Draco and Dumbledore

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 159770

---  "dumbledore11214" <dumbledore11214 at ...> wrote:
> 
> Alla:
> ...edited...
> 
> In any event, Sirius IMO had a luxury of making choices,
> since he was not wanna be assasin when he had to make 
> that choice. Draco, well, as I said above may be he 
> would have taken that offer, if not - well, tough, as 
>far as I am concerned.
> 
> The funny thing is that IMO Dumbledore sure demonstrated
> that he absolutely **can** make people's choices for 
> them. Harry is the best example of course, I do not 
> remember Dumbledore giving Harry much choice whether to
> stay with Dursleys or not..., but suddenly when Draco 
> is running around the school trying to kill him and 
> almost killing two students, Dumbledore is hesitant 
> about making a choice for Draco that truly **is** the
> best one for him, whether Draco realises that or not?
> 
> And again, I sure understand that this is how JKR 
> wanted the story to unfold, but do I see internal logic
> in Dumbledore's actions?
> 
> ...
> 
> JMO,
> 
> Alla
>

bboyminn:

I think Dumbledore understood that you can't help someone
who doesn't want to be helped, so it was important for
Draco to ask for help or at least consciously accept
Dumbledore's offer of help.

Regardless of what you destructive predilection may be, 
whether drug, alcohol, sex, generally self-destructive
behavior, or being a DE, until you are willing to accept
that you are on the wrong path, until you are willing to
accept that you need help, until you are actually willing
to accept help when it is offerred, you are doomed. 

If Dumbledore had taken Draco into 'protective custody'
Draco would have resented him for it. He would have 
takens the same attitude he took with Snape, 'you just
want all the glory for yourself'. 

So, I think Dumbledore did the right thing. He let Draco
fall until he could fall no more. He let Draco go until
Draco stood at the crossroads of destiny, and then he 
tried to give him a shove in the right direction. But
again, it had to be Draco's choice for it to work.

In the case of Harry, when Harry was an infant, Dumbledore
did what was necessary to keep Harry alive. As Harry got
older, he accepted however begrudingly, that he needed to
return to the Dursley's. Eventually, he learned WHY he
had to return there, and continued to accept it. He 
accepted, just as Sirius did, that Dumbledore knew best.

Now many people think that FAR TOO MANY people have been
accepting that Dumbledore knew best, but he is the oldest
and wisest of them all, and flawed as he is, Dumbledore 
has a history of knowing what is best within the bounds
that it is humanly possible.

I think part of what we are seeing in seeing Dumbledore
as flawed is seeing Harry grow up. I noticed in the 
earlier books Harry describes the commons room with a
sense of awe. But in the later books, the carpets are
threadbare, the tables are rickety, the stuffing is
coming out of the torn chair, the luster and awe have
worn off. The shades of grey are starting to show through
in his otherwise youthful black and white world. 

I think that is an intentional part of the process on the
part of the author; to show us that even the best of life
has it flaws, that it is tattered and torn.

So, at to Draco, I think he had to want help and know that
he needed it before he could ever accept it. As to 
Dumbledore, he carries the weight of the world on his 
shoulders. It is very easy for us as readers and for other
characters in the books to second guess Dumbledore when 
that weight is not baring down on us. 

Just a thought.

Steve/bboyminn