[HPforGrownups] Re: avada kedavra

[Kelly Grosskreutz]

No: HPFGUIDX 57892

Greicy wrote
>
> I believe Voldemort is completely stupid.  He's planning this "I'm
> Going To Kill Harry Once and For All" plan and not thinking fulling
> about the consequences and side effects.  Voldemort has become
> maniacal in his quest, he's not focusing at all.  Isn't this the
> case for all Evil characters?  They focus so much on one thing that
> they forget about everything else.
>
The DE's have to see through him, though.  I reread GoF not too long ago,
and I actually found myself in awe at how well V works the DE's.  Let's
break down just what he does, with a recap and analysis.

First, he proclaims they are united under the Dark Mark, then proceeds to
question whether they really are, playing upon the guilt he believes they
feel by accusing them of not trying to look for him and doubting that he had
lived.  He lays this on as thick as he can until one of the DE's, Avery,
breaks, falls on his knees, and begs forgiveness.  V proceeds to punish
Avery by using Cruciatus.  He then tells all of them that he won't forgive
them until he gets thirteen years' repayment from them.  In essence, he
makes them feel bad about being free and not helping him, and shows them all
what he could do to them if he chose.  He puts fear into them.

 He then turns to Wormtail, goes on about how worthless he is, but points
out that Wormtail did help him return to his body, so rewards him by giving
him the silver hand.  Wormtail scurries over to kiss V's robes, and V gets
Wormtail to say he'll never let his loyalty waver again.  Nice way to follow
up Avery's torture.  He quickly establishes a clear message:  they all
deserve to be tortured at the very least for their unfaithfulness, but if
they try to mend their ways, he will reward them.  By giving Wormtail the
hand and sparing Avery's life (and everyone else the Cruciatus Curse), he
also shows that he can be merciful even to those who don't deserve it.

He then speaks to Lucius, berates him for not looking for him, and cuts
through Lucius's bull, telling him straight out his service has been
unsatisfactory and he'd better shape up.  This tells the rest of them that
he does not accept excuses, sees through them, and they won't cut it with
him.  Again, he is showing mercy by more or less giving Lucius a slap on the
hand.

The next ones he talks about are the Lestranges.  He essentially tells them
what they could have done to show their loyalty, and promises great rewards
to them (and, so they will assume, to any other follower who is faithful).
In this same bit, he starts hyping the great army he's going to mass and all
the allies he's planning to get.  Building on their dreams of ambition and
conquest.

Next, he wanders the circle and talks to certain other DE's.  In these
exchanges, he reiterates his earlier messages:  he expects them to do
better, and if they serve him well, he will give them what they want
(Macnair getting better victims than dangerous beasts).

V then stops before the huge gap and talks about the six. I believe
mentioning the three dead DE's is a subtle message to the rest that dying in
his service is a glorious thing.  Then we come to the coward and the one he
believes had left him forever.  He can't get much clearer than he does on
what the penalty is for cowardice and betrayal.

Finally, Voldemort spends the next few pages telling about what happened to
him between Halloween '81 and the present day, all the time throwing jabs at
his unfaithful DE's and praising his faithful servant that helped him and is
now at Hogwarts, and promises of the wondrous things that are to come.

Pretty much, Voldemort pulls them back into his web quickly and efficiently
by playing every card he can to motivate them to be even more loyal and
faithful than they were in the past, promising huge rewards to those who
prove themselves and help him, and retribution/punishment to those who are
found wanting in his service.  My recap does not really do what V does
justice, IMO.  V is an extremely skilled manipulator who knows how to work a
crowd.  I think it'll be hard for the majority of them to break free of his
web.

One thing that could go against him is the lack of reward.  Right now, what
he is promising is rather vague and nebulous.  More victims (presumably
Muggle-borns and their sympathizers), honor beyond one's dreams (the
Lestranges).  A DE could get sick of all these vague promises of rewards
that are always coming but never quite here yet.  Or they could overcome
their fear of what could happen to them if they go against Voldemort.  There
is also room for them to wonder at how powerful Voldemort is because he has
failed to kill Harry at least three times.  But currently, I don't see much
indication to make me think the DE's are going to look at Voldemort and
think he is focusing strictly on killing Harry Potter.  He tells them he is
still interested in conquest and taking out Muggle-borns.  He mentions that
he plans to pursue immortality once again, something that was always high on
his list of priorities.  Yes, Harry is on their list of targets, and the
DE's know he's rather highly placed, but that's different than them
believing V is obsessed with killing Harry to the exclusion of all else.

> Do you guys think that maybe the DE's will turn against Voldemort
> because all he cares about is killing Harry?  Wasn't his main
> concern at some point taking over the WW, killing Mudbloods;
> Mudblood sympathizers; and anti-Voldemortists?

As I said above, I think they still see those to be his main concerns.
Killing Harry is now just added to the list, perhaps taking the place of his
parents in the last war.  After all, V did go to extraordinary lengths to
take out the Potters, as we've seen in different posts lately.

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