Free Kreacher!, Why Not? |
 Sep 16 2007, 12:05 PM
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#1
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Disgruntled House-Elf at The Leaky Cauldron Posts: 408 Joined: 3:22pm August 10, 2005 Location: Hermione's handbag   |
The war is over! Lord Voldemort is dead and the Death Eaters are scrambling for cover. Kreacher no longer has any information for Harry to fear he could take to the dark side, so is there any reason for Harry not to set him free?
Now that Kreacher has come to accept (perhaps even love) his new "master" would he appreciate it if Harry did free him? Would he be willing to work for Harry as a Free Elf, accepting wages, or would he run to Malfoy Mannor to ask to take Dobby's place. -------------------- Now, if you will excuse me, I have better things to do than to listen to adolesent agonizing
- Phineas Nigellus |
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Sep 16 2007, 12:21 PM
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Personal Secretary to The Minister of Magic  Posts: 9,182 Joined: 4:57am January 28, 2005 Location: near Muggleswick, UK  |
QUOTE(Professor_Nigellus @ Sep 16 2007, 06:05 PM)  The war is over! Lord Voldemort is dead and the Death Eaters are scrambling for cover. Kreacher no longer has any information for Harry to fear he could take to the dark side, so is there any reason for Harry not to set him free? Most house elves don't want to be free, and I suspect Kreacher is with the majority. I do think that Harry would give Kreacher the choice of whether to be free or not, but Kreacher's time with the trio at Grimmauld Place seems to have made him loyal to Harry and he would probably refuse, though I think Harry would give Kreacher permission to act freely in any case, if he hadn't already done so in DH - Kreacher's actions in DH such as going to Hogwarts and leading the house elves suggest he has been allowed a lot of freedom in the way he acts.
Now that Kreacher has come to accept (perhaps even love) his new "master" would he appreciate it if Harry did free him? Would he be willing to work for Harry as a Free Elf, accepting wages, or would he run to Malfoy Mannor to ask to take Dobby's place. This post has been edited by roonwit: Sep 16 2007, 12:22 PM --------------------  W.L.Y.J. We love you Jo |
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Sep 16 2007, 01:05 PM
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#3
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Hiding in the Iron Maiden at Borgin and Burkes Posts: 328 Joined: 9:00pm July 31, 2006 Location: Searching the library of Hogwarts looking for another book series. |
I think that the changed we saw in Kreacher will keep him working for Harry and his family. Not all house elves are speaial like Dobby and want to be free and then when freed will only work for money. So maybe Harry asked Kreacher what he wanted and Harry granted his request.
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Sep 16 2007, 02:12 PM
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#4
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Shopping for a New Firebolt Posts: 811 Joined: 4:04pm April 13, 2007 Location: ...now that would be telling |
dobby was an 'oddball', and although the household slavery is wrong, i think the shock of releasing them would kill them. its just been programmed into them. maybe with the next generation they can bring them up so they do not have to be tied to a household
-------------------- 'you have a good feeling about burying a giant spider?'
'he can move faster than severus snape confronted by shampoo'  |
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Sep 16 2007, 04:08 PM
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Monster Book Stacker Posts: 368 Joined: 12:00am March 9, 2007 |
I don't think Kreacher wants to be free as Dobby was. Dobby was very much an exception to the rule in terms of house-elf psychology. Although Kreacher is now courteous to Harry and willing to work for him, he still seems to be largely set in his ways. It might not be impossible to "teach an old dog new tricks", but it will be difficult -- assuming that Kreacher even wants to adopt a new way of thinking. Since he appears to be happy as he is, Harry will probably let him be.
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Sep 16 2007, 05:39 PM
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#6
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Personal Secretary to The Minister of Magic Posts: 9,182 Joined: 4:57am January 28, 2005 Location: near Muggleswick, UK |
QUOTE(morgiana @ Sep 16 2007, 10:08 PM) Since he appears to be happy as he is, Harry will probably let him be. Though I do think Harry would make sure that Kreacher had many of the benefits of freedom even if he wasn't actually free (such as permission to come and go freely, permission not to punish himself, permission to take days off and some money from the household budget, and making sure that instructions were requests, not orders).
-------------------- W.L.Y.J. We love you Jo |
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Sep 16 2007, 06:18 PM
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#7
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Disgruntled House-Elf at The Leaky Cauldron Posts: 434 Joined: 11:51pm July 7, 2006 Location: Dallas, TX USA |
For what it's worth, which is next to nothing, I'm about to publish the first five chapters or so of a post-war fan fic, and Harry will offer Kreacher lifetime employment if he wants it, but he will present Kreacher with clothes. Neither Ginny nor Harry are the type of people to support slavery, but will make sure Kreacher knows he has lifetime employment available -- that they are not cutting him loose.
Kreacher deserves freedom by virtue of being a living, feeling, thinking being. He has also earned it by finding Mundungus Fletcher and leading the Hogwarts elves! This post has been edited by Tom Bombadil: Sep 16 2007, 06:19 PM -------------------- My Harry/Ginny and Hermione/Ron fan fiction is in the restricted section of Simply Undeniable.com!
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Sep 16 2007, 07:13 PM
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Knight Bus Driver in Training Posts: 594 Joined: 10:05pm August 1, 2007 Location: Having a Butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks |
He would hate being set free, he loves the black houseand wouldnt want to leave
-------------------- LUPIN FAN FOR LIFE
Harry- "Death's got an invisibility cloak?" Ron - "So he can sneak up on people. He gets bored of running at them, flapping his arms and shrieking." |
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Sep 16 2007, 09:48 PM
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#9
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Being Eaten by the Pea Soup Posts: 24 Joined: 10:54pm August 13, 2007 |
I worry that Kreacher is "institutionalized." What I mean by this is that he would have a hard time coping with freedom. He has never made decisions for himself outside the home, such as what to wear, how to take care of money etc.... I liken this idea to prisoners being set free after years in prision. Many quickly commit another crime to get sent back to the "homelife" they understand and feel comfortable. Think of the character "Brooks" Shawshank Redemption.
That said, I think that Harry and Ginny will discuss this subject with Kreacher. I can't see Harry wanting to be his master, but I can see Harry wanting and asking Kreacher to be his home "servant" with a lifetime contract. Obviously Harry and Ginny will be sensitive to Kreacher's wishes. I envision Kreacher actually wanting to be free, but only if he can continue to work for Harry. Kreacher has come to like and even respect Harry. I think Kreacher gets a new lease on life and living on for years to come. I'd love to see Kreacher as the nanny for James, Albus and Lily. Maybe Harry and Ginny will also hire Winky to help Kreacher out. |
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Sep 17 2007, 10:04 AM
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#10
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Being Eaten by the Pea Soup Posts: 24 Joined: 6:46pm August 9, 2007 |
Kreacher obviously now respects Harry and even cares about him. Kreacher would consider it an honor to serve Harry. I can envision Harry asking Kreacher if he wanted freedom, because Harry knows how important it is to let people choose their own life, but I think Kreacher would be horrorstruck to be set free.
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