Truth about Rita Skeeter

[pandora315]

Alright this is going to sound very silly, but I think Rita Skeeter is hiding something, and I think its the fact that she's a man. In goblet of fire almost every passage about her referes to her being manly in some way, it even says her hair look odd or unatural and we know she has fake nails. Just seems strange.

[choki]

Now, that's interesting. Rita Skeeter, the annoying mosquito, being a man? 'He' must be the most annoying man alive!

[pallas artemis]

I' also noticed that and thought it a bit odd to say the least. But then I also figure there are people out there like. . . Angelica Houston, who though very talented, looks very masculine!

[Athena Appleton]

Ummm... I don't think so...

I do think the masculine references are important. If Rita Skeeter were described as being an attractive female, that puts most people in mind of someone good, and Rita Skeeter is clearly not good. Snape (a not nice guy) is described as being fairly hideous. While Jason Isaacs and Tom Felton are two really good-lookin fellas, they are never described as being attractive in the books. Quite the contrary: in her World Book Day chat, Rowling expresses some aggravation that people want to see good things happen to Malfoy, simply because Tom Felton's a doll.

[pandora315]

I don't agree with that at all! Why would simply being male or having manly attributes make you seem evil to a reading audience? And as a matter of fact it never says anything or even alludes to Skeeter being unattractive at all, you can be manly and still be attractive. Not only that but it seems silly to make so many references to a characters features and gestures just to make them appear evil (not that I believe thats the case because I think thats rediculous) when there are so many other ways to portray that. Look at the Veela, or Barty Crouch Jr, or Mr Malfoy! They are all attractive people and certainly not "good". And then theres Dobby, Hagrid, and Neville. They are certainly not attractive but must be classified as "good".

And then the next point. WHo says Rita Skeeter isn't "good"? I think this is where we need to make the point that not all the chracters can be seperated into "good" and "evil". Rita Skeeter is not the most pleasent person, she doesn't go around doing random acts of good will, but she's not evil. She even ends up helping Harry in the end, though of course being blackmailed at the time. I'd be interested if you'd re-read GoF and show me any reference to her being "evil".

[Gypsy]

I agree that Rita isn't evil, just greedy and a ruthless reporter who is very singleminded in chasing her story without regard for the effects on those involved. I noticed the references to Rita being evil as well, but I thought they were just there to give her a more authoratative air, much in the way that powerful women sometimes wear power siyits and de-feminise themselves. It makes her less friendly and approachable and indicates her hard edge.

[Liquid Ice]

I dont think rita is really evil....but I wouldnt really describe her as 'good' in any way.
As to her manliness showing that shes evil....well, a woman who looks like a man sounds sorta like a man....in a womans body! Which does sound kinda freaky, but not evil.

[Athena Appleton]

I'd be interested if you'd re-read GoF and show me any reference to her being "evil".

I'd be interested if you'd re-read my last post and show me any reference to her being "evil."

I said she was not good.

I didn't say it goes for everyone, but in books and movies, if a woman is described as being delicate, beautiful, graceful, then you're usually expected to believe that the person is good. I don't think that's a great way to be (pretty=good, ugly=evil) but that's how it is. Why don't you go back and re-read GoF and notice how many times her "thick, manly" fingers are mentioned. There's nothing attractive about a woman with thick, manly fingers.

As for her not being evil, if you're unable to draw your own conclusions about someone based upon their actions, I can't help you. But to purposely tarnish not one person's, but many people's, reputations just to get a scoop is evil in my book. She writes flat-out lies and insinuates and stretches the truth to where it is no longer truth. She's evil.

[Gypsy]

I don't agree with Athena's comment that if someone is described as delicate, graceful and beautiful that you are expected to believe that that person is good because in the His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman Mrs Coulter is all those things and yet she is still evil.

[Athena Appleton]

I said "usually."

[Athena Appleton]

Sorry for the double post, but whether you think I'm onto anything with the "attractive=good/ugly=evil" thing or not, I think that Skeeter actually being a man is a little too reminiscent of Scooby Doo ("It's him! But it's not really him, because he is really she!") or a bad Las Vegas act. Besides, in what kind of storyline can you imagine him dressing up as a her and carrying on not only being an unregistered animagus, but also a cross-dresser, for several books?

I don't understand a lot of Rowling's use of descriptive words. I don't think, though, that just because she constantly refers to Petunia's horsey face, Petunia is in fact an unregistered horse animagus. I don't think Umbridge is part toad, even though she's constantly referred to as having toadlike features. And I certainly don't think that Rita Skeeter is really a man.

[Alice I]

I don't think, though, that just because she constantly refers to Petunia's horsey face, Petunia is in fact an unregistered horse animagus. I don't think Umbridge is part toad, even though she's constantly referred to as having toadlike features. And I certainly don't think that Rita Skeeter is really a man.

Couldn't have put it better myself.

[pandora315]

yes, however a horsey face is a common way of describing someone with a long face, moreover we know Petunia is not a witch and could not turn into a horse, so in response to the previous comment- Obviously. Umbridge is described as being a toad because not only does it match her appearance-short, squat, beady eyes, but it also matches her personality in that she's slimy and can be well concealed (read the passage where she hides in the shadows at Harry's trial). Where Rita is concerned we don't know much about her at all and to say someone has manly attriubes(ie some sort of human attribute) is a lot different then saying someone is somewhat like an animal.

[Courtney Piddle]

i've read this thread and it has quite interested me, i've never even considered rita skeeter to be a man, although i can see how it could seem that way.

I dont think rita skeeter is a good person, she is a malicious story grabbing not very nice person.

I can see how the descriptions of her would make the reader warm less to her, especially children reading it. I know hagrid and neville arent exactl attractive, but they aren't described as having feminine features. in the books, even hermione isnt very attractive, but she dioesnt resemble a man , unlike that slytherin girl, urrrr the name escapes me. ..

but yeah i think by saying that rita skeeter has masculine featurse, it makes the reader not want to connect with her as much as they otherwise would.

i dont think she is a man though, i just think it was put in to make her seem lass attractive.

sorry if this post has gone around in circles!

[Athena Appleton]

pandora: the thing is, you're using the same type of descriptive details to make what I think is a REALLY out there story as someone could do to try to say Petunia is a horse animagus, or Umbridge is part toad.

Even if you have a point, under what circumstances are you imagining Rita Skeeter needing to be a man dressed as a woman? That's not the kind of thing that would just be a personality quirk, I think, it would be quite involved in the story. It just doesn't seem like a storyline Rowling would take, because, like I said earlier, it sounds like something you would see in a Vegas show.