[HPforGrownups] Not So Faithful (was: Re: The Imperius Curse

[Peg Kerr]

No: HPFGUIDX 2979

Rita Winston wrote:

> --- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, Amanda Lewanski wrote:
>
> > [Barty Crouch, Jr] told his story, in great detail and under very
> > strong Veritaserum, to Dumbledore, Snape, McGonagall, and Harry.
> > He was indeed a very faithful servant.
>
> For all that Moody/Crouch said "There's nothing I hate more than a
> Death Eater who walked free" and mouthed off about disloyal followers
> who denied their lord just to avoid Azkaban, he himself had *loudly*
> denied his lord ("Father! I'm innocent! I didn't do it!") in an
> unsuccessful effort to avoid Azkaban.

Well, don't I feel like a great thundering prat.  I had never twigged to
that contradiction until now.

> Two trains of thought that leave from this station have to do with
> hypocrisy. One is the gutter-psychological theory of projection,
> in which, whenever person X criticizes person Y for bad behaviour A,
> someones retorts to person X that he/she is only saying that because
> of 'denial' of his/her own A.
>
> Another is whether the Lord of Lies really has any objection to his
> followers lying.
>
> A related thought is that, throughout the story, Crouch Sr. is
> criticized for his hardness <snip>But the harm that we actually *see*
> in this story was caused by Crouch Sr's moment of *softness*. If he
> hadn't yielded to his
> wife begging him to most illegally help a convicted felon escape from
> prison, V couldn't have kidnapped Harry from Hogwarts, Cedric
> wouldn't be dead, and for that matter, Crouch Sr wouldn't be dead.

Very good points.  Barty Crouch, Sr, too, was faithless in a
way--faithless to his internal code of justice, I mean.