Harsh Morality (was Re: Double standards and believing)

[nrenka]

No: HPFGUIDX 121021


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Jen Reese" <stevejjen at e...> 
wrote:

<snip discussion of JKR as Christian Platonist>

> Jen:
>
> And Harry does seem to struggle with complex moral issues like why 
> a 'good' person such as Seamus doesn't believe his story. And why 
> Dumbledore would trust a 'bad' person like Snape. And how the once-
> sainted James can be a good person and a bully at the same time. 
> His moral complexity grows with his character. 

I've snipped ruthlessly, but I think there's a potential distinction 
being lost here. :)

The Platonic belief in Good and Evil and the absolute essences 
thereof doesn't necessarily preclude human beings not being 
completely one or the other.  Remember your Plato--Forms are eternal 
and perfect, but all manifestations of Forms are imperfect and 
transient.  That means, roughly, that Good can exist in a perfect 
form, and a person can be good but not perfectly so--but that 
doesn't oblivate the existence of perfect good.  It's the degree to 
which one partakes in it.  I may be butchering my philosophy here, 
but I think that's some of what is going on here.

I have to say that generally I agree with the gist of Lupinlore's 
original post, although like many others on this thread, I wish in 
some ways that I didn't.  But what I want and what is there in the 
text are often not quite the same things.  Despite the grayness of 
many people and situations, I get the feeling that JKR's moral 
vision is a fairly direct one, with very definite ideas about Good 
and Evil, put in caps for a reason.  The imperfection of characters 
does not necessarily have any bearing upon the deeper metaphysical 
background.

Boy, there are so many things about the metaphysics of the 
Potterverse that aren't clear yet.  I'm fairly sure that finding out 
why and how Lily's sacrifice worked will tell us a lot, and that 
Love *is* at the top of the metaphysical pantheon in this world.  
Chew on that, all ye cynics out there in the internet void. :)

-Nora gets back to finishing that paper that she should be finishing 
instead of getting into Platonism that she was never too fond of to 
BEGIN with...