You know, I always thought that line about "showing who we really are" was meant in an existentialist sense: that we create ourselves through our choices, we are the sum of our choices, and options not taken don't "count" in any important way. But now that I've read the end of the series, I'm not so sure any more.
It's just a slightly different thing, where people might suffer for the way things worked out, and they might be responsible for it because of what they chose, but that really doesn't effect their personality or their destiny.
I was going to say that I thought Dumbledore's backstory was supposed to show him being changed as a consequence of his actions. However, on further reflection, I'm not so sure about that either.
That I think is partially why I've lately been hearing so much how Harry might "make mistakes" and "do bad things" but he always does the right thing "when it counts."
Personally, I'd be more comfortable with that explanation if there was any acknowledgement, anywhere in the text, that the things he did were bad.
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Re: The "wrong Christian perspective" again
Date: 2007-08-08 04:22 pm (UTC)It's just a slightly different thing, where people might suffer for the way things worked out, and they might be responsible for it because of what they chose, but that really doesn't effect their personality or their destiny.
I was going to say that I thought Dumbledore's backstory was supposed to show him being changed as a consequence of his actions. However, on further reflection, I'm not so sure about that either.
That I think is partially why I've lately been hearing so much how Harry might "make mistakes" and "do bad things" but he always does the right thing "when it counts."
Personally, I'd be more comfortable with that explanation if there was any acknowledgement, anywhere in the text, that the things he did were bad.