House Elves, again (was: The two good Slytherins)

[Bart Lidofsky]

No: HPFGUIDX 176364

Sharon:
>Then again, house-elves were bred to serve and maybe that's all they know how 
>to do?  Dobby was a free elf, but he certainly was ready to serve Harry anytime 
>anywhere. It may have been well-nigh impossible to emancipate house-elves at 
>this stage. Anyone else got thoughts on this?

First of all, I must admit that I kind of liked Kreacher in OOP (well, felt sorry for him). He was clearly not evil, but someone he truly loved had died, and replaced by someone who hated the person he loved, and didn't particularly like him, yet he was compelled to serve him. 

However, in Kreacher, we get a MUCH better idea of what goes on in the minds of house elves. Now, as to how they got that way, well, we don't know. They are pretty clearly NOT a natural race; whether they were originally herd animals who form a strong and permanent loyalty to their leader, evolved to human level intelligence, or if they were a more independent race, possibly even humans, who had slavery genetically implanted into them, or an entirely artificial construct, we will never know. What we DO know however, is:

1) They love to do certain kinds of work, notably household tasks.
2) They possess a great deal of pride in their work. 
3) Praise does a major number on their pleasure centers. So does being loved.
4) Failure to appreciate the work of a house elf may be even physically painful to it.
5) Dobby was so badly treated that he went insane, by house elf standards. This is why he desired his freedom. 
6) One of the worst things you can do to a house elf is to put down a job that they did well. 
7) Winky went to the bottle because not only did she get put down for performing her job to the best of her ability, but she got fired for it. Hogwarts, frankly, was one of the worst possible places for her. She should have been sent to a place where her "owners" would appreciate and love her; the Weasley's for example. 
8) House elves generally have no concept of "good" and "evil". Once again, Dobby was, by house elf standards, insane. 
9) There is not a lot that can be done about the enslavement of house elves. But laws COULD be made in the WW to ensure that they are well treated. 

Bart