Harry and starvation

[dumbledore11214]

No: HPFGUIDX 123553


Carol responds:
Here's a question for Alla and Lupinlore and those who feel as they
do. Leaving Dumbledore and his intentions out of the question, would
Harry really be better off without the treatment he received from the
Dursleys?
 
He can now endure hunger, privation, spiders, teasing and taunting,
and even physical abuse such as Umbridge's horrible quill and
Voldemort's Crucio, which hurt horribly but left no lasting impact.
His suffering has made him resilient. His early friendlessness has
made him self-reliant. Would he have been able to face Quirrel!mort 
in his first year and Diary!Tom in his second year without his 
background with the Dursleys? And had he not done those things, 
could he have saved himself and Sirius from the boggart in PoA or 
survived the TWT,much less the resurrected Voldemort, unaided, in 
GoF?
 
Please understand that I'm not defending the Dursleys or suggesting
that Dumbledore had any such intentions (other than preventing Harry
from growing up as a pampered prince and, of course, keeping him 
alive). But think about it. Suppose he had been brought up in a
luxurious home with every need catered to. Even if he wasn't spoiled,
wouldn't he be "soft"? Or overprotected and timid because he'd never
been confronted and tested? 
snip.
 
It's not Dumbledore's fault that fate and Voldemort have chosen him 
to be Weapon!Harry. It *would* be his fault if he allowed Harry to go
into that fight unprepared. But I think, with Tonks, that regardless
of Dumbledore's intentions and regardless of what he should or should
not have done, Harry's ten years of living with the Dursleys helped 
to shape him into the person he needs to be to defeat Voldemort.
 
Please answer the question(s) and leave Dumbledore out of it for 
now.We know what you think on that point. I want you to look at it 
from this angle, not considering Harry's feelings but his 
unavoidable fate.
> 
> Carol, who is pretty sure that an upbringing like Hermione's would 
not
> have served Harry as well as sleeping in that closet



Alla:

Carol, I am not quite sure how to answer your question. Of course, 
Harry's upbringing shaped him. Good came from evil thing. I loved 
Phoenixgod's analogy - if I throw you in the room with axe wielding 
maniac, suspecting that you can be a martial arts master, it still 
does not make my actions right (Sorry, since you did mention 
Dumbledore in your post, I could not leave him completely out :o))

By the way, after OOP, I can not even say that I completely agree 
that Harry's ubringing made him stronger and better able to face 
Voldemort.

If he was brought in the LOVING home ( not luxiruous, LOVING), he 
would have been loved ( not soft, LOVED) and was able to trust 
adults) and maybe just maybe if he was told to study Occlumency, he 
would be able to trust the words' of adults around him, NOT 
questioning hteir words, because he used to be self reliant and 
trust only himself and his friends.

Just my opinion,

Alla