DADA , Snape and Slytherin

[katzefan at yahoo.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 24356

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., fourfuries at a... wrote:
> --- In HPforGrownups at y..., "Steve Vander Ark" <vderark at b...> 
wrote:
> > --- In HPforGrownups at y..., cimorene21 at h... wrote:
> > 
> >DADA is training students the why of magic, not just the how. 
It's 
> >like ethics courses for  doctors. Without a thorough training in 
> >this, a school trains wizards with no foundation of good and 
evil. 
> >The product would be ammoral, easily-swayed wizards who 
wield power 
> >without the understanding that would keep them on the side 
of the 
> >right and good. It's all about intention. 
> 
> Which brings us to a question that is heavy on my mind.  Is 
Draco 
> Malfoy evil, or merely the product of poor examples in his 
mother and 
> father?  How about Snape and the whole Slytherin gang?  I am 
sure 
> this has been discussed before on the group, but I am asking 
> specifically what qualifies one as an evil wizard, or a potentially 
> evil wizard.
> 
> Obviously it is something in the character of the person before 
they 
> reach Hogwarts, because the Sorting Hat seems to sort the 
prideful, 
> ambitious, snobby and hateful people into Slytherin.  But are 
these 
> the only evils? Cornelius Fudge is going to do terrible damage 
in the 
> next book IMO and I doubt that he is a Slytherin alum.  His 
blindness 
> to the real danger, and his complacency with easy answers 
are just as 
> dangerous as the active plotting of Malfoy, sr.
> 
> I agree with Steve about the purpose of the school to be to train 
> character as much as talent (see my prior post Re:  Magical 
Talent 
> and Wands Part Two).  The challenge comes in admitting that 
teaching 
> right and wrong means that we voluntarily choose NOT to do 
things we 
> are perfectly capable of doing.  Good people voluntarily restrain 
> themselves.
> 
> Voldy says to Quirrell in PS/SS "The Man With Two Faces": 
> (paraphrasing) "There is no right and wrong, only power, and 
those 
> too weak to use it."
> 
> As a result Dumbledore observes in chapter two that Voldy has 
"powers 
> I never had", but Minerva immediately replies "that's only 
because 
> you are to noble to use them".  The difference between Voldy 
and 
> Dumbledore, then, is Dumbledore's sense of restraint.
> 
> I think Snape would like to be the DADA teacher, because he 
knows 
> more about the dark arts than anybody else at Hogwarts, with 
the 
> possible exception of Prof D (In PoA, doesn't someone say that 
Snape 
> came to school knowing more curses than most kids ever 
learned in 
> their 7 years?)  Drak Arts is Snape's natural interest, he likes 
> power, and was probably a Death Eater because of these 
natural 
> inclinations.
> 
> But he learned somehow to restrain himself.  He pulled back 
from evil.
> So, my question is where do Slytherins learn restraint?
> 
> 4FR

IMO the difference between Fudge and the Slytherin types is that 
Fudge is blundering about trying to avoid a catastrophe, but only 
by reflexively depending on whatever has worked in the past. 
Voldemort, the Malfoys, etcetera, on the other hand, actively 
relish stepping hard on those weaker than themselves and 
grabbing increasing amounts of power to allow them to continue 
to do so.