The Problem with Lupin (long) was Re: How Close Are Harry and Lupin?

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 96862

First I want to thank everyone who's participated in the thread. I 
wish I could respond to all the excellent posts-- I'm a little 
outnumbered here <g>.  But two posts about Lupin have made 
me see something that I've never noticed before.

Khilari:

>>I'm not saying Lupin is perfect, I know he isn't, but he is to a 
large extent the victim of circumstances.<<


Caesian:
>>>  I think many of us would argue that  the personal 
development of Lupin's character is at a high (or at least 
deeply-reflective) level, and then he's got some failings.  But, 
unlike Hagrid, or Fred and George, Filch,  Hermione... we don't 
seem to accept these failings (or his struggles against them) as 
an  integral part of his character.  We might even believe he's 
faking his calm or nice  characteristics.  It strikes me that we 
seem to be so hard on him, and his imperfections,  *because* 
he is really trying to be nice.  I mean, compared to Lupin, 
(character of your choice) is a prat.  Why is this Lupin's problem?  
<<<
 

These two posts point out the central problems with Lupin's 
character.  How is it that he seems racked with guilt  and yet we 
perceive him as the innocent victim of circumstances?  If he isn't 
doing anything terrible, why is he so hard on himself?  If his 
remorse and concern for others are genuine, why am I not 
convinced?

You know, in real life there'd be something fishy about a thirtyfive 
year old man who's always the victim of circumstances. Maybe 
life handed him the shovel, but you'd have to wonder who dug 
the hole.

You'd have to wonder about somebody who says he felt guilty, 
but didn't change his ways. Lupin's fans say his guilt is 
needless, the product of his overly tender conscience. And if his 
conscience is that tender, well, he just *couldn't* be  up to 
something, could he? 

Well, I'm afraid he could. 

Because even though Lupin is endlessly remorseful about his 
actions, he never takes any responsibility for the  consequences. 
 Think about it. It's all shoulda, woulda, coulda. 

He deceived his friends and they *could* have rejected him.
 
He led his friends into being illegal Animagi, and they *could* 
have gotten in trouble, but Dumbledore never found  out

He  broke the rules and somebody *could* have been bitten, but 
there were only "close calls"

If Snape had found his way to the Shrieking Shack during the 
prank, he *would* have encountered a fully grown werewolf.

He didn't tell Dumbledore about Sirius and he *might* have lost 
his trust

He put Harry and his friends in danger when he turned into a 
werewolf, and he *might* have bitten any one of them. 

Now, setting aside the things that didn't happen, many of these 
things had  real, damaging consequences.  But Lupin  ignores 
them. 

Poor Remus, he feels so terrible about the marauder days even 
though he never bit anybody and nobody ever found out. What 
about the stuff they actually did?  Lupin ignores all that, so we 
don't know what it was. Tresspassing?   Vandalism?  Stealing 
sweets from Honeyduke's?  Baiting anybody James thought was 
messing with Dark Arts?  Can't put it past 'em.  But maybe they 
spent all their Marauder time in the forest playing leapfrog with 
the unicorns. Right.

Poor Remus, he's *so* ashamed of thinking Sirius was a spy, 
when he actually wasn't. But does he relate that to the years  his 
innocent friend spent  in Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit?

Poor Remus, he feels *so*  terrible about not warning anyone 
that Sirius was an Animagus. Good thing Sirius wasn't really a 
murderer after all. But does it once occur to Lupin that  the 
Dementors would never have been brought to Hogwarts if 
anyone had realized that they couldn't detect Sirius in his 
Animagus form? 

Poor Remus, he's *so* concerned about Ron's leg. But does he 
think that Ron wouldn't have chased the dog in the first place if 
he'd known it might be Sirius in disguise?

This is speculation, of course. Since Lupin neglects to mention 
the consequences, we can't tell whether he's cognizant of them 
or not. But Lupin doesn't always  ignore consequences. 
Sometimes he blames them on somebody else.

Lupin's dreadfully upset that he *might* have bitten somebody 
the night of the shack. He  says it musn't ever happen again. But 
he *did* forget to take his potion. He never says he's sorry about 
that.  Poor, poor Remus,  it's all Snape's fault that he has to leave 
the school.

Lupin admits he should have stopped his friends from torturing 
Snape--but is there any  connection between that and the way 
Snape feels about him? Poor, poor Remus, Snape hates him 
because he was jealous of Lupin's friends.  Or for being a 
werewolf. Or because he thinks that Lupin was in on the prank. 
Or because of not getting the Order of Merlin. Nothing that was 
Lupin's fault, oh no.

 No wonder Lupin's question about  sending an innocent man to 
Azkaban put Snape over the edge. Where was all this concern 
about innocent people when *he* was the one who was 
suffering from a schoolboy grudge?

There's only one time in the canon where Lupin accepts 
responsibility for the consequences of his actions. He's very 
proud of Harry's patronus charm. 
 
And we, suckers that we are, let him get away with it. Everybody 
does. And so you know what? IMO, he'll never change. How can 
he, when he's never felt that anything he did actually hurt 
someone? 

Pippin