TBAY: Percy as Tragic Hero

[elfundeb]

No: HPFGUIDX 58796

Note:  This post was originally written months ago in response to comments made by Eileen in #49110, but it never got posted.

The door to the Canon Museum swings open, and Debbie, Eileen and Elkins emerge, blinking in the bright sunlight.  Debbie runs down to the Theory Bay beach and the others follow.  As Eileen catches up to Debbie, she grabs Debbie's arm and begins sternly but breathlessly.

"Percy.  Is.  Not.  Evil." Eileen pants.  "Well, at least not in a Voldemort style, but he idolized Crouch. . . He was 19 and, not unlike Harry, not in the least apathetic about these things.  He must have known what Crouch had done, and he apparently approved."  Eileen buries her head in her hands, wailing, "Oh, my poor dear Percy who evidently believes using the Cruciatus curse on suspects is acceptable."

"Do you think so?" replies Debbie in a consoling voice.  "In my mind, Percy spent GoF in wide-eyed, youthful, idealistic ignorance of Crouch Sr.'s sins.  The younger generation in general seems woefully ignorant of events during Voldemort's first reign of terror.  Remember how at the QWC Ron knew nothing about the Dark Mark?  The older generation seems to be very reluctant to talk about the past at all.  I imagine that the reluctance to discuss what went on then would be redoubled at the Ministry, which doesn't exactly have a sparkling record to tout.  The fact that almost all of our information about Crouch Sr. comes from the Pensieve (Dumbledore's private memories), from Sirius (who has a personal grudge against Crouch), and from a veritaserum-induced confession, supports the conclusion that it's a Time That Must Not Be Named or Mentioned.  So unless Percy has spent time doing research on his boss's past, he probably believes Crouch was what he pretended to be:  strictly rule-abiding, a strict but fair enforcer, working hard to improve standards."

Eileen nods thoughtfully, but says nothing.

"Yes," Debbie continued, "*we* know Crouch is a hypocrite.  He practices the Dark Arts.  He subverts justice.  He doesn't really practice all those virtues Percy prizes so much.  But Percy doesn't have a window to that side of Crouch's character.  He won't get a look at the Pensieve, and he's not going to hear Crouch Jr.'s side of the story.  Fudge took care of that when he allowed the Dementor to administer the kiss to Crouch Jr.  I think it's unlikely that Fudge would allow the real truth about Crouch Sr. to come out.  Better to let the mysterious disappearance of one of Fudge's own department heads remain an unsolved mystery in order to leave Crouch's reputation (and, by extension, Fudge's) intact.  And though Bill Weasley is on his way to alert Arthur so that the Ministry employees will know the truth, Bill did not hear Crouch Jr.'s confession and, therefore, neither will Percy.  So I believe the Ministry will be able to provide whitewash, and Percy will accept it."

Eileen stares out into the Bay, lost in thought.  Suddenly she turns back toward Elkins and Debbie, her eyes glittering.  "Percy, though, would be a Livian, don't you think?  A real one.  He has the capacity to be everything Crouch pretended to be.  Percy could be evil.  Very evil indeed.  As well as a tragic hero."

"Hmm.  Percy may have Livian tendencies, at least if that means he could condemn a family member to Azkaban for life if he thought it necessary to preserve the public good.  Is that what you mean?  But I can't agree that living up to his own conception of his role model would make Percy Evil, or even a tragic hero.  Under Percy's rose-colored view of the Crouch model, rules are obeyed and justice is meted out fairly.  No Realpolitik.

"As I said before, I have no problem whatsoever with Crouch's willingness to prosecute his son.  If there was sufficient evidence for a trial, then it was Crouch's (or his department's) duty to seek a conviction to the best of his abilities, or to recuse himself.  Were Percy to turn in, testify against, or otherwise take action to condemn a family member to Azkaban, tragedy might ensue, but it would be a Weasley family tragedy, not a Percy tragedy.  As long as Percy didn't know in his heart of hearts that the family member could not have been guilty (and if he's increasingly estranged from his family, as the trend in GoF suggests may happen, he is likely to be without crucial information), he is not a Tragic Hero, because in that case Percy would have done The Right Thing.  There might be a tragedy if the Weasley family blamed Percy for doing his duty, but that wouldn't make Percy the tragic hero.  He would have made the difficult choice, not the easy choice, and suffered the consequences.  Isn't that what we learned from Crouch Sr.'s example?  Allowing the guilty (or even the probably guilty) to go free because of nepotism - whether done outright or under cover of Polyjuice and Invisibility Cloak - is contrary to the greater responsibility of protecting the commonweal."

Eileen nods enthusiastically.  "Yes, I like that interpretation."

"At least, that's how I'd like Percy to react.  In fact, long, long ago, when I was relatively new to the list, I suggested (##37513 and 37604) that the implied parallel between Crouch Sr. and Percy was *not* a red herring, that Percy would someday face the same choice vis-à-vis a family member (Imperius!Ron, anyone?  Blackmailing Twins?) and that, like Crouch Sr., he would incarcerate a blood relative if he believed that wizarding law required it.  I also said that there is only one difference between Crouch Sr. and Percy.  Percy could 'do a Crouch and turn in his own brother, but it would make his stomach churn.'"

Eileen frowns.  "So you don't think Livian Percy would make a good tragic hero?"

"No, but I'm not so sure that Percy is a Livian in the first place.  Percy has no way of learning the lessons of Crouch Sr.  In fact, he might have trouble accepting the truth about his idol if he did hear it.  Sadly, Percy is perfectly positioned to repeat the errors of his boss because he lacks the information he needs to assess Crouch Sr. realistically.  Because, to use an old saying, those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it.  As a result, I think Percy has definite Tragic Hero possibilities."

Eileen brightens somewhat.  "I've got the Tragic Hero checklist right here."  She pulls a well-worn sheet of paper from her pocket and begins to unfold it.

"You do?  Maybe you can answer a question that's been puzzling me.  I was a teenager when I last studied tragic heroes, but I had always understood a tragic flaw was not some grave character deficiency; it was a virtue carried one step too far."

"Exactly," said Elkins.  "In order to fulfill the criteria of the archetypal tragic hero, I think that a character really needs to exhibit some degree of purity of motive.  So Crouch isn't a Tragic Hero."

"Hmm.  Percy's like Crouch, and then he isn't.  He's young.  He's idealistic.  He has new ideas.  He's also ambitious.  He wants to get ahead, and he wants others to notice his accomplishments.  He also expects - and gives - obedience.  But what's Percy's greatest virtue?  It's not his mania for rules.  And it's not his ambition.  What do the Percy defenders always cite when the Evil!Percy accusers speak up?

"We cite his loyalty to his family.  We point out how concerned he was for Ginny in CoS, how much he appreciated being asked to spend Christmas with his brothers in PS/SS.  And we especially point out how in the Second Task he abandoned his post at the judge's table and ran into the lake after Ron.  How he *wouldn't* do that if he really valued his career above his family.
"I'm beginning to wonder if Percy could turn in a family member if necessary.  Or if he could follow through.  What if Percy secretly aided a convicted family member?  Let's take a worst-case scenario, in which Percy knows a family member is innocent but either cannot bring himself to commit career suicide, or else is powerless to help, but attempts a Crouch-like rescue afterwards.  In other words, could he, to use Ron's words, really 'do a Crouch'."  

Eileen interrupts.  "Is there anything in canon to suggest that he might do this?  Does Percy ever show a willingness to violate the rules?  In secret?  For personal reasons?"  

"Why, yes," responds Debbie.  "During CoS Percy spent a bit of time sneaking around to empty classrooms for secret meetings with Penelope Clearwater.  While it's not clear that this was a violation of the rules,  Snape's attitude towart fraternization between the sexes at the Yule Ball suggests that it is, as Snape took house points away from the transgressors.  Besides, Percy's already under a lot of stress at the MoM, and he was hauled out for questioning in connection with Crouch's disappearance.  None of this will look good on Percy's record, giving him added temptation to do it the Crouch way.  That, not his willingness to condemn a family member pursuant  to the rule of law, is what would make Percy a true tragic hero.  Because I think any such action would be doomed to fail.  For one thing, Percy lacks the Crouch family's acting talents:  that's why he presents such an inviting target to the Twins - he cannot feign indifference.  Anyway, Eileen, let's look at how Percy measures up against the remainder of your Tragic Hero criteria."

Eileen recited, "Noble Stature - The tragic hero does not start down in the dumps."

"I think Percy's stature is sufficiently noble.  He's a former Head Boy who earned buckets of O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s.  He has earned a coveted place in the Ministry.  He appears to be Molly's favorite child."

Eileen continued, "Nobility in tragedy also refers to virtue."

"Percy's got that, too.  Don't we Percy fans like to cite his professed desire to use his ministry position to champion reform as evidence of his virtue?  Don't we find it *disappointing* that no one but Penelope will listen to him?"

Eileen nodded and went on with the list.  "Free Choice - It is important that a tragic hero . . . fall on account of his own free choice.  Fate or chance can conspire against him, but in the end he must destroy himself.  Remember Macbeth in this regard.  He did not have to follow the dicates of the witches, but he did."

"I don't think anyone seriously doubts that it will be up to Percy to choose how to react to events, even if he is pressured by Ministry colleagues to act in a certain way.

Eileen scaned the rest of her list.  "I think it's too early to assess the other criteria."

"Well, let's remember what they are, anyway."

"Okay.  The Punishment Exceeds the Crime -- The tragic hero always gets more than he deserves.  This may not mean exactly that he only does X and he gets punished enough for X and Y.  It generally means he gets more than anyone deserves.
"Increased Awareness -- The tragic hero needs to understand how things went wrong, how he went wrong.
"Catharsis."

"There are definite possibilities here, don't you think, Eileen?.  Even some quite Bangy ones.  Percy suspended on a catwalk over a river of lava desperately trying to reach his family to undo what he's done before it's too late.  Percy tormented forever by the tragic consequences of his actions.  Or Percy throwing himself into the lava in needless self-sacrifice as atonement.  Poor Percy."


Debbie
just about finished cleaning out her drafts folder in advance of OOP release

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