#ThrowbackThursday: 14 September 2001
HERMIONE GRANGER: ALL IN A NAME?
Not a fortnight ago, the wizarding community awoke to the news that Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley, friends and accomplices of Harry Potter in the defeat of Voldemort, had exchanged wedding vows in a ceremony celebrated a week earlier than it had leaked. The ingenious move was nothing short of what you would expect from high-achiever Granger and Weasley, who previous to leaving the Ministry last year had a successful spell as a Strategist Auror, and so this momentous event went unnoticed by the press.
The couple kept a low-key profile after returning from their honeymoon—until yesterday, when Granger sparked controversy once again. The 21-year-old, member of the Dept. for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, was attending the passing of her contentious bill renaming and repurposing the “Office for the Relocation of House Elves” to the “Office for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare”, when she told the Minister’s Junior Assistant that she still went by Granger, not Weasley, if he could kindly correct it on the records. Many of the people present at the time stared at her in frank disbelief. Has Granger and Weasley’s marriage gone to the dogs already? Why does she not want to be associated with that name?
The pair, notorious for avoiding the press as much as their associates, Potter and Ginevra Weasley, was approached during a romantic stroll through Hogsmeade that same evening, surely celebrating Granger’s triumph. When asked about the curious decision and whether it meant his wife was not as committed as he was to their recent union, Weasley said, ‘She kept her name because she did, grow the b*** f*** up.’ He then apologised to his wife as they continued walking, but reporters were still presented with a rude hand gesture behind Granger’s back.
Upon closing this number, we received a statement issued by Granger herself to clear up any misunderstandings. The unadulterated letter is disclosed to our readers, with Granger’s permission, below:
‘After much consideration as to why I should explain something that pertains to my private life, I have decided to do so nonetheless in the hope that it would prevent certain individuals from accosting myself and my husband as we move about our daily life.
I am aware that the wizarding community is one with long-withstanding traditions. Some of them are, in my opinion, harmful traditions that we should aim to change in order to build a more equal society for all magical beings. Other customs pose less relevance, and it should make no difference whether we follow them or not—however, difference they make, for when you decide not to adopt them, you find yourself and your loved ones subject of slandering.
My decision not to change my last name to that of my husband’s has nothing to do with any of the reasons assigned to it. I feel nothing but love, respect, and gratitude towards the family who has always welcomed me into their house and that I am now an official member of. My feelings towards my husband are for him alone to know, although I believe having chosen him to bond my life with should speak volumes about their nature.
I have kept the name “Granger” because that has always been my name, and I am mine before anyone else’s. I have kept the name “Granger” because it is part of my identity, and I do not believe giving up part of one’s self is a requisite for getting married. I have kept the name “Granger” because I can be Hermione Weasley… while still being Hermione Granger.
That said, I have no qualms about being referred to as “Hermione Weasley” in other circles of my life, and this bears no negative judgement on my part towards women who choose to take their partner’s name.
The people who know me and, most importantly, my husband—the only person besides myself whose opinion on the matter counts—understand this decision. I honestly do not care much for the sentiments of the rest of the wizarding community on my life choices and believe they ought to preoccupy themselves with things of actual relevance.
Best regards,
Hermione Granger Weasley’
We can conclude from this that Granger and Weasley’s relationship is stronger than ever, and here at the Daily Prophet, we once again wish them happiness in this new stage of their lives.
[Pictured above: A leaked picture of the couple at their wedding.]
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