Explain This Passage

[lizzyben04]

No: HPFGUIDX 180438

> Potioncat:
> Welcome to the group.
> 
> What are you missing? The effects of bigotry on people. To LV's 
gang, 
> being Muggleborn was the same as being a Muggle. So Lily counts as 
> Muggle. Actually, Muggleborns are "worse" than Muggles, because the 
> Muggleborn stole magic. Which I guess is why there are Squibs. (In 
> the minds of the radical Purebloods.)

lizzyben:

This has always sort of confused me too, because everyone in the WW 
uses "half-blood" to refer to someone w/a Muggle-born parent. It's 
not just the bigots or the Death Eaters. And it is sort of odd, 
because Harry is the son of two magical wizards. If it's about the 
effects of bigotry, what does it say that that whole WW seems to view 
being the son of a Muggleborn wizard as the same as having a Muggle 
parent? He's the heir of Perevell, even. In contrast, Snape & Riddle 
are both the son of a witch and a Muggle. But they're all called half-
blood, even though there's a big difference IMO. 

Harry's parents are both totally part of the wizarding world, & he 
would've grown up as a part of that world, while Snape & Riddle grew 
up as misfits in the Muggle world. Harry "belongs" from birth in a 
way that Snape didn't. He's not part of the "other" Muggle culture, 
the way that a child w/a Muggle father is.

This is part of the reason that the whole Muggle-born tolerance thing 
leaves me a bit cold. Lily was as much a part of the wizarding 
culture as James by the time they graduated Hogwarts. Harry & 
Hermione are indoctrinated in the ways of the wizarding world at 
Hogwarts. I think someone mentioned that you can't tell a difference 
between muggleborn & non-muggleborn students, because they all 
eventually adopt the wizarding culture. Muggle-borns aren't a 
seperate culture w/different religion, customs, dress etc. Instead, 
from childhood they are totally assimilated & indoctrinated into the 
wizarding culture. 

So "muggleborn tolerance" doesn't really tell us anything about 
having tolerance for a *different* culture or group. Instead it's 
more like, let's tolerate this group who totally act, think, behave, 
and live like us. How is that tolerance? Isn't tolerance about 
accepting those cultures, religions, ethnicities, that are different 
from your own? But here the "good guys" are *tolerant* & accepting 
only of those that have adopted & become indoctrinated in their own 
culture, while remaining very intolerant of Muggle culture. So here 
you get all the fun of feeling "tolerant" without the difficulty of 
actually having to understand a different POV or accept a different 
culture. It's that "have cake & eat it too" thing again.


lizzyben