Post by Hermy on Jun 9, 2006 1:19:40 GMT -5
House elves are small, magical creatures with large eyes and ears. They live to serve - mainly powerful, wealthy, old wizarding families. They enjoy serving others and take great pride in their work. Most house elves find it terribly disgraceful to be dismissed from a position working for a wizarding family.
House elves have very powerful magic of their own - while they do not need a wand to use it, they do need permission from their masters. These creatures are very important - and one would think that their masters would treat them well, since they know all the secrets within a household. If, however, a master is not satisfied with a house elf, they need only to present the elf with a piece of clothing for it to be dismissed. You see, house elves do not wear clothes - they cover themselves with things like pillowcases or tea cozies.
So far in the Harry Potter series, we have been introduced to three very different house elves (at least in the books we have - movie-goers have only met one): Dobby, Winky, and Kreacher. These three house elves have played small but pivotal roles in the books and therefore deserve to be, as a trio and a magical race, my character of the week.
We were introduced to Dobby in the Chamber of Secrets. He appeared at Harry's aunt and uncle's house to try and persuade Harry not to go back to Hogwarts. We later learned that Dobby worked for the Malfoys. He had learned of the plot to re-open the Chamber of Secrets and wanted to warn Harry. Dobby looked up to Harry and viewed him as a hero for the down-trodden. So at great risk to his life, he set out to save him. However, he also punished himself because he was going against his masters' wishes.
In the end, Dobby didn't save Harry from the Chamber of Secrets, though not for lack of trying. Harry came through on his own - with a little help from his friends. But he realized what Dobby had tried to do for him. He also realized that Dobby was miserable and mistreated while working for the Maloys. So he tricked Lucius Malfoy into giving Dobby a sock, thus setting him free. This only made Lucius angrier at Harry and he tried to curse him - but Dobby finally did get to protect Harry and used his own magic against his former master.
Dobby was thrilled with being freed and went to work at Hogwarts. Dumbledore offered him pay and Dobby talked him down (yes down) to a reasonable wage. Dobby was very happy at Hogwarts and became very loyal to Dumbledore - and Harry.
However, we met another house elf, Winky, who was not so happy to be dismissed from her master. Winky worked for Barty Crouch Sr. Barty Sr. was the father of Barty Jr. (the guy who impersonated Professor Moody). Barty Jr. was a convicted Death Eater (follower of Voldemort) and had been sent to Azkaban. However, his mother could not bear the thought of him being in prison, so she switched places with him. Barty Jr. wasn't exactly living it up, though. He was kept indoors under the Imperius curse - and was guarded by Winky.
Winky convinced Barty Sr. that Barty Jr. should go to the Quidditch World Cup. So he went - under an invisibility cloak, with Winky to guard him. She didn't do a very good job. Barty Jr. stole Harry's wand, ran away, and conjured the dark mark. Winky had followed him, trying to stop him, but was left behind when the ministry officials tried to stupify "the culprit" behind the dark mark. Barty Jr. got away and Winky got fired. She also went to work at Hogwarts, but she was ashamed of being let go. She never worked and spent many nights overindulging on butterbeer. She also remained loyal to the Crouch family. She never told anyone that Barty Jr. was alive - or free.
Last, but certainly not least, is Kreacher. Kreacher belongs to the Black family - as in Sirius Black. When Sirius went into hiding at his family home, he inherited Kreacher. The Black family (aside from Sirius) is a very proud pureblood family and cannot stand anyone who isn't pureblood. They passed these ideas on to Kreacher who was teribly offended when the Order of the Phoenix moved in to Sirius' house. While he had to follow Sirius' orders, he remained loyal to Sirius' mother, often lamenting her death and insulting Sirius (and everyone else) under his breath. While there's plenty more to say about Kreacher, I won't go any further so as not to reveal anything to those who have not read the books.
House elves are interesting and powerful creatures. They can be good or evil, though as shown by Dobby, their masters often do not dictate which side they choose. House elves are fiercely loyal to their masters - and as Dobby also shows, they can be fiercely loyal to their friends too. After all, he gives Harry socks for Christmas every year.
House elves have very powerful magic of their own - while they do not need a wand to use it, they do need permission from their masters. These creatures are very important - and one would think that their masters would treat them well, since they know all the secrets within a household. If, however, a master is not satisfied with a house elf, they need only to present the elf with a piece of clothing for it to be dismissed. You see, house elves do not wear clothes - they cover themselves with things like pillowcases or tea cozies.
So far in the Harry Potter series, we have been introduced to three very different house elves (at least in the books we have - movie-goers have only met one): Dobby, Winky, and Kreacher. These three house elves have played small but pivotal roles in the books and therefore deserve to be, as a trio and a magical race, my character of the week.
We were introduced to Dobby in the Chamber of Secrets. He appeared at Harry's aunt and uncle's house to try and persuade Harry not to go back to Hogwarts. We later learned that Dobby worked for the Malfoys. He had learned of the plot to re-open the Chamber of Secrets and wanted to warn Harry. Dobby looked up to Harry and viewed him as a hero for the down-trodden. So at great risk to his life, he set out to save him. However, he also punished himself because he was going against his masters' wishes.
In the end, Dobby didn't save Harry from the Chamber of Secrets, though not for lack of trying. Harry came through on his own - with a little help from his friends. But he realized what Dobby had tried to do for him. He also realized that Dobby was miserable and mistreated while working for the Maloys. So he tricked Lucius Malfoy into giving Dobby a sock, thus setting him free. This only made Lucius angrier at Harry and he tried to curse him - but Dobby finally did get to protect Harry and used his own magic against his former master.
Dobby was thrilled with being freed and went to work at Hogwarts. Dumbledore offered him pay and Dobby talked him down (yes down) to a reasonable wage. Dobby was very happy at Hogwarts and became very loyal to Dumbledore - and Harry.
However, we met another house elf, Winky, who was not so happy to be dismissed from her master. Winky worked for Barty Crouch Sr. Barty Sr. was the father of Barty Jr. (the guy who impersonated Professor Moody). Barty Jr. was a convicted Death Eater (follower of Voldemort) and had been sent to Azkaban. However, his mother could not bear the thought of him being in prison, so she switched places with him. Barty Jr. wasn't exactly living it up, though. He was kept indoors under the Imperius curse - and was guarded by Winky.
Winky convinced Barty Sr. that Barty Jr. should go to the Quidditch World Cup. So he went - under an invisibility cloak, with Winky to guard him. She didn't do a very good job. Barty Jr. stole Harry's wand, ran away, and conjured the dark mark. Winky had followed him, trying to stop him, but was left behind when the ministry officials tried to stupify "the culprit" behind the dark mark. Barty Jr. got away and Winky got fired. She also went to work at Hogwarts, but she was ashamed of being let go. She never worked and spent many nights overindulging on butterbeer. She also remained loyal to the Crouch family. She never told anyone that Barty Jr. was alive - or free.
Last, but certainly not least, is Kreacher. Kreacher belongs to the Black family - as in Sirius Black. When Sirius went into hiding at his family home, he inherited Kreacher. The Black family (aside from Sirius) is a very proud pureblood family and cannot stand anyone who isn't pureblood. They passed these ideas on to Kreacher who was teribly offended when the Order of the Phoenix moved in to Sirius' house. While he had to follow Sirius' orders, he remained loyal to Sirius' mother, often lamenting her death and insulting Sirius (and everyone else) under his breath. While there's plenty more to say about Kreacher, I won't go any further so as not to reveal anything to those who have not read the books.
House elves are interesting and powerful creatures. They can be good or evil, though as shown by Dobby, their masters often do not dictate which side they choose. House elves are fiercely loyal to their masters - and as Dobby also shows, they can be fiercely loyal to their friends too. After all, he gives Harry socks for Christmas every year.