42
It's probably down to culture.
Note Ludo Bagman's immediate scepticism to the idea that the carpet could supplant the broom.
“Well, they’ll never replace brooms in Britain, will they?” said Bagman.
(Goblet of Fire, Chapter 7, Bagman and Crouch).
Flying carpets aren't banned everywhere. They are legal in Asia. The only place that we know where they are ...
39
If we trust Dumbledore, Riddle had already killed his father long before he made the ring into a Horcrux.
Dumbledore deduces that the ring was turned into a Horcrux only after Voldemort had decided that he no longer wanted to wear it. Since he was wearing it when he asked Slughorn about Horcruxes then he must have killed his father and captured the ring ...
32
Quirrell probably visited both Germany and Albania on his travels.
The only time we hear about Quirrell's time in the Black Forest was from Hagrid, who in turn is recounting rumours he's heard about his travels.
"He was fine while he was studyin’ outta books but then he took a year off ter get some first-hand experience...They say he met vampires in the ...
15
I think you are reading too much into Crouch's use of your embargo.
Arthur says he didn't allow Ali Bashir to import flying carpets because they are on the "Registry of Proscribed Charmable Objects". The "embargo" may be Arthur's rejection of this particular import request.
Flying carpets could have been added to the "Registry of Proscribed Charmable ...
15
The detention actually was for a useful purpose. In fact, Hagrid specifically contrasts this useful detention with Malfoy's preferred detention which really is useless:
(All quotes from Chapter Sixteen of Philosopher's Stone.)
"But this is servant stuff, it's not for students to do. I thought we'd be copying lines or something, if my father knew I was ...
9
London is crowded.
If people use brooms to go from point A to point B, when they arrive, they can toss their broom into a closet. If a muggle drops by unexpectedly, the extra broom in the closet would barely raise an eyebrow.
If people used carpets to go from point A to point B, when they arrive, what would they do with their carpet? Throw it on an empty ...
6
So why was it that specifically in Harry's year everyone was too overwhelmed to care about McGonagall's transformation?
You nailed it. It's Harry's year, both for the batch of students and the student picked for "you die this year". Harry's always in mortal trouble to begin with. That's why everyone is disturbed by Trelawney's prediction: it's believable.
...
6
I assume that Barty Crouch Jr., having spent months impersonating another individual, had gotten pretty good at being sneaky and quick. He slipped into Snape's office (and may or may not, on that visit, have stolen some boomslang skin or other ingredients), then darted somewhere else, to be seen in disguise as Moody.
He was never out of his disguise. He ...
6
In this answer I argued at length that there was a gap between the murders/theft of the ring and making the ring a Horcrux. The salient points:
Dumbledore states that the diary was the first Horcrux.
Dumbledore states that Riddle killed his father in the summer of his 16th year (i.e. ~5 months before he turned 16).
Riddle was at least 16 when he made the ...
6
It may be a matter of safety.
Consider the stance usually shown when characters ride a broom in HP:
Because they straddle it, their legs at least partially surround the shaft of the broom at all times. This helps to secure them to the broom to some extent, even moreso if they keep their legs together.
They also (except in some situations while playing ...
5
Of course there is no canon on this, but I think it is a safety issue - not riding safety, mind you, but NON-riding safety. Consider the case of a Muggle (e.g a police officer) entering a Wizard's home while the Wizard is absent. A broom may be safely stored in a closet, or even just leaned against the wall in an out-of-the-way corner, and there is ...
5
Dumbledore refers to him in the past tense in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The clear implication is that he's dead, but there's no solid confirmation in any of the books or (as far as I'm aware) any of the supporting materials or interviews to offer any specifics on the how or the when.
Dumbledore gave the Pensieve an extra-vigorous shake and ...
5
Based upon the revelation that Moody was actually Barty Crouch Jr. at the end of the book, it can be implied that the Marauder's Map can see through Polyjuice Potion or any other means of concealment (probably another reason why Moody wanted to "borrow" the map from Harry).
It didn't matter whether Crouch Jr. was taking Polyjuice Potion or not, if Harry ...
3
I had a very different feeling when reading these lines.
Trade wars
The only decisive difference between a flying carpet and magical broom is their origin. Carpets are manufactured somewhere in the Orient, the brooms are homeland product.
Banning the carpets does not provide more safety, more secrecy, or more utility to the populace.
(I know, the answers ...
2
If you have a spell failure while flying a broom, you are a stranded pedestrian with a broom, or preferably an oddly shaped package. (Assuming that brooms, like cars, generally act progressively more flaky long before they completely conk out. It's really rare to have a car die on the highway without the driver having enough time to pull over to the side, ...
1
In the book he doesn't run out, he just forgets to take it frequently that night.
When Crouch (still appearing to be Moody) is knocked out, Dumbledore says the following.
But I think, in the excitement of tonight, our fake Moody might have forgotten to take
(the Polyjuice potion) as frequently as he should have done...on the hour...every
hour**.... ...
1
I think the love potions the twins sell are legal, because they wear off after 12 hours, "depending on the weight of the boy in question and how attractive the girl is" (HBP)
This leads me to believe it is not Amortentia the twins are selling, but rather a simpler, (mostly) harmless potion. Amortentia, however, is "the most powerful love potion in the world"...
1
It is clear that Voldemort was never there. Voldemort made Harry think things that were not true such as Sirius being in the Ministry when really he was actually was at 12 Grimmauld Place! Also, Voldemort would have no reason to just randomly stand around in a platform, shaking his head, wearing a suit. Even Muggles would think he looks odd. This is clearly ...
Only top voted, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible
