yeah, just a questionn... harry had his stortest stay at the dursleys ever, right? but when he arived at ron's, hermione was already there.. man, has she even been home?! okay, we don't know where she was with hristmas, but somehow I've got the feeling she was staying at school. man, do her parents recognize her when they see her?

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Maybe her parents felt she was safer with the current curcumstances withing the wizarding world if she was staying with a wizard family as with themselves being Muggles what can they do to protect their daughter if any Death Eaters come calling?

This is a question I have asked myself in almost every book. Hermione spends her year at school, and then during Christmas she always seems to be at the Burrow, and during most of summer she always seems to be at the Burrow.. what is up with this? She seems like the kind of person who would like to spend time with her parents, it worries me a bit that she can barely see her parents and be fine with it..

I said the same thing after OotP -- why doesn't she spend the summers with her parents? This is weird & JKR never explains it.

I understand about the GOF (she went to the Quidditch world cup), but she is at Grimmauld Place before Harry (Huh?) and she is at the Burrow all summer before HBP. It seems convenient rather than likely.

Maybe she just wants alone time with Ron

I think it's a valid point that she would be happier in the Wizarding world than with her muggle parents.

Twofoldly:

a) she wouldn't want to put herself or her parents at risk by staying with them
She'd feel like she was missing out on all the fun if she was at home, just think about how harry feels being out of contact at the Dursleys. We never get Hermone's perspective on being issolated at home...

we know nothing about that part of her life, actually.. we only know her parents are dentists.. wow. but dont they want to see their daughter??

Her parents (from what we have seen of them) have always seemed to have only Hermione's best interests at heart, and I think that if she felt it was best to stay at the Burrow, they would support her

I think that they trust her enough to give her um.. a lot of space.

After all she is more happy with her parents and at home, she's different from her family. She doesn't have anyone to talk about magic.

I believe the Grangers have accepted that Hermione is a part of a world that they can't be

I don't think there's anything to be read in Hermione's abscence from home... JKR said there is nothing more to her family than we already see/know. I think it's just a convenient plot move to have Hermione in the wizarding world when need be, i doubt there's really anything else to it.

Honestly I wish my parents were that lenient when I was her age. If I spent most of the year, Christmas and like 75 % of my summer vaction away from home . . . well let's just say that wouldn't happen. She must see her parents for a total of maybe three weeks during the year.

They don't send any sort of letters and they could easily since they are oh-so supportive of her life as a witch. Like don't parents get a newsletter from Hogwarts to tell them what's happening? Especially Muggle parents who don't know much about the wizarding world.

You'd think she'd get at least one letter where her parents ask her if she's all right. I mean she might as well be an orphan.

I don't really know, actually!!! I've always woundered, but-- Rowling never said very much about Hermione's life as a Muggle or about her parents. Probably they send her letters all the time, but the books are about Harry, not her, so maybe Rowling doesn't want to waste her time describing that kind of stuff..

It's just like Eluch said, J.K. Rowling's probably concerned with everyone other than that. Hermione's parents are sort of like an afterthought (would the average reader care that much will all the other things going on?)

I've always wondered the same thing, and I really want to know if they have been told everything that happens while she is at school. I always thought that she had a very happy home life, and yet she doesn't seem to go home. I wonder if they would try to keep her away from Hogwarts if they knew about some of the things she has done while at school (if only because they are afraid of what might happen to her).

I do think that her parents realize that Hermione isn't really part of their world anymore and support her, even if it means her not coming home as often as she could.

Hermione’s parents are the typical muggle parents: they send their kids to school most part of the year and during summer months they send them to camp.

There's nothing wrong...it's just that Hermione's a big part of the story, so things would be off a little if she weren't around. Plus, I'm sure that she would rather spend time with wizarding people rather than her parents, no matter how much she loves them. She'd never really fit in at home.

I agree that Hermione needs to be written in as present in all the burrow and grimauld place scenes, and she also needs to stay behind at Hogwarts at Christmas when Harry and Ron do, it's what makes the trio so strong.

But you gotta wonder about her parents. Like others have said, she hardley ever sees them, and I would question them allowing her to spend all this time around Harry who is a constant target of Voldy and his DE's. Maybe she hasn't told them anything about it, but that seems a bit out of character, at least for the younger Hermione.

I guess it's just one of those things we have to overlook, and although I have noticed it, it doesn't really bother me. I would hate JK to become bogged down in a Hermione/parent thing to explain it all away.

Hermione isn't part of their world. She belongs with other wizards and her parents respect that. They want to keep her safe and she wants to keep them safe so it's best that she is away from them. She also wants to be with her friends. She went home a lot more when she was younger, but as she matures she wants to, like all teenagers, spend more time with her firends as oppose to her parents. She is an important character so her pressence is significant in places like the Burrow and Grimmauld Place. She belongs with wizards. I really don't think that there is more to it then that. Her parents aren't a very important part of the story so jk doesn't talk about them much. I don't see how they are or could be significant to the story.

When i read HBP and saw that Hermione was at the Burrow, i groaned, i was like, 'Can we at least have an explanation?'

But we didn't get one. Well i guess we got one in OotP, she said that she was staying at school to study when shewas really at Grimmauld place. I think my parents would get a bit peeved off if i never saw them! Ok, i was never over protected, in fact pratically negeleted (not in a worrying sence) my folks just let me do my own thing really. I do spend a lot more time with my friends than my parents. But i'm 19 and live away from home so it's kinda expected

I guess i did when i was younger too around 15/16. But i didn't go to boarding school. Maybe her folks just realise that she has a live very much outside theirs now and know she's holler for help if she needs it. But She's away with harry straight from school, won't that be about 3 straight years maybe only seeing her parents once or twice?

I don't know about you, but i think i'd begin to miss mine!

I think it's probably at the request of members of the Order. They want her around Harry. She was there when he arrived but it's not explained for how long. Perhaps she just arrived. I suspect that the members of the Order realize that a lot of Harry's successes are the result of our heroic trio working as a team, so therefore want to keep them together as much as possible for their and especially Harry's protection.

i think that her parents must give her a lot of respect, responisibilty, and trust because she is teh top in her class and doing so well on her own...

they must also know somewhat , what is happening in the wizarding world, and her parents must feel that she is safer that she is among other wizards

her parents are probably want to protect her and they cany give her that prtection. she'd be safer with wizards. or we could take the less likely path and go with the sibling theory. mr and mrs granger arent her parents. like i said this is less likely but more interesting! this will probably be explained later on...

Or maybe their not her real parents!? If you support the sibling theory that is.

But I just think she wants to be around Harry and give him support at these dark times to come.

Well, Hermione probably writes them constantly (I mean, it's just her character to squeeze that in). I doubt that she tells them everything... but enough so that they still know each other. Honestly, she writes to Krum in book 5 and she barely knew him!

Also, remember that she was about as straight laced as Percy when she started at Hogworts, so her parents think she is still that way because all her letters are sugar-coated. They have no reason to suspect that she is in danger. She probably makes the excuse that she wants/needs to study and since that's how she's always been, how could they suspect that she's lying?

I'm sure that her parents miss her, but there are parents out there who trust their kids after a certain point, and really, at this age, kids will do what they want whether they have permission or not. I think I was a lot like Hermione, I always studied and worked hard to get the best marks. When I started getting more social and not as reliable about making curfew in high school, my dad just went with it and let me do what I wanted because I had already proved myself to him that I was smart enough to not go off and do something stupid.

I think JK keeps hermione away from her parents so much because her parents really arent important to the story (as far as we know) and hermione is important. So, we see a lot of hermione and very little of her parents.

Hermione's parents are understanding. They know that Hermione is in a safe hand. Maybe she is telling them that she'll be with the Weasleys and we all know how Arthur loves Muggles and everything about the Muggles and the Grangers know it. And perhaps, they know that keeping Hermione in their house would not make her happy. They want to give everything that could make Hermione happy. And besides, the Grangers are not main characters and the plot was not in their place.

I was reading in an interview with JKR where she said that the reason Hermione's parents don't come into the story much is that Harry spends so much time with the Weasleys, who are such a crazy family. She wanted the Grangers to just be ordinary. I guess the best way to portray this is for them to just not get involved. After all, they are muggles, and I think they accept that Hermione has another life now.

Its really weird, that Hermione spends only 2 weeks at home, but i think its understandable.
She belongs to the wizarding world, and her parents know this. She really cares about Harry and she wants to be involved with the whole Order thing, and thats why she rather spends her free time at the Burrow or Grimmaud Place than at home. I mean she would be totally separated from Harry/Ron, and she couldnt really help them with letters. And i think that her parents would notice if she didnt feel well while she is at home, and they wanted her to be with her friends.
Btw, i really doubt the she tells her parents everything about Voldemort and the War... They wouldnt understand.

i agree with Jerry. mayb she just wanted to spend as much time w/ ron as possible............. hey u never know.......but i have wondered what they do without harry there...............nevermind. i think she just feels safer in the wizarding world. and also in GOF Malfoy was saying how they would come for the muggle-borns first. mayb those words had a big impact on her and she is afraid to b w/out the magical protection...................


ronluver

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I see the point about her being safer with a wizarding family now, but that doesn't explain the rest of the time. I don't think it's becaue she's afraid, just cautious, and perhaps protecting her parents now.

I know it's necessary to have her around, but JKR has always been very careful about character backgrounds and motivations. As the only daugher of the family, you'd think they'd want her home more. As a "special" child, you'd think they'd be more inquisitive of what she's doing and how she's progressing. As a child in boarding school, you'd think they'd miss her more and want her home during the summers.

I don't agree with the real life families send kids to school and camp theory, because most of those kids (at least here in the US) are home during the school year. Most of the time, camp is something the kids want to do, and only lasts a week or two.

There seems to be something there... what it is, I have no idea.

Wish some of these interviewers would ask, instead of repeatedly asking the same questions over and over.

Oh, here, here, samsmom! I always groan and roll the eyes when I see interviewers having such a wonderful opportunity of finding out so much from Jo herself and they always either repeat things that have been asked before or ask the most mundane, trivial questions you've ever heard in your life. I mean, don't they do their research before they interview people?! Honestly.

I know that Jo has said that Hermione's parents simply aren't interesting and that's why she doesn't write about them (a huge insult to people who happen to be dentists, but still...I take it with the light-hearted humour with which, I'm sure, it was meant) but that really doesn't suffice as an explanation. I guess it's all we have and we have to make do with it, but all the same, it's bound to lead to questions.

Hermione is in boarding school all year, she spends most of the summer at the Burrow, so when exactly do her parents see her? For Christmas (sometimes) and for a couple of weeks in the summer. Do they not like her or something?! I mean, she's their only child...I know that I'd break my heart if my nephews had to go to boarding school so I would want to spend every single second I could with them in the holidays. Surely, they would miss home and family too and so would be glad to spend some time with me too (hopefully! ) So why are Hermione's parents perfectly willing to let her go off for what must be at least 48 weeks of the year and only speak to her via letters?

It certainly does seem to imply that they really don't care much either way. I mean, it wouldn't be that big a deal for Jo to throw something in somewhere about Hermione's parents now and again just to show that, whilst they may very well be uninteresting, they do at least care. It would certainly stop the rumours flying around that there is something more going on.

I really don't like the explanation that Hermione simply finds the Weasleys more interesting and fun to be around, which I have heard before. That makes her seem very cold and rather shallow. I'm sure the Weasleys are great fun, but doesn't she love and miss her parents too? She finds her parents boring? Doesn't make Hermione sound like a particularly nice person, does it?

I agree for ronluver22 for the fact that Malfoy's word scared Hermione. But I don't think she want's to protect himself, she wants to protect her parents! I belive that Hermione thinks that if she doesn't go to her parent house, Voldemort doesn't realise that they know wizards and has no reason to attack them. It isn't very reasonaple, but that's propably something that I would do! But whatever the rreason, I don't think she tells her parent's what's really hapening in Hogwarts.

hmm....i've always wondered that as well. but really there is no proof saying that she does or doesn't keep in contact with her parents. and during school neither ron's parents or hermione's parents seem to write so either it's such an obsolete detail that JK doesn't see fit to put in or it's a common occurence. but agreed, the whole staying with the weasleys during summer is probably a circumstance of convienence for the story

hmmmmmm...
this is something that I often wonder while reading the books...
it always strikes me as odd how Hermione is at the Burrow before Harry gets there---no matter the duration of his stay at Privet Drive...and only in 1 or 2 of the past books Hermione went to her parent's house for Christamas break.......

we don't know much about her family, other than both of her parents are dentists, and are said to care a lot about Hermione and are accepting of her magical abilities. this presents me with 3 possiblities to answer this question:

1) Hermione's parents are really not as "nice" and "accepting" as they are said to be, possibly afraid of her, or maybe even abusive?
2) Hermione's parents are looking out for her by letting her stay in the Wizarding community more, so taht she is not isolated from her friends, and is with others like her.
3) Hermione is looking out for her parents by not trying to put them in danger of Lord Voldemort (who doesn't like non-purebloods, especially muggle-born Witches/Wizards like Hermione...EVEN THOUGH he is half-blood himself! ).


Sorry if any of these were already mentioned!!



_daviD

From book one, I noticed that no one ever gets homesick or misses their parents.

When Ron Found out that his parents were going to see Charlie in Romania over Christmas in the first year. No big deal.

Having grown up in a prep school in some ways like Hogwarts, that is simply un-realistic. Hermione not spending time away from her parents is a plot device used by JK Rowling. So there is nothing to be read into her not going to her parents.

It simply is a way to put Hermione, and others, where they need to be in the books.

Dentistry is a notoriously busy profession, I have a feeling they're probably working a lot. I also get the feeling she'd be at some kind of boarding school if not Hogwarts so maybe her absence is to be expected.

I wonder how they'll react upon hearing her decision to galavant round the south west with Harry and Ron for book 7 though

Edited by Oz for appaling spelling - in my own message!

Hmm you know that’s a good question. I suppose in reality Jo probably just didn’t have the word space to fit too much in about the Grangers. Like Darth has said their both dentists so maybe that part or the reason. But don’t dentists have relatively short hours? Or maybe it's just my dentist, but I know its impossible to get an appointment after 3.30 on week days or weekends.
I like the idea of Hermione trying to protect her parents it would be very noble, But I doubt it’s the real one.
I think by the fact that Hermione doesn’t see her parents a lot, like many other boarding school children, her relationship is bound to suffer. Although I for one am very glad Jo has more or less left the Grangers as background characters, it's meant we've got to see a lot more of Hermione's character, which would have been impossible otherwise.

I would not let my 12- 17 year old stay at a boys home. This part of the storie is just lack of thought by JK.. Next Hermione will have a tatoo on her back side..

I think her parents suffer from "minor character plot hole syndrome". It is a common thing infecting many people in the HP universe that occurs when the presence or existance of a character inconveintly gets in the way of the story.
To some degree, all the parents and other family members in the series suffer from this, which is why nobody seems to get homesick.

Hey I'm glad someone FINALLY brought up this topic. I have always wondered what the deal was. But, I guess Hermione feels her parents would be safer now, without her there. Maybe she feels she puts them in to much danger, while she is at home. Or maybe like some of u suggested her parents think she is safer with other wizards.


*Sorry if a repeated anyone!*

As a parent myself, there is no way I would allow my child to spend that much time away from me. I wish Rowling would address this in her last book, since she claims to want things to be realistic--it would not take long.