Wednesday, December 16
For a roster of students, please look here.


Instructions

Reply to this thread and role-play your character taking the exam. You may answer one question or more than one. Creativity and actual content will count more than length.

This is not a typical Runes exam, but I was itching for something more theoretical and related to their field trip at Gringotts. Just for perspective, most of the questions on the exam focus on what they've learned in class and not on the field trip.

If you think of another question that you'd prefer to answer instead, please feel free to PM me with your idea and I'll most likely be cool with it!


Grading

I'm not looking for consistency across the student responses, or one right answer. As long as it is explained well, your student will do fine. If you PM me with the grade you would like your student to receive in class so far, and on the exam, that will help me a lot when I send out the owls.

You have until January (game-time) to post a reply!


Essay Questions

1. During the Gringotts field trip, you saw how the goblins handled the artifacts that they received. Explain their process of analysis, decontamination, preservation, and record-keeping, starting from when the bank acquires an artifact and places it in goblin hands.

2. Ownership is a controversial topic, but an important one to consider. Discuss the issues of ownership in Gringotts. How do they treat artifacts from various countries? What are the benefits and potential pitfalls of storing a collection within Gringotts, and when could that collection be viewed or accessed? When you place something in a personal or family vault, do goblins still consider the object to be yours? What if the original purchaser has passed away, you have not paid your loan, or the object is goblin-made?

3. If you choose to pursue Runes as a career, what are the pros and cons of working at the Ministry, Gringotts, or a school? What about working independently? Compare and contrast.

How Jordyn was supposed to pay attention to a test right now was absolutely ludicrous.  But, it was one of her favorite classes, and she had to do well. 

She could kiss her head girl spot goodbye for the next year if she didn't maintain her grades.  It was bad enough as a seventeen year old she had to worry about the tumultuous social environment that was forever changing.  For now, everything seemed to be fine - but wasn't that always how it was before the big, bad disaster struck?  Jordyn was on edge. 

She would do everything in her power to make sure her exames, at least, were solidified.  She loved ancient runes, so that much was, at least easy, and going into the exam, the questions about things learned in class easily streamed from her quill and onto the parchment, hopefully propelling her grade to an O.  She'd settle for an E, but an O was her absolute goal.

The further she got into the test though, Jordyn tried not to nibble on her nails (they had to be perfect for the ball), but it was getting harder - and it was also getting closer to the essay section. 

Jordyn was a decent writer, as far as anyone had ever told her, and she liked to do well - so scanning the questions, she bit the inside of her cheek - she was just going to pick the first one.  Not worry about weighing the options.

1. During the Gringotts field trip, you saw how the goblins handled the artifacts that they received. Explain their process of analysis, decontamination, preservation, and record-keeping, starting from when the bank acquires an artifact and places it in goblin hands.

Alright, she assured herself, I can do this.

When an artifact is brought to Gringotts it cannot go directly into a vault.  It must go through several rounds of scrutiny and analysis before it is accepted into the bank's coiffers as precious or valuable. 

The object must first be acquired by the bank.  They do this in several ways.  One could be the owner coming to have the item deposited in a vault or appraised.  Another method used to collect items is through the abandonment of a vault or collection when the owner and their family has not made claims.  This is unlikely, however, as Gringotts vaults are highly prized for lineage and family treasures.  There is another way an object can be brought into the hold of the bank, and that is through the curse breakers. 

Curse breakers can get objects independently, or are assigned to investigate the location, ownership, and path of an object... 

The essay was starting well, Jordyn felt confident, and she continued to write - assured that she could, at least get an E on this exam.

Figaro had a rocky relationship with Ancient Runes and Professor Reid.  It was by far his most difficult class, and he'd very nearly Trolled out in his fourth year.  But his parents had bargained hotly with Professor Reid for a second chance and was allowed to continue into his fifth.  Figaro hadn't ever been able to decide if this was good fortune or not because well... he was still taking N.E.W.T.-level Runes. 

He was getting better, but every inch of progress took work.  Work that Figaro did not enjoy.  And this late in the term exam would not going to be an exception.  There were tests going on all over Hogwarts this week and there was a general feeling of oppression.  Figaro was now sitting at his desk, staring down a long blank roll of parchment, the ink drying in the nib of his quill.

He sat for about ten minutes solid before putting quill to paper, distracted by his own thoughts, the pressure and the pitter-patter of rain against the tall windows.  When he finally began, he etched his thoughts out slowly, in his messy hand.

#2

Goblins think about ownership differently than wizards.  Basically, wizards think if you have it, you own it.  If you bought it or it was given to you as a gift, it should be yours.  But goblins don't agree.  Goblins figure that if you made it, or your family made it, then its always yours no matter who ends up with it.  For example if you buy a goblin made thing its like your borrowing it for awhile and they are going to want it back when you die.  They even get mad if you try and sell it.  Wizards believe you can sell or give anything away as long as it belongs to you.

The Ministry doesn't agree with that, so the goblins are always fighting with them over it.  That's why ownership is so controversial between goblins and wizards.

Gringotts Bank is run by goblins and the Ministry goes along with that.  Pretty much everyone has a family vault or keeps money in there because it's the safest place in the world.  The goblins run a tight ship.  They are very tight with their security.  But sometimes there are disputes over who owns something in a vault.  Even if a wizard owns it, the goblins might claim you don't if they think it's goblin made.  That's why you have to keep very good records or even use runes to mark your family name.  But there is no safer place than Gringotts so most people use it. 

That's why so many old things made by both goblins and wizards have curses on them, to keep them in the right hands or punish people who might try and own them when they shouldn't.  Most curses like that aren't legal anymore but people do it anyway because ownership is so controversial.

He shook out his hand, loathe to read back on what he wrote.  Their Professors were always telling them to go back and proof but he was running out of time and still had another question to answer.  He looked up at the clock, then to the stern face of Professor Reid, sighed and put his head back down to his work.

#3

I probably won't pursue runes as a career.  But if I did there are a few ways to go with that.  You can work for the Ministry who needs people who are experts on runes.  You can work for Gringotts who uses lots of runes and needs cursebreakers.  You could be a runes teacher and teach students about runes.  You can also go into business for yourself and provide rune services like cursebreaking or making things or inscribing things. 

I think that working at Gringotts would be the worst even though you get paid the most there.  Goblins don't trust wizards and the work is dangerous sometimes.  But it is cool that Gringotts sends cursebreakers all over the world, so that would be a pro. 

Working at the Ministry also isn't a very good option because the work is pretty boring and you would have lots of bosses.  But it could be good if you wanted to help wizarding society by working for the Ministry.  Ministry runes workers mostly do inspections, record-keeping, and some people get to do research.  But mostly it's inspections and record-keeping which I wouldn't want to do. 

There is only one runes teacher at Hogwarts, so that is a con.  To be a runes teacher, you not only have to know all about all kinds of runes, but how to explain it to students.  But you do get summer holidays off, so that's a big pro.

The best thing would be to work in a business or own your own business.  My family owns an apothecary so I actually know a lot about its pros and cons.  Pros are that you are your own boss and you can run things how you want.  You can even throw out bad customers.  You also get to keep everything you make.  But the cons are that its really hard work and you have to know how to do everything about running a shop like cleaning and tax and preventing people from stealing your stuff. 

No matter what you do though runes aren't easy and you need to like writing and reading.  Any job in runes needs lots of attention to detail and good memorization skills. 

Time was called and Figaro dropped his quill and wiped his face with his hands.  Figaro wasn't a quick or graceful writer and he felt like it took him forever to get what he wanted to say down on paper.  He let his parchment roll back up on itself and passed it forward.

They were dismissed.  "Thanks, Professor Reid," he said with grim cheerfulness.  "Enjoy."

The Ravenclaw took his usual seat - first row, closest to the window - and carefully set his supplies out on the desk in front of him.  Then, just as he did with most every other exam, Sasha closed his eyes and took several long, deep breaths.  It would do him no good to worry about anything else or any other class.  Even stressing about this class would only work against him.

By and large, he ignored the scraping of chairs and soft thuds as his classmates found their seats throughout the classroom.  It wasn't until the soft rustling of parchment heralded the distribution of test papers that the Ravenclaw opened his eyes, inked his quill and turned to the test.

Most of the exam was simple.  Or, at least, straightforward.  The translation went smoothly and he felt confident about the influences questions.  He reached the three essay questions in good time and sat back, considering them.

Until their fieldtrip, banking remained one of those big, major aspects of the wizarding world that was still a relative mystery to the muggleborn-raised Ravenclaw.  Which had always struck Sasha as fairly ironic.  As the only son and heir to an international-level banking executive, Sasha had a fairly good understanding of the muggle banking system.  Both the good and the bad not-entirely-ethical.  Gerhard had been far from the nurturing type - what time Sasha had spent with the man growing up, especially over the last few years, had revolved around learning about the family estate, business and investments. 

Of course, while his parents were alive, the only reason Sasha ever had to go to Gringott's was to quickly exchange pounds and euros for galleons once a year.  He'd never seen the vaults and hadn't ever considered giving anything to the goblins.  Even since their death, Sasha was hesitant to move any of the family's wealth over to the goblin's coffers.  And not just because Sasha was certain that moving any of Gerhard's money to a goblin-run bank would be motivation enough for the man to come back and haunt him.  Muggle or not.  Also because he didn't understand enough how the bank worked from a business side to know if moving over was at all advantageous.  Did the goblins offer interest rates?  An equivalent of off shore banking?  Or, did all deposits literally just sit in the vaults, gathering dust?  Were there stocks or trades to be made with other banks? 

The first bank-related question was relatively simple and straightforward.  The second gave Sasha reason to pause.  That such questions would even need to be asked didn't make the prospect of moving one's wealth very appealing.  But, that was a worry for another day.  For now, he needed to focus on the exam.

#2

Cultural differences as well as centuries of strife and rebellion between wizards and goblins all serve to complicate the perception of ownership.  Major goblin rebellions may have faded (for now, at least) into the back pages of history texts but friction still exists between the cultures.  Goblins are still denied the right to possess wands and many wizards consider them to be and treat them as if they are subservient to us.  Though Gringott's founding of the financial institution indicates a willingness to set aside differences in the name of productive business endeavors, the relationship between wizards and goblins remains precarious at best. 

Fundamentally, goblins believe ownership of an item ultimately and indefinitely lies with the creator.  They believe that any transfer of ownership is merely a temporary arrangement.  Goblins view the purchase of an item as one being granted use of an item by during their lifetime.  Once the purchaser relinquishes the item, either by choice or death, the item's ownership returns to the creator.  It is not passed down through the purchaser's family.  The opposite, typically, is the case for both wizarding and muggle human culture. 

The pitfalls of storing one's wealth within the Gringott's vaults are numerous.  As somewhat of an outsider, (I do not and never have had a vault at Gringott's) the most blatant one seems to be the most troubling.  The bank, itself, as a building and institution was built by Gringott the Goblin.  By the goblins' definition, this means the bank is and will always be goblin-owned.  In the past, wizards have tried to gain control over the bank but, as seen during the Second Wizarding War, this usually had to be achieved through violent, brutal oppression.  However, by goblin law, wizards can never lay claim to the major institution that controls their wealth.  If there were ever another goblin rebellion, we'd be in a very difficult situation.

There are official channels and processes through which a witch or wizard can request access to view a Gringotts-house collection.  Forms can be requested from the main lobby and, if approved, goblin escort will be provided.  This process illustrates that, ultimately, goblins exert a considerable amount of control over these collections. 

I believe the goblins perspective of ownership is fairly universal.  If I were to ever open a Gringott's vault, I suspect they'd attribute the ownership of any item to the item's original creator.  Chances are, though, if the item wasn't goblin-made, they are ultimately apathetic about the specifics of to whom the item belongs.  They may believe I do not rightfully own a piece of antique china originally crafted by a worker from another town but as the creator wasn't a goblin they are unlikely to care.  Luckily, as golden galleons and silver sickles were crafted by wizards, this same apathy is directed towards the strictly financial aspect of a wizard's wealth and there seems to be little contention over ownership. 

Wizards continue to view goblins as subservient but they are not unintelligent creatures.  Though we put them in a lower social station, one might say they've found their slice of power by putting themselves in a position of control.  True altruism is rare and certainly not a trait readily associated with goblins.  They provide "banking services" to the wizarding world because they get something for it.  I'm not aware of goblins doing much in the way of investing and temporarily trading the wares wizards entrust to them so I don't imagine their profits come from interest or inter-bank loan rates.  If we default do not pay loans or pass away, goblins have little to gain from being generous.  If they can claim ownership over an item, it is likely in their own best interest to do so. 

Security is one of the most significant benefits to keeping one's valuable assets in Gringott's.  Deposits are secured by a variety of defenses ranging from physical barriers to magical charms to inhumanely kept animal guards.  Also, for the average witch or wizard, there are few alternatives to the Wizarding Bank.  One can't exactly walk into Barclay's bank and deposit galleons and goblin swords and Gringott's is certainly safer than hiding one's wealth under their bed.

Sasha sat back and read over his answer, liberally making use of corrective charms.  Then, with a deep breath, he turned to the next question.  A question about career prospects.  Another not-exactly-straightforward question.  At least Professor Reid was bound to be used to his longer-winded essays.

Ancient Runes was a class which the Ravenclaw girl very much enjoyed... It was a tad awkward, she supposed, for her godfather's ex-wife to be the instructor. Though Carys did not harbor negative feelings for the professor, she assumed it would be easy for Aileen to think so. Her godfather seemed happy enough, and disliking a professor based on something that had happened when she was a child would be a bad case of judgment and could severely harm her grades in the class. Carys had never brought up the subject, for that reason, and hoped question of it never came up. As she settled into her desk, she took a look at the instructions given for their midterms. She easily settled on one of the topics provided- number three.

3. If you choose to pursue Runes as a career, what are the pros and cons of working at the Ministry, Gringotts, or a school? What about working independently? Compare and contrast.

Carys thought for just a few moments, doing a quick outline in her mind, before she picked up her quill and began to construct her essay. This would be simple enough. She chose to answer only a single question, but to answer it thoroughly and write a complete essay rather than a quick description. Carys hoped that points would not be deducted for her choice to focus on a single topic, rather than attempt to work on all three.

Pursuing a career in Ancient Runes can be done in one of many ways. Options include working at the Ministry of Magic, Gringotts, independently, or instructing students about Ancient Runes. Each of these careers offers a different perspective of the field of Ancient Runes and implementations of the subject, as well as various pros and cons to the job itself.

Application of Ancient Runes at the Ministry of Magic may be achieved in a number of ways. If a person were to procure a job in the Department of Mysteries, the use of runes could vary. A person could test the effect that drawing runes on various magical items could have. A few examples include: runes potions cauldrons, runing plant pots for herbological research, the effects that runes could have when used on the hilts of wands, and the research and creation of the runes themselves. Pros of working within the ministry are numerous. The job would provide funding and payment for research, as well as guidance, and a vast number of resources. This would be most helpful when experimenting with various items and branches of magic that runes could be effective in. There would be collaboration between witches and wizards who are talented in other areas of magic others might have less skill in. Unfortunately, working at the ministry could limit the experimentation. Ethics would come more into play as well as whether or not government resources are being wasted with your experimentation. A person could also be influenced or restricted by a department head or other superior in their particular area of research.

Gringotts is a popular place of employment for those with an interest in Runes and wandwork. Gringotts employees come across runes used a variety of different ways. Vaults can be sealed or protected by runes, certain magical items which are stored could also be marked by runes, and they would certainly be present in any written magic pertaining to security, inventory, or charting. An individual who works at Gringotts would need to be skilled in other areas of magic if they wish to be a cursebreaker- as they use their wands just as often. This would be a great way to combine those two areas of magic into one career. Working at Gringotts could offer excitement and adventure, which many would consider a pro. However, a witch or wizard would also be forced to work alongside goblins- magical beings of unpredictable behavior and magical capability.

Working independently with Ancient Runes would offer up total freedom to a person with the appropriate skill level and monetary means. As an independent researcher, a witch or wizard could do all of the experimentation available at the ministry of magic with the lack of interference from others. More controversial uses of Ancient Runes could be practiced privately, and as a result new ways in which to use runes or discoveries of runes could be achieved. However, when lacking the funding of the Ministry of Magic, Gringotts, or even an educational institution, an independent researched could find themselves with little to actually do. The research could easily become a hobby to someone who lacks wealth, as life responsibilities would get in the way of extensive research and experimentation. Restricted resources would be less readily available, and a person could easily begin to skirt the law in an attempt to further develop the field.

Being an instructor seems to offer less in the field of runes than other careers. As an instructor, there would be less time to do your own work. Instructors would not be on the front lines of research and development. Instead, a person would be obligated to teach students of preexisting aspects of the field of Runes. Such a position would most certainly offer job security, as Ancient Runes seems to be a less popular field of study for students. If a person has a nurturing instinct, it would satisfy emotional and mental needs to help others. Some people are naturally skilled at teaching and inclined to spend their time educating others rather than undertaking what is certainly a complicated process in runes experimentation. The personal fulfillment of such an occupation would vary from individual to individual.

It is easy to see that Ancient Runes is an important part of magical education. The subject can easily be applied to most other areas of magic, and is an important aspect of many different career paths available to witches and wizards. Were I to pursue a career in Ancient Runes, I would choose to work within the Ministry- experimenting with the use of Runes, within the Department of Mysteries. However, each occupation has its own charm and appeal depending upon the personal preferences of the individual.