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glumph comments on Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality discussion thread, part 12 - Less Wrong Discussion

5 Post author: Xachariah 25 March 2012 11:01AM

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Comment author: glumph 26 March 2012 03:00:38AM *  3 points [-]

I think you're right that Hypothesis 2 is more likely than H1. However, both assume that some tale (true or false) about Voldemort visiting the school has been circulated in wizard Britain. But as far as we know, that tale is told for the first time in Quirrell's class. As always, Quirrell is our only source:

"The Dark Lord was foolish to wish that story retold. It did not show his strength, but rather an exploitable weakness" (ch 19).

Of course, if this is the first time the story is told, people may wonder how Quirrell knows. But this is the same chapter in which Quirrell rather blatantly lies and claims to have been a Slytherin, when he (Quirrell, not Voldemort) in fact wasn't.

Comment author: see 26 March 2012 05:00:36AM *  3 points [-]

Yes, that's one of the intermediate hypotheses. Call it 1.5 --

Hypothesis 1.5: Voldemort stupidly destroyed a school (instead of coming back later in disguise to learn the martial art), but was smart enough to not spread the tale. Then as Quirrel, he spread misinformation to his enemies that would cause them to underestimate both Voldemort's abilities (now that he's learned the martial art from Quirrel) and his self-control (Quirrelmort having more than the old Voldemort).

It works with what we "know", but still seems to me to be too Canon!Voldemort and not enough MoR!Voldemort for my taste.

Comment author: JoshuaZ 26 March 2012 03:27:37AM 1 point [-]

Quirrell rather blatantly lies and claims to have been a Slytherin, when he (Quirrell, not Voldemort) in fact wasn't.

Sorry, how do we know this?

Comment author: glumph 26 March 2012 03:35:02AM 5 points [-]

This came up in one of the previous threads:

"Indeed," said Professor Quirrell. "So while there's no point in asking any of you, it would not surprise me in the slightest if there were a student or two in my classes who harbored ambitions of being the next Dark Lord. After all, I wanted to be the next Dark Lord when I was a young Slytherin" (ch 19).

But during the interrogation we get this:

After some further leafing through parchments, carried out in silence, the Auror spoke again. "Born the 26th of September, 1955, to Quondia Quirrell, of an acknowledged tryst with Lirinus Lumblung..." intoned the Auror. "Sorted into Ravenclaw... (ch 79)

Comment author: pedanterrific 26 March 2012 03:39:47AM 5 points [-]

I think JoshuaZ meant we don't know for sure that Scrimgeour wasn't lying to trip Quirrell up, the way he did with the Fuyuki thing. (The fact that canonically Quirrell was in Ravenclaw argues against this, but it doesn't seem a sure thing.)

Comment author: buybuydandavis 28 March 2012 06:25:32AM 2 points [-]

I'll go with Quirrellmort forgot he was supposed to be Quirrell for a second, and instead was just being honest.

Comment author: bramflakes 26 March 2012 05:44:54PM 0 points [-]

My first thought when reading that was that they were simply falsified records.

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