HOUSE-ELF

'House-elves' are fictional magical creatures in the ''Harry Potter'' series of books written by J. K. Rowling. House-elves are small humanoids (though their appearance differs markedly from that of humans) that are used by wizards as unpaid servants.
Most house-elves spend their whole lives serving one family or institution; unless they are freed (which many house-elves view as shameful), their descendants will carry on their tasks. Though their condition shares similarities with human slaves, house-elves take pride in their hard work and fear being set free, and some appear to be happy in their bondage, while their subservience guarantees their status as second-class citizens in the wizarding world.

Contents

Characteristics

Ownership

Treatment

House-elves at Hogwarts

Notable house-elves

Dobby

Kreacher

Winky

Hokey

S.P.E.W.

See also

References

External links

Characteristics

House-elves are 2-3 feet tall, with spindly arms and legs and oversized heads and eyes. They have pointed, batlike ears and high, squeaky voices. Their names are usually pet-like diminutives (Dobby, Winky, Hokey); they do not appear to have surnames. They habitually refer to themselves in the third person. House-elves are generally obedient, , and .
Rather than conventional clothing, house-elves wear discarded items like pillowcases and tea-towels. House-elves' masters can free them by giving them an item of clothing: at the end of ''Chamber of Secrets'', for example, Harry tricks Lucius Malfoy into freeing his house-elf Dobby by handing Lucius a book stuffed inside his "slimy, filthy sock." When Lucius discards the sock, Dobby catches it.
House-elves possess their own form of powerful magic, distinct from that used by wizards and witches, which they generally use in the service of their masters. This magic cannot be used without the permission of their masters, as Ron notes. Among other things, this magic allows house-elves to instantly travel from place to place, in a manner similar to apparition; they are able to do this even within the boundaries of Hogwarts and other places that have had Anti-Appariton and Anti-Disapparition charms erected, although human apparition and disapparition is impossible there. They can, however, take humans for side-along Appartion.
The full nature of their magic is never fully disclosed, but it is presumably quite formidable. Along with the ability to apparate anywhere at any time, it has been demonstrated by both Dobby and Kreacher that they can overpower wizards when needed. In The Chamber of Secrets, Dobby forcefully repels Lucius Malfoy while protecting Harry Potter. Later, in The Deathly Hallows, Kreacher is summoned by Harry to capture and retrieve Mundungus Fletcher, a task which he accomplishes within a few days even though as Kreacher puts it "He has many hidey-holes and accomplices". It would appear that when a house-elf is called upon to perform a duty, their magical nature supplements in such a way to complete it. According to Kreacher, a house-elf's strongest law is their master's bidding.
House-elves can become intoxicated by drinking Butterbeer, which is not as intoxicating to humans.

Ownership

It is never made clear whether house-elves are bonded primarily to the families they serve or to their homes. Ron Weasley comments that he wishes his family were rich enough to afford a house with a house-elf, suggesting that they are linked to houses rather than families (very much like serfs in the Middle Ages). Also, in ''Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince'', Harry's status as the rightful owner of Grimmauld Place is confirmed when the house-elf Kreacher obeys his command. On the other hand, in ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'', a house-elf who has been freed is told to find a new family to serve, and there is an Office of House-Elf Relocation at the Ministry of Magic.
It seems most likely, however, that house-elves's bonds are primarily a connection to a particular family, and that the reason that ownership of Kreacher passes to Harry in Book 6 is that Harry is Sirius' rightful heir.
Whatever the case, house-elves are unendingly loyal to their human families, so much so that Dobby, who served the Malfoy family, still attempts to punish himself each time he utters a negative remark about his former masters.
House-elves must obey their masters, whatever their personal feelings may be. According to Kreacher in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', "the house-elf's highest law is his master's bidding." They are far from mindless automata, however. Several house-elves have been known to disobey the rules (usually by finding loopholes in orders that allow them to be interpreted in unintended ways) when necessary to protect themselves or their friends, as Dobby does when he warns Harry about the Malfoys' plot against him in Book 2.
Most house-elves would be devastated if freed, for it would mean that they had failed to properly serve their masters (The Crouch family's house-elf, Winky, descends into depression and alcoholism after being freed in disgrace), but some (like Dobby) enjoy being free. Though he summons the courage to request payment when he is hired on at Hogwarts, even Dobby does not want to be paid ''too'' much (in ''Goblet of Fire'' he turns down the offer of ten Galleons per week and weekends off in favour of one Galleon per week and a day off every month).
In ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' Hermione says that "Elf enslavement goes back centuries." In ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'', Dumbledore says the Fountain of Magical Brethren (in which various magical beings are depicted as subservient to, and in adoration of, witches and wizards) "tells a lie. We wizards have mistreated and abused our fellows for too long."

Treatment

Because of their docile, obedient natures, some house-elves are abused by their families. Dark wizard families in particular seem to make a habit of bullying and maltreating house-elves; the Malfoys forced Dobby to slam his own ears in the oven door or iron his hands if he attempted to disobey them; the Black family had a tradition of decapitating house-elves who were too old to carry a tea tray, then placing their stuffed and mounted heads on a wall.
Hermione Granger begins her post-Hogwarts career by working in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, where she is instrumental in greatly improving life for house-elves and their like.^[1]

House-elves at Hogwarts

Hundreds of house-elves work at Hogwarts. Like most house-elves, the Hogwarts house-elves feel that it is a matter of pride to serve well without complaint and to work hard. They disapprove strongly of Dobby when he requests wages for his labour. They share with Winky (and presumably most other house-elves) a fear of freedom, and a taboo against its discussion. They clean the castle, work in the kitchens and tend to the magical fires burning in the offices and common rooms. However in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when Hermione is leaving knitted clothes in the Gryffindor Common Room, the House-Elves of Hogwarts refuse to clean in Gryffindor Tower, so Dobby is left to clean Gryffindor Tower by himself, but he is happy to do so.
Through much of ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'', Harry, Ron, and Hermione enter the kitchens of Hogwarts to meet with Dobby. The house-elves seem pleased with their company (though somewhat uncomfortable with Dobby's conversation and Winky's behavior) and eagerly bring the students food. This leads Ron to comment that he always envied Fred and George for stealing food from the kitchens, but that it doesn't look too difficult, as the house-elves are too happy to give it away. The house-elves finally send Harry, Ron, and Hermione away after Hermione tells them that they deserve to have equal rights as wizards and the trio do not attempt to re-enter the kitchen again. Besides Ron, Harry, Hermione, Fred, and George, other Hogwarts students have been mentioned to steal food from the kitchens, including Harry's father, James Potter.
Like other house-elves, they do not wear conventional clothes. Hogwarts house-elves wear clean, pressed tea-towels with the school's monogrammed label, and seem genuinely happy about their situation. They strongly disapprove of Winky's tattered appearance and alcoholism.
At the climax of ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', Kreacher leads the Hogwarts house-elves, brandishing carving knives, in a battle against the Death Eaters and their minion creatures. Kreacher yelled, "Fight! Fight! Fight for my master, defender of house-elves! Fight the Dark Lord, in the name of brave Regulus! Fight!" and charged into battle, slashing at the ankles and feet of intruders.

Notable house-elves

Dobby

Main articles: Dobby


Dobby is first mentioned at the beginning of ''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' when he shows up at the Dursley's the summer before Harry's second year at Hogwarts. Dobby warns Harry not to return to Hogwarts, but Harry insists on going back, for Hogwarts is his home. Left no choice, Dobby explodes a pudding in the Dursley's kitchen, inciting the wrath of Uncle Vernon and almost getting Harry expelled from Hogwarts by the Ministry of Magic, who think that Harry is to blame. Dobby also blocks Harry and Ron from travelling through the barrier to platform Nine and Three Quarters at Kings Cross Station. Then, Dobby sends a rogue bludger to attack Harry during a Quidditch match at Hogwarts, hoping it will encourage Harry to go home. Of course, Harry refuses to leave, and does not see Dobby again until after he has destroyed Tom Riddle's diary and emerged from ''The Chamber of Secrets''. When he sees Dobby with his Master, Lucius Malfoy, Harry realizes that the plot involving the diary had been orchestrated by Lucius Malfoy, and that Dobby had tried to warn him. To reward his house elf friend, Harry puts a sock around the diary and returns it to Lucius, anticipating correctly that Lucius will throw the article of clothing aside to his house elf, thereby freeing Dobby. For this, Dobby is eternally grateful to Harry.
After he is freed, Dobby continues to help Harry. In ''Goblet of Fire'', Dobby supplies Harry with gillyweed to help with the second task in the Triwizard Tournament. In ''Order of the Phoenix'', Dobby gives Harry directions to the Room of Requirement. And in ''Half-Blood Prince'', Dobby volunteers to follow Draco so that Harry can find out what he is doing when he seems to disappear from the Marauder's Map. Dobby is so committed to his assignment that he does not sleep the entire time he is completing it.
In the last book, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', with the help of Aberforth Dumbledore, Dobby rescues Harry, Hermione, Ron and several others who have been imprisoned at the Malfoy mansion, but is mortally wounded by a knife thrown by Bellatrix Lestrange. Out of love and dedication to his small friend, Harry digs Dobby's grave without the use of magic outside Bill and Fleur's house, by the sea. He inscribes on Dobby's tombstone, "HERE LIES DOBBY, A FREE ELF."

Kreacher

Main articles: Kreacher

A house-elf belonging to the Black family, Kreacher shares the view of his late mistress that the only true wizards are those of pure-blood. Harry eventually inherits Kreacher, whom he sends to work at Hogwarts. Kreacher makes no secret of his loathing for Harry and all mixed-blood or Muggle-born wizards. In ''Deathly Hallows'', Kreacher reveals that Voldemort used Kreacher to drink the potion (the same potion that Dumbledore consumed in the Half Blood Prince) in which he hid his Horcrux. When Kreacher told Regulus what Voldemort had done to him, Regulus took pity on him and proceeded to steal the same Horcrux that Voldemort used Kreacher to hide. After this revelation, Harry, Ron, and Hermione express their admiration for Regulus, begin treating Kreacher with kindness, and give him the locket that Regulus had swapped for Voldemort's Horcrux, and Kreacher in return begins to treat them, even Muggle-born Hermione, with respect. During the Battle of Hogwarts he is seen leading the Hogwarts elves into battle against Voldemort's Death Eaters, calling for them to "Fight! Fight! Fight for my Master, defender of house-elves! Fight the Dark Lord in the name of brave Regulus! Fight!"

Winky

'Winky' is described as having enormous brown eyes and a nose like a tomato. She first appears in the fourth book in the series, ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire''. Winky is a house-elf who originally served the Crouch family. She viewed herself as a dutiful house-elf and guarded the family's many secrets. When Bartemius Crouch Jr was rescued from Azkaban by his father, he was supervised and nursed back to health by Winky.
She is freed in ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' when she convinces Bartemius Crouch Sr to let his son attend the Quidditch World Cup; she attends it with the younger Crouch, who is hiding under an Invisibility Cloak, and claims the apparently empty seat beside her is being saved for Crouch Sr. During the festivities, Crouch Jr steals Harry's wand from his pocket and later uses it to conjure the Dark Mark, in spite of Winky's fervent attempts to stop him. In the resulting chaos, Harry and his friends see Winky running into the forest, looking as if she was struggling against some invisible force; they believed this to be because she was disobeying an order, which house-elves are magically impeded from doing, but in actuality it was due to her struggling against the invisible Barty Crouch. Later she is caught with Harry's wand, which is magically proven to be the one used to conjure the Dark Mark; though Crouch Sr. realizes what actually happened, he goes along with the apparent conclusion that Winky conjured the Mark, and frees her, both to save face and as punishment for failing to control Crouch Jr.
Following her dismissal, Dobby takes the distraught Winky to work with him at Hogwarts. There the unhappy Winky, who did not wish to be freed, began to have a drinking problem that lasts the next several years. Winky eventually sobers up a bit.^[2] Rowling has also revealed that Winky remained at Hogwarts and fought against the Death Eaters with the other house-elves.^[3]

Hokey

Hokey worked for Hepzibah Smith, an old woman who was deceived by Lord Voldemort during his job at Burgin & Burkes to show him the Slytherin's locket and Hufflepuff's cup. We learn about Hokey when Dumbledore shows Harry the memory he got from the house elf on the pensieve, in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. She is there described as a very old and thin and her memory allows Harry and Dumbledore to get a glimpse on the visit Lord Voldemort did two days before Hepzibah Smith was poisoned to death and both treasures disappeared. Hokey was framed for her murder by Lord Voldemort, who tampered with her memories. She did not deny the accusation and was convicted for accidental murder, later to die due to mental anguish induced by the Dementors in Azkaban.

S.P.E.W.

Main articles: S.P.E.W.

The 'Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare', or 'S.P.E.W.', is an organization created by Hermione Granger, who is also the only active member.

See also

★ Brownie

References

1. http://the-leaky-cauldron.org/2007/7/30/j-k-rowling-web-chat-transcript
2. J.K. Rowling Web Chat Transcript
3. J.K. Rowling Web Chat Transcript

External links