Harry's grief (was: Dumbledore the General)

[finwitch]

No: HPFGUIDX 124429



> > Phoenixgod2000:
> > 
> > Besides finding the Kreacher talk in amazingly bad taste, I 
thought 
> > DD was wrong. He spoke about Kreacher being what other wizards 
*made 
> > him* but in other books he made sure Harry realized that it was 
the 
> > choices a person (or creature) makes which define them. 
> > phoenixgod2000
> 
> Whiz:
>  
> I'm not so sure that isn't apples and oranges.  Did Kreacher have a
> choice?  He was loyal to his family and his house and felt an
> obligation to his dead mistress.  Whether he shared the views of the
> Blacks or not is beside the point.  Kreacher is enslaved.
> 
> Now Dobby is interesting in that context.  I have to wonder if there
> is someone in the Malfoy household who sent Dobby without the
> knowledge of the others, thus his behavior is of being torn.  He can
> say only so much, (what he's been told to say?) and punishes himself
> for being there at all because if the other members of the family 
ever
> knew ........  Yipes!
> 
> House elves are what wizards have made them.

Finwitch:

And yet DOBBY managed to break it. I do believe Dobby made the choice 
all by himself. Kreacher- well, as Sirius said, Kreacher had 
'been alone too long, taking mad orders from my mother's portrait'.  

AND I think Kreacher DID have choice. I doubt house-elves are bound 
to obey paintings...

About kindness to him... hm-mm. Not so sure it would work. I think 
that - particularly considering the Black family tradition about 
house-elves being beheaded just because they got too old to carry a 
tea-tray (which Sirius didn't approve of, but Kreacher does - the old 
house-elf took the Black values to heart, remember).

I think that was the REAL problem.
1) Kreacher wanted and desired to be behaded and kept as 'decoration' 
as his predecessors had. Or, alternatively, be set free (so he could 
go to a family member married off).

2) Sirius is no murderer. He can't set Kreacher free because he knows 
too much. (otherwise he would, I'm sure).

3) Kreacher does all he can to annoy Sirius in order to get 1).

See the problem? Kreacher wants to die. As a result of something 
Sirius' aunt set up, but anyway. I guess he'd just snort at kindness. 
And I think Sirius sees house-elves (Kreacher, Dobby) as individuals. 
Sirius - having lived with Kreacher for 16 years, he does understand 
him - and probably would WANT to set him free - but can't, because 
it's too risky for all...

Finwitch