[HPforGrownups] Re: What motivated Dobby in CoS?

[SeventhSqueal]

No: HPFGUIDX 53564


Quote from 7thSqueal post about Dobby's motivation.
> > Three: Add your idea here.

Finwitch offers a third alternative: 
I myself see Dobby acting very much as he were Harry
Potter's house-elf. Dobby has NOT heard of Harry being
decent."Dobby has heard of your greatness, sir, but
nothing of your goodness".
Also, it was *obvious* to me that Dobby was NOT acting
under Malfoy's orders.A house-elf is supposed to serve
one family and one house for ever, but somehow Dobby's
more bound to Harry than the Malfoys!
Dobby chooses to use his freedom to serve Harry in
any way Harry permits him to and obeys Harry...
  
We don't know how a house-elf becomes bound. In
Winky's case, it was hereditary, but with Dobby? It
seems like Dobby's bound to Harry... and that's what
makes him glad being free- he *can* serve his 
precious Harry Potter even though Harry Potter is too
young to have a house... Was Dobby *born* in the
Potter house that was destroyed and thus bound to
Harry, even though he was forcibly separated from
Harry until he hears Harry's in danger?

7thSqueal responds:
This is an excellent third option for what motivates
Dobby. It also explains Dobby's split personality type
behavior for a house-elf.

Dobby does tell Harry directly to his face that his
Masters don't know he is there, however, in the
following chapter, Fred and George give Harry the
background info on house-elves and give him the
opinion that Dobby's information sounds fishy to them.
They claim that house-elves come with old manors, but
this is a very minor drawback and does not necessarily
discount the theory that Dobby was originally
James'(or another Potter's) house elf. House elves are
bound to serve their masters. The only thing obvious
about who Dobby is serving is that it causes him the
distress of contradiction, like someone who is trying
to serve more than one master, and he is operating
under conflicting orders or allegiances. (Geek
parallel: Hal 9000) This could be because of the
conflicting orders within the Malfoy household, or
conflicting allegiances between past and present
owner.
Which leads us to the next question. Would the
Malfoy's ever knowingly accept the Potter's old
house-elf?


=====
~SeventhSqueal

There's no earthly way of knowing / Which direction we are going / There's no knowing where we're rowing / Or which way the river's flowing / Is it raining? / Is it snowing? / Is a hurricane a-blowing? / Not a speck of light is showing / So the danger must be growing / Are the fires of hell a-glowing? / Is the grisly reaper mowing? / Yes, the danger must be growing / 'Cause the rowers keep on rowing / And they're certainly not showing / Any signs that they are slowing!

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