Harry and the house-elves---another view

[a_svirn]

No: HPFGUIDX 162151

> Alla:
> <snip>
> > And I do not see wizards go and try to imprison Giants. Who sure 
are 
> > dangerous and violent, many of them. <snip>
> 
> Carol:
> So you concede that giants are by nature different from humans 
(Wizard
> or not). 

a_svirn:
That's hardly such an important concession to make. It's perfectly 
obvious that they are *different* by nature – they aren't human after 
all. But *different* doesn't mean *inferior* or *servile* by nature. 
It only means different. 

> Carol:
Maybe house-elves are different by nature, too, not only in
> their appearance and their magical abilities but in their 
psychology.

a_svirn:
Or maybe not. Their emotions seems to be perfectly human. 


> > Alla:
> > And again, I disagree, if I had been given to see up close and 
> > personal three house elves only, I may assume that those are 
> > **typical** house elves. IMO of course.
> 
> Carol:
> How can Kreacher, Dobby, and winky be typical when they're all so
> different from each other and from the hundreds of house-elves at
> Hogwarts, who are virtually indistinguishable? 

a_svirn:
How do you know that they are different from the mass of elves that 
you yourself call indistinguishable? My dictionary says about 
indistinguishable:

 1. a. Incapable of being discriminated or recognized as *different* 
from something else, or from each other; of which the *difference* 
[emphasis mine a_svirn] cannot be perceived. Also as n.


> Carol, thinking that lifting whatever enchantment is placed on
> house-elves is not the answer; the only solution is understanding
> their nature and respecting their needs

a_svirn:
I am afraid the task of understanding anyone's "nature" is a bit too 
demanding. We, humans can't even understand our own nature most of 
the time. Respecting their needs, now, this sounds reasonable.