Occlumency

[sigurd at eclipse.net]

No: HPFGUIDX 191688


Dear List

I think the difficulty of this topic, including ideas of "mind-rape" etc. is a problem given the fact that we have no such analogous thing in the the real world. Therefore we have no experience with it, and no measures against it, and -- more importantly-- precious little definition as to even what it is in the world of Harry Potter.

Is reading thoughts reading ALL your thoughts, or just the top of the head fore-brain things. Is it able to go back into your memories? If the latter that's not always a good thing, after all we all know that memories can be constructed and certainly recollections are imbedded into the brain in a highly nuanced way through the eyes of our perception. Further we know that all events we perceive are "impressions" and to a degree "Phenomenal." That is, they strike us as detatched, stand-alone, phenomenon and only over time do we fir them into a coherent pattern of cause and effect, which may be highly subjective and not what REALLY happened at all.

But then that begs the question of what REALLY happened.

Here we get into the logical fallacy of "post hoc ergo propter hoc" or " this then that." The fallacy comes in assuming that B follows A, therfore A is causal of B. A real example is helpful. If every day I come into my office at 7:30 ish, does that mean that because it is 7:30 I caome into my office?  Obviously not.

It is taking the phenominalism of what REALLY happened and then the human mind attempting to fit the event into a pattern of cause and effect, of which the phenominal effect itself becomes a series of cause and effect that we have this problem.

The other factor in this Occlumency is can the mind be controlled as well as known.  If a person can read thoughts can he impose upon them. 

The other factor to is discerning what is real. If a person can use transformation spells to alter their appearence, how do we know to whom we are speaking is in fact the person to whom we are speaking. Why, for example, would anyone look ugly? Why wouldn't Millicent Bullstrode chose to look like Katy Perry, or the like.  If Malfroy, Goyle and Crabbe are bullying someone, why doesn't the someone just turn themselves into a giant and beat the crap out of them? Because they could turn themselves into other giants? 

See the problem?

Otto