Responsiblity for Black's death

[slgazit]

No: HPFGUIDX 80090

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "logic_alley" 
<logic_alley at y...> wrote:
> 3) Sirius - he voluntarily brought himself to place, and engaged 
in 
> battle.   He didn't have to, but I don't fault him for doing it.  
He 
> came to save Harry.

I don't think he really had a choice. He has just heard that his
godson, the kid for whom he risked everything, went into a deadly
trap to save him (Sirius) from imagined torture. I don't think
there was any way that he could have stayed safely behind under
the circumstances, not and face himself in the mirror the next day.

> He may have also been responsible because he taunted Bellatrix to 
> hit him again.

Taunting your opponent during a duel in an attempt to weaken and
get them out of balance is a well known battle tactic. It did
not work with Ballatrix, but you can't possibly suggest that
he was responsible for his own death because his opponent was
more skilled (or lucky).

> Sirius also bears responsibility because he didn't have to give 
> Harry a mysterious wrapped package - he could have just 
said "here's 
> a way to communicate with me, I'll always carry it".  That would 
> have thwarted Voldemort's ruse and prevented the encounter at the 
> Ministry.

How could he have known in advance what Voldemort was going to do
or that Harry would never open the package?

> 4) Dumbledore - Yes, he is to blame because he mishandled 
everything 
> in OOP and left Harry to make decisions without full information.  
> The resulting decisions were bad ones.

Dumbledore made some mistakes, but I don't think he "mishandled
everything". He is leading a war. Some decisions are bound to be
wrong.

> 5) Harry - because he made a stupid decision to not open Sirius' 
> present for irrational reasons

That was certainly a mistake, but it does not make him in any way
responsible for Sirius' death. And trying to save your godfather
from harm is not an irrational decision. I think later on so
many things came up that he simply forgot about the package.

>  Two people (Bellatrix and Voldemort) acted with 
> intent to kill.   They are the ones truly responsible.      

That I completely agree with.

Salit