muggle baiting vs. muggle torture

[Sydney]

No: HPFGUIDX 155405


> > Sydney:
> > 
> > What I wonder is, why on earth aren't the twins in Slytherin?  
> Steven1965aaa:
> 
Steven:

> No Slytherin would have given away the Maurauders Map without 
> getting back something in return. 

Sydney:

Didn't they get a huge bag of gold from Harry the next year?  Perhaps
they just knew it would be smart to invest in someone well-connected
and wealthy early.  And, as they themselves cheerful assert, it wasn't
a sacrifice as they had already memorized it.

And I'm uncomfortable with the assertion "no Slytherin would have.."
etc.  Kids of eleven years old are labelled with this.  Is this the
sort of book you want this to be?

>They also keep asking (OOP) to join the Order even 
> though there's nothing in it for them.  

Hmmmmm... except for being where the action is.  That rings more of
"it was the risk that would have made it fun for James", than
nobility.  Neville, who is frightened of Death Eaters and wants to
live a quiet life, is unambiguously brave in trying to take part.  The
twins are shown as fearless and relishing adventure and hijinks.  I'm
not quite ready to give them points for trying to join the Order.

 
> They didn't go after Dudley because he is a muggle, they went after 
> him because he's a prat and a bully himself, he just happened to be 
> a muggle.  That's the difference from the death eaters who levitated 
> those people at the World Cup BECAUSE they were muggles.  Also they 
> have gone after magical prats like Umbrige.  The toffee was comic 
> relief and Dudley deserved it.


The toffee was comic relief, Dudley deserved it, AND the twins were
dishonourable in using magic against someone who couldn't fight back.
My point about the toffee went to then being unchivalrous, not
anti-muggle.  

I don't think the twins are specifically anti-muggle.  I just think
they are very, very comfortable with taking power over other people,
which naturally will have the most uncomfortable overtones when
dealing with muggles.  I suspect a future plot development will be
whichever twin it was developing his relationship with that muggle
girl in the village who was so impressed with his card tricks.
Personally, I would never, ever trust either of them, if was a muggle
married to them, or a muggle friend of theirs, not to use magic to
trick or control me.  Would you?

-- Sydney, who was once accuse of being of being a bourgeois moralist
for being uncomfortable with a Snape/Hermionie relationship; and now
is startled to find herself suspected of being a bleeding-heart hippie
for thinking extendedly choking a helpless child a bit harsh