[HPforGrownups] Redeemed!Dudley?

[Kelly Grosskreutz]

No: HPFGUIDX 56200

From: herm - own - ninny

I came upon this quote from JKR when reading the summery of 'things we know
about OOP' from Book
Magazine(http://www.bookmagazine.com/issue28/unfogging.shtml)

"Also, fans should keep an eye on [their son] Dudley. It's probably too late
for Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. I feel sorry for Dudley. I might joke
about him, but I feel truly sorry for him because I see him as just as
abused as Harry."

I know there's been a lot of talk about Redeemed!Draco, but this quote just
screams Redeemed!Dudley to me. The fact that JKR tells us to keep an eye on
him, and then says it's too late for Vernon and Petunia, implies that it's
not too late for Dudley. Not that I necesarily want Dudley redeemed - he's
no Draco Malfoy that's for sure <g>. But it's a thought, and something I've
never even begun to consider. I mean, as it stands Dudley is a very minor
character. We see him at the beginning of each book and usually forget about
him the rest of time. What can he possibly do that'll be worth keeping an
eye on?

From:  Me

Perhaps.  I remember thinking about a year ago along the same lines as JKR.
We always think "Poor Harry" when we think about his life at the Dursleys,
but she's right.  Dudley is abused as well, but just differently.  They
indulge his every whim.  They overfeed him.  They favor him.  They are
turning him into a huge person that is completely out of touch with reality
and how it really works, as his life is not how everyone else in the Muggle
world lives.

My thoughts did lead me to this observation, though.  Is it just me, or do
the Dursleys sometimes act like they're afraid of Dudley?  At his 11th
birthday party, for instance, he notices he has less presents than this
year.  He is on the verge of throwing a temper tantrum.  The Dursleys scurry
to do anything they can to pacify him so he will not get angry.  There have
been other times in the series when the Dursleys give in to Dudley.  From a
normal child-rearing standpoint, this obviously is not good for the child.
However, what if they are afraid of what he might do if he has a temper
tantrum?  One of the things Hagrid said to prove to Harry that he was a
wizard is asked him if he'd ever done magic when he was angry or frightened.
It makes me wonder if the Dursleys are afraid that Dudley might end up
taking after his aunt Lily.  This could actually explain a lot of their
behavior, both with Dudley and with Harry.  Of course, this has probably
been covered before (yes, I've only been a poster for a couple of days), but
I'm interested to hear what other people think on this.  Could this be why
JKR said to keep an eye on Dudley?

On a side note, I clicked on the link for the Book Magazine article, and I
got a message saying the page couldn't be found.

Kelly Grosskreutz
http://www.idcnet.com/~ivanova/