Beware of literate eavesdroppers

Dear Miss Manners: At dinner with a friend, where the neighboring table was no more than a foot away, I mentioned that I had recently completed reading the final Harry Potter book. She asked me to tell her who had died in the final book, as she gave up on the series after the third book.

I was a little concerned that the table next to us had not read the book and decided that I should give them some buffer time to interrupt or take a trip to the restroom.

So I asked my friend if she was certain that she wanted to know who didn’t make it till the end. I then asked her if she was aware of who passed away in books five and six, and outlined those deaths.

Seeing that the neighboring table did not object or leave, I proceeded to run down the lengthy list of casualties in book seven. I struck a cord with the final death (having already listed everyone else that had died), and a diner at the next table said, “Excuse me, we have not read the book yet.”

Her companion then stated, “I tried not to listen, but then I heard the name ______. I have not read the final three books yet, so can you please change the subject?”

I apologized and stated that I was wondering if it would be an issue for them but expected that they would have interrupted sooner if it was.

Looking back on this situation, I have no idea what was and was not appropriate etiquette. I would like to know the rules about giving away endings to movies or books to strangers.

Gentle Reader: It appears as though the moral here ought to be that people who eavesdrop should pay closer attention and state their criticisms clearly and early.

Miss Manners thinks not. The better rule is never to say anything in public that you do not want overheard. And when you do so anyway, keep your voice down and avoid using names. (In this case, you could have written or whispered the name.)

Protecting others – not only from literary surprises, but from foul language and salacious stories – is one reason. A more compelling one to those tempted to tell all may be to protect themselves from gossipy eavesdroppers, including inadvertent ones.