Hermione must be stopped, ...-Hermione's Crimes

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 149381

Magpie wrote:
> <snip> Even if it is several days, the fact that Hermione could have
done worse does not make this in any way an act of mercy.  Of course
what Hermione could have done was worse--it's the threat of Azkaban
she's holding over the woman's head.  The implication is always that
if Rita steps out of line she will do exactly that, send her to
Azkaban.  That's what blackmail is.  <snip>

Carol responds:
What concerns me most is that Hermione has previously expressed
concern over the Twins' intention to blackmail Ludo Bagman, i.e.,
their intention to commit exactly the same crime Hermione later commits:

"Hermione was looking uncomfortable now.
"'Yes, but . . . they wouldn't do anything against the law to get gold.'
"'Wouldn't they?' said Ron, looking skeptical. 'I dunno . . . . They
don't exactly mind breaking rules, do they?'
"'Yes, but this is the *law*,' said Hermione, looking scared. This
isn't some silly school rule. . . They'll get a lot more than
detention for blackmail! Ron . . . maybe you'd better tell Percy . . . .' 
"'Are you mad?' said Ron. 'Tell Percy! He'd probably do a Crouch and
turn them in.'"( GoF Am. ed. 569, italics and ellipses in original)

Hermione's attitude here is interesting for several reasons. She now
seems unconcerned about breaking "silly school rules" (in marked
contrast to her attitude in SS/PS), but she's concerned about breaking
the law, not because it's wrong to do so (i.e., blackmail violates the
victim's rights) but because of the *consequences* of getting caught
(Azkaban instead of detention, which clearly has ceased to operate as
a deterrent to her breaking any inconvenient or "unfair" rule--and
note that this attitude predates Umbridge). She considers reporting
the Twins to Percy, an idea that Ron squelches because Percy would
turn them in (a violation of his schoolboy code of honor, but also an
indication that he cares about the Twins and has ceased to trust
Percy). Hermione seems to be convinced by his response, or at least,
IIRC, says nothing more about the Twins' intention.

By OoP, Hermione is thinking more like the Twins, disregarding the
consequences of the law to engage in blackmail herself, for the
self-righteous reason that she'll stop Rita from telling lies, but
also as a form of revenge after the bubotuber pus incident. ("I *hate*
that Skeeter woman!,' she burst out savagely. 'I'll get her back if
it's the last thing I do!'" GoF 546).

Note that Hermione's desire for vengeance against Rita precedes her
concern for the Twins' contemplated blackmail attempt, or rather her
fear of its consequences. By OoP, she's ready to put the two together
and commit blackmail herself in pursuit of vengeance, either
disregarding the consequences if she's caught or assuming that she,
the clever and righteous Hermione, can break the law with impunity.
(In the WW as in RL, teenagers too often think themselves exempt from
consequences and even immortal, and no doubt being a kid acting
against an adult adds to the thrill of victory if power is assumed to
be in the hands of the adults.) Capturing Bug!Rita and putting her in
a jar probably strikes Hermione as no more inhumane than Transfiguring
hedgehogs into pincushions (or vanishing kittens, if an example from
HBP is okay here). And the desire for vengeance imitates that of two
adults Hermione has come to respect, Lupin and Black, both of whom
intended to murder Pettigrew as a form of vigilante justice. So Rita
(whose faults and lies are of course undeniable) is reduced to an
object (or creature), a mere bug to capture and imprison, but who
(which?) is at the same time being punished by Hermione (for crimes
against herself, not against Harry, since the trigger is the bubotuber
pus incident). And apparently this motive justifies Hermione in her
own mind in breaking the law against blackmail (and risking Azkaban)
as she thought the Twins should not do just one year earlier.

Her shift in attitude is at best inconsistent and at worst
hypocritical. What's not okay for the Twins to do in pursuit of their
lost gold (not worth the risk?) is okay for Hermione in pursuit of
revenge. 

While I don't think Hermione deserves to be slapped, I do think she
needs to get her priorities straight, and quickly, if she's going to
be an agent for the side of Good in Book 7.

Carol, noting that it's Ron, not Hermione, who confronts the Twins
regarding the intended blackmail in GoF, prompting George's prescient
remark that he ought to be a Prefect