[HPforGrownups] Re: CHAPTER DISCUSSION: Chamber of Secrets Chapter 18: Dobby's reward

[Sheila Douglas]

No: HPFGUIDX 189360

 
 
-------Original Message-------
 
From: Joey Smiley
Date: 17/6/2010 2:46:36 AM
To: HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com
Subject: [HPforGrownups] Re: CHAPTER DISCUSSION: Chamber of Secrets Chapter
18: Dobby's reward
 
  <major snip>
Cheers,
~Joey, who wonders what Sheila has got say about Bellatrix in this context


Sile_dubhghlase (again with the soapbox):
Ah...dear old Trixie. I had said in my previous post that all Death Eaters
fell into the coward category, but Bellatrix LeStrange is a category all to
herself. This temptress of terror is a product of her environment, I think,
as is Narcissa; Andromeda, on the other hand, broke away from it like Sirius
did and like Regulus eventually wished had had. Since the Blacks were also
in that whole Pureblood supremacy trap, they were inbred too, although
probably not as closely as the Gaunts. In a word, Bellatrix was probably
mentally unstable growing up, and then became certifably insane.

We don't know much about Bellatrix' early life, other than what Harry found
out in the Pensieve in Dumbledore's office. She sat in that chained chair
like it was a throne and spoke as calmly and haughtily as could be about 
the Dark Lord" being found, his retribution, blah, blah, blah. Already, we
could see that she was at least fanatical, if nothing else. She was married
to an equally fanatical Death Eater, as was her sister, Narcissa. Bellatrix
surrounded herself with Voldemort and fully immersed herself in his
philosophy with a religious fervor. She was worse than a cultist who needs
to be de-programmed--an automaton of sorts.

She already enjoyed torturing and murder--that's something she picked up
from her master--but her roughly 14-year stint in Hotel Azkaban drove her
completely insane. Not only did she subscribe to that Pureblood supremacy
tripe, now she believed Voldemort was a god. Odd, considering the sod
disappeared after the attack on the Potters, so she and her little band of
fellow loonies felt the need to "find" him. Now, to the rational mind, if he
was such a god, he could have found them a lot quicker, and a baby wouldn't
have defated him.

DEs moved in (normally) unnecessarily large numbers for a reason. They were
rather stupid, not that talented, and complete cowards...just like their
beloved master. Cowards, I mean. Voldemort was neither stupid nor inept--a
waste, really. Never could Bellatrix (or any DE) engage in a fair fight
because she knew well that Alice and Frank Longbottom, two top Aurors, would
have put her and her husband in their graves in a heartbeat. Bellatrix was
powerful, sure, but not that talented or even that smart, really. Finesse
wasn't her long suit and the only real magic she was good at was the AK and
the Cruciatus...and she rarely made a decisive move without her master's
orders. No, the only way to get any information out of the Longbottoms
and/or put them down was with greater numbers and unforgivable curses.

Was Bellatrix LeStrange a coward? DEFINITELY. She never engaged in a fair fight if she could help it, but if she was faced with no other choice, she'd run. Was she crazy? She was a rabid dog that should have been put down rather than sent to Azkaban. All I can say is Molly Weasley should have won an OMFC for doing what the Ministry didn't.

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