Bullying (was: SPOILERS.Re: JKR site update)

[cubfanbudwoman]

No: HPFGUIDX 115130


SSSusan:
[Aura clarified what she meant by "normal circumstances" at 
Hogwarts.]  Thank you!  I still don't think I agree that the HoH 
were "den mothers" in normal times & with regular [non-Trio] kids, 
but we can't know that one way or the other....


SSSusan: 
> > I think it *is* indicative that no guidance counselor is seen.  
> > In fact, I think it is indicative of there being no guidance 
> > counselor! 

Aura:
> Yes. There is no post like that at Hogwarts. So what? Since when 
> are guidance counselors that helpful, anyway? Mine were 
> consistently overworked, inaccessable, and useless. House heads, 
> older students, and the fact that the kids live at the school (and 
> therefore are are expected to develop emotional support at school 
> simply because they're always there) is the system Hogwarts has 
> developed. I'm not saying it's a perfect system, but neither is 
> anything the muggle world has thought up.

SSSusan:
LOL!  My master's degree is in school counseling and yet I never 
pursued a position in it because the counselors I saw didn't make 
the impact on kids that the teachers did for the reasons you state.  
I stuck with teaching.  I'm **not** arguing that there should be 
counselors at Hogwarts; I'm merely pointing out that there don't 
appear to be any.


SSSusan: 
> > The absense of a counselor and the total lack of any mention of 
> > psychologists, counseling, mental health services....

Aura:
> Those are all muggle ways of dealing with the mind and emotions. 
> Wizards probably have their own ways. IIRC, isn't there a mention 
> of dreamless sleep potions? And the penseive is certainly better 
> than talk therapy. So we have evidence that the WW has magical 
> means to calm the mind, sooth the spirit, and sort out one's 
> concerns. Maybe they're better. Maybe they're not. But they're 
> there.
 

SSSusan:
Aura, dear, I'm not arguing with you!  The point you're making *is* 
my point, too!  Hogwarts is Hogwarts.  It's NOT like the Muggle here 
& now.  We're really on the same wavelength with that.

The only difference I think we may have is in whether we blieve JKR 
answered that bullying question in such a way that she was implying 
that **Harry** should have asked for help.  I think not necessarily; 
you think probably [if I got that right!].  I think not necessarily 
because I don't know that asking for help fits w/ Harry's character 
nor w/ what the WW has to offer in the way of help.  (But that's 
speculation, of course.)

You make a good point that there are some WW offerings which might 
calm the mind & soothe the spirit.  Again, Harry didn't take 
advantage of much of those.  Did Neville?  Did the students who were 
freaking over their OWLs?  I don't know.  Do those things offer real 
solutions or temporary relief?  I don't know.  It just doesn't seem 
that the mechanism for asking for help is as clearly presented in 
the WW as it is in RL.

Siriusly Snapey Susan