Socks!

[gecko]

Okay, let's see what I can make of this!

I'm busy rereading the whole series (as I may have told elsewhere on this board ), and while reading PS I came upon the mirror of Erised. Now Dumbledore says this:

'I? I see myself holding a pair of thick, woollen socks.' Harry stared. 'One can never have enough socks,'said Dumbledore.

Now I got thinking, what with the upcoming war against Voldemort and his followers, and as Voldemort has gotten all kinds of dangerous allies, the dementors for instance, the good ones may need some help!
Well, what has that got to do with socks you might ask. Good question !

Who have got a lot of magic power, but don't use it properly? Who can be freed when given socks or clothing? That's right, House-elves!
Now, my theory is, that Dumbledore will use socks to free all the house-elves at Hogwarts (or at least will free them)! They'll all be payed to do the same work as they did, and, they'll start having normal lives! And most of all, they can help the order or the good ones in fighting Voldemort!

The SPEW and the fountain in the MoM, whose destruction might be seen as an allegory of the old relationships between wizards and others changing!, point, I think, in this direction..

Well, that's it! What do you all think, I'm soo curioous !

[Holly Golightly]

Well, I think that we've had a bit of a discussion on this before (not that it matters, that topic, wherever it is is dead, and we have lots of new peope to bring up new ideas this time)

But I think that one of the points which I though was good was... woudln't it depend on who the house elf served... ie, even though Barth Crouch II was a totally evil DE, Winky still wont' hear anything bad said about him, and would surely defend him, even though now DD is her master as such???

Just something to think about, otherwise, very good theory!!! I'm going to love hearing what everyone has to say about it this time round!!!

[gecko]

Whoops, I guess I should've done a more thorough search, but I didn't see anything about it in this section, so that's why !

Yeah okay, how the house-elves will be depends on who they served, but as the Hogwarts house-elves all serve the Headmaster (I think that they see him as their master, correct me if I'm wrong), and were he to 'release' them, they'd still follow him, because they like him and he gives them their old job and pays them! So then you'd have a massive group of friendly and powerful house-elves on your side!

I wonder if they'd really appreciate it, being released. At first they won't, I think, but they'll come to see that things are changing in wizardland, and that old things and traditions don't necessarily mean good things (look at the Malfoy familiy, an old family but a good one?) !

[Holly Golightly]

It's all good Gecko! I'm mod for both Theories sections, and I cant even remember where it is... I"m pretty sure it's not in the name either, just something that we started to discuss somewhere or other!!!

Actually, that's right hey, Hogwarts does have the largest whatever of house-elves in Brittain, right! Well, we know that they certainly dont'w ant to be released (or they would have taken Hermoine's socks and hats) what if DD ordered them to go fight? Would he do that?

Also, do you think that they are capable of liking being free, after all, Winky is stil an alcoholic, no? (or should it be butterbeer-a holic? )

I so agree that that statue in the Attrium being broken was a good sign og things to come though... kinda symbolising that the fake sense of getting along that the wizards seem to have won't last long...

[highsorcerer]

Socks seem to be a representation of lack of desire for power. Dumbledore is seen to seem to want them more than anything else, though Harry conceeds desire is completely individual, and Dumbledore may be lying. Harry detests his Uncle's socks.

However, Dobby loves socks because it represents freedom to him. He was powerless in the Malfoy household, until the inadverant gift of socks set him free. Since then, he's been a fantic, taking them knitting them, and giving them

So perhaps socks are really a metaphore for the responsibility of power. The heros disdain socks, because the are seen as harmless. However, to house-elves, the enslaved, they are powerful, because they are seen as freedom. It is symblic that Harry's lack of respect for the Dursley' socks contrasts with his awareness that the gifts of socks are the liberation of Dobby.

For Dumbledore, truth or lie, socks represent a harmless Christmas gift, as opposed to the ones he gets. He also may be showing that in his perfect world, warm feet are the major worries of a person. In reality he is concerned for Harry and the fate of the world, but he'd trade it all for a basic comfort.

[Sacred Guardian]

i don't think that socks will be a weapon, but i do think they will keep reapearing

[Hermy]

Interesting....

I will ponder on it, but the thing with the power Uncle Vernon gave his socks to Harry (remember he wrapped a sneakoscope up in one). Vernon wants the pretigue at work, so why should he give his socks away.

I would be more inclined to think that it is a bit of a joke with JKR, and they represent nothing more than some family joke. Maybe she never ever got socks for Christmas and would find them useful????

[Colin]

About the freeing of the house elfs:

Without a major change in the contract that binds Elfs to humans, I doubt they would be set free. The Elfs would not stand for it.

[Meg Boyd]

Socks would be a nice subtile new tool...who knows maybe they have some unknown super power

[Holly Golightly]

Vernon wants the pretigue at work, so why should he give his socks away.

Maybe since Vernon isn't part of the magical world, he knows nothing of this sock thing!!!

Or Harry draws his socks away from him, since harry is so powerful and all!!!

(Okies, so I have no idea what I'm on about! )

[Hermy]

Holly, our theories have both left the box now!

Do you think that Harry wants power so much that he is drawing Uncle Vernon's smelly socks from him? Or maybe Voldemort is collecting the socks himself through Harry as a way of gaining power!

(Like the underpants gnomes in South Park)

[Holly Golightly]

I dont' think that Harry wants power, maybe it's just hat because he's ap owerful wizard, he draws the socks to himself???

[Hermy]

I have a vision of a trail of socks following Harry around now!