Working mothers, was Did the Slytherins come back

[montavilla47]

No: HPFGUIDX 181849

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "a_svirn" <a_svirn at ...> wrote:
>
> > Montavilla47:
> > But maybe I'm being unfair to cite the negative outcomes
> > for children who have working mothers.  After all, we have
> > negative outcomes for children of non-working mothers.
> > Draco becomes a Death Eater (or does he?  We never do 
> > know if he gets the mark) in spite of his mother's devotion.
> 
> a_svirn:
> Does it matter? Would his actions be more contemptible if he had the 
> mark? I don't think so, especially since he didn't really have any 
> choice in the matter. It would have been Voldemort's choice. 

Montavilla47:
I don't think it really matters.  It was just something that struck
me as I was writing the post.  We never did find out if Draco
wore the dark mark.  Then I started to wonder if, if Draco had
gotten the dark mark, if he would have been standing on that
platform in the epilogue, or if he would have been in Azkaban
instead.

Another thing I wonder about that dark mark.  Do you think
that Snape went around thinking "All is well" for the years
up to GoF because his dark mark didn't hurt? Maybe so. :)

> > Montavilla47: 
> > And I'm not trying to bash JKR about her portrayal of
> > either mothers or non-mothers.  I'm just pointing
> > out that she seems to be a lot of power into mother
> > love--the other side of which is that women without
> > children tend end looking inconsequential and those
> > who divide their attention between work and children
> > end up with bad kids.
> 
> a_svirn:
> Try as I might I don't see any direct correlation between mother's 
> Love and child's morals. Take orphans for instance: Riddle is the 
> evil personified, Harry is the good personified. Neither one of them 
> knew what's it like to be loved by a mother (or a father for that 
> matter). Neville is a good guy too, but then he had his grandmother 
> to love him. The same with career – Lily didn't work, but then, 
> neither did Merope. And to muddle the picture further neither did 
> James (nor, for all we know, did Tom Riddle Sr.) 

Montavilla47:
Yes, people are definitely making excellent points.  I concede 
completely.  Although, I would say that Harry did have a loving
mother and father for one year of his life.  I think that may have
had a lot to do with the different choices he made.

> > Montavila47:
> ><snip> The entire Tonks/Lupin
> > storyline is unsatisfying.  We get these two characters with great
> > potential.  <snip> 
> > 
> > And then, when she gets happy again, she nearly fades away
> > completely.  It's like she's a Victorian women who must go
> > into confinement during her pregnancy.
> 
> a_svirn:
> I think it is a bit unjust. I too find the entire Lupin/Tonks 
> storyline unsatisfying, but as for her "confinement", what else could 
> she have done? She couldn't very well continue to work for the 
> Ministry, could she? As for the Order, the whole organization seemed 
> to have gone into "confinement", albeit with less satisfying results. 
> a_svirn.

Montavilla47:
I was being unclear.  I don't think it was JKR's intention at all to
advocate a Victorian approach to pregnancy.  I was just struck as
I read the book how Tonks seems to vanish completely.  She's
there for the trip from Privet Drive to the Burrow.  The next time
you see her, she's there for a couple minutes, and then she's
climbing over the fence to get away.  I don't believe we see her
at the wedding?  Or do we?  I can't remember.

Then, although we see and hear from Lupin occasionally, and
we see order members Arthur, Bill, and Fleur, and we run 
into Ted Tonks again, we never see Tonks until she shows up
for the fight at the end, after having given birth.

Of course, we don't Ginny either, except as a dot.  It's probably
nothing to do with any squeamishness about pregancy and
probably more to do with not wanting any cheerful young
ladies around during the general angst.  (Hermione doesn't 
count.  She's a young lady, but she's anything but cheerful.)