CHAPDISC: HBP10, The House of Gaunt

[dumbledore11214]

No: HPFGUIDX 148524

> 4. Considering they are the heirs of Slytherin, why are the Gaunts 
so
> far outside the Wizarding world? It does not seem likely the Gaunts
> married into any other pureblood families. Gaunt himself may have 
been
> prepared to let the Slytherin bloodline die with Merope and Morfin.
> The Gaunts even seem to be unaware of the Wizarding world's laws. 
> With this degree of separation, how did the Gaunts come to possess
> wands, or make their living? How did Merope learn the magic she 
used
> once her father and brother were gone?

Alla:

I have to confess, this chapter is one of my least favorites in 
whole HBP. Male Gaunts for the most part do not invite in me any 
feelings other than deep disgust and I feel bad for Merope in this 
chapter, but as I said what she does next does not make me 
sympathise with her in general either.

In any event, what I am trying to say that I did not really intend 
to participate in this chapter discussion, but your questions are so 
good that I could not help myself, but try to answer at least some 
of them.

I actually agree with a_svirn - I don't think we know for sure that 
Gaunts are that far from WW. What I wanted to comment on is that I 
don't think Merope learned magic, I think it was suppressed in her 
because of violent abuse she was a subject to. I don't think she 
ever was a Squib. I think that is what her so called father wanted 
to believe.

Lealess:
> 5. Inviting guesswork, as Dumbledore does: what is the story with 
the
> ring? It is an "ugly" ring that someone (Borgin & Burkes?) offered
> Gaunt a lot of money for at one time. The ring meant enough to the
> Gaunts that it and Slytherin's locket survived the family's
> squandering of its fortune. Is the Peverell connection important? 
Why
> is it necessary to keep the ring's story untold until book 7?

Alla:

The only reason I see that ring's story could be important is if DD 
was indeed dying from the curse protecting it, otherwise I cannot 
imagine right now how the ring can be important.


Lealess:
> 8. <SNIP>Dumbledore trusts Harry to know right from wrong, based on
> years of observation – but observation alone did not work with Tom 
Jr.
> It seems that Rowling is concluding, through Dumbledore, that 
people
> are born with a "blood"-derived moral sense. Voldemort was 
descended
> from the debased Gaunts and the selfish Riddle Sr.; they were bad, 
and
> he is therefore evil. Harry was descended from Lily and James 
Potter;
> they were good, and Dumbledore can therefore trust Harry to be 
good,
> even if Harry was raised without love. It becomes pointless to 
teach
> moral lessons. All Dumbledore has to do is sit back and observe how
> people show their moral character. Is this, in fact, the 
assumption on
> which Dumbledore operates? <SNIP>

Alla:

I snipped some of the sub-questions, because I only want to answer 
this part.

YES, it again goes back to the argument about essentialistic ( 
spelling?) at least in part nature of potterverse morality.

I absolutely believe that Rowlings characters  morality ( at least 
in part) is based on "who they are". I think that she does leave 
some "wiggle room" for the characters to change, so I would not call 
her morality "strictly essentialistic", but yeah, "who this 
character is" is IMO a big deal in Potterverse.

Dumbledore KNOWS Harry's good nature that is why he seems absolutely 
unconcerned that Harry attempted to cast Unforgivables. I don't see 
any other possible reason for not being concerned other than being 
sure that Harry's nature will stop him from turning to darkness. I 
just don't.

Harry does not even have to necessarily be born with it, maybe he 
got his "good nature" during the first year of his life, when he was 
loved and cherished by his parents. I mean, baby does get more 
information about world around him in first three or five years of 
his life than afterwards, so it does not sound too caricature too me.

And yes, Tom Riddle, who seems to be truly born evil. I could not 
come with the better example for this.


JMO,

Alla