Nice vs. Good, and a Rowling quote

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 153032

 
> Julie:
> There are as many different definitions for "bad" as there are 
> for "nice." JKR is clearly talking about societal definitions of bad 
> boys (the kind women often go for and think they can "fix") versus 
> nice guys (the ones who treat a woman well from the get go, even if 
> they are a bit, er, boring).

Pippin:
She's also talking about the difference between fantasy and reality
when it comes to being scared. People love to pretend they're in 
danger, that's why thrill rides and horror movies are so popular.
JKR refers to the movies, which neatly allows her to point out
that Rickman and Felton are only pretending to be dangerous while
avoiding the question of whether Snape is. But even people who
have crushes on Lucius Malfoy are still only pretending they're
in danger, because Lucius isn't real. 

JKR is talking to young girls, and telling them not to think that
scary relationships in real life should be pursued.

Julie:
> Speaking of nice, when we're comparing "nice" and "good" in JKR's 
> books (or in life), I think the two are related in a particular way, 
> where nice is good, but good isn't always nice. 
> 
> 1. Nice is being kind, thoughtful, and compassionate toward others--
> and I'm talking *genuine* nice here. Faking niceness, like Umbridge 
> or Fudge, is not nice, it's, well, fake. It's a lie. Genuine nice to 
> me is always good. You can't be genuinely nice, act out of true 
> kindness and compassion for others, and be bad. 

Pippin:
I don't think Fudge's compassion is fake in the sense that he knows
he doesn't mean it. He's just someone who acts out of true compassion 
and kindness until  his self-interest is at stake. He does the right thing
only as long as it's easy.

Kindness comes naturally to some people -- it's no skin off their nose 
to put others at ease, in fact they take pleasure in it. But sometimes 
people who make friends easily can cast them aside easily too -- 
they've learned they can always make more.

I think JKR wants us not to put too much faith in kindnesss, just
as she doesn't want us to put too much faith in rules.  It's
a component of goodness but it's not the whole thing.  She
could be going for an Inkling-like illustration of the  teaching that 
even people who make a living off  gouging widows and orphans 
are  kind to their friends: "or if ye love them which love you,
 what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?"

Personally I have more respect for someone who knows he's cruel
but tries to keep it in check and make amends for his abuses, than
I do for someone who is kind most of the time but never thinks of his
occasional cruelty as abuse because it's him doing it.

In other words, I respect DDM!Snape more than Sirius, though if I 
wanted a godfather I'd undoubtedly prefer Sirius to Snape. 

Pippin