Golden statue in MoM - foreshadowing? (SPEW forever!)

[ebeth0000000000]

No: HPFGUIDX 69863

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "tigerpatronus" 
<tigerpatronus at y...> wrote:

That leaves House Elves. The House Elf Liberation Front is near and 
dear to my heart. I posted a long essay (C/C) comparing the House 
Elf predicament to American slavery and to the breeding of dogs 
(#69124). I think it's closer to slavery, and I worry about this in 
the Potterverse. This issue may confound Americans more because we 
only abolished slavery here about 150 years ago, while in England, 
y'all were far more civilized and did away with it long before. 
Thus, y'all Brits feel less cultural culpability than we Yanks do. 
I'm copying the essay here, because I do believe this issue warrents 
more discussion:

<big snips before and after, especially TK's great essay!>


I totally agree, TK. I'm not surprised this didn't get a lot of 
response, specifically because of the uncomfortability many 
Americans have with this topic, but it is also very near and dear to 
my heart as a historian who works at a living history museum (a 
southern plantation home, to be exact). I have struggled a lot with 
what JKR is showing us about house elves. First, they are presented, 
like Dobby, as the subjugated elf waiting only to be liberated by 
wizard benefactors like Harry, who frees him with a sock, or 
Hermione, who organizes SPEW. Supposedly the elves go on to earn 
wages and live happily ever after. Characters like Sirius and 
Dumbledore seem to agree with Hermione. 

But then, we're shown a conflicting image: an elf who is not really 
bad, but seems to truly sympathize with a "bad" master (owner). 
Maybe this is powerful magic, but maybe it's irreversable: After 
all, Winky has still not recovered from being freed as of OOP. What 
does this mean? Is JKR trying to say the house elves aren't 'fit' 
for freedom? I find this argument distasteful, as that is the 
argument many southern slave owners made about the slaves that 
worked their fields. 

Now it seems that many of the characters think SPEW is either 
ridiculous or even potentially detrimental to the wizarding 
community. After all, JKR shows us with the character of Kreatcher 
that elves can be truly bad people. (Or can they? Is this more 
brainwashing and spells? Is Hermione right that it's all in the way 
he was treated?) JKR seems to be trying to impress upon the reader 
that there is no absolute 'right' or 'wrong' when it comes to house 
elves, but in her characters' justifications for keeping some elves 
slaves (they can't handle freedom, they're happier working for their 
masters like Winky, they would be dangerous if let go like 
Kreatcher) I hear echoes of the southern planter's justification of 
slavery in the U.S. before the civil war. Disturbing. . . 

maybe she's showing us the prejudices of the wizarding community so 
we can understand something that happens later.  Or maybe she's 
pointing out how people can do wrong by trying to do right (like the 
American abolitionists who were white northerners, founding Liberia 
to actually export slaves back to Africa--a racist act in and of 
itself, borne of a high-minded perception of justice--is this what 
Hermione is doing by knitting hats?  Giving the house elves the 
wrong kind of freedom?  Maybe they can only be freed by the 
reversing of a spell, and that's why her socks and hats are an 
injustice)  

EBeth