Failed Friendships (was:Re:Draco, Narcissa and Harry)

[horridporrid03]

No: HPFGUIDX 179871

> >>Pippin: 
> > Wh-at?? So, in your opinon the S/G hatred is about Quidditch 
> > and House Points and has nothing to do with the fear of dark     
> > magic or pureblood mania?

> >>Betsy Hp:
> > That's correct.  I'm somewhat surprised to see you think 
> > differently.  I thought the books ended with the idea that       
> > there's not really such a thing as "dark magic" and I didn't see 
> > much made about "pureblood mania" either.
> > <snip>
> > But I didn't see any definitive statement about blood or magic   
> > being made.  I'd say that the statement made (if there was 
> > one) was about death.

> >>a_svirn:
> I think it *is* about pure-blood mania, though. The great showdown 
> between Harry and Voldemort is about "mastering Death", yes. But   
> the controversy between Slytherin and the other houses, most       
> notably Gryffindor (not because Gryffindor is essentially different 
> from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, but because it is the best among     
> them) is about this pure-blood thing. Slytherin is characterised in 
> the series as the house of bigotry.

Betsy Hp:
Yes, I totally agree that one of the (many!) bad things about 
Slytherin is their bigotry.  But I didn't get the sense that Harry 
(or Gryffindor) was too concerned about challenging that bigotry.  
The sense I got was that this was as a part of Slytherin as bravery 
was a part of Gryffindor.  So rather than something to be tackled and 
dealt with (as Voldemort was tackled and dealt with) it was just 
something that was.

I think that Gryffindor and Slytherin were great friends while 
Slytherin was a bigot (and Gryffindor was brave <g>) points to the, 
in the end, non-issue of that aspect of Slytherin.  I'm not saying 
that Gryffindors don't see the bigotry as bad (just as they see 
Slytherins' practicing "dark magic" as bad, or their "ambition" as 
bad).  It's just, I don't see it as the *source* of the rift.  It's 
not what they get into fights over in the halls.  Or into fights over 
in epic show-downs for that matter.

Betsy Hp