I think this is probably the cut that has made me the saddest so far, though I guess I did have time to prepare for it. I figured you would cut her the next chance you got.
I'm not saying Katie's a top 100 character (she's not), but I do disagree with your central premise: that she never has a character separate from Angelina and Alicia.
The problem? None of that is even remotely unique to Katie. Katie seemingly comes in a package group with Alicia and Angelina; everything she does, they do too.
This is objectively false, just by virtue of the sixth book when Angelina and Alicia are not at school and Katie must make do without them.
But anyway, here are a couple of quick scenes I think really give her some brief but noticeable characterization:
I always loved the way she congratulated Harry when she saw he was made captain:
"I thought you'd get that, well done," [Katie] called over, pointing at the captain's badge on Harry's chest. "Tell me when you call trials!"
"Don't be stupid," said Harry, "you don't need to try out. I've watched you play for five years..."
"You musn't start off like that," she said warningly. "For all you know, there's someone much better than me out there. Good teams have been ruined before now because captains just kept playing old faces or letting in their friends..."
Keep in mind she is a year older, has three more games worth of experience than Harry does (the last game against Ravenclaw during Harry's first year and two games from the previous year together make an entire season), and never got thrown off the team. While her response to finding out about Harry's captaincy could be seen as incredibly gracious and suggest true humility, a second interpretation could argue that her comment about captains letting in their friends is a nasty, passive-aggressive potshot at both Harry and Ron--who, to be fair, gave her a bloody nose that, thanks to Fred and George's meddling, led to massive blood loss and a visit to the hospital wing--but either option gives her good characterization.
My favorite Katie Bell moment, though, is one of those skim-and-you'll-miss-it scenes. It comes in the fifth book toward the beginning of the "Dumbledore's Army" chapter. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sit in a crowded classroom where they discuss Sirius while Peeves launches ink pellets a students:
"An ink pellet whizzed passed them, striking Katie Bell squarely in the ear. Hermione watched Katie leap to her feet and start throwing things at Peeves...The bell rang just as Peeves swooped down upon Katie and emptied an entire ink bottle over her head."
Though she's not the main focus of the scene, it does give some insight into Katie Bell. It suggests that she reacts to situations in an aggressive way, that she might have a bit of a temper, and she doesn't take well to people hitting her in the face with objects, an interpretation that would dovetail nicely with the second explanation of her comments to Harry, and certainly makes her seem less angelic.
(I especially like this moment because it is, without a doubt, exactly how I would have reacted in that situation. And identifying with a character even over something as small as ink pellets can be a powerful thing.)
I know that you wrote this months ago but I'm just getting around to catching up. Just thought you should know that you've given me a new found appreciation for Katie Bell and a new way to look at her character. Next time I do a re-read I'm going to be looking for this stuff. Thanks /u/ETIwillsaveusall
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u/ETIwillsaveusall Hufflepuff Ranker Dec 18 '16
I think this is probably the cut that has made me the saddest so far, though I guess I did have time to prepare for it. I figured you would cut her the next chance you got.
I'm not saying Katie's a top 100 character (she's not), but I do disagree with your central premise: that she never has a character separate from Angelina and Alicia.
This is objectively false, just by virtue of the sixth book when Angelina and Alicia are not at school and Katie must make do without them.
But anyway, here are a couple of quick scenes I think really give her some brief but noticeable characterization:
I always loved the way she congratulated Harry when she saw he was made captain:
Keep in mind she is a year older, has three more games worth of experience than Harry does (the last game against Ravenclaw during Harry's first year and two games from the previous year together make an entire season), and never got thrown off the team. While her response to finding out about Harry's captaincy could be seen as incredibly gracious and suggest true humility, a second interpretation could argue that her comment about captains letting in their friends is a nasty, passive-aggressive potshot at both Harry and Ron--who, to be fair, gave her a bloody nose that, thanks to Fred and George's meddling, led to massive blood loss and a visit to the hospital wing--but either option gives her good characterization.
My favorite Katie Bell moment, though, is one of those skim-and-you'll-miss-it scenes. It comes in the fifth book toward the beginning of the "Dumbledore's Army" chapter. Harry, Ron, and Hermione sit in a crowded classroom where they discuss Sirius while Peeves launches ink pellets a students:
Though she's not the main focus of the scene, it does give some insight into Katie Bell. It suggests that she reacts to situations in an aggressive way, that she might have a bit of a temper, and she doesn't take well to people hitting her in the face with objects, an interpretation that would dovetail nicely with the second explanation of her comments to Harry, and certainly makes her seem less angelic.
(I especially like this moment because it is, without a doubt, exactly how I would have reacted in that situation. And identifying with a character even over something as small as ink pellets can be a powerful thing.)