House Elves and Dobby

[kamion53]

No: HPFGUIDX 128796

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Kay D." <kida12 at g...> wrote:
> I was really alluding to the house elves story here, Dobby's life 
is changed by Harry's kindness 
> 
> Why did Dobby help Harry?  Why do house elves have so much power 
(even without wands), and yet allow themselves to be enslaved?  Will 
they become a factor in the next two books?


I think Rowling's House elves are like most magical creatures a sort 
of one-dimensional creatures, they most time corporate what is 
subconscious on men's mind.

Fear and fastination for water lead to the believe in kelpies for 
instance. Subconscious fear can have enormous power over 
somebody, so the power of a elf or other magical creature is a big 
as the one believing in them contributes to them.... and therefor 
such a creature is also the slave of that person. 
It cease to exist once one stop believing in them.

The same kind of principal is used in the Boggart.
Neville can laugh at his own fear for Snape and beat the boggart, 
Molly Weasly cannot laugh at her fear for getting her children and 
beloved killed and a pretty powerful witch as she is cannot beat the 
boggart. But then she is not as brave as Neville is.

Back to Dobby.
He makes it very clear that he is driven by a common need to improve 
the whereabouts of all house-elves, with Voldemort in power the 
situation of house-elves will be as bad as his own is in the Malfoy 
Manor. Rowling does not specify if he is the only houseelf in the 
Manor or if there are more. But as a typical magical creature he is 
also very shortsighted his logic is direct.  Potter = Hope, Hogwarts 
=  danger for Potter, no Potter = no Hope-----> stop Potter.

No hidden family ties are needed between the Potter clan and the Malfoy clan.

And I think that in the house of a selfconscious wizard as Lucius 
Malfoy house elves are ordered to do pretty nasty things for which a 
lot of power is needed sometimes. thinking himself in total control 
Lucius is the kind of wizard that allows a lot of power to be in his 
house-elves. That a house-elf would ever be able to turn against him 
is probably the last think he ever thought about.   


Kamion53