The House System was Re: Chapter Discussion: Goblet of Fire Ch. 4: Back

[sigurd at eclipse.net]

No: HPFGUIDX 191522

Dear Geoff

Look, I sympathize and empathize, but you've worked yourself into an indefensible position.

You're like the guy who wants to celebrate the German Armed Forces in World War Two- to lionize them you  have to lionize Hitler and the Nazi mission. All of their (German non-Nazi Armed forces members) virtues and glories were done for a morally evil cause that they knew was morally evil.

To defend and praise Slytherin you have to praise and defend Voldemort. It's a package deal.  All this talk about before or after doesn't cut it. The fact is that Slytherin supported them, and they KNEW what they were supporting, and they wanted it. The Death eaters are simply the SS in the mix. The reign of the Slytherin Inquisition simply demonstrated what was in their hearts.

The only way out is to simply blame it all on Voldemort and emphasize the absolute terror that he held all of Slytherin in. That is,--  that they were the subject of absolute mind-numbing,  bowel-evacuating terror, breakdown inducing terror,  (which is going to be tough going  because Rowling doesn't give you much to go on.)  Slytherin in the text of Harry Potter IS Voldemort.

You can go on about all these other possibilities and no matter what you hypothesize I can always nail you to the wall with Voldemort and his intimate connection to Slytherin.

The only way out is to say "Yup we did it, it's all true, and that's just the stuff you KNEW about! There was lots more. Far Far worse he had us do. We were all deluded completely and could only see it after the fact. Once the spell of Hitlemort was broken we could see we wuz wrong and we won't do it again...honest... oh wait-- we tried this dodge once before didn't we. "

Otto