"More silence followed this little speech. Harry and Ron exchanged looks with raised eyebrows. Hermoine Granger was on the edge of her seat and looked desperate to start proving that she wasn't a dunderhead" (Rowling, 137).
Hermoine Granger spends a lot of her time in the Harry Potter series on the edge of her seat, desperate to prove herself. This first book sets the stage for the rest of the series and begins to show how Hermoine tries to impress herself upon Snape. Snape, nevertheless, is cold and unappreciative of her talents- then again, he tends to be that way toward everyone.
The passage's wording is such that it will get stuck in your head if you have read the book enough times and you are just thinking of a particular chapter. J.K. Rowling's style and flair allow her work to live on in the minds of readers long after they have put the book down, and isn't that the real magic of reading? (The quoting aside, this is being able to apply the books to real life and hopefully, use the knowledge of the secondary world in the primary world).
Hermoine says later in the book to Harry that although she's smart, she isn't like him. (It's the scene right before Harry goes on to face Professor Quirrell and Voldemort). "Me? Books and cleverness, but you..."
In every fantasy series, there must be the intellectual who figures things out for the rest of the group. (It happens in science fiction too). Someone has to pave the way for the rest and although Harry and Ron aren't friends with Hermoine yet, this intelligence will shine through and help them when they need it the most. The same can be true for many characters in fantasy, not necessarily those who are wise beyond their years (like Professor Dumbledore).
Hermoine has a life of her own outside of Harry Potter. On www.icanhazcheezburger.com, there's a "Hermoine kitty knows all the answers". This caption reminded me of this particular passage.
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