House elves and some spoilers for Swordspoint WAS: realistic solutions

[a_svirn]

No: HPFGUIDX 180838

> > Alla:
> >
> > I really do not know what to say except to say again that to me
> > being owned and being subject to their will is an incomplete
> > definition of slavery.
>
> Magpie:
> What is your definition of slavery then besides being owned and
being
> subject to the will of your owner? Because in my experience that's
> been the definition for slavery throughout history.

a_svirn:
Yes, and "I really don't know what to say, except that I don't think
so", isn't really enough. If you say that in your opinion "the fruit
of the Egg-plant, Solanum esculentum, resembling a goose's egg in
size and shape, and usually of purple colour" does not describe
aubergine completely in your opinion, you'd have to come up with a
reason why this description is inadequate. In particular, you'd have
to find some other fruit that shares all these characteristics with
aubergine, without actually being an aubergine.

When you say that this definition of slavery is incomplete, you imply
that it is possible to owned and be subject to other people' will
without being a slave. I'd really like to know how this state is
called, however.

>
> Magpie:
> So in your view Uncle Tom and Jim from Huckleberry Finn weren't
> slaves as long as they loved their masters? Was Kreacher a slave
> until he decided he was happy with Harry as his master (Harry gave
> him orders even when Kreacher decidedly didn't want to be owned by
> him) because he (Kreacher) approves in general of the status House
> Elves have now?

a_svirn:
And let us not also forget that Kreacher, as Hermione pointed out,
does not think in general terms. So it really boils down to whether
he is happy being owned or not. Which means that he was a slave in
OotP and HBP, but wasn't by the end of HBP. Which in turn means, that
Sirius lived and died a slave-owner, while his mother was not a slave-
owner.

a_svirn