Lupin question

[Susan McGee]

No: HPFGUIDX 10243

--- In HPforGrownups at egroups.com, Amanda Lewanski <editor at t...> wrote:
> Marvin Long wrote:
> 
> > I suspect that Harry would have trusted Moody the moment he 
bounced
> > Draco around, Lupin or no.  When I was Harry's age, the image of 
the
> > gnarly, crusty old coot that Moody presents would have been
> > fascinating--hypnotizing, even.  Add to that a personality that
> > immediately recognizes the rottenness of my "sworn enemy" and 
we'd be
> > talking about a pretty instant bond, or at least an instant 
desire to
> > bond if instinctive reluctance still remains.
> 
> It had been discussed that Harry's upbringing had made him very
> standoffish towards others, especially adults. This might be why we 
hear
> so very little about other students--he runs with the two close 
friends
> he's made, and doesn't seem to seek, or want to seek, more. As for 
adults,
> he's been close to almost none, and Lupin was the first taste of 
what a
> friendship with an adult could be like, which is very important at 
Harry's
> age. It's been my thought that Lupin helped mellow Harry's 
perception and
> got him to be more willing to trust. I'm wondering how Crouch's 
betrayal
> of the trust will affect Harry in book 5.
> 
> By the way, all you other loners out there, I'm not saying there's 
a thing
> wrong with having only one or two friends--that was my style as 
well. I'm
> just saying that making friends with someone doesn't tend to occur 
to
> Harry; they tend to make friends with him.
> 
> --Amanda

Okay...kids who've been abused..who've suffered....in adolescence, 
either become perfect kids, and love to rescue others,  or start 
acting out and break all the rules (kids who abuse drugs, act out 
sexually (meaning both boys and girls who have multiple partners), 
who are violent (mostly boys, but that's changing some), who are self 
destructive (mostly girls, but not always)......Harry is unusual in 
that he breaks rules, but he
is the hero. That's not unusual in kids who've been abused..they long 
to be the one who is brave and rescues others...JKR gets inside 
Harry's head, but according to her, he doesn't exult when he's 
rescued someone.....(on a personal note, I wasn't abused, but when I 
get to be a hero and rescue someone, I'm euphoric...) hmmmmm...

Trust issues. It is absolutely true that if there is one person who 
can be trusted, this opens the door to trusting others. Amanda, 
although I would agree that Dumbledore is not quite a friend, he does 
start to prove trustworthy. I think Hagrid (see below) is the first 
step, then Dumbledore, then Lupin, then Black. Somewhere in there are 
the Weasleys. You can see Harry's healing path. 

First there is Hagrid. Hagrid rescues Harry. He's the first person in 
Harry's life to stand up to Vernon.....in quite a spectacular way. He 
arrives with food (symbol of nurturance), and then vanquishes Vernon 
and gives Dudley a pig's tail (yet we never are nervous about the 
abuse of power as we are when Crouch, Junior) bounces Draco. He 
provides Harry the avenue to escape. Hagrid almost immediately 
reveals himself as not really an authority figure.
He's been expelled; he can't use his wand. He's a friend.

Dumbledore is not a friend...yet Harry grows slowly to love and
respect him. Or else Falkes would not have come in the CoS...when 
Harry takes Ginny to Dumbledore (who has been banished by the 
machinations of Malfoy, Sr.) he worries that no one will believe
that Ginny was taken over by Riddle/Voldemort. When Dumbledore says 
that he is perplexed as to how Voldemort bewitched Ginny when his 
sources say that V is in Albania, Harry feels tremendous relief.
By the PoA, Harry has trusted Dumbledore implicitly. 

(Harry has the opportunity to be at the Weasleys, where the 
remarkable thing is that everyone likes him)

Then, I think you're right...here comes Lupin..he asks Harry to have 
tea with him (wasn't Harry very tentative about that?) Lupin teaches 
him the Patronus.....reveals that he knew his father.....and mother..
and becomes a friend.......this absolutely paves the way for Harry's
relationship with his godfather....)

{But Harry never really trusts Crouch, Jr. in the way he trusts Lupin 
or Sirius. He thinks he's COOL, he is grateful for his help in 
figuring out the first task, and in evading the ubiquitous Snape But 
he never really warms up to him in the way he becomes attached to 
Lupin or Sirius. 

I agree heartily with the person who made this point.....Crouch, 
Junior, is a swine..first he illustrates the curses in a way that is 
sure to retraumatize (cause flashbacks, typical of PTSD survivors) in 
both Neville and Harry..he does it deliberately and then he gets 
to "comfort" both of them. Swine city. Get Hagrid to give him a BIG 
pig's tail.}

Harry is a great hero. He has the opportunity to kill Sirius, who he 
blames for his parents' death, but in part because of Crookshanks, he 
does not..he saves Pettigrew.....In part, he does so because he gets 
back control..HE is the one who can be merciful and compassionate in
stark contrast to his enemies....

A toast: To Harry Potter! The boy who lives!

These books are really good..don't you think?

Susan