On lying and cheating

[eggplant107]

No: HPFGUIDX 165245

"Marion Ros" <mros at ...> wrote:

> in that case, neither is Lockhart a cheat.

Lockhart claimed to have done all sorts of wonderful things that he
had in fact not done. Harry never claimed anything like that, in fact
he never claimed anything at all, he simply produced potions when
asked to do so. 

> according to the rules of my university it is absolutely
> forbidden, on pain of expulsion out of the course to 
> copy answers from a fellow student and giving them to 
> the professor claiming they are your own work. 

Harry wasn't copying answers, he was following alternate instructions
that he thought were superior to the ones found in that stupid text
book, and that is more than not wrong,IT IS COMMENDABLE! A requirement
to stick to that ridiculous textbook is a recipe for stagnation. I
congratulate Harry for upsetting the apple cart, it's about time.   

> I'm the TA of a course called History of Science at 
> the University of Leiden and yes, putting in work
> that is thought out by somebody else is forbidden.

GOOD GOD ALMIGHTY! If that is really true, and I find it difficult to
believe it is, and if you're really not allowed to build onto the
accomplishments of others then your course must stink to high heaven! 

> if he or she were just copying them without
> even understanding them

Snape had a deep understanding of why potions work the way they do,
but nobody in Slughorn's class did, not even Hermione. Nevertheless if
Harry can make any potion desired then that is a skill not to be
scoffed at even if he doesn't understand why they work as they do. 

> Snape is not 'the enemy', Snape is a teacher.
> In the war against Voldemort he is even an ally. 

Maybe yes maybe no, we will have to wait until July 21 to know for
sure, but I can tell you one thing right now. If I were in Harry's
position near the end of book 6 I would hate Snape almost as much as I
hate Voldemort. And after Snape murdered Dumbledore you can remove the
word "almost". Regardless of what JKR has in mind for the character
from all that Harry has learned about the man in 6 years he would be a
FOOL to treat Snape as anything other than the enemy.

> he [Harry] lied and cheated because he wanted an unfair
> advantage in class

What lie did he make? Who did he cheat? What is unfair in finding a
better way to do things when you never claimed to be the inventor of
those ways?

Eggplant