"Cry 'Havoc,' and let slip the dogs of war ..."

[lenmachine]

No: HPFGUIDX 30860

Calypso wrote:

<snip>
History cannot repeat *exactly* or that wouldn't be a good story.
<snip>

Then, Joshua Dyal wrote:

<snip>
> And another also, the environment has changed completely.  James, 
> Sirius, et al lived in fairly innocent times -- there was no 
> Voldemort rampaging through Hogwarts trying to kill them.
<snip>

This brings to mind another parallel, which I haven't seen discussed 
yet -- the parallel between the Voldemort War I (VWI) and Voldemort 
War II (VWII).

Obviously, we have not seen anything of VWII yet. But what does 
anyone think will happen ? What shape will their new strategy take ? 
(I mean the entire wizarding world, and not just Dumbledore and 
whatever he has going with Snape, "the old crowd," the giants, et 
al.) What has the wizarding world learned about LV and how to battle 
him and his DEs ? How will they learn to adjust to the change in his 
powers ? Before, the wizarding community was more or less unified 
against LV and his followers -- how will they cope now that there is 
an apparent split in opinion as to whether he has truly returned ?

Personally, I think JKR has set the tone for an all-out war -- or, at 
the very least, a huge upheaval of wizard society. There are lots of 
suggestions that the relationship between wizards and elves, giants, 
dementors, maybe even goblins -- maybe even Muggles -- will change 
utterly during VWII. Our young heroes will realize, unlike the heroes 
and veterans of VWI, that LV stands against everything for which not 
only wizards stand, but everything for which humans, elves, giants -- 
all beings who cherish the sanctity of life -- stand. VWII will not 
be a battle restricted to the wizarding world. It will be a battle 
for all beings.

Catlady said:

> > ...I also would not 
> > be surprised if the entirely wizarding world and all the magic 
> > people except Hermione were destroyed...

Then Elizabeth said:

> I've wondered myself if this is where JKR is headed. Partly because 
the 
> wizard world is so flawed-- riddled with prejudice, wracked by 
> factional infighting, and heavily dependent on slavery and 
oppression 
> of other intelligent species-- is it really worth saving?

Of course it's worth saving -- how could any modern *Muggle* 
civilization be left standing if they weren't worth preserving ? 
Let's face it, every society in every part of the world that has ever 
existed were/are flawed. They have had their prejudices, their 
infighting, their dependence on slavery and exploitation of other 
sentient beings. There is no Utopia. That doesn't mean we should head 
the way of the nihilists. 

No, I don't believe that destroying wizard society, as flawed as it 
may be, is JKR's aim. I do think that there are going to be some bad 
times ahead. The wizarding world is going to be turned upside down -- 
but not destroyed. Even wizards are redeemable, just as we Muggles 
are. It's worth saving, even if the entire Weasley family dies trying 
to prove it.


Sincerely,

Emily A. Chen