This was just a pointless essay I wrote awhile ago when I got a bit sick of all the Dumbledore bashing here at FF. I know it doesn't obey all the rules of essay writing, but whatever, I had fun writing it.
I first posted this at ficctionpress, but I wasn't getting much feedback, so I figured I would try here. I know this doesn't count as fanfiction, but I'll learn to work past my anguish.
Lay Off Dumbledore!
The iconic Headmaster of Hogwarts may be one of the most beloved fictional characters of our generation. Eccentric, powerful and ever observant, he acted as both a mentor and sort-of-surrogate grandfather to our titular hero, Harry Potter. He captivated us with his wisdom, intrigued us with his secretive nature, and awed us with his surprising magical might. But this has not stopped many people from focusing on the darker side of his personality. Anyone who frequents fan fiction will know many people see Albus Dumbledore as a manipulative, controlling chessmaster who will do anything and cross any line in the name of 'The Greater Good.'
And who can argue with this belief? Or at least, who can argue that Dumbledore, though a fighter for the right, has made some rather poor and controversial decisions in his long life? And this is not even counting his past with Grindelwald and the impact that made on his family; in fact, many 'Dumbledore bashers' seem to have accepted this as an understandable mistake of youth. But it is the mistakes Dumbledore made regarding Harry Potter that most concern and anger people; mistakes that you will see may not have been wholly his fault.
The first and probably the largest, his leaving Harry with the Dursleys. With no other living relatives on either side of Harry's family, and Voldemort's Death Eaters still very much at large, Dumbledore felt his only choice was leaving the boy with the bigoted, bullying Dursleys. There Harry was forced to suffer ten years and six partial summer breaks with three people who would have been happy if he had been murdered as a baby. Dumbledore's apparent reasoning for this was to keep Harry protected by the blood wards enabled by his mother's sacrifice, and to prevent him getting a swelled head from his celebrity status.
But do those reasons justify that decision? It was an enormous chance leaving Harry with the Dursleys, where he could have wound up hating Muggles as much as Voldemort. And yes, there were Death Eaters who would have gone after Harry, but are we to believe that Dumbledore could not have left him with a loving wizarding family with some added protection charms? Or sent him off to some random country with such a family? And if Dumbledore was so adamant about Harry staying with the Dursleys, why not leave him there for a few years while the Death Eaters were being rounded up and then come to get him before the Dursleys could do anymore damage? Clearly, Dumbledore wanted to keep Lily Potter's sacrificial magic on Harry to protect him from Voldemort, and yet in both The Philosopher's Stone and The Chamber of Secrets, he stands aside and lets Harry duke it out with the Dark Lord, knowing full well what's going on. So why?
The second major mistake of Dumbledore's, and the second-largest source of fan hatred, is Sirius Black's imprisonment in Azkaban. It was Sirius's idea to lay a false claim that he was the Potters' Secret Keeper, when in fact, it was Peter Pettigrew who was given the responsibility. Peter, who had been Voldemort's spy for months, quickly betrayed his friends to his master, and later framed Sirius for his crimes; leaving Sirius to spend the next twelve years in prison, and Harry at the Dursleys.
Now how does Dumbledore carry blame for this? He may not have been aware of Sirius' deception, and the evidence may have been very incriminating, but he had fought alongside Sirius against Voldemort for years. The young man had been a loyal friend and member of the Order of the Phoenix; surely that deserved at least a second thought. And for that matter, Dumbledore is a gifted Legilimens; he could have easily paid a trip to Azkaban, visited Sirius and probed his mind for the truth. And this would have resulted with Sirius being proven innocent, Pettigrew's escape revealed, and Harry having his godfather back. So why?
The last mistake is the one that built up over years of our time with Dumbledore in all the secrets he kept from Harry. The Boy Who Lived had more than proven himself to be an intelligent, brave and trustworthy young man, yet Dumbledore chose time and again to keep a multitude of important things from him. From the prophecy that started it all (the ignorance of which led to Sirius' death), to Severus Snape's feelings for Lily Potter (the ignorance of which bred almost a decade of mistrust on Harry's part), to all the things about Horcruxes and the Deathly Hallows that Dumbledore chose to keep quiet, claiming to be for Harry's own good. And yet this hoarded knowledge might have saved Harry months of time and speculation in his battle against Voldemort, and maybe even prevented some of the deaths of Harry's loved ones. So why, Albus, why?
The answer, and true culprit, is not Dumbledore, but Plot!
Right from the start, Plot works its own magic into the Potterverse. Harry's horrible childhood with the Dursleys gave us not only sympathy for his character, but allowed us to be gradually immersed in the magical world by seeing through his Muggle-raised eyes, instead of cannonballed into it where we would have to strain to figure out what was going on. And Sirius' term in Azkaban, while maddening and unjust, gave us arguably the best story in the series; the effect would have been ruined if Dumbledore had just walked into Azkaban and walked out declaring Sirius innocent. And all the cumulative secrets kept from Harry created suspense and mystery. If Dumbledore had just told Harry everything in The Half-Blood Prince, half the story would have been plodding exposition and explanation, and The Deathly Hallows would have lost all dramatic impact. Dumbledore was all but helpless against the incredible sway of Plot!
Yes, Albus Dumbledore is far from perfect; he has made many mistakes and should be held accountable for him. But the largest and most hateable mistakes he has made were done for the sake of Plot, for our entertainment and understanding. Should we be frustrated with him for this? Sure. But should we bash and slander him when a higher power was calling some of his most important shots? Ask J.K., see if she has an answer for you.
Hope you enjoyed!