Human's Emotions vs. Dogs (Re: Sirius revisited)

[potioncat]

No: HPFGUIDX 104213

Bren wrote:
snipping good background info
 
> Going back to Dementors and how Sirius escaped them, he 
> says "[Dementors] feel their way towards people by sensing their 
> EMOTIONS
 they could tell that my feelings are less – LESS HUMAN, 
> less complex when I was a dog" (PoA, 272. UK – emphasis mine). 
Notice 
> that Sirius says "less COMPLEX", not "my feelings are gone". 
> Recalling the fact that emotions are attached to memory and 
learning, 
> I think it is implies that animals' feelings are less complex 
because 
> their abilities to store (new) memories and learning are not as 
well-
> developed as humans'. Dogs can't learn or obtain new information 
as 
> efficiently as humans, and therefore they have far more primitive 
and 
> basic range of emotions. 
> 
> Does this answer your question, Kneasy? Or have I confused you 
even 
> more? I'll be more than happy to elaborate on this if you like, 
just 
> let me know.
> 

Potioncat:
But an animagus is supposed to keep his "human self" (I don't recall 
a good word for this) as opposed to someone who is transfigured into 
an animal.  In that case the animal nature takes over.  So the 
Animagus Black Dog should still have had human emotions.
Potioncat