In this episode, we discuss why the Dursleys aren't that bad. Enjoy!
Topics/Summary:
· 1:46 They showed Harry right and wrong. Harry saw what a dysfunctional family looked like. He could appreciate the good relationships is later began to make. They also taught him the social norms of the muggle world that came in handy later. Muggle studies is a class at Hogwarts for a reason. Most importantly, he didn’t develop a big head. He went to Hogwarts as a humble person and that helped him the most because he could blend in and stay in the background as well as he could.
· 11:58 Harry and Petunia are family. This is commonly overlooked. We know this very well of course, but it’s something that we don’t think about. Petunia knew Lily very well and Harry values having someone like that close. Harry is the closest thing to Lily that Petunia has left and as cold as they might be to each other, they are still family. Petunia might feel guilty about leaving Lily because they didn’t get along and she hated James, so Harry is a way to make up for it.
· 17:04 They parted as equals. For a long time, the Dursleys have been the enemy and Harry has dreaded returning every summer. By the seventh book and they’re saying goodbye, we realize that they had grown much closer. It is much harder to say goodbye to someone who you respect as an opponent than value as a friend. This is similar to the Tale of Three Brothers where the third brother took off his invisibility cloak at the end of his life and parted this life with Death as equals.
· 23:39 They protected him just like Lily and James would have done. They didn’t want to expose themselves and that was the motivation at the start, but as the story went on and they warmed up to each other, it also became about protecting Harry. Harry and the Dursleys grew closer than we or they realized.
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