House Elves (was Wands and Wizards)

[juli17 at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 183751



Montavilla47:
Do you mean by the end of GoF or OotP? In OotP, Hermione is so
committed to freeing the slaves that she tries to trick them into it
with the hats.

She *may* have changed her mind by HBP, but IIRC, she doesn't
say *anything* about elves in the entire book, so it's hard to tell.


Julie:
I assumed that Hermione gave up a losing battle. She got absolutely nowhere with
wizards or house elves on the issue, and I think it's a logical assumption that she
finally quit trying to force something unwanted down the throats of the house elves.
What else could she do beyond her final?flat-out trickery? Nothing.

I do agree that JKR could have resolved the issue much better by directly addressing
Hermione's change of heart, but I am one of those who sees it again as a logical 
assumption that Hermione finally realized the house elves do not want to be free.
Or, more accurately, they don't want to be independent; rather?they want to serve 
wizards. What I would see as a compromise is what I can easily envision Hermione
realizing, once she gave up on her radical and unworkable concept of liberating the
house elves from lives they desire (for the most part). That would be, elves should be
nominally free, to come and go between wizarding families as they please as servants
rather than slaves. They don't want to be paid, they want to be part of a "family" they
love. But they should never be forced to stay with a family who mistreats them. 

Yep, JKR could have done?much better?with this issue, IMO. But even as ske wrote it, I
don't see Hermione giving up her idealism entirely, merely adopting a more modulated 
approach. She can't fight if no one else, including the "victims", will join her. But in the
future, should she approach the issue from a position of influence--which I don't doubt she
will-in a less radical manner, I can definitely see the house elves being free beings still
happy to serve their beloved wizards (and the wizards more aware of the value of their
house elves as part of the family, rather than as mere "slaves").

At least that's the way it reads to me :-)

Julie 


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