medalling in things that ought not to be meddled in . It ’ s dangerous ! What that dog is guarding is strictly between Professor Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel . HARRY : Nicolas Flamel ? HAGRID : I shouldn ’ t have said that . I should not have said that .
Hagrid violates the principle of quantity to such a degree that he almost completely exposes the secrets that need to be kept . In the dialogue , Hagrid repeats to himself “ I shouldn ’ t have said that ” three times , trying to stop this topic immediately , which indicates that he realises he has made a mistake by providing excessive information . However , the four violations of the quantity principle in this short period reflect Hagrid ’ s careless characteristic , which occurs again when Hermione and Harry chat with Hagrid about their doubt of Professor Snape and the line-up for protecting the stone , as shown below :
01:45:53 - 01:46:16 Harry : Wait a minute ! “ One of the teachers ”? Hermione : Of course ! There are other things defending the stone , aren ’ t there ? Spells , enchantments ? Hagrid : Right . Waste of bloody time if you ask me . Ain ’ t no one gonna get past Fluffy . Ain ’ t a soul
Yuge Li
SOTA Anthology 19 / 20
knows how , except me and Dumbledore . I shouldn ’ t have told you that . I should not have told you that .
01:57:42 - 01:58:10 Harry : Did he seem interested in Fluffy ? Hagrid : Well of course he was interested in Fluffy ! How often do you come across three headed dogs even if you ’ re in the trade ? But I told him , I said , I said , ‘ The trick with any beast is to know how to calm him ’. Take Fluffy for example , just play him a bit of music and he falls straight asleep . I shouldn ’ t have told you that . Where are you going ? Where are you- ?
As presented above , the sentence “ I shouldn ’ t have said that / told you that ” frequently occur in Hagrid ’ s dialogue , which to some extent almost becomes a mark of him . Violations not only happen when he narrates subconsciously but also occur after he realises his mistakes , which shows that Hagrid is a man who cannot withstand cross-examination , while his personality is as simple and reckless as a child ’ s . Meanwhile , from the perspective of the overall narrative , Hagrid ’ s excessive disclosureof information is an important factor in promoting the development of the story .