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sunnyskywalkerYou'd think by now I would have learned not to believe anything Dumbledore says uncritically. Let's take another look at the passage where he confirms the curse's existence:
You'll notice that he never actually says Voldemort cursed the position. He doesn't even say he suspects Voldemort cursed the position. He just says that no one has lasted longer than a year in the job since and lets us draw our own conclusions. Even for a man who routinely uses academic hedging and waffling, that's... curious. He isn't afraid to "believe" or "suspect" things like the exact means by which Merope Gaunt got Tom Sr. to run off with her, so why so circumspect here?
Maybe because the means by which Voldemort proved he wanted the job wasn't as straightforward as cursing the job himself.( Read more... )
"Oh, he definitely wanted the Defense Against the Dark Arts job," said Dumbledore. "The aftermath of our little meeting proved that. You see, we have never been able to keep a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher for longer than a year since I refused the post to Lord Voldemort."
--HBP Chapter 20, "Lord Voldemort's Request
You'll notice that he never actually says Voldemort cursed the position. He doesn't even say he suspects Voldemort cursed the position. He just says that no one has lasted longer than a year in the job since and lets us draw our own conclusions. Even for a man who routinely uses academic hedging and waffling, that's... curious. He isn't afraid to "believe" or "suspect" things like the exact means by which Merope Gaunt got Tom Sr. to run off with her, so why so circumspect here?
Maybe because the means by which Voldemort proved he wanted the job wasn't as straightforward as cursing the job himself.( Read more... )
