Being Good and Evil /Hermione is Voldemort in making?

[houyhnhnm102]

No: HPFGUIDX 155204

Katrina:

> I'm not saying every parchment that is signed constitutes 
> a magically binding contract; I just think it is obvious 
> that, even without the sneak jinx, this was a contract.

houyhnhnm:

You think so, but if you want me to think so, you're going 
to have to provide some evidence.

bridge13219:

> I think what Hermione says (this is a paraphrase since 
> I don't have the books at work with me) is 'by signing 
> this you promise not to tell'. I'll be more than happy 
> to look up the actual quote when I can get my hands on 
> my book, but in the mean time I'm pretty sure that is 
> what happened.

houyhnhnm:

Close. "So if you sign, you're agreeing not to tell 
Umbridge--or anybody else--what we're up to."  Hermione 
could also have said, "So if you show up for the meetings, 
you're agreeing not to tell."  But all the legalistic 
nitpicking over words is missing the point.  So is the 
wrangling over how *bad* Marietta's betrayal was. It 
is Hermione's behavior that concerns me, her complacent 
assumption that she knows what is best for everyone, 
her willingness to appoint herself judge, jury, and 
executioner in order to carry out a very harsh summary 
justice without giving it any thought, as far as we know.

Not that I don't have every confidence that Hermione 
will get her comeuppance (for her own good) when I consider 
how like she is to Rowling's favorite literary character, 
who was also beloved by her creator, but whose arrogant 
determination to order everyone else's life led to one 
misery after another until she finally came to her senses.  
We are supposed to love Emma because she is fundamentally 
a good person whose misguided busybody activities spring 
from generous intentions, but we are also supposed to see 
that (like Hermione) she had a lot to learn. 

Katrina:

> In some countries, treachery is punished with death, 
> not that I'm suggesting Marietta deserves to die, or 
> that she deserves her punishment to linger for so long, 
> but it must be remembered, she could have got Harry and 
> co expelled, their wands snapped, so what she did isn't 
> something, IMO, that can be just brushed off.

houyhnhnm:

"An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth"  But among civilized 
people today this is not considered a very evolved concept 
of justice.  Neither is "the ends justify the means."  
I don't think an author who worked for Amnesty International 
and links to it on her web site is going to go there.