Faith of GeekyZooGirl and Micheline of Lunar Rainbow Reviews are hosting the Harry Potter Month in July and I'm on board! People can compete in the House Cup by accumulating house points. I'll be earning said house points by posting about Harry Potter among other Harry Potter related activities! This year I will be representing Hufflepuff!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY NEVILLE!
In honor of Neville's birthday, I'm going to share why I love Neville so freaking much! Where to start with Neville? There are so many reasons that Neville is an incredibly important character even if many other characters don't recognize it. Just the fact that he could have been in Harry's position had Voldemort chose to kill his parents instead of Harry's, is a mark of the kind of wizard Neville is.
Neville is a Gryffindor. The Sorting Hat doesn't make wrong decisions; it puts people where they will flourish. That means Neville's has courage, chivalry, and determination. And if anyone was still questioning why Neville was sorted into Gryffindor, the sword of Gryffindor puts all that to rest. Dumbledore says it best:"
only a true Gryffindor could pull that sword out of the hat."
But way before that, he was proving his awesomeness. I've talked about this a lot, but it will never stop being important. An 11-year-old Neville, who isn't quite sure of himself and definitely doesn't think he's a very capable wizard, stands up to his friends. He is well aware that this might be the reason he has no friends next year, but he tries to stop Harry, Ron and Hermione from sneaking out anyway. That take an awful lot of courage, courage enough to warrant him receiving the 10 points that win Gryffindor the house cup in his first year! Again Dumbledore says it best: "
It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies, but just as much to stand up to your friends."
Let's not forget how incredibly lovable Neville is; he's clumsy and forgetful, but he's genuine. You won't ever find a time when Neville wasn't 100% himself. He got picked on quite a bit when he was younger and don't even get me started on how Snape treated him. ARGGGG. That didn't stop him from being authentic. He doesn't know how to be anyone else.
Neville certainly did not have an easy childhood. His parents are in St. Mungo's; they don't even really know who he is other than a nice boy. His Gran raised him but she was pretty harsh. Neville talks about his Gran's constant critique and disappointment in him. His family even feared he was a squib at one point. I don't think he had quite a miserable time growing up as Harry, but from the glimpse into his childhood we get, they can't have been easy. I mean, his uncle tossed him out a window hoping that magic would present itself! Who does that?
But he's definitely his parent's child. For a long time he had a severe lack of self-worth and self-confidence, and it's because of how he grew up. I'm sure part of that was living up to his parent's legacy. I think that's the real reason he didn't show signs of magic until the last minute because he didn't believe he could. But even with all of this learned self-shame, we begin to see signs of the man Neville would become right from the start. He is strong-willed and perseverant, and when people start showing faith in him, he starts to believe that he deserves to be excellent.
"
It's high time your grandmother learned to be proud of the grandson she's got, rather than the one she thinks she out to have - particularly after the incident at the ministry" -- McGonagall to Neville, Half-Blood Prince
McGonagall hits it right on the nose. Neville is awesome in his own right, he's surrounded himself with good friends who only want to see him succeed, who don't look at him as incapable, but encourage and allow him to grow and learn and become a great man. His solid foundation in what is good and right help him to be bolder and more outgoing. That's when we get the defiant Neville who, along with Ginny and Luna, runs the DA once Harry, Ron, and Hermione take off.
On side note: Even though it's not in the books, I kind of love the idea that Neville and Luna are are together for a little while. I know they ultimately end up marrying different people but they compliment each other. I imagine their break up would be amicable and that they'd still be friends today.
I could go on for ages and I know I haven't talked about everything, but I'm going to leave it here. Neville Longbottom is the man that all men should want to be. He is courageous, kind, intelligent, headstrong, passionate, and fiercely loyal. He has his faults and acknowledges them. He is under estimated by his foes and celebrated by his friends and family. He is Neville Longbottom.
