Monday 29 October 2012
Thursday 25 October 2012
Halloween
As Halloween is edging nearer, the spirit is rising, the fear is building... Join in the festive spirit by giving us +1s and tonnes of comments, even SPOOKY jokes and wise cracks! You never know we might publish the joke you're holding in... Meanwhile examine this G.I.F. Don't you see something strange??? +1to all my readers!- Nawal
Exclusive Content
The subterranean Chamber of Secrets was created by Salazar Slytherin without the knowledge of his three fellow founders of Hogwarts. The Chamber was, for many centuries, believed to be a myth; however, the fact that rumours of its existence persisted for so long reveals that Slytherin spoke of its creation and that others believed him, or else had been permitted, by him, to enter.
There is no doubt that each of the four founders sought to stamp their own mark upon the school of witchcraft and wizardry that they intended would be the finest in the world. It was agreed that each would construct their own houses, for example, choosing the location of common rooms and dormitories. However, only Slytherin went further, and built what was in effect a personal, secret headquarters within the school, accessible only by himself or by those he allowed to enter.
Perhaps, when he first constructed the Chamber, Slytherin wanted no more than a place in which to instruct his students in spells of which the other three founders may have disapproved (disagreements sprung up early around the teaching of the Dark Arts). However, it is clear by the very decoration of the Chamber that by the time Slytherin finished it he had developed grandiose ideas of his own importance to the school. No other founder left behind them a gigantic statue of themselves or draped the school in emblems of their own personal powers (the snakes carved around the Chamber of Secrets being a reference to Slytherin’s powers as a Parselmouth).
What is certain is that by the time Slytherin was forced out of the school by the other three founders, he had decided that henceforth, the Chamber he had built would be the lair of a monster that he alone – or his descendants – would be able to control: a Basilisk. Moreover, only a Parselmouth would be able to enter the Chamber. This, he knew, would keep out all three founders and every other member of staff.
The existence of the Chamber was known to Slytherin’s descendants and those with whom they chose to share the information. Thus the rumour stayed alive through the centuries.
There is clear evidence that the Chamber was opened more than once between the death of Slytherin and the entrance of Tom Riddle in the twentieth century. When first created, the Chamber was accessed through a concealed trapdoor and a series of magical tunnels. However, when Hogwarts’ plumbing became more elaborate in the eighteenth century (this was a rare instance of wizards copying Muggles, because hitherto they simply relieved themselves wherever they stood, and vanished the evidence), the entrance to the Chamber was threatened, being located on the site of a proposed bathroom. The presence in school at the time of a student called Corvinus Gaunt – direct descendant of Slytherin, and antecedent of Tom Riddle – explains how the simple trapdoor was secretly protected, so that those who knew how could still access the entrance to the Chamber even after newfangled plumbing had been placed on top of it.
Whispers that a monster lived in the depths of the castle were also prevalent for centuries. Again, this is because those who could hear and speak to it were not always as discreet as they might have been: the Gaunt family could not resist boasting of their knowledge. As nobody else could hear the creature sliding beneath floorboards or, latterly, through the plumbing, they did not have many believers, and none, until Riddle, dared unleash the monster on the castle.
Successive headmasters and mistresses, not to mention a number of historians, searched the castle thoroughly many times over the centuries, each time concluding that the chamber was a myth. The reason for their failure was simple: none of them was a Parselmouth.The subterranean Chamber of Secrets was created by Salazar Slytherin without the knowledge of his three fellow founders of Hogwarts. The Chamber was, for many centuries, believed to be a myth; however, the fact that rumours of its existence persisted for so long reveals that Slytherin spoke of its creation and that others believed him, or else had been permitted, by him, to enter. There is no doubt that each of the four founders sought to stamp their own mark upon the school of witchcraft and wizardry that they intended would be the finest in the world. It was agreed that each would construct their own houses, for example, choosing the location of common rooms and dormitories. However, only Slytherin went further, and built what was in effect a personal, secret headquarters within the school, accessible only by himself or by those he allowed to enter. Perhaps, when he first constructed the Chamber, Slytherin wanted no more than a place in which to instruct his students in spells of which the other three founders may have disapproved (disagreements sprung up early around the teaching of the Dark Arts). However, it is clear by the very decoration of the Chamber that by the time Slytherin finished it he had developed grandiose ideas of his own importance to the school. No other founder left behind them a gigantic statue of themselves or draped the school in emblems of their own personal powers (the snakes carved around the Chamber of Secrets being a reference to Slytherin’s powers as a Parselmouth). What is certain is that by the time Slytherin was forced out of the school by the other three founders, he had decided that henceforth, the Chamber he had built would be the lair of a monster that he alone – or his descendants – would be able to control: a Basilisk. Moreover, only a Parselmouth would be able to enter the Chamber. This, he knew, would keep out all three founders and every other member of staff. The existence of the Chamber was known to Slytherin’s descendants and those with whom they chose to share the information. Thus the rumour stayed alive through the centuries. There is clear evidence that the Chamber was opened more than once between the death of Slytherin and the entrance of Tom Riddle in the twentieth century. When first created, the Chamber was accessed through a concealed trapdoor and a series of magical tunnels. However, when Hogwarts’ plumbing became more elaborate in the eighteenth century (this was a rare instance of wizards copying Muggles, because hitherto they simply relieved themselves wherever they stood, and vanished the evidence), the entrance to the Chamber was threatened, being located on the site of a proposed bathroom. The presence in school at the time of a student called Corvinus Gaunt – direct descendant of Slytherin, and antecedent of Tom Riddle – explains how the simple trapdoor was secretly protected, so that those who knew how could still access the entrance to the Chamber even after newfangled plumbing had been placed on top of it. Whispers that a monster lived in the depths of the castle were also prevalent for centuries. Again, this is because those who could hear and speak to it were not always as discreet as they might have been: the Gaunt family could not resist boasting of their knowledge. As nobody else could hear the creature sliding beneath floorboards or, latterly, through the plumbing, they did not have many believers, and none, until Riddle, dared unleash the monster on the castle. Successive headmasters and mistresses, not to mention a number of historians, searched the castle thoroughly many times over the centuries, each time concluding that the chamber was a myth. The reason for their failure was simple: none of them was a Parselmouth.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of SecretsChapter 16 - “The Chamber of Secrets”Exclusive Content - The Chamber of Secrets
Exclusive Content
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,
Chapter 17 - “The Heir of Slytherin”
EXCLUSIVE CONTENT: The Sword of Gryffindor
The sword of Gryffindor was made a thousand years ago by goblins, the magical world's most skilled metalworkers, and is therefore enchanted. Fashioned from pure silver, it is inset with rubies, the stone that represents Gryffindor in the hour-glasses that count the house points at Hogwarts. Godric Gryffindor's name is engraved just beneath the hilt.
The sword was made to Godric Gryffindor's specifications by Ragnuk the First, finest of the goblin silversmiths, and therefore King (in goblin culture, the ruler does not work less than the others, but more skillfully). When it was finished, Ragnuk coveted it so much that he pretended that Gryffindor had stolen it from him, and sent minions to steal it back. Gryffindor defended himself with his wand, but did not kill his attackers. Instead he sent them back to their king bewitched, to deliver the threat that if he ever tried to steal from Gryffindor again, Gryffindor would unsheathe the sword against them all.
The goblin king took the threat seriously and left Gryffindor in possession of his rightful property, but remained resentful until he died. This was the foundation for the false legend of Gryffindor's theft that persists, in some sections of the goblin community, to this day.
The question of why a wizard would need a sword, though often asked, is easily answered. In the days before the International Statute of Secrecy, when wizards mingled freely with Muggles, they would use swords to defend themselves just as often as wands. Indeed, it was considered unsporting to use a wand against a Muggle sword (which is not to say it was never done). Many gifted wizards were also accomplished duellists in the conventional sense, Gryffindor among them.
Much like a magic wand, the sword of Gryffindor appears to be almost sentient, responding to appeals for help by Gryffindor's chosen successors; and, similar to a wand, part of its magic is that the silver drinks in poison and blood, which may then be used against enemies.
There have been many enchanted swords in folklore. The Sword of Nuadu, part of the four legendary treasures of Tuatha Dé Danann, was invincible when drawn. Gryffindor's sword owes something to the legend of Excalibur, the sword of King Arthur, which in some legends must be drawn from a stone by the rightful king. The idea of fitness to carry the sword is echoed in the sword of Gryffindor's return to worthy members of its true owner's house.
There is a further allusion to Excalibur emerging from the lake when Harry must dive into a frozen forest pool to retrieve the sword in Deathly Hallows (though the location of the sword was really due to a spiteful impulse of Snape's to place it there), for in other versions of the legend, Excalibur was given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake, and was returned to the lake when he died.
Within the magical world, physical possession is not necessarily a guarantee of ownership. This concept applies to the three Deathly Hallows, and also to Gryffindor's sword.
I am interested in what happens when cultural beliefs collide. In the Harry Potter books, the most militant of the goblin race consider all goblin-made objects to be theirs by right, although a specific object might be made over to a wizard for his life-span upon a payment of gold. Witches and wizards, like Muggles, believe that once payment has been made, the object belongs to them and their descendants or legatees in perpetuity. This is a clash of values without a solution, because each side has a different concept of what is right. It therefore presents Harry with a difficult moral dilemma when Griphook demands the sword as payment for his services in Deathly Hallows- NawalThe sword of Gryffindor was made a thousand years ago by goblins, the magical world's most skilled metalworkers, and is therefore enchanted. Fashioned from pure silver, it is inset with rubies, the stone that represents Gryffindor in the hour-glasses that count the house points at Hogwarts. Godric Gryffindor's name is engraved just beneath the hilt. The sword was made to Godric Gryffindor's specifications by Ragnuk the First, finest of the goblin silversmiths, and therefore King (in goblin culture, the ruler does not work less than the others, but more skillfully). When it was finished, Ragnuk coveted it so much that he pretended that Gryffindor had stolen it from him, and sent minions to steal it back. Gryffindor defended himself with his wand, but did not kill his attackers. Instead he sent them back to their king bewitched, to deliver the threat that if he ever tried to steal from Gryffindor again, Gryffindor would unsheathe the sword against them all. The goblin king took the threat seriously and left Gryffindor in possession of his rightful property, but remained resentful until he died. This was the foundation for the false legend of Gryffindor's theft that persists, in some sections of the goblin community, to this day. The question of why a wizard would need a sword, though often asked, is easily answered. In the days before the International Statute of Secrecy, when wizards mingled freely with Muggles, they would use swords to defend themselves just as often as wands. Indeed, it was considered unsporting to use a wand against a Muggle sword (which is not to say it was never done). Many gifted wizards were also accomplished duellists in the conventional sense, Gryffindor among them. Much like a magic wand, the sword of Gryffindor appears to be almost sentient, responding to appeals for help by Gryffindor's chosen successors; and, similar to a wand, part of its magic is that the silver drinks in poison and blood, which may then be used against enemies. There have been many enchanted swords in folklore. The Sword of Nuadu, part of the four legendary treasures of Tuatha Dé Danann, was invincible when drawn. Gryffindor's sword owes something to the legend of Excalibur, the sword of King Arthur, which in some legends must be drawn from a stone by the rightful king. The idea of fitness to carry the sword is echoed in the sword of Gryffindor's return to worthy members of its true owner's house. There is a further allusion to Excalibur emerging from the lake when Harry must dive into a frozen forest pool to retrieve the sword in Deathly Hallows (though the location of the sword was really due to a spiteful impulse of Snape's to place it there), for in other versions of the legend, Excalibur was given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake, and was returned to the lake when he died. Within the magical world, physical possession is not necessarily a guarantee of ownership. This concept applies to the three Deathly Hallows, and also to Gryffindor's sword. I am interested in what happens when cultural beliefs collide. In the Harry Potter books, the most militant of the goblin race consider all goblin-made objects to be theirs by right, although a specific object might be made over to a wizard for his life-span upon a payment of gold. Witches and wizards, like Muggles, believe that once payment has been made, the object belongs to them and their descendants or legatees in perpetuity. This is a clash of values without a solution, because each side has a different concept of what is right. It therefore presents Harry with a difficult moral dilemma when Griphook demands the sword as payment for his services in Deathly Hallows- Nawal
Spoiler Alert!!!
Spoiler Alert! Read J.K. Rowling’s exclusive content from unreleased chapters of Chamber of Secrets now!
- SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! – Infamous Pottermore user SnitchSpirit168 has done it again. Somehow, someway, he has …
From what SnitchSpirit has gathered, there are (at least) two additional exclusive content entries in chapters 12-18 in Chamber of Secrets. One of them is a subjected on The Sword of Gryffindor and it appears to be very interesting from a few quick glances (we haven’t read it). The second is an extensive piece on the Chamber of Secrets – including its history and origin, as promised by Pottermore in yesterday’s announcement. You can scroll down below to read them.
According to our source, there is a third entry about Ghosts (in general) but SnitchSpirit has not shared it. Apparently we will also be able to read about how Jo chose the ingredients for the Polyjuice Potion. It will be exciting to read about it once they are online!
The New Scoop
''…but Hagrid stood his ground, took a deep breath and said carefully, ‘If anyone wanted ter find out some stuff, all they’d have ter do would be ter follow the spiders. That’d lead ’em right! That’s all I’m sayin’.'
Chapter Fourteen, Cornelius Fudge, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
You may have seen them on the Insider and on their Facebook and Twitter pages recently. Yes, we’re talking about our many-legged visitors and if you’ve noticed them, then you may have remembered Hagrid’s advice ‘ter follow the spiders’...
Chapter Fourteen, Cornelius Fudge, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Now, it’s your turn to find out some stuff as we can announce that the final and last instalment of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets will be released next week.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Moment: Cornish Pixies
Whilst recapturing those escaped Cornish Pixies, we hope you didn’t disturb the Hogwarts portraits or the unsteady bookshelves!
Let us know what other things you spotted in this Moment...
Let us know what other things you spotted in this Moment...
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Update and Moment Sneak Peek
This week, The Insider has been putting the finishing touches to the Basilisk’s hiss for the final chapters of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Aqsa and me are also delighted to give you an exclusive look at an upcoming Moment from Chapter Eighteen – Dumbledore Returns.
Aqsa and me are also delighted to give you an exclusive look at an upcoming Moment from Chapter Eighteen – Dumbledore Returns.
Sorry I Haven't Been Posting
The Last Installments
Keep your eyes peeled for the final chapters of The Chamber of Secrets which will be released next week, in time for Halloween.
It’s been revealed on the Pottermore Insider site that some exclusive content – including information on the origin and history of the Chamber Of Secrets – will be unveiled.
Chapters 9 -11 Hints and Tips
Here's the rest of the walkthrough for the newly released chapters. Spoilers are going to ensue, so if you haven't started chapters 9-11 then you may want to have a go by yourself first.
Chapter 9
- READ MORE: Hogwart's Ghosts
- Sardine Flavored Bean
- Liver and Tripe Flavored Bean
- Book: Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century
- Galleon
- Blue Quill
- Homework Scroll
- Leaches
- Bogey Flavored Bean
- Galleon
Chapter 10
- Book: Moste Potente Potions
- Beatrix Bloxham Card
- Coconut Flavored Bean
- Curry Flavored Bean
- Merwyn the Malicious Card
- Sponge
- Poppy Heads
Chapter 11
Once you have completed 'The Diversion' by making the Swelling Solution, you need to return to Snape's officeto find the supplies for the Polyjuice potion.
- Boomslang Skin
- Bicorn Horn
- Alberta Toothill Card
Chapters 5 -8 Hints and Tips
If you don’t want to see any spoilers as you make your way through the latest chapters on Pottermore then I suggest you don’t read any further. I will be releasing the hints and tips little by little, or, if you have Microsoft word, then I will put up my current notes to be downloaded and read.
It’s very likely that I’ve missed a fair amount, but if people want to comment and mention things they’ve found, providing the chapter and rough whereabouts then I’ll add them to my notes (for people who wish to download them) and to the blog posts, to help people along.
Without further ado, here is what I found:
Chapter 5
- READ MORE: King’s Cross Station
- Squashed Dragonfly
- Valerian Sprigs
- Root of Aconite
- Sprig of Lavender
- Toffee
- Joscelind Wadcock Chocolate Frog Card
- Fluxweed
- Eel’s eyes
- Spines of Lionfish
- Bicorn Horn [can be found after you've made a swelling solution]
- Boomslang Skin [can be found after you've made a swelling solution]
Chapter 6
- Grey Feather
- Pink Earmuffs
- Valerian Sprigs
- Small Trowel
- Dragon Dung
- Bat Wings
- Protective Gloves
- Dymphna Furmage Chocolate Frog Card
Chapter 7
- READ MORE: Pure-blood Wizards
- Bowman Wright Chocolate Frog Card
- Knotgrass
- Horned slug
- Lilac Ink
- Peacock Quill
- Signed Photo
- Bridget Wenlock Chocolate Frog Card
Chapter 8
- Jet black candle
- Galleon
- READ MORE: Peeves
- 5 galleons
- Hair of a Slytherin Student
- Liquorice Wand
- Droobles Best Blowing Gum
- Cauldron Cake
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