CHAPTER DISCUSSION: Chamber of Secrets Chapter 18: Dobby's reward

[AmanitaMuscaria]

No: HPFGUIDX 189308



--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "dumbledore11214" <dumbledore11214 at ...> wrote:


> 2. I know that Hagrid tells Harry that Lockhart was the only applicant for the job, but still why do you think Dumbledore hired him? Does it mean that Snape applying every year was after all a lie? If it was a lie, why Dumbledore did not teach DADA himself, instead of hiring incompetent imbecile whom I consider Gilderoy to be?
> 

Hi, AmanitaMuscaria here -

I wonder, looking at various hints in the books, whether the classes are considered as anything more than make-work. The whole purpose of the school appears to me to be about socialising into the wizarding world, not teaching. Yes, there is the basic wand-waving and learning about magical ingredients, beasts, and beings, but classwork counts for naught in OWLS and NEWTS, and what, apart from the legend of the Chamber of Secrets, did any of the students learn in Professor Binns' class? If students can be absent from classes for months, how essential are those classes? 
Having useless DADA teachers may be Dumbledore's ploy to get Harry to take responsibility for his own education, perhaps.
But I completely agree that DD's refusal to let SS teach DADA every yearr was a little charade for Voldemort's benefit. What I'm undecided about is whether it was to make Voldy believe that DD didn't know there was a curse on the position, or merely that DD didn't trust SS, so SS could explain any 'gaps' in his spying for Voldemort by pointing out that Dumbledore still didn't trust SS completely.
And Lockhart, after all, is a valuable lesson for the children to experience, though whether they needed a full year of him is debatable.

Thanks for the questions; I feel the need to come out of lurkdom!

AM