CHAPDISC: DH36, THE FLAW IN THE PLAN

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 185262

> SSSusan:
 
> But on that issue of purebloodedness....  We all know Voldemort
isn't  a pureblood, and yet he did hide the fact that he wasn't from
his  followers, which of course makes sense since they were a band of 
 purebloods.  So why *did* he go for purebloods as his gang members? 

Pippin:
I think he knew pureblood superiority was a myth. But it was a myth he
would have liked to be true, because it organized the world for him. 
I'm sure he envied the purebloods for their status and familiarity
with power, and what he imagined was a grand life, and blamed his
Muggle side for depriving him of that. 

It's not in the nature of a psychopath to be self-critical. Voldemort
is always sure that his current course is the right one, and any
conflict he feels over not measuring up to his own standards is sure
to be displaced onto other people. 

> 
> Pippin:
> > Harry really can't play up Slytherin goodness too much without 
> > sounding like Slughorn praising Lily.  
> 
> SSSusan:
> Is this a good enough excuse, though?  Isn't JKR a talented enough 
> writer to have found a way to *show* it a little bit?  Was it an 
> error on her part to have not understood how very much this mattered
 to so many of her fans?  And is it a legitimate criticism for those 
disappointed fans to level at her?  
> 
> (And am I insane to be fueling these flames again?)
> 

Pippin:
Show us what? Gryffindors and Slytherins holding candles in the rain
and singing "We Shall Overcome"? 

Well, that would be nice. But as many have pointed out, the Slytherins
*are* judged on the content of their character, and
it seems to be wanting. 

 I think JKR is asking us to look beyond Dr. King's dream, and realize
that it won't be enough to  judge people only on the content of their
characters. We have to judge people, in this flawed world, so as not
to put the Voldemorts in charge, but it's almost impossible to do it
fairly.   It's always going to be easier for a Gryffindor to see a
speck of selfishness in a Slytherin's eye than the mountain of
arrogance in his own and vice versa. We're not going to eradicate
prejudice any more than we could eradicate lust, or greed, or hate.

But we *can* try to protect each other from it, just as we try to
protect each other from our other failings.
That's what she shows us, IMO. 
 
It's true that no Slytherin deserves unqualified admiration. But
neither do Harry or Ron or Hermione or Dumbledore. They get it, but
JKR shows us that if you know you don't deserve it, it's no blessing.

Pippin