the DE are Nazi?Re: Elkins' Draco Malfoy Is Ever So Lame. (But not sympathetic)

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 124769


Naama wrote:> 
> You have a misconception here. The racism of the WW isn't about 
> Muggles, it's about *Muggle borns*. The parallel to the real world
is in the arbitrariness of the social categories - Jews, Slavs,
Blacks, etc., are as fully human as the Germans, yet racist ideology
marked them as inferior, less human. This is mirrored in the arbitrary
marking of Muggle borns as inferior. JKR underlines the arbitrariness
by making it clear that there is no difference in magical ability
between pure bloods and Muggle borns. If you're magic, you're magic. 
>

Carol responds:
There is, nonetheless, an undeniable prejudice throughout the WW
against Muggles, ranging from contempt to amiable condescension like
Mr. Weasley's. And the prejudice against Muggleborns stems from the
prejudice against Muggles.

I've always found it confusing that the purebloods would regard the
*absence* of a trait (magical "blood") as somehow contaminating or
fouling the blood (muggleborn + "mudblood"). Be that as it may, I
think they fear that their bloodline will be polluted if they marry a
Muggleborn because a witch or wizard born of Muggle parents is more
likely (in their view) to produce a Squib child. (Whether that "logic"
is borne out in reality, we don't know, as we have no idea of Filch's
or Mrs. Fogg's parentage.)

At any rate, I don't think that the prejudice against Muggleborns is
"arbitrary." It stems from fear and mistrust of Muggles (who have
historically hanged, burned, and otherwise harassed and injured
wizards) and a sense that Muggles are innately inferior. The magical
children of Muggles have no wizard blood (I'm not talking about
genetic mutations here--that's a Muggle concept unknown in the WW--but
the WW concept of bloodlines) and they've been brought up until age
eleven in an alien environment with Muggle values and no knowledge of
what Draco (IIRC) calls "our ways."

While I understand why a number of posters find such "racism"
revolting, from a pureblood perspective it would make perfect sense.

Carol, who notes once again that there is no true racism in the WW, as
evidenced (e.g.) by the Weasleys and their choice of dates and boyfriends