Who originally owned Dobby?

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 174659

Christy wrote:
> You need search no further than Harry Potter and the Chamber of
Secrets, where we learn that the magic of house elves require them to
serve their masters or risk punishment, usually at their own hands;
house elves can only be freed if their masters give them clothes
(which is why we see them wearing pillowcases or tea towels or
whatever -- those items are not proper clothes).  We also meet Dobby,
an unusual house elf who wants his freedom.  He tells Harry that house
elves suffered greatly under Voldemort and that he still suffers.  (We
learn at the end of COS that Dobby belongs to Lucius Malfoy, a devoted
follower of Voldemort.)
> 
> At first, Dobby's devotion to Harry is based on the fact that Harry
is The Boy Who Lived -- the boy who somehow rid the world of the
threat Voldemort posed.  Once Dobby meets Harry, his devotion is based
on how Harry treats him (with respect and kindness).  Later, Dobby's
devotion to Harry is based on the fact that Harry tricks Lucius Malfoy
into giving Dobby clothes (Harry's sock hidden Riddle's diary), thus
freeing him.  By the end of COS there is no doubt that Dobby is loyal
to Harry.
> 
> Dobby, unlike the other house elves we see in the books, wants his
freedom.  Considering who his master is, who can blame him.  In my
opinion, he is miserable serving the Malfoys both because they follow
Voldemort and because they treat him cruelly. <snip>
> 
> Dobby also is very brave; he defied his master and punished himself
for it throughout COS; he sought freedom which singled him out among
his peers; and, of course, he died saving Harry in DH.
> 
> There is nothing in canon to remotely suggest that Dobby once served
the Potters.  Is Dobby's action "off the charts" for house elves? 
Yes, but the books do a thorough job of explaining house elves in
general and Dobby in particular.  JKR didn't need to go into it any
further that she did in DH.
> 
> Christy, who sometimes wonders if we're all reading the same books
>
Carol responds:

I think you've hit the nail on the head. In CoS, we hear that Dobby's
masters (certainly including Narcissa and possibly even
twelve-year-old Draco) are "bad Dark wizards" who constantly and
viciously abuse him. Kreachers' masters and mistress (setting aside
Sirius) are also Dark wizards and Voldemort supporters, though only
the deluded Regulus actually becomes a Death Eater. Their philosophy
and politics are not that different from those of the much younger
Malfoys. What makes the difference is their treatment of their
house-elf. Kreacher is treated kindly by all except Sirius, ironically
the Gryffindor and opponent of Voldemort. Again ironically, it's
Regulus, the Slytherin (is his position as Seeker symbolic?) who dies
avenging a house-elf and ears Kreacher's undying devotion and love.

Dobby views Harry as a hero because, like much of the WW, he survived
Voldemort's AK. Harry, through no action or intent of his own,
symbolizes opposition to Voldemort, and Dobby opposes Voldemort
because his abusive masters support him. Kreacher, in contrast, clings
to the views of his master and mistress, not understanding that
Regulus died to help bring down the Dark Lord whom he had previously
willingly served. It's a matter of personal loyalty not political
philosophy. His masters (except Sirius, the rebel who treats him with
contempt and makes no effort to understand his thinking) can do no
wrong, just as Mr. Crouch, even after he gives Winky clothes, can do
no wrong in her eyes. (Ludo Bagman is a "very bad man" because Mr.
Crouch thinks so. Winky is just as loyal to Imperiused DE Barty Jr. as
to his father. Their politics and actions make no difference to her.)
Neither Kreacher nor Winky sees Harry as the hero Dobby does (at least
until Kreacher's change of heart and even then his true loyalty is to
Regulus) because they are loyal to their masters.

House-elves, as Hermione finally understands, are not people. Their
psychology is different. They can't be indoctrinated to think like
wizards (Dobby thinks as he does because of the way he's been
mistreated not because he's opposed to Voledmort per se). They must be
accepted as what they are and treated with respect and consideration.
But for Harry to free Kreacher once Kreacher has agreed to serve him
would be a cruel blow from which Kreacher probably could never recover.

BTW, I have no idea where the theory that someone other than the
Malfoys originally owned Dobby came from. There's no canon for it in
any of the books. Dobby says in CoS that he's bound to serve one house
and family forever (unless he's freed, which at the time seems
extremely unlikely).

Carol, wondering whether the other pure-blood DEs have house-elves and
whether those house-elves are Kreachers, Winkys, or Dobbys