I haven’t read the books, so I can’t speak much to how much there is to read between the lines in regards to his sexual orientation, but I don’t think it’s necessarily uber important to put too much of that in there. I kind of like this modern trend that we’re one where people’s race and sexual orientation is mattering less and less. It’s showing that we’re progressing as a society. Because from what I can tell, Dumbledore’s outing seems to have made more of an impact on adults than it’s made on kids. Adults want to get all huffy and puffy about it while many of the kids I’ve read about seem to not really care what his sexuality is.

Plus, his outing opens up a whole slew of possibilities for a Dumbledore themed book…kinda like the Harry Potter version of “Wicked.”

Novelists know all kinds of things about their characters that readers don’t. They’re not things to agree or disagree with. They just are. She probably knows his favorite dessert, too.

And notice how she phrases it: “I always thought of Dumbledore as gay.”

An author has to think of characters in specific ways. Regardless of what ends up in the book, the character has to be a whole person in the author’s conception. There’s no other good way to do it.

For what it’s worth, my 17-yo daughter, president of her high school’s GSA, thinks it’s great. I’m ambivalent–intrigued by the possibilities it opens up but also sorry if it seems to close any down. And I really don’t think there’s much in the text to support it, no matter what she thinks.

I also kind of felt like it was unneccesary, until I realized it would be in the scope of the movie. I kind of wish she had done something with it in the books. I mean, what’s the point of leaving it out?

So I ‘get’ where she was coming from, but I also ‘get’ that it wasn’t necessary. I guess I’m firmly on the fence on this one.