Dobby the house elf is different than the other two house elfs I have previously talked about. He has a different attitude towards being a house elf than Winky. He did not wish to serve the Malfoy’s, the household to which he was attached because he was treated badly.
|
We first meet Dobby when he comes to warn Harry Potter not to return to Hogwarts. When Dobby first gets there, Harry asks him to sit down and Dobby is besides himself because a wizard has never asked him to sit down “like an equal” (Chamber of Secrets,13). This is an example of prejudice shown towards house elves. The social inequality in this being that the house elf had never been asked to sit down, a common curtsy shown towards others. Dobby has been oppressed into a socially unequal position where he cannot speak freely about what he honestly thinks about his masters or who they are or what they are planning without having to physically injure himself.
|
House elves are made to physically injury themselves when they do something against their masters will in attempts to make them more complacent with their masters will. For example, when Dobby only nearly talked bad about his masters, he “started banging his head furiously on the window”(Chamber of Secrets, 14) just for almost talking bad about his masters. Dobby also states that his masters “remind him to do extra punishments”(Chamber of Secrets, 14) furthering our knowledge that his masters treat him terribly and show prejudice against the house elf by forcing him to injure himself.
As Winky was treated better she was more likely to defend her old masters, but with Dobby, since he was treated so badly he was more able to defy his old master to help Harry Potter and his friends when they were in danger. In Goblet of Fire, Dobby is slowly gaining the ability to talk about his old masters in the way that he wishes to portray them, not the way that they want him to portray them, “They isn’ my master anymore...Dobby doesn’t care what they thing anymore!”(Goblet of Fire, 381). This shows how the prejudice shown towards Dobby impacted him in a negative way. The prejudice that the Malfoy family showed towards Dobby led to his social unequalness from the wizarding community. He understood how badly he was being treated and how he was unable to take time off or treat himself well without risk of having to harm himself. This understanding of the social inequality that he was shown led to his great dislike of the Malfoy family.
When Dobby is freed, he was very happy as shown by his “wide, toothy smile.” (Chamber of Secrets, 339). Being a free elf suited Dobby as he assimilated into his new lifestyle well. He has taken to wearing more clothes which distinguished him from other elves who only wore tea towels (Goblet of Fire, 376). Dobby has found a job a Hogwarts that pays him and gives him days off (Goblet of Fire, 379). This shows how the prejudice that Dobby was shown in not getting payment or days to himself, was a social inequality between the house elves and the wizarding community.
|
|
From his bad treatment in the Malfoy household, he was able to see how unjust his treatment was. This shows that the prejudice against Dobby which led to social inequalities from the wizards that he served. Since the Malfoy’s treated Dobby terribly, Dobby was able to change his life for the better after being set free. He did not have to injure himself from the punishings they made him do or constantly do whatever the Malfoy’s wanted him to do, Dobby could now speak freely, express his opinions and do what he wishes with his newly found free time.