We can't trust anyone...

[doliesl]

No: HPFGUIDX 77981

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "vecseytj" <vecseytj at t...> 
wrote:
> 
> 
> I was reading OOP last night and this page just jumped out at me. 
> Because Hermione is saying so forcfully that to trust DD is a 
given. 
> But, we (Harry) learns that Dumbledore makes mistakes too, and  his
> ego can lead him astray. (ie; that DD is the *most* powerful wiz 
that
> was.  And not telling Harry *very* important things)  Things that
> should have been shared *long* before.
> 
>  quote from Ch. 25 end of page 554 to 555.
> 
> Harry is upset about Occlumency.  Saying it's not a bag of laughs. 
> And Ron is saying...
> Pg 554:
> Maybe it's not Harry's fault he can't close his mind," said Ron
> darkly, "What do you mean? said Hermione.  Well, maybe Snape isn't
> really trying to help Harry..." Harry and Hermione starred at him. 
> Ron looked darkly and meaningfully from one to the other.  "Maybe," 
he
> said agin in a lower voice "he's actually trying to open Harry's 
mind
> a bit wider...make it easier for You-know-"  "Shut up, Ron" said
> hermione angrily.  "How many times have you suspected Snape, and 
when
> have you *ever* been right?  Dumbledore trust him, he works for the
> Order, that ought to be enough."  "He used to be a Death Eater," 
said
> Ron stubbornly. "And we've never seen proof that he really swapped
> sides..." 
> "Dumbledore *trusts* him,"  Hermione repeated.  "And if we *CAN'T
> TRUST DUMBLEDORE, WE CAN'T TRUST ANYONE."*
> 
> And this is my point.  Harry can't *trust* DD anymore (well not
> fully).  Harry has learned a very hard lesson.  

The books are told through Harry's very biased-tinted glasses; turns 
out he's wrong about many things and people all the time. And there 
has been plenty of redherrings (notice how many of those were Snape-
related?). So as readers, we have to make our own judgement about who 
says the right thing, as Harry's own judgement is very untrustworthy. 
However, we should be familiar that Hermione always seems to 
be "right", that at least there are voices of 'truth' somewhere in 
the text. JKR has done well in inputing  

JKR has said that sometimes she used Hermione and Dumbledore to speak 
for herself, the "author's voice of truth".
Snipped from thd CoS DVD interview
==================================
JKR: Absolutely right, I find that all the time in the book, if you 
need to tell your readers something just put it in her. There are 
only two characters that you can put it convincingly into their 
dialogue. One is Hermione, the other is Dumbledore. In both cases you 
accept, it's plausible that they have, well Dumbledore knows pretty 
much everything anyway, but that Hermione has read it somewhere. So, 
she's handy.

...skipped...
JKR: Oh yes, very much so. Dumbledore often speaks for me.
==================================

So I believe that line "if we *CAN'T TRUST DUMBLEDORE, WE CAN'T TRUST 
ANYONE."* is another thing the author wants to tell us. Now you can 
read it more than one way. I tend to read that, even if Dumbledore 
will disappoint reader by the end of the book that he's not 
infallible afterall, he is still the one to trust. And Hermione will 
stand by him. Plus, I think the game of "Ha! I played you! Now all 
you readers can't trust anyone anymore ha-ha!' is such a cheat, total 
cheap shot of the writer. So out of all the redherrings and Harry's 
biased glasses' window, there is no more ground to base on? 
Therefore, until there's any evidence that clearly show Snape's 
loyalty to Dumbldore was shaky,or that he's capable of killing 
students....for now, like Hermione, I trust Dumbldore. Snape is just 
too much of a redherring device JKR loves to fool us.

D.