Kindness in GOF, Envy's opposing Virtue |
 Apr 25 2009, 09:39 PM
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Madame Pince's House Elf  Posts: 4,712 Joined: 5:46pm January 28, 2005 Location: In HP Book Club 5, awaiting Deathly Hallow's release.  |
CRUELTY AND KINDNESS Whilst many people have heard of the Cardinal Virtues of Temperance, Prudence, Justice and Courage and the Theological virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity, mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13, how many people are also aware of the Seven Opposing Virtues? In a poem written by Aurelius Prudentius Clemens about 405 AD, the Seven Deadly sins are opposed by seven virtues as follows: Greed/Generosity, Lust/Chastity, Gluttony/Abstinence, Envy/Kindness, Anger/Patience, Sloth/Diligence and Pride/Humility. It goes without saying that Envy figures prominently in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, whether it is Ron's reaction to Harry's name coming out of the Goblet of Fire, Draco's feeding information about Harry and friends to Rita Skeeter, whether it is the race to find partners for the Yule Ball, Voldemort's coveting Harry's blood protection for himself, or "Moody"'s or Wormtail's attitude to fellow DE's. How does Kindness, the virtue which opposes Envy, figure in this book? What characters display kindness? And which GOF characters can only be considered as lacking in kindness? The common saying about having to be cruel to be kind apparently comes from one of Hamlet's speeches: I must be cruel only to be kind. (Act 3, Sc.4) Would you consider Petunia's getting Dudley to diet an example of having to be cruel to be kind? In what other ways could the Dursleys have shown how they care about Dudley? What about the Age charm Dumbledore placed on Fred and George, among other students trying to enter the TriWizard contest? In your opinion, did the student body consider it Kindness or Cruelty which got Harry's name into the Goblet of Fire, and why? If you have to be cruel to be kind, what about having to be kind to be cruel? Was Hermione's campaign to free the Hogwarts House Elves out of kindness or was it cruel to threaten their secure and happy existence? What do you think of her capture of Rita Skeeter, who had been bugging the Hospital Wing? How do you consider the character Moody now both book and film have been released for some time and the series is over? A kind coach and thoughtful DADA teacher? Or a cruel and ruthless kidnapper delivering two boys to their deaths? What did you think of Moody's treatment of Draco or of his kindness to Neville Longbottom the first time you read the book? Have you changed your mind after subsequently rereading Goblet of Fire? Although Ron's jealousy surfaces against Harry, it also shows when Hermione partners Victor Krum, the Durmstrang champion. In your opinion, what relationship is there between this enviousness and Luna Lovegood's OotP observation that he had treated Padma Patil, his Yule Ball partner, with a marked lack of kindness? What about Ron's GOF attitudes to Pigwidgeon, Hermione, Ginny, Neville Longbottom, Victor Krum, Fleur and Draco? Harry had described Fudge as a kindly, avuncular Minister of Magic. What changed him into a hostile denier of Voldemort's return? What do you think of any, some or all of these acts? Were they kind or not? Or were they cruel? I've listed eight examples for discussion but maybe you can think of other better ones. 1. The toffees Fred and George dropped in the Dursley living room. 2. The donations Lucius Malfoy gave to the Ministry. 3. Hagrid taking Madame Olympe and Harry along to see the dragons 4. The school support given to Cedric, the popular Hogwarts champion. What about Harry's warning him about the dragons? 5. Cedric's tip to Harry to take a bath 6. Moody's assistance to Harry in 'The Eye and the Egg' chapter of GOF 7. Harry's assistance to other Triwizard champions during the 2nd task. 8.Harry's giving his prize money to Fred and George with the condition they bought Ron some new dress robes. This post has been edited by WaggaWaggaWerewolf: Apr 26 2009, 03:58 AM --------------------  Check out Book Number 5 POA edition. |
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