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The Dresden Files => DF Spoilers => Topic started by: seanham on February 23, 2021, 05:40:17 AM

Title: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: seanham on February 23, 2021, 05:40:17 AM
One thing that I found odd in Peace Talks and Battleground was Conjuritus. So here's my theory as to why Harry got Conjuritus as an adult (sorry if this was already posted). From my understanding, Conjuritus is mainly contracted by children. What if when Harry was growing up, Justin did something to Harry to dampen his power or set his power level back a few years? He has Conjuritus now because he is magically a child while physically an adult. This would explain why Harry never got Conjuritus as a child. Harry is surprisingly powerful for a wizard of his young age and is only growing stronger. If Justin wanted to control Harry, he would want to dampen Harry’s powers so Harry couldn’t overpower him or break out from his control (if he would have been successful in mind-controlling him).
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: BrainFireBob on February 23, 2021, 09:55:53 PM
General view is that he caught it from Maggie, and is a sign Maggie is talented and about to start puberty (when power shows up). Harry, never having been exposed, had no immunity. He stays away from other wizards; Ebenezer would have had his case centuries ago.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Mira on February 23, 2021, 10:11:00 PM
General view is that he caught it from Maggie, and is a sign Maggie is talented and about to start puberty (when power shows up). Harry, never having been exposed, had no immunity. He stays away from other wizards; Ebenezer would have had his case centuries ago.

Yeah, and in adults these childhood things are always more severe..
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: ZhonLord on February 23, 2021, 10:28:07 PM
Agreed with Bob and Mira.  It's extremely commonplace for parents to catch something their kids have gotten from school or interacting with other kids.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: b4utoo on February 24, 2021, 12:22:08 AM
I'm thinking this is a case of sword of truth power. Headaches come earliest to the most powerful Wizards. Chondritis might come in the most adolescent age of power not age of the child so I might agree with poster
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Conspiracy Theorist on February 24, 2021, 02:21:50 AM
Maggie probably got it from the Swartalves kids as asymptomatic carriers, and gave it to Harry. She probably had little sign as her magic hasn’t come in yet, so she may have had the equivalent if a cold just snot, no ectoplasm. Maggie hadn’t started her new school yet.

This may mean Maggie and Harry got a different strain to that normally encountered by human children, a variant mutating, jumping from Swartalves to humans, which is how the disease probably began in the first place as a disease of some supernatural race which jumped the species barrier. It probably just happened again, as unfortunately these things do.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: forumghost on February 24, 2021, 03:33:19 AM
I'd just like to throw out the theory that maybe the Conjuritus is sentient and was trying to infect a Wizarding child but mistook Harry for one based on his maturity.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Dina on February 24, 2021, 07:04:04 AM
LOL, I liked that.

I think the most probable explanation is Maggie but I would love Seanham theory to be true. Specially if that means that Harry will become even more powerful.

Someone save this thread, so we remember this by the time JB explains it in a book  :)
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Mira on February 24, 2021, 04:19:05 PM
Maggie probably got it from the Swartalves kids as asymptomatic carriers, and gave it to Harry. She probably had little sign as her magic hasn’t come in yet, so she may have had the equivalent if a cold just snot, no ectoplasm. Maggie hadn’t started her new school yet.

This may mean Maggie and Harry got a different strain to that normally encountered by human children, a variant mutating, jumping from Swartalves to humans, which is how the disease probably began in the first place as a disease of some supernatural race which jumped the species barrier. It probably just happened again, as unfortunately these things do.

 I doubt it, take mumps,  according to the CDC

Quote
Mumps | Complications | CDC

Mumps can occasionally cause complications, especially in adults. Complications can include: inflammation of the testicles (orchitis) in males who have reached puberty; this may lead to a decrease in testicular size (testicular atrophy) inflammation of the ovaries (oophoritis) and/or breast tissue (mastitis)

 So while no fun as a kid, I know I had them as a kid, less dangerous than if I were to get them now as an adult.  So I can see it being just a runny nose in Maggie's case, she is still young and if her magic hasn't quite kicked in, present itself as just a runny nose.  My guess is Elaine never caught it either as a kid and since both were carefully kept away from other wizards and their children by Justin, he wouldn't say anything about it.  So Harry wouldn't recognize it in little Maggie, let alone know that the effects could be much more severe on him, a mature wizard.  Most likely the more powerful the person, the more severe the symptoms... So a kid not into his or her magic yet would have mild symptoms, where as mature wizards could cause anvils to fall out of the sky with a sneeze.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: morriswalters on February 24, 2021, 04:32:46 PM
Two POV's on this. One, Jim is setting up Harry to get into shape shifting, laying the explanatory ground so to speak.

Two, Jim saw too many Road Runner cartoons as a child and wanted to drop an anvil on somebodies head.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: TheCuriousFan on February 24, 2021, 04:42:02 PM
Well Harry getting into shapeshifting is an old woj and River Shoulders offered lessons in PT while Harry expressed interest in turning into a bird to get around easier in BG so it's probably happening soon.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: seanham on February 24, 2021, 04:59:48 PM
Two, Jim saw too many Road Runner cartoons as a child and wanted to drop an anvil on somebodies head.

Without a doubt dropping an anvil on someone's head was on Jim's writing bucket list.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Mira on February 24, 2021, 05:43:11 PM
Without a doubt dropping an anvil on someone's head was on Jim's writing bucket list.

Yeah, well, that was just an exclamation point to the whole story line.. As it was, a lot of us were
complaining WTF?  What was the point of Harry getting conjuritus in the first place?  One or two points,  one setting up for little Maggie exhibiting talent, him catching it from her.  The second he needed a funny way for him to freak out Mavra a little bit.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: vincentric on February 24, 2021, 06:49:51 PM
This thread makes me wonder why wizards in general and Harry in particular don't drop anvils on people all the time.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: forumghost on February 24, 2021, 07:41:55 PM
Probably because if they did a Warden would show up to cut their head off for breaking the First Law.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Dina on February 24, 2021, 08:15:09 PM
Without a doubt dropping an anvil on someone's head was on Jim's writing bucket list.

Certainly  :)
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: vincentric on February 25, 2021, 07:56:28 AM
Probably because if they did a Warden would show up to cut their head off for breaking the First Law.

But you would think it would be something all the Wardens learn as part of their combat training. It wouldn't be your main offense, but it a nice surprise trick. And Harry took out a Black Court Elder with it, so we know it's effective.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Conspiracy Theorist on February 26, 2021, 01:15:36 AM
Without a doubt dropping an anvil on someone's head was on Jim's writing bucket list.

He had set it up books ago, so yes. I suspect he would also like to shoehorn in killing a Black Court Vampire by placing a bucket of holy water balanced over a door, but Neil Gaiman got there first.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Dina on February 26, 2021, 03:13:15 AM
Well, Neil and Terry  :)
Remember the frozen chicken, JB likes his cartoon antics.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: lachiel.vaher on November 10, 2021, 01:28:55 PM
The thing about Conjuritus that drives me bonkers.   And it's the ONLY thing I would ever criticize about these books as I absolutely love them every single one.     Conjuritus means "Inflammation of the Conjur" because of it's Latin suffix.   Ebenezer and most of the White Council speak fluent Latin, they would know that this is a misnomer.   "Conjurpox" would be far far more appropriate "Eruption of the Conjur" would make more sense.    Sure I can see Harry who is somewhat Latin challenged giving it this nickname if Ebenezer and Laura called it something more appropriate.    Only thing that has ever thrown me out of the story…       Love everything else about these two books.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Conspiracy Theorist on November 10, 2021, 01:56:02 PM
It was a deux ex machina to conjour an anvil to fall on black court vampires, to pay of a joke set books ago, wholly redundant in my view as an anvil being sliced up had already featured in Peace Talks, so presumably Charity has more than one Harry could have used in a more conventional fashion as a weapon against the Black Court.

Frankly I would have preferred it was used to conjour up Sue, if it was to be used at all.
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Mira on November 10, 2021, 04:32:27 PM
Quote
The thing about Conjuritus that drives me bonkers.   And it's the ONLY thing I would ever criticize about these books as I absolutely love them every single one.     Conjuritus means "Inflammation of the Conjur" because of it's Latin suffix.   Ebenezer and most of the White Council speak fluent Latin, they would know that this is a misnomer.   "Conjurpox" would be far far more appropriate "Eruption of the Conjur" would make more sense.    Sure I can see Harry who is somewhat Latin challenged giving it this nickname if Ebenezer and Laura called it something more appropriate.    Only thing that has ever thrown me out of the story…       Love everything else about these two books.

I just looked up conjure, and I am sure you know more Latin than I do, this is closer to what I think
Jim was getting at.
Quote
verb (tr, adverb) to present to the mind; evoke or imagine he conjured up a picture of his childhood. to call up or command (a spirit or devil) by an incantation.

What does a wizard do?  He or she can conjure up things..

"itis" is defined in medical terms as
Quote
In medical terminology, a suffix usually indi- cates a procedure, condition, disease, or part of speech. A commonly used suffix is -itis, which means “inflammation.” When this suffix is paired with the prefix arthro-, meaning joint, the resulting word is arthritis, an inflammation of the joints

In this case I think conjurities refers to the condition common in young wizards when their talent first shows itself, as an allergy or common head cold, lacking motor control over his conjuring results in the picture in his head materializing when the patient sneezes, also excess snot in the from of ectoplasm..
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: groinkick on November 11, 2021, 07:51:29 PM
LOL, I liked that.

I think the most probable explanation is Maggie but I would love Seanham theory to be true. Specially if that means that Harry will become even more powerful.

Someone save this thread, so we remember this by the time JB explains it in a book  :)

Seanham theory?
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: Dina on November 11, 2021, 08:01:47 PM
This:
One thing that I found odd in Peace Talks and Battleground was Conjuritus. So here's my theory as to why Harry got Conjuritus as an adult (sorry if this was already posted). From my understanding, Conjuritus is mainly contracted by children. What if when Harry was growing up, Justin did something to Harry to dampen his power or set his power level back a few years? He has Conjuritus now because he is magically a child while physically an adult. This would explain why Harry never got Conjuritus as a child. Harry is surprisingly powerful for a wizard of his young age and is only growing stronger. If Justin wanted to control Harry, he would want to dampen Harry’s powers so Harry couldn’t overpower him or break out from his control (if he would have been successful in mind-controlling him).

Also, I need to clarify something. The word is "conjuritis", isn't it? Not "conjuritus"?
Title: Re: Why Harry has Conjuritus as an Adult
Post by: TrueMonk on November 13, 2021, 05:38:29 PM
I won't spoil it, but the opening posts suggestion strays a bit too close to the plot in one of Jim's other books for it to be likely it will be the plot here.