Harry's emotions his strength or his weakness? WAS: Re: Dumbledore's pleading

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 141532

Julie wrote:
> > I think Harry does need to learn how to close his mind, or at
least to control his emotions to some degree. Twice now Harry's gone 
half-witted while fighting someone because of his emotions, both>
times trying to Crucio someone (first Bella, then Snape). Love may be
Harry's saving grace, but his inability to control his emotions may
also be his downfall--i.e. making decisions based on his strong
emotions may save him or doom him. That's not unusual--one's greatest
asset are often also one's greatest weakness, depending on  how it is
used. (Just as Snape's tendency to cold calculation has  been both an
asset, and his downfall in HBP.)
> 
> 
> Alla responded:
> > I am not sure I agree with you Julie and I think I agree with Nora 
> one hundred percent.
> 
> At the end of OOP Dumbledore is incredibly clear, IMO. It is you 
> heart  that saved you, period. Now, we were speculating non stop who 
> will teach Harry Occlumency in HBP. But nobody was teaching Harry 
> Occlumency, because IMO Dumbledore understood quite well after MOM 
> fiasco that Harry does not need it. <snip>
> 
> I absolutely believe that "feelings" are what matters the most 
> in "Potterverse", not cold intellect. <snip>

> Now, could you tell me which character tells Harry that he should 
> shut down his emotions, except Snape of course( and I would not say 
> that he understands Harry well at all. :-))?
> <snip>
> 
> What does Dumbledore say at the end of OOP? 
> 
> "Harry, suffering like this proves you are still a man!This pain is 
> a part of being human..." - OOP, p.824.
> 
> I think that Harry should NOT give up his negative emotions either, 
> because without them he may be unbalanced in a sense.
> 
> What I think Harry should learn is how to CHANNEL those negative 
> emotions better, NOT to give up them. I suppose maybe he would learn 
> how to channel  them in too different kind of magic, NOT 
> Unforgivables.
> 
> To sum up - NO, I don't believe that Harry should follow Snape 
> advice at the Tower at all, and this is one of the predictions I 
> feel quite confident to make for book 7. Harry will NOT learn how to 
> close his mind or anything like that. Now, preparing to eat a nice 
> tasty crow. :-)

Carol responds:
I do hope you have a nice, tasty recipe for crow, as I'm equally
confident that Harry *must* follow Snape's advice--stay away from Dark
magic, close your mouth (nonverbal spells), and control your emotions.
Yes, a particular emotion (love) is the key to defeating Voldemort,
but he's not going to find that path by Crucioing people and seeking
revenge.

And Voldemort isn't the only person he'll have to do battle with, IMO.
He's not going to defeat Bellatrix with love. He'd better learn how to
duel as well as Snape if he's going to take on DEs who've had time to
recover from Azkaban.

As for pain being part of being human, that's absolutely true. But
it's not the key to defeating Voldemort. It's only a legitimate
reaction to Sirius Black's death, which is the context in which the
remark was made.

And Snape may not understand Harry at all, but he understands
Voldemort and the Death Eaters and what is needed to defeat them. He
is not asking Harry to operate on cold intellect, which would be
completely out of character. He's asking Harry to control his
emotions, to conceal his intentions, to avoid the weapons of the enemy
(Dark curses)--in short, to do what's necessary to preserve his soul
intact and stay alive, both necessary conditions for defeating Voldemort.

*Feeling* led Harry to the MoM on a wild goose chase that ended in
Sirius Black's death. Harry should not stop feeling or caring, of
course, but he cannot let his emotions control him. Snape may not be
able to control his own emotions, but that in itself is evidence that
his advice is good. If Harry ends up like Snape, we'd better kiss the
WW goodbye.

Carol