The Locket and Mundungus

[kiricat4001]

No: HPFGUIDX 145689

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Steve" <bboyminn at y...> wrote:
 > 
> > Marianne:
> > I agree with Gerry.  I think Sirius made it quite clear that
> > he desired a total disassociation with anything that reminded
> > him of his family's past.  And, since Sirius held these objects
> > in such low esteeem, they wouldn't represent something of value
> > to Harry.  Even when Harry got angry with Dung for stealing the 
> > silver goblets in HBP, he cooled down somewhat when he 
remembered 
> > that Sirius didn't care for them. 

> >
> 
> bboyminn:
> 
> I see your point and it is certainly valid, but I'm not sure I 
agree
> completely. History is always being written; today's headlines are
> tomorrows history. While Sirius's family may have had an unpleasant
> view of what it meant to be a 'Black', Sirius re-wrote that 
history.
> He gave new value and meaning to the 'Black' name.
> 
> To Sirius the many objects he purged represented his family and 
their
> dark history, but to Harry, those very objects represent Sirius and
> the new values and history he gave to the 'Black' family. 
> 
> When Harry sat down to dinner in the Black house, and ate off of
> plates and drank from goblets with the Black family crest, he 
would be
> thinking of Sirius's bravery and loyalty, and not of 
Sirius's 'witch'
> of a mother. 
> 
> So, while the span of Black family history may be dark, it ended 
with
> a very bright and brave spot. It ended with a new set of values 
that
> gave the name a whole new meaning. It is because of this that those
> artifacts would symbolize Sirius to Harry.

Marianne:
I'll concede that Harry might indeed come to view some of those 
Black artifacts in the way you describe some time in the future - 
after he's had time to reflect, time to mourn and time to put the 
whole issue of what he's going through now as a teenager in a deadly 
battle with Voldemort behind him.  I'm assuming, of course, that 
Harry lives beyond the final showdown.  

Right now, though, Harry is too wrapped up in events to be able to 
make that shift in thinking, IMO.  His thoughts about inheriting 12 
GP in Chap 3:  

"Harry never wanted to set foot in number twelve, Gimmauld Place 
again if he could help it. He thought he would be haunted forever by 
the memory of Sirius prowling its dark musty rooms alone, imprisoned 
within the place he had wanted so desperately to leave."  

With those feelings, Harry has a long way to go to make the 
connection of the Black possessions as something that could be used 
to mark and honor the change in the family as represented by its 
last son.  Which is not to say that Harry might not one day wish he 
had one of those old silver goblets to show his own children when 
telling them about Sirius. But, right now, they've got too many 
negative connotations to them.

Marianne