed, danced around, played hide-and-seek. She marveled at the way her legs moved, running in place. She was enchanted with her own being. She looked at herself and loved what she saw, not because of comparison or achievement – just because being alive and being her was marvelous. That’s where Ginny is at the beginning of QifL: Ginny loves being Ginny. She has no doubt, no fear, there’s nothing self-conscious about her. She has goals and dreams - it never occurs to her those might be out of reach. Sure, she’s failed before. But failure’s not the finish, it’s just a mile marker in a race she’s only halfway through. “Anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve” isn’t a motto yet, because life hasn’t put a condition on “possible.” At this point, she’s more “anything’s possible…duh." As we get older, we lose that sense of marvel, sense of self-as-miracle. We start to believe there’s something wrong with us. And that’s pretty much the story: Ginny’s purest self, Ginny’s fall, Ginny’s fear, and Ginny’s slow climb back to “Anything’s possible.”


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1 month ago

I think Remus was a tiny bit inlove with Lily.

It was safer for him to have cruches on unavailable ppl. That's why he was so surprised when Tonks fell in love with him and was able to reciprocate his feelings. In his mind, she was too young, free and vivacious to notice him.

(I'm not a wolfstar believer in Canon)

Ooh I think it is totally in character for him to pick safe crushes he never thought would like him back

What a shame Tonks actually reciprocated lol

4 months ago

The image of ariana accusing albus of dragging another child to martyrdom is delightfully haunting. The apparitions from the stone are stranger and somehow more ghastly than ghosts; ghosts make a choice, often a shortsighted one, by which they are forever tormented. Btu they mind their own business. The stone was touched by death's own hand -- the stone's apparitions are meant to be a phantom of the dead person's actual soul, but here we have a child accusing her brother who's lived past a hundred. Is it just albus' guilt he is projecting onto the apparition or has ariana actually absorbed some of it for herself, being tethered to this world as an unwilling part of albus' plotting once again?

Something just occured to me!

So we see Dumbledore wearing the Gaunt ring all throughout HBP, right. And we know he put it on and got his hand all burnt because he was desperate to use the stone to see his sister and mother again.

So like, all throughout HBP, was Dumbledore just casually seeing his dead sister and mother all the time. He had the stone. He wore the ring, even after it wasn't a Horcrux anymore. Which if anything was a more dangerous move than just putting it away somewhere as Voldemort could've seen it in the memories of anyone's mind he read who had come into contact with Dumbledore and seen him wear the ring. So there's literally no reason to wear it unless he's still using the stone to see his mum and sister.

But also! The whole thing about the stone is that it calls you to your own death, right? And Dumbledore knows he's dying and that he doesn't have long left. So I just imagine every single interaction he has with Harry, Ariana is just standing at Harry's shoulder, staring at Dumbledore with big eyes, because here's another child that's going to be sacrificed by his actions.

And maybe when he drinks the drink of despair, that's who he's apologising to. Not the visions of the past, but the wraiths in the present, standing grey and ghostly by him as he pleads with them to understand that he's doing what needs to be done, even as Harry is nearly killed by the teeming dead in the cave.

1 month ago

tell me lily and Snape didn't invent new magical drug potions while smoking (gilly)weed in moaning myrtle's bathroom and I won't believe you

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cmoneman - purple clouds and a peeled grape moon
purple clouds and a peeled grape moon

This lil puddle of an ex-poet, stressed medical student, ARMY, potterhead, etc. Watch your step, dear

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