In defense of considering pureblood preference racism

[arrowsmithbt]

No: HPFGUIDX 106920

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Nora Renka" <nrenka at y...> wrote:
> 
> But it's only (in canon so far) the DEs and like-thinking people who 
> have the idea that Muggleborns are not ONLY cultural different (a 
> charge with some validity, although a limited applicability), but 
> inherently different.
> 
> I respectfully submit to you that JKR has taken great pains with her 
> language to indicate that the DEs are thinking in essentialist terms--
> you are what you are.
> 
> I also submit that JKR has made it very clear that blood in the sense 
> that the DEs have formulated it has no ontological reality.  There's 
> no magical test for being pureblooded, you don't get any seekrit 
> powerz, etc.
> 
> If the rest of the WW is able to separate Muggleborns from Muggles, 
> the attitude of the DEs and people like Fudge who think in terms of 
> blood as well is shown up for being the essentialist definition that 
> it is.  And essentialism is the key figure in considering this akin 
> to racism.
> 
> Why is Slytherin House more associated with the Dark Arts?  Because, 
> IMO, the Dark Arts in JKR's universe are fundamentally defined by 
> their exploitative nature.  The three Unforgiveables destroy the 
> subjectivity of a person, and the resurrection ritual involved a 
> whole lotta force and non-consent.  
> 
> The essence of Dark Magic is that if you want something, go and take 
> it, because you can.
> snip>

Um. Where to start? Not that I don't agree that prejudice looms large
in the Potterverse, it most definitely does. But race-linked prejudice,
that I'm not so sure about. One of the problems is that everybody knows
about racism, but other forms of prejudice tend to get forgotten, just
because they're not so evident in our own society; not so evident
doesn't mean they don't exist.

JKR goes to great pains to include a spread of racial types among the
students with no indication that there is any conflict or unpleasantness.
In general terms racially motivated hatred requires identifiers that can
be easily picked out. This isn't so easy in the WW - although I did once
theorise that any adult pureblood would never be seen in any other
clothes except robes (Madam Malkin - robes for *all* occasions) - my
emphasis.
But on the whole the WW is presented as racially harmonious.

Except of course for Muggles and Mudbloods. But are they a race?
I don't think so - I think that what we have here is a caste system.
And in a caste system racial origins don't count for much, but one's
inherited status in society does. By  virtue of bloodlines one caste
rules - always (until they're knocked off) and other castes are
designated as hewers of wood and drawers of water - and they'd
better learn to like it! Or else!

Make no mistake, an hierarchy of castes can be just as nasty as
any other kind of prejudice, in some ways even more so, because
those at the bottom of the pile aren't just there to be despised,
they're there to be *used*  at the whim of those higher up the
ladder. That's the effect of an entrenched caste system, no
matter what name you call it by - feudalism or religion or class.

And this attitude is more widespread than just DEs and Slytherins.
Remember Mr Roberts? Poor bloody farmer whose fields were the
venue for the World Cup? Nobody bothered in the slightest  that 
his memory blasted every few hours. He was considered as a 
nuisiance more than anything else - he was being used. So by the
way, are the Dursleys, at least as far as we can tell. A cuckoo is
dumped in their nest - no choices are offered; "You will do this." 

Of course in the WW purebloods are on a hiding to nothing,
drawing their pathetic rags of justification around themselves,
because for the system to become full-blown it requires that
power be centralised in the higher castes - and it isn't. Magic is
a highly personal, integral power that cannot be cancelled once
it has manifested itself. "Power  grows out of the tip of a wand" -
to paraphrase a RW mass murderer. So mudbloods can laugh  at 
the pretentions of purebloods; they will not be imposed upon.

Muggles are still losers - at least for now. But if the WW maintains
or even intensifies it's separation from the Muggle world, that
will become moot.

It'll be interesting to see what happens.

Kneasy