Why didn’t quirrel
Just use the death curse on Harry instead of trying to choke him? It seems that would have been easier
shareYOU GOTTA GET HANDS ON IF YOU WANNA GET OFF.
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MovieChat Forums > Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) Discussion > Why didn’t quirrel
Quirrel wasn't thinking rationally. He was panicking. He didn't know what was going on.
shareBecause even under those circumstances, he was STILL a weenie!
He wasn't dedicated to evil, he was a spinless wimp who let himself be pushed around by a stronger personality. And it was made clear in the later books that if you want to cast a successful Unforgivable Curse, you've got to do it with the kind of strong sense of purpose that Quirrell lacked.
Was he carrying a wand at the time? I don't remember that he did.
shareWhy wouldn't he have one? Even if it wasn't in his hand it could have been in his pocket.
shareBut if he carried his wand, it makes no sense that he wouldn't use it.
shareIt also makes no sense that he wouldn't carry one. That's my whole point genius.
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Well... Since there was no mention of a wand, I think we can be pretty sure that he didn't bring one.
shareBut wizards don't go to the toilet without their wands! It's inconcievable that any wizard would attempt anything important, or check on an alarm, without their wand in hand. They'd go out naked before they went out wandless.
shareTrue. But it would only lead us back to why Quirrel would try to strangle Harry.
shareI repeat my earlier point, in the later books it's made clear that the Unforgiveable Curses don't work unless you cast the spell with vicious determination, which Quirrell generally lacked. And he might have been fighting you-know-who inside his head, which would certainly interfere with the death curse, and maybe all you-know-who could do was take over the body for the moment and make it grasp Harry's neck.
I'm sure Rowling has an explanation that didn't fit into the book, because at that point her editors weren't letting her spend extra chapter after chapter making sure absolutely every plot hole was explained.
That is probably the most likely explanation.
shareFirst of all how do you know he didn’t have it with him, secondly why would a dark wizard carrying Voldemort not have a wand with him? Especially considering how if Harry just touches him he dies. Your logic is very circular
shareHe should have used his wand if he had brought it, don't you think?
And he didn't know that touching Harry would kill him.
First you need to establish that he didn’t bring it for that line of thinking to be valid , I’m not accepting your assumption
shareReally, I don't believe that either possibility is established as canon.
I was only saying what I thought, but I could be wrong.
I never said it was established that he had a wand but either way there is a character flaw because Quirrel either: A) didn’t have his wand which would make him stupid or B) chose to choke Harry instead of using the death curse which would make him stupid
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