[HPforGrownups] Re: Cohesion

[elfundeb]

No: HPFGUIDX 162271

James wrote:
>
>   For those who think Dumbledore was "The Light" and was wise, consider
> book 6:
> He KNOWS there is a plot to kill him. He ALLOWS two students to almost be
> killed without taking any action. He ALLOWS the ferret virtual free reign of
> the castle to access the RoR. Thus, the battle itself is almost as much DD's
> fault as the ferret's since he took no actions to stop it or prevent it.
> Then, the megalomaniac has a burial monument placed conspicuously on the
> Hogwart's grounds, something no other headmaster had the ego to do. If I was
> Bill and found out that DD did NOTHING to prevent the battle, I would
> probably go a p--s on the old fart's grave. When book 7 is out and we've had
> time to "digest" all the happenings from 1 to 7, I REALLY want someone to
> explain all of DD's action as being wise and caring--beginning with dropping
> a baby off at someone's doorstep in the dead of night. To me, we will never
> understand DD or SS based on whether they are good or bad-they had a lot of
> DARK in them if you ask me.
>

Debbie:
I have the same answer to this question that I would have given after
reading only PS/SS (and actually did give on this list in its long-ago,
pre-OOP days).

Dumbledore knows that the WW is a dangerous place.  His official job is to
run a school whose job is to prepare young witches and wizards to live in
that world.  Although Hogwarts' protections may make it safer than it is on
the outside, it is not perfectly safe.  Dumbledore can't protect every
student from every danger.  (Though Umbridge had a major hidden agenda, her
facade was a teaching method based on the principle that the primary
objective was to keep the little students safe, and if learning is
sacrificed in the process, that's the price that must be paid.)  Any parent
who sends his or her child to a school that holds a TriWizard Tournament
can't expect 100% certainty that his or her child won't be hurt.

Dumbledore's other job, of course, is leader of the underground resistance,
and the stakes there are much greater; the entire WW is at risk.  This is
the world that Dumbledore must prepare his students for.  Harry most of
all.  Dumbledore can't sit at Harry's elbow all his life and keep him from
getting hurt.  All he can do is try to give Harry the tools he needs -- as
Harry himself figures out at the end of PS/SS ("I think [Dumbledore] pretty
much knows everything that goes on here, you know.  I think he knew we were
going to try, and instead of stopping us, he taught us just enough to
help.")  He's not into mollycoddling, and frankly, it doesn't seem like a
very useful approach for the WW.  (I don't think it's the right approach for
the RW either, but that's not a subject for this list.)

That's not to say WW parents aren't concerned for their children, but I
think most felt their children were reasonably safe as long as Dumbledore
was there.  The Weasleys would have been devastated if Ron had died.  This
is Molly's worst fear.  But I have no doubt that all of them would have
understood why Dumbledore did what he did.  Note that Dumbledore never spoke
about shutting down Hogwarts; McGonagall did that (twice, in CoS and HBP)
after Dumbledore was gone.

Basically, as a protector and a teacher, Dumbledore is a minimalist and a
non-interventionist.  He famously gives people second chances, because he
knows they learn better from their mistakes than from being told what is
right and what is wrong.  How many second chances has Hagrid received?
Didn't you want to throttle him after he revealed how to get past Fluffy?
The lesson that Draco learns in HBP is one of the most important things that
Dumbledore could teach anyone -- who am I and who do I want to become?  And
there was no way to learn it except by letting him try.  It was a risk, but
it was a calculated one.

So how did Dumbledore protect the Hogwarts students in HBP?  First, he was
the primary target, not the students.  Second, he had Snape keeping an eye
on Draco.  We know that Snape told Draco about the necklace incident,
because Harry heard him tell Draco how "clumsy and stupid" it was.  We don't
know if that was the first time or not, but we know it happened.  And it
seems to have worked.  Other than the poisoned mead (which probably had
already been delivered to Dumbledore by then), he didn't try any more crude
devices that could get anyone killed.  And when Draco finally did succeed in
getting the DEs into the castle, the Order was there.  No student got hurt,
and no one was at risk except those that deliberately joined in the battle.
It wasn't luck.  The Order was there for a reason.

Yup, I'm Dumbledore's woman, through and through.

Debbie


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