[HPforGrownups] Re: Lupin/ Father Figures

[elfundeb]

No: HPFGUIDX 165044

Carol:
Lupin could have spared Harry that
painful eavesdropping scene if he'd told Harry that Black was his
godfather. Is his motive for secrecy the same as Mr. Weasley's, to
keep Harry from going after Black, or self-protection, or both? He
doesn't even tell Harry how he knows that the Marauder's Map is a
Map--or how to work it--and Harry, who likes and trusts him, doesn't
pursue the matter.

Debbie:
Oh, it's definitely self-protection.  Sometimes, though, I wonder if
Lupin has struggled with accepting that Sirius was the traitor at all, in
spite of the evidence against him.  As a result, it's much easier to accept
the farfetched theory that Sirius was using black magic to enter the
castle.  Spotting Pettigrew on the map validated all his doubts.

Pippin:
But to be Dark presupposes that the choice is made for you. "Werewolves
are so mistrusted by most of our kind" says Dumbledore.

As you say, Lupin can't confess because his past actions would reflect
badly on him. He thinks he can't be forgiven, even by his friends, for
what he's done. He's internalized the view that his transgressions
would show that he's a monster.

Debbie:
Werewolves are mistrusted by *most* wizards, not all.  Dumbledore found him
trustworthy.  And just as he discovered that his friends at Hogwarts did not
desert him after discovering he was a werewolf, Dumbledore did not dismiss
him as a monster after he failed to reveal what he knew about Sirius in PoA
(and, by extension, how he had betrayed Dumbledore's trust by running around
with the Animagi).

I think his real problem is not that he has internalized the view that he is
a monster, but that because so much of the WW perceives him to be a monster,
one misstep will result in the loss of all his privileges.  This is only
partially true.  At the end of PoA, Lupin lost his job, but not Dumbledore's
goodwill.  In fact, Dumbledore stood up to Fudge and convinced him that
Lupin hadn't been helping Sirius.  I suspect Dumbledore would have stood up
to the irate parents, too, but Lupin resigned first.

Pippin:
Would Fenrir admit to being evil? Or would he say that he has
a right to revenge?

Debbie:
To borrow the words from another Voldemort supporter, "There is no good or
evil, there is only power and those too weak to seek it."  The WW has
rejected Fenrir, and he in turn rejects the WW's laws and values.  Or, to
put it more bluntly, "F*** you, WW."

But unlike Fenrir, Lupin hasn't rejected the moral code.  He wants to belong
to the side of good.

Pippin:
Sorry to be unclear.
I meant that we've heard from quite a few DE's and none of them
became Voldemort supporters because they wanted to join the
forces of evil. Voldemort doesn't approach people by asking
them to go against their consciences. He approaches by
offering people what they want most, and as Dumbledore says,
very often what we want most is bad for us.

Lupin would realize that, he always realizes when he wants
something that would be bad. But...
Debbie:
Most of them seem to have become Voldemort supporters for some combination
of power, revenge or freedom to give full rein to blood thirst.  I can't see
that any of these would be attractive to Lupin.  He wants the to be part of
the *good* side, and thanks to Dumbledore, he is.  He was a member of the
Order in VWI, and he was called back the moment Voldemort returned.  I just
don't see what Voldemort has to offer.

Pippin:
Self-loathing can cause even the most tender conscience to
lose its power. You can say Lupin would never join the DE's
because his friends would hate him and he would hate himself
...but the trouble is, he hates himself already, and he thinks
that if his friends understood what he was truly like, they'd
hate him too. It's hard to lose your self-respect
when you haven't got any.

Debbie:
But don't his friends already know what he's like?  He's evidently repulsed
by living among his *equals*, the werewolves.  He knows he is not like them,
although most of the WW would lump them together.

And it's not like the Order isn't already populated with unsavoury
characters.  How about Mundungus Fletcher?  Surely he's learned that one
doesn't need to be perfect to be on the good side, especially now that
Dumbledore has given *him* a second chance.

Debbie


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