Thread:Lady Satsuki/@comment-1672596-20160428120221

Hi.

I have a question regarding something from Harry Potter, more specifically relating to the Dursleys.

Earlier, you indicated that Frollo only took in Quasimodo for selfish reasons and that his fearing for his soul is not a redeemable factor about him and is just selfish. I'm not intending to change your mind regarding Frollo or anything like that, just in case you're wondering. You have your views, I have mine, we won't agree on those views or change each others mind. I get that. However, that bit DID lead me to think of something from Harry Potter and the Dursleys, more specifically, why they even took in Harry.

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, we learn that the reason the Dursleys were chosen to raise Harry was, aside from their being his closest living relatives, was because of a love barrier that was strengthened if they raised him, and Dumbledore inferred that their even taking him in was proof enough that they loved him. However, I can't help but wonder, how on earth did they even love Harry at all. They treated him like crap throughout the book up until the seventh book where at least Dudley actually stood in defense of Harry, and in the actual sequence describing it, it came across more that the Dursleys were more blackmailed into accepting Harry into the household by Dumbledore than, you know, actually taking him in willingly. Even when Petunia stopped Vernon from booting Harry out of the house after that dementor attack that forced Harry to break the underage magic rule out of self-defense earlier in the book, it was obvious both during that time, and later when it was revealed that Dumbledore had been the sender, that the only reason she even allowed Harry to stay at the house and stopped Vernon from doing that action was because Dumbledore essentially threatened her to "remember [his] last" in that Howler. And yet the fifth book indicated that was pure love and very redeemable.

What I'm trying to get at is, regardless of your views on Frollo since, I'll reiterate, I know you aren't going to change your mind on him and quite frankly I have no intention of changing your mind, I really don't understand how Frollo's taking in of Quasimodo is considered evil in itself and motivated by pure selfishness, yet the Dursleys doing so when they were essentially blackmailed by the good wizard himself to do so is considered pure love? At least with Frollo, he actually WAS trying to repent for a sin he committed. In fact, I'd argue that despite the narrative in Harry Potter emphasizing it was love, the situation with the Dursleys was far worse than with Frollo.

Hopefully you can respond when you are able to. 