Nature of Dark Magic (was Motivations for Joining DEs )

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 141171

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Jen Reese" <stevejjen at e...> wrote:
> Kemper:
> > I think of the Dark Magic as a cigarette. For many people smoking
> > a cigarette for the first time makes it infinitely easier to smoke
> > a cigarette the next time. ...
> 
> > Harry has smoked two cigarettes. He didn't seem to cough much with
> > Crucio, though with Sectumsempra he seemed to find it difficult to
> > breath. 

> 
> Jen: 
> This is a good analogy. Well, Harry has smoked several cigarettes 
> now, or at least tried to, throwing his nonverbal spells at Snapey. 
> ... Cause I agree dark magic is what tarnishes a soul, ...
> 
> jen

bboyminn:

I'm going to add a side comment to this discussion, something I bring
up everytime Dark Magic/Dark Arts are discussed. There is a lot of
/bad/ magic that people are assuming is /dark/ magic when the truth is
that there is very little magic in the books that is specifically
designated as 'Dark'. 

My theory says that there is some distructive element to truly Dark
Magic. In some way it consumes something tangible or spiritual that
the Dark Wizard has no right to use. For example, the New Body Potion
that Voldemort creates in GoF is clearly Dark Magic because it is
distructive and consumptive. It coerces Flesh from a servant, it
steals bone from a grave, and it steals blood from an enemy which is
Harry. So, in a sense, I agree that Dark Magic tarnishes the soul. It
diminishes the Dark Wizard because he is spiritually diminished by
consuming things he has no right to consume.

But by the same token I don't necessarily think that the Forbidden
Curses are examples of Dark Magic, nor do I think that Sectumsempra is
necessarily Dark Magic. They are definitely BAD, but that doesn't make
them 'Dark'. Keep in mind you could use a Dark Spell for a good
purpose, and that wouldn't change the fact that it was Dark.

I believe, although the books present no direct evidence, that there
are common simple charms and spells used to accomplish relatively, to
the wizard world, ordinary things, which because they are destructive
or in some way consumptive, they would be considered Dark. While there
are very bad spells which draw on a source of universal magical power
which because they are not destructive or consumptive would not be
classified as Dark.

Again, if you look very carefully at the books, very very little magic
is actually classified as Dark; far far less than people are assuming.

But then... that's just my opinion.

Steve/bboyminn