#winkey

I don't know if you have ever spoken on this before, but what are your general thoughts on spew? I kinda hated how JKR made it a 'quirk' of Hermione's that everyone found annoying. I get why pure bloods and half bloods acted like that, they were raised in this world deeply brainwashed. But what about other muggleborns? I thought it was kinda weird that no other muggleborn took interest in spew even though they knew and recognised what slavery was.

Also, while I don't expect Harry rallying up to join spew and go around vocalising Hermione's cause, I thought it was kinda weird that he too straight up opposed her like Ron. I mean, considering the extent he went to to free Dobby and the initial sympathy he showed for Winky at the worldcup, I thought he might actually understand what Hermione was getting at, even if he didn't join her cause. But he only showed disinterest (or does he express understanding in the later books? i don't remember)

(sorry if it isn't clear, english isn't my first language, I'm still learning!)

Anonymous asked:

any general thoughts on spew?

Firstly, thank you! 💕

Now, as for SPEW...

Harry doesn't exactly oppose SPEW. He opposes the way Hermione goes about it, more than the idea itself, because he sees House Elves as equal to him and capable of free choice. For Harry, if they choose to serve, it's fine. If they don't want to, like Dobby, he will go out of his way to free them. Harry is compassionate, but he sees elves as responsible for their own actions. It's why he is more hostile to Kreacher for his part in Sirius's death, while Hermione isn't. She doesn't see them as capable of the same agency as humans, while Harry does. I talked about Harry's outlook on House Elves and their slavery here. And I talked about why we don't see many other students getting concerned over House Elves here.

As for what I think about SPEW, well, I don't think I have any super uncommon opinions here. I think House Elf slavery shouldn't be a thing, but I don't like how SPEW (aka, Hermione) goes about it — which is how SPEW is intended to be read. SPEW is meant to be good intentions, but wrong actions.

Because, as I mentioned here when I spoke about Hermione and her parents, Hermione sees herself as the one who "knows better". She thinks she should make decisions for others she sees as less capable than her (such as her Muggle parents and House Elves) because she's a witch, and smart, and she "knows better". She goes about SPEW without even talking to a single House Elf, without trying to work with them and find out how best to approach the subject and what their struggles with freedom even are. She doesn't understand elves and how they see things.

Because elves are all brainwashed. Badly so. We see instances where elves don't obey orders:

“I forbid you to call anyone ’blood traitor’ or ’Mudblood,”’ growled Harry. [...] “The Mudblood touched Kreacher, he will not allow it, what would his Mistress say?” “I told you not to call her ’Mudblood’!” snarled Harry, but the elf was already punishing himself.

(DH, Ch10)

Harry ordered Kreacher not to say 'mudblood', but Kreacher is still able to say it, he is compelled to harm himself when he realises he disobeyed, but there is no magic forcing him to obey orders.

Even after Dobby is free, he is still compelled to punish himself after speaking ill of Draco:

“Draco Malfoy is a bad boy!” squeaked Dobby angrily. “A bad boy who — who —” He shuddered from the tassel of his tea cozy to the toes of his socks and then ran at the fire, as though about to dive into it; Harry, to whom this was not entirely unexpected, caught him around the middle and held him fast. For a few seconds Dobby struggled, then went limp. “Thank you, Harry Potter,” he panted. “Dobby still finds it difficult to speak ill of his old masters. . . .”

(HBP, Ch21)

This proves there is no magic that compels them to obey wizards, just training and conditioning. Really bad conditioning:

“House-elves is not paid, sir!” she said in a muffled squeak. “No, no, no. I says to Dobby, I says, go find yourself a nice family and settle down, Dobby. He is getting up to all sorts of high jinks, sir, what is unbecoming to a house-elf. You goes racketing around like this, Dobby, I says, and next thing I hear you’s up in front of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, like some common goblin.” “Well, it’s about time he had a bit of fun,” said Harry. “House-elves is not supposed to have fun, Harry Potter,” said Winky firmly, from behind her hands. “House-elves does what they is told. I is not liking heights at all, Harry Potter”

(GoF, Ch8)

All we see Hermione do for House Elves' sake is knit them clothes to force them free, which does nothing to help the real issue of House Elves' Slavery that needs to be solved:

Their conditioning/brainwashing.

She did no work into breaking their conditioning and making them understand why they should want to be free. I'm not sure Hermione truly understands how deep this brainwashing goes or that it should be addressed at all. Instead, she is trying to trick them into freedom, assuming they will be grateful because that's what she thinks they should feel.

House Elves can't be free as long as they think of themselves as slaves. To free them, you need to work with them to break the conditioning and help them actually integrate into society. Even Dobby, the most free-thinking elf we see, struggles to adapt to the freed life, and Winkey takes it even worse, going into an insane depression. Tricking/forcing them into freedom would do them little good if they still see themselves as slaves and will just wish to go back into slavery. Rights alone can't free them when the elves themselves help keep themselves inslaved.

Even if Hermione successfully tricked every elf she encountered into freedom, they won't be able to find employment under fair conditions anywhere. Even when Dobby is employed at Hogwarts (which is the only place that would employ him, because wizard society is still wizard society):

“Freedom is going to Dobby’s head, sir,” said Winky sadly. “Ideas above his station, sir. Can’t get another position, sir.” “Why not?” said Harry. Winky lowered her voice by a half-octave and whispered, “He is wanting paying for his work, sir.”

(GoF, Ch8)

He doesn't demand to be treated the same way a human would, and Dumbledore rolls with what Dobby wants:

“And Professor Dumbledore says he will pay Dobby, sir, if Dobby wants paying! And so Dobby is a free elf, sir, and Dobby gets a Galleon a week and one day off a month!” “That’s not very much!” Hermione shouted indignantly from the floor, over Winky’s continued screaming and fist-beating. “Professor Dumbledore offered Dobby ten Galleons a week, and weekends off,” said Dobby, suddenly giving a little shiver, as though the prospect of so much leisure and riches were frightening, “but Dobby beat him down, miss. . . . Dobby likes freedom, miss, but he isn’t wanting too much, miss, he likes work better.” “And how much is Professor Dumbledore paying you, Winky?” Hermione asked kindly. If she had thought this would cheer up Winky, she was wildly mistaken. Winky did stop crying, but when she sat up she was glaring at Hermione through her massive brown eyes, her whole face sopping wet and suddenly furious. “Winky is a disgraced elf, but Winky is not yet getting paid!” she squeaked. “Winky is not sunk so low as that! Winky is properly ashamed of being freed!”

(GoF, Ch21)

Again, the conditioning of the House Elves is the worst part here that should be fought. Neither Dobby nor Winkey know how to be free. Their conditioning comes out loud and clear. Only when more House Elves are willing to fight and demand rights will the situation start changing.

So I don't consider SPEW a good attempt at what it is trying to accomplish, since it doesn't take into account the specific circumstances of Elf slavery and how elves see themselves.

That being said, SPEW is what a 14-year-old like Hermione would come up with. It fits her idealism, and how she thinks she knows so well, and if everyone just did what she wanted, the world would be perfect — and she goes about it in a way that is true to her character.

December 8, 2012; Birds-eye view of the entire show.