[HPforGrownups] Hermione's Hats
Kathryn Wolber
molly_weasley_wannabe at yahoo.com
Fri Aug 22 03:14:33 UTC 2003
No: HPFGUIDX 78357
--- Robert Jones <jones.r.h.j at worldnet.att.net> wrote:
> I was looking at the picture of Dobby wearing all of
> Hermione's Hats
> in the American version of OOTP, and a question
> occurred to me: how
> do the students' clothes at Hogwarts get cleaned?
> Wouldn't the
> house elves be picking them up and cleaning them all
> the time? (The
> same would have been true for Dobby when he was with
> the Malfoys.)
> The elves wouldn't be freed by doing this because
> their masters had
> not directly handed them the clothing. But then how
> are the hats
> and socks that Hermione is knitting and hiding
> around the Gryffindor
> common room supposed to free them, since once again
> the elves would
> only pick them up themselves? <snip> JKR has made
Hermione very
> brilliant, as
> her analyses in OOTP repeatedly showed -- so
> wouldn't Hermione think
> of this simple point too? What am I missing?
I think that's just Hermione being overly ambitious
and not thinking things through. In addition to the
fact that the elves are just picking up the hats, not
being given them, Hermione is not their master. She
can hand them as many socks or hats as she wants but
it doesn't matter. On pg 380 US PB of GoF Dobby says
"We upholds the family's honor, and we never speak ill
of them --though Professor Dumbledore told Dobby he
does not insist on this....He said we is free to call
him a barmy old codger if we likes, sir!" So
obviously Dumbledore is his master and Hermione has no
control over the school elves' freedom.
My guess about laundry is that they just pick it up
and masters make sure they don't hand it to the elves.
Or, maybe when doing laundry the elves know it's not
meant as dismissal. Like how Kreacher decided that
Sirius telling him to get out meant for him to leave
the house. When Crouch dismisses Winky he said "This
means clothes." (GoF 138, US PB) So I would think that
a loyal elf like Winky would know that if handed
something while doing laundry it doesn't mean she's
dismissed. Dobby and Kreacher (who I hate to name
side by side)on the other hand were looking for any
chance to get away. So Sirius' instruction to leave
the kitchen, and Harry causing Malfoy to unknowingly
give Dobby a sock were enough for them to leave.
Just some thoughts,
~Kathryn, who begs forgiveness for not getting a page
number for Kreacher leaving the house but has no
interest in unpacking her college stuff to get the
book out.
=====
"Difference of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.-Dumbledore,GoF
"It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that."-Dumbledore-SS
Ron: "Well, I had one that I was playing Quidditch the other night...what d'you reckon that means?
Harry:"Probably that you're going to be eaten by a giant marshmallow or something."
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