I am reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K Rowling. In the last book of this series Harry, Ron, and Hermione are sent on a mission by Dumbledore in which they can't tell anyone what they are doing. On page 210 Lupin offers to go on the mission with them to help protect them, he says he doesn't want to know what the mission is (but of course if they want to tell him he will accept.) But in this book Lupin has also been married to Nymphadora Tonks which on page 212 we find out is going to have a baby. Harry yells at Lupin for trying to abandon his family when they need him. He says it is because he feels horrible for bringing another werewolf into the world.
Why I think Lupin would leave his child to be with and protect Harry is because he hasn't met his child yet. And to him Harry is like a son, I mean he taught him how to fight off dementors! He feels a connection to him, and he knows Harry cares for him. But with a new child he is afraid they will hate him for making them a werewolf and giving them such a hard life, and he doesn't want this. Lupin is scared to be brave, he doesn't want to put himself out there and be rejected.
Its like for everyone in the world. In their personal and professional (school/work) life. The feeling of rejection is horrible embarrassing and filled with regret. Whether its in school when you raise your hand with answer and the teacher says its wrong, or whether you ask someone out and they say no. This is just part of life and our minds stretch them out making them these horrible things. But really the teacher is glad you tried and the person you asked out is flattered. So Lupin's son or daughter will realize he is my father he loves me and I am his blood it doesn't matter. Or even the child won't be mad. Lupin is scared!
These are good points, but I think it may have been more of Lupin's hatred of his own condition. Harry Potter werewolves aren't like Twilight--transformation is painful and there's no shirtless glory or (fake) abs. He despises being a werewolf and wants to be cured. And since no werewolf has ever really been a father before, I can see easily why he's so terrified. He doesn't want to give his condition to his son. Many decisions people make in this story is for the greater good--for mass benefit instead of personal gain. Lupin is thinking for the benefit of his child--who would want to be a werewolf?
ReplyDeleteThis whole thing seemed really off to me. I guess because Lupin and Tonks didn't have any set-up for the marriage, but I wanted to punch Lupin the whole time he was talking to Harry. He just sounds scared and pathetic for abandoning his pregnant wife.
ReplyDeleteHm... I kind of agree with you. I think Lupin would be thrilled to have a child, but he is "ashamed" because he passed on his traits of a werewolf to his son. He's more afraid of making his child live in the world with this condition, not so much because he hasn't met him yet.
ReplyDeleteI don't think it's cowardice. I really think that it's more his own self hatred, as I said before. It may have been wrong to leave Tonks, but he thought he was doing it for her own good. He just needed to realize how much she loved him. I think he must have loved her, but thought that no one could truly love someone like him.
ReplyDeleteIt's reasonable to be scared to think you might curse your kid with lycanthropy but Remus has already impregnated Tonks so by not sticking around during her pregnancy he would've just been a jerk and not accomplished anything of it. Remus may be scared but he needs to toughen up for his wife and future baby!
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