Old, old problem.

[lupinlore]

No: HPFGUIDX 151022

> Alla:
> 
> Oh, I so hope not. I so hope that Dumbledore did not know that Harry 
> will be abused at Dursleys and only placed him there to save his 
> life, because honestly, if Dumbledore placed Harry there to train 
> him ( shudders at the thought), well such Dumbledore in my book is 
> no better than Voldemort for whom all his "loyal" DE are nothing 
> more than means to get what he wants.
> 

I certainly agree that the whole "placing Harry with the Dursleys as a 
step in training" would be reprehensible beyond belief, WW or not.  
Having said that, it would also be stupid beyond belief, as DD would 
be letting loose an experiment he had no way of controlling or 
directing, while taking frightful risks in the process.

Indeed, the whole idea of a manipulative DD really does really on 
Dumbledore having godlike foreknowledge of how things will turn out.  
He would have to know how the Dursleys will act and how Harry will 
respond, in this instance.  To choose another situation often used as 
an example of "DD being manipulative," if the events in SS/PS were 
designed to train Harry, DD would not only have to know that Voldy was 
in the midst of his students, he would also have to know that Harry, 
et. al. would approach McGonnagall and Hagrid at a particular time in 
a particular way, that Hagrid/McG would say certain things, that Harry 
would respond in a particular manner, etc.  In other words, he would 
have to be JKR, and although he is often the author's mouthpiece, that 
seems to be taking things a bit too far.

As I've said before, I think a lot of this arises from the fact that 
DD's speech at the end of OOTP was poorly conceived and not well 
executed.  JKR was running behind, in the midst of a pregnancy,under a 
lot of pressure in general, and she's sometimes not too careful about 
the inadvertant messages she sends, in any case.  Much of HBP was 
spent, not surprisingly, back peddling like crazy.  Such is the soil 
in which confusion and frustration takes seed.


Lupinlore