Animagi despised by Dark Wizards? (Was: Sirius/Tonks)

[ghinghapuss]

No: HPFGUIDX 93835

> Kathy wrote:
> One of the most confusing statements in Oop, for me, was when
> Bellatrix says that she was busy fighting the Animagus Black. <snip>
> 
> Allie wrote: 
> I took that to mean, "I was busy fighting Black, who is an
> Animagus." <snip>
> 
> Kathy responded:
> <snip>  So, instead of Bella just saying I was busy fighting Black, 
she was basically saying I was fighting someone who looked like Black.
(the Tonks theory grew
> from there) Even if it may not have been Tonks, I still feel that it
> wasn't Sirius <snip>
> 
> Carol wrote:
> Since I've already pointed out that an animagus form is by 
definition
> an animal, not a person, and Sirius's animagus form is a black dog,
> let me try another tack. Bellatrix is stating that she is fighting
> "the animagus Black," not fighting someone who has taken on the
> animagus Black's form. So I think that Allie's reading, "I was
> fighting Black, who is an animagus," is correct. But let's explore a
> little further to figure out why she expressed the idea as she did,
> instead of saying what we might expect under the circumstances, "I 
was
>  fighting my cousin Sirius," or "I was fighting Sirius Black" if she
> doesn't want to acknowledge the relationship.
> 
> I think what we should look at here is speech patterns. Bellatrix 
has
> several different ways of speaking: Haughty formality in the 
Pensieve
> scene, where she behaves like a wrongly imprisoned queen; baby talk 
to
> taunt Harry; her normal speech pattern; and the speech she uses in
> addressing Voldemort. 
> 
> <snipped some very interesting examples of Bellatrix's speech 
patterns>
> 
> To sum up, I don't think we need to assume that Bellatrix means
> anything more than the literal meaning of her stilted phrase. She
> could have said, "I was fighting my cousin Sirius," but that's not 
the
> right style for a DE addressing Voldemort, and in any case, she's
> probably as ashamed of the relationship as Sirius was. And as 
someone
> else has already pointed out, she wanted to leave Harry in no doubt
> that she knew about Sirius's "big disguise," as he himself expressed
> it earlier.


Mandy here:
Well explained Carol. Sorry I had to snip. 

I would just like to add the idea that being an Animagus is an 
ability that is looked down upon by the Purebloods.  

The ability to transform into an animal may take great skill, but 
live any part of your life as an animal, could be looked down upon as 
gross and discussing by those who look down upon animals as less than 
human.   We know that the Purebloods look down upon anyone who is not 
100% pureblooded for atleast the last 20 generations! (Just a 
hypothetical figure to demonstrate their fanaticisms.)  They despise 
magical humans who spend anytime with humans of non-magical blood, 
half-breed wizards like Hagrid, and those inflicted, like Lupin 
amoung others.  For anyone to taint their blood with anything that is 
not pure wizarding human is simply a blood traitor.  I propose that 
the Purebloods most definitely despise Animagi as wizards who choose 
to use their skill to transform themselves in to animals.

Do we have any examples of any Dark Wizard animagi other than Peter 
Pettigrew?  And Pettigrew is definitely looked down upon by the DE 
and Voldemort.

I think Bellatrix was using it as an insult. The 'Animagus Black!' 
The one member of her family who dares use magic to transform himself 
into an animal!  Its use is akin to Bellatrix using the expression 
the 'Blood Traitor Black.'  Or in the case of her sister the 'Muggle 
Lover Black.'

Cheers Mandy