Arranged wizard marriages?

[Janet Anderson]

No: HPFGUIDX 96620

Ffred  said:

>An interesting thought though: if marriages are still arranged to a great
>extent, it would mean that parents would have a key role in arranging them.
>Who's going to act for Harry? I can't really see Vernon and Petunia 
>lowering
>themselves to sort him out a good arrangement and Sirius is sort of dead...

I think that if wizard marriages are still arranged anywhere, it would be 
among obsessively pureblood families like the Malfoys et al.  In those 
cases, it would probably be a loose agreement between families, based on the 
fact that all those families socialized with each other (and probably with 
no one else) and the fact that from an early age their children were told 
that the members of such a family were the only appropriate pool from which 
to choose a mate.

However, there doesn't seem to be much evidence of arranged marriages in the 
(non-obsessive) pureblood families.  They seem to meet, court, and marry in 
the ordinary way.  The Weasleys met at Hogwarts; James met Lily at Hogwarts; 
even Barty Crouch Sr. was known to be in love with his wife. (Yes, I realize 
it's possible to be in love with someone you marry through an arranged 
marriage.)

But *if* Harry needed someone either to select a wife, or to negotiate a 
marriage, for him, in the absence of parents, the death of Sirius, and the 
complete cluelessness of the Dursleys even if they wanted to do it, I would 
vote for Dumbledore.  He knows most people (or their families) in the WW, 
he's influential, and he has no personal axe to grind.  Unlikeparents or 
relatives, who when selecting spouses for others, tend to be influenced by 
matters of power consolidation, politics, etc., he would be guided only by 
an interest in Harry's happiness in future life.

(I realize that those who think the only difference between Dumbledore and 
Voldemort is the hair color will disagree with this, but since I happen to, 
well, let's just say "strongly disagree" with the Evil Dumbledore theory I 
am operating from that basis.)


Janet Anderson

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