Dumbledore on the Dursleys in OotP (was:Re: Old, old problem.)

[dumbledore11214]

No: HPFGUIDX 151231

> > Alla:
> > 
> > Oh, don't get me started. Please, please, Pippin it is by no 
means 
> > directed at you, you know I really like you and respect you, but 
every 
> > time I remember Dumbledore's "let's blame the dead man" act (IMO 
of 
> > course), I just get so angry. So, it is directed at 
Dumbledore. :)  I 
> > know, it is emotional reaction again, which I never make a 
secret of ( 
> 
> Pippin:
> But your emotional reaction to the speech seems to be coming from a
> different place altogether. Pardon me if I misrepresent your 
thoughts, it
> seems like you want Dumbledore to say that Sirius is dead because
> Puppetmaster!DD got his strings tangled, you want him to let Harry
> childishly idealize his godfather  instead of helping him 
understand that
> other adults are just as  fallible as Harry is, and you want him to
> whitewash Sirius's treatment of Kreacher in order to spare Harry's 
feelings.
> 

Alla:

Yes, your summary is not quite what I meant as to why Dumbledore 
speech makes me so angry. :))

I could probably just refer you to what Sherry said ( we do seem to 
think alike these days, Sherry :)), but let's hope that I will make 
some additional clarifications and not just repeating what she said.

First of all, my main issue with Dumbledore talking about Sirius is 
not that he does not take enough blame for Sirius' death. I mean, we 
all know whom to blame for Sirius' death and while I think that 
Dumbledore's treatment of Sirius shows that he had no clue about who 
Sirius is and how to help him, I of course cannot say that DD bears 
much blame for Sirius' death .

I  don't care whether Sirius was a devil himself, I am absolutely 
convinced that it is cruel and heartless to bring the topic of the 
Sirius fallings ( and he had plenty of those, sure) an hour after 
Sirius died.

So, yes, what Sherry siad - the timing was absolute idiocy on 
Dumbledore's behalf.

I don't want Dumbledore to whitewash Sirius treatment of Kreacher. I 
don't want Dumbledore to bring this topic AT ALL when Harry is in 
pain and grieving.

It is strange, because I am going to bring up the same example as 
Sherry did.

In my book, my father was a wonderful man, but I am sure he had some 
character flaws, since we all do.

Please believe me that if ANYBODY would dare to bring up to me those 
character flaws an hour after my father's death, I would probably 
not speak with this person ever again, because on the top of my 
head  I cannot think of the greatest disrespect that this person 
could show  not even to my dead father, but to me.

I am  sure I wrote about it in the past, but it bears repeating. I 
am very fond of saying that you either speak good or nothing of dead.

So, to go back to Dumbledore, I cannot think of greatest disrespect 
Dumbledore could show to Harry other than start badmouthing the 
person that Harry probably loved the most among the adults in 
Potterverse.

So, yes, it has nothing to do with whitewashing Sirius treatment of 
Kreacher, it has A LOT to do with Dumbledore paying respect to Harry 
grief and I saw none.

Now, maybe Dumbledore for some reason thought that there is a 
PRACTICAL reason Harry needs to know about Sirius mistreating 
Kreacher, and honestly,  on the top of my head I cannot think of any 
such reason.

So, then I think that Dumbledore should have done it LATER. When 
would have the timing been right? I don't know. My dad died eight 
years ago and I still have no desire to hear about his character 
flaws, at all. But for the literary purposes, I think that HBP would 
have been MUCH better place  to bring it up, since Harry is feeling 
better. But isn't it funny ( unless I am wrong and I could be, but I 
don't remember ) that Dumbledore NEVER brings it up in HBP, ever, 
not when Harry accepts Kreacher's ownership. The subject of Sirius 
mistreating Kreacher never comes up to the best of my recollection 
in HBP.

Yep, I think JKR was backtracking A LOT from Dumbledore as she 
inadvertently portrayed him in his OOP speech. THAT is why I 
consider this speech not a well written piece, because I don't think 
JKR planned to portray what I got from this speech at all.

I think she truly wanted to make Dumbledore apologetic, but instead 
she made him well.. I already said how I perceive OOP Dumbledore.

JMO,
Alla,

who sincerely hopes that she did not just do "me too" with Sherry 
post, but posts it anyway and will go slamming her fingers 
afterwards.