Marietta

[Charles Walker Jr]

No: HPFGUIDX 169297

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "pippin_999" <foxmoth at ...> wrote:
>
> Eggplant:
> > All those crying over Marietta's acne should remember that if this was
> > real life and a secret underground organization had discover one of
> > their own members had betrayed them to the fascist enemy that traitor
> >   would be very lucked indeed to survive with her life. This is no
> > longer kid stuff, this is life and death, and there is no reason to
> > except our literary heroes would fit in comfortably with Saturday
> > morning cartoon morality. 
> 
> Pippin:
> I was on jury duty the other day, and the judge stressed
> that no matter how serious the charges were, everyone entered
> the courtroom "wrapped in a cloak of innocence". She also 
> pointed out that this was not universally recognized, and there
> were plenty of places in the world where the police could decide
> that you were guilty. However, as both Ron and Hermione were
> outraged to hear that Sirius had been sentenced without trial,
> it seems the presumption of innocence is a right that Hermione
> cherishes -- or used to.
> 
> Hermione disregarded Marietta's rights, and did so not in some
> kind of ticking bomb scenario, but with no more thought than
> she would discard the wrapper on a Chocolate Frog. 

Charles:
Nice double standard there. Marietta is innocent of doing the thing
that caused the hex to come into effect, but Hermione is guilty of
callous, unthinking viciousness for putting a ***CONDITIONAL*** hex on
a piece of parchment. She stated that signing the parchment meant
agreeing not to reveal what they were doing. That shows more thought
than simply tossing aside litter.

Pippin again:
>  I don't think JKR considers human rights a matter of Saturday 
> morning cartoon morality. I'm sure Amnesty International doesn't.
> I have no use at all for fascist collaborators and I'm sure JKR doesn't
> either, but her point is, IMO, that if they don't have rights then
> nobody does. 

Charles again:

I really don't think that Hermione violated Marietta's rights. That
hex was activated by Marietta's actions. If Marietta was not guilty of
her treason, then she would not have had any ill effects. Period. The
impartial judge here was the contract. It is a simple matter of logic.
The logic put into the contract was "If A, then B"--"If anyone who
signs this parchment tries to destroy the lives of everyone else who
signed by revealing our activities, their face will be covered with
purple pustules that form the word sneak." Hermione didn't sneak up to
Umbridge's office and curse Marietta on a whim, she built a hex into a
magical contract. The terms of that contract were stated at the Hog's
Head, although incompletely. JKR is careful to let us know that "There
was an odd feeling in the group now. It was as though they had just
signed some kind of contract."

And please remember that no matter what Marietta's motivations were,
she knew that she was in effect damning twenty-some odd students.
Umbridge's decree meant that the students in the DA would be expelled
from Hogwarts. We know from canon that being expelled from Hogwarts
means getting your wand snapped, and being forbidden to do any magic.
Not a good position for a witch or wizard to be in, is it? If you
think Fudge and Umbridge would have given any of those 20+ students
their rights you should probably go back and read the book again.

Charles, who thinks Marietta got off easy.