What if the house-elves and their descendants became subject to a curse or enchantment of some kind. A combination of the imperious curse and the unbreakable vow which could be passed from parent to child
I honestly don't remember the House Elves playing a role in the battle for Hogwarts. I only read the books once though, and there was a fire that destroyed all my books. I'll have to hit the library, I guess.
I loved how eventually Kreacher became genuinely loyal & caring to Harry. Also how it simply shows the difference between mistreatment and good treatment.
Wonder why more channels don’t cover this it was interesting. Kreacher was obviously abused for years and had Trauma because of it. So it’s natural that he was wary or even hostile to Harry’s treatment at first as even Sirius had treated him poorly.
@@RaycastAF Kreatcher basically had PTSD from watching Regulas sacrifice himself to steal Voldemort horocrux. Kreatcher definitely stepped up to protect his master Harry.
@@RaycastAF I'm quite sad that they didn't show this part of the story in the film. It would explain so much about that horcrux and how it ended up stolen from that basin. Instead it was covered in mystery making that plot unfinished.
Wouldn't that mean if an Elf broke the unbreakable vow they would simply die, if so that would be untrue to the story as we see Dobby break this "inherited variation" of the unbreakable vow multiple times. Unless your suggesting the vow was to serve the master until he or she presented him with an item of clothing. Please specify.
@@battyshagz7779 that’s where I felt it must be a variant of that charm. It rather than binding them to it by threat of death, they are bound by magic to obey, unless cast aside by the owner.
Yes, that was also my thought while watching this: a powerful, transgenerational spell. Something like a curse that is passed down from parents to offsprings. Maybe their personalities adapted to cope with their new reality. Or perhaps they were already a meek, handy race to begin with.
@@KIP-JRTFB359 I understand, this is one of the more plausible theories as to why House Elves are so willing and loyal despite their immense power and mental dexterity, thank you for specifying
@@battyshagz7779 He does not refuse a single order until freed. The self-punishment is likely a condition designed to preserve their life when edging to disloyalty.
While that is true, the difference is that Dobby was given the choice and he CHOSE to help Harry. He didn't have to but wanted to and that made all the difference. He could finally have control over his own life.
My own theory is that perhaps the wizards and elves fought each other in a war centuries ago and the elves lost. As part of their surrender, they were collectively put into some sort of binding magical contract which requires them to serve a wizarding family. We know wizards have fought against other intelligent magical beings such as goblins, so I don't think it's a stretch to say they may have fought elves in the past. Additionally, I don't think the natural selection argument works when you factor in the loophole of giving elves clothes so they earn their freedom. If they were bred for centuries to be loyal servants, giving them such an easy way to earn their freedom seems like a huge oversight. Now on the other hand if the elves served wizards as a condition of losing in a war, I could see the act of giving an elf freedom as more plausible should the family decide that the elf had "paid their dues" of sort. I think this would actually make for a strong motivator for the elves if they believe that being a good servant may one day earn them their freedom
Yeah this theory makes a lot more sense to me. The conditions of enslavement seem a bit too specific to be the result of breeding. We've been breeding dogs since caveman times but they still don't physically punish themselves for disobedience or automatically become free from the authority of their human upon something as specific as giving them clothing
I like this theory. And there is a real life example of how the Spartans conquered their neighbors the Messinians, and then enslaved the population, turning them into helots. The helots were the slaves of the Spartan upper class, making up the backbone of their economy, as well as acting as domestic servants to the elites. And helots were virtually 'bred' to be servants, as any rebellious helots would be singled out and killed immediately, while the Spartans also imposed psychological warfare and propaganda on them to make their forced servitude more appealing than going against the grain, with many even becoming very devoted to their station. In fact during the Boeotian War where Sparta went to war with Thebes and Thebes took a large part of their territory, they liberated the helots living there. Some Thebans even ordered a group of Laconian helots to recite their anthem, but they refused on the grounds that doing so would displease their masters, even though they no longer had any power of them.
I like the idea of how the bond of servitude originated but I think over time, presumably centuries, since the contract began it seems it’s taken a deeper cultural role in house elf society. If you recall the house elves that worked at Hogwarts were actually not seeking freedom and were quite content and proud of their service and would become insulted if someone tried to pay them or otherwise reward them for their service. In fact even some of the more miserable house elves such as Kreacher never appeared to seek freedom.
Kreacher is such a great character. Went from hating mudbloods and non purebloods and being loyal to dark Wizards to seeing how kind and caring harry, Hermione and Ron are towards house elves and "lesser" races. Becomes truly loyal to Harry and loving him in the end. When he rallies the house elves of hogwarts to fight the death eaters in the Great hall with forks and knives its hard not to get teary eyed
Have you ever heard the classic tail “the elves and the shoemaker“? In this story and old shoemaker wakes up one morning to find that leather he has put out the night before has been magically made into a pair of shoes. He sells the shoes by twice as much leather and the next morning there are two pairs of shoes made this goes on. One night the shoemaker and his wife hide to watch the leather that has been put out to see what happens. They find that two tiny elves in rage appear in the night and make the shoes. The Shoemaker and his wife want to thank the elves for helping them to become so prosperous so they make them tiny clothes and tiny shoes and leave them out. They hide and watch as the elves appear the next night find the clothes and rejoice! The elves never come back. I believe the story is J. K. Rowling‘s inspiration for House elves. Elves dressed in rags that, unseen, work for the master of the house until they are given proper clothes and us are free to leave. The Shoemaker and his wife in the story were unaware of the elves existence and once they were they immediately made them clothes and set them free. Whether or not these elves were actually bound until receiving clothes is unclear but as I said, could easily be the inspiration. It all seems to fit. This however, does not explain the full history of house elves in the Harry Potter world.
That seems like the source of the design. If you want a reason that makes sense I would make it so there are free Elves and with there magic so powerful they punish there criminals with a curse that they must serve Wizards as penance for there crimes.
I like the "wild elf" theory and would like to add to it.. What if many, many centuries ago the Elf population split into two different groups. One group desired a peaceful existence. They worked the land, farming, fishing, hunting and gathering. They knew the value of hard work. It's how they lived. The other group were more warlike. They constantly attacked the villages of the peaceful group taking whatever they wanted and killing whoever got in their way. The peaceful group of elves were brought to the brink of extinction and went to the Wizarding world for help. The Wizarding world was willing to help, just not for free. The elves had nothing to offer other than their own servitude and thus entered into a magical agreement to serve the Wizarding community. The Wizarding community wiped out the warlike elves completely. There is no mention of this in any history book because as Hermione would say, the Wizarding world tends to gloss over any atrocities they may have committed throughout history. Over the ensuing centuries subservience is ingrained into the elves. They adopt the name "house elves" and evolved to what house elves are today. That shared ancestry with the warlike elves would explain anomalies like Dobby. Also, as to why Elf magic is stronger. The trademark of a good house elf is to go about their work unnoticed. House elves would have observed their masters performing magic unnoticed for centuries. It stands to reason that they would have observed weaknesses in wizard/witch magic. They would have never pointed any of this out to their masters as it wasn't their place to do so. But they could use those observations to better their own magic. Gradually over the centuries it all added up to the point that elf magic surpassed wizard magic.
One personal theory I have with the house elves is that there simply aren’t many of them. That Wizard kind in a potential uprising would outnumber the house elves 20 to 1. Powerful as they may be, those numbers combined with their docile nature and small size does not fare well for them.
@@terrierislander1 good chance they’d side with the house elves - wizards being racist supremacists is a lot of what brings the races to Voldemort’s side in the wizard wars. The giants, for example, who Dumbledore wants to recruit but Fudge essentially blocks with his racism
@@potato6785 history has shown that factions don’t ally with the most good willed group but chooses the alliance that will benefit them the most. The wizards would likely make better promises. They are the faction that is best able to rule the top of the magical world. Why? Because they can blend in with the muggles, live among, influence the world Among them, unlike house elves. Also power in numbers is the nunmber one reason why muggles hold the most power
Given the fact that house elves live with the day to day of wizards and as such privy to many of their private affairs. Wouldn't it be kinda simple to quickly understand that the humans wouldn't be a united front once they actually gain independence? And hence would just need to ally with the ppl to that would side with their cause? Like Hermione. That said going by folklore. Elves or the fey in general tend to help humans out of a natural inclination. Like how in legends they'd fix your shoes, clean your house and give you gold. But the moment you show gratitude (I guess in the HP world its the form of giving clothing). They'll leave your home. JK Rowling just went civil rights with it for no real reason but to push her agenda. But the fey are really meant to be a kind of force of nature. Like good luck and bad luck. Like you're just as likely to be blessed by the elves as you are cursed by them.
I think they are more based on the folklore brownie, a house spirit or hobgoblin and were named elves based on pointy ears and name recognition. Their servitude is a part of their magical nature and perhaps acts like a curse on rules they must obey, almost like part of a story or fairy tale.
They're definitely based on them. They game freedom when they're giving clothes and brownies in fairy tails will disappear if they're given clothes. I was not aware that there was anyone who knew that brownies and did not think this
I don't think house elves are actually superior to wizards in terms of magical ability and especially martial magic. Its more likely that most witches and wizards have been lulled into a false sense of security over house elves and don't consider them a threat. This complacency could also explain how Dobby was able to help Harry under Lucius's nose and how he was able to rescue Harry and co from Malfoy Manor despite the danger they were in. I also assume their ability to apparate in and to most places that have restrictive charms place on them was by design. Its not that their magic overrides security charms that prevents normal apparations, its just that they are not seen as enough of a threat to warrant blocking their ability to apparate. Plus allowing them to apparate anywhere allows them to do their jobs more effectively as domestic servants, and immediately be at the beck and call of their masters.
But don't forget that Dobby knocked Lucius on his ass by just snapping his fingers, so he obviously had some level magical mastery if he was able to do that.
@@Joreel devils advocate. Lucius’ surprise at having any offensive magic leveled at him by a house elf still accounts for that. Disarmament which sends one flying is an extremely basic spell not denoting mastery necessarily (Harry’s favorite)
I think your theory has a lot of merit and a lot of sense to me. Wizards like the Malfoy family have the attitude of superiority that no one especially an elf can beat them in terms of magic. They prove that in almost every book and movies.
One of the common theories I've found among fans is the idea that elves seem to need a wizard master or at least an employer like Hogwarts or MACUSA (there's a scene in FB1 where a house elf is cleaning there). I've seen a few variations on why they would need such a situation. We never really see house elves consume anything in cannon except Winky who basically is drinking all the time, so one version of the theory I've seen floated around is that house elves need a magic source to survive. They have their own form of magic, or are able to channel what they have access to, but when cut off they pretty much starve, or loose their casting ability which would have made them very vulnerable. As such, that's why they don't seek freedom or need compensation and why, no matter how badly they're treated, they remain loyal or punish themselves. Freedom is equivalent to a death sentence (survival instinct is powerful). Which is why Hogwarts provides sanctuary for any house elf, and why Dobby is seen as so crazy by his fellow elves. As to the gifting of clothing, that seems more symbolic, a ceremonial symbol agreed upon that severs the connection between an employer and elf, where its originates from I couldn't tell you. As to why there only seems to be one elf per family, we've only seen a single elf in very small households (the Malfoys are numbered 3 and Sirius is the last member of his), so it could be that the number of elves is based upon the number of magical people (since Hogwarts houses hundreds and has enchantments with dozens of elves working there, there's a larger magic source). If Elves need an external magic source, it would make since that the larger the source the more elves that could be supported. We don't know how long elves live for, so it could also be that they have a mating cycle or a low fertility rate that requires specific circumstances or makes child bearing very difficult. Maybe a pregnant elf needs much more magic to carry to term. We also see that Dobby ends up serving Harry much like he did the Malfoys, although it's not explicitly shown. Likewise, despite having the same amount of Black blood as Draco, Harry is recognized as Sirius's heir because he can command Kreacher, showing that transfer of the source isn't necessarily based on blood but master discretion or perhaps a free elf's own (Dobby is a crazy outlier and I love him).
Good theory, I'm just thinking of the summer holidays in hogwarts. Wouldn't the house elves starve if the students are not around for a long period like this?
@@MsKatastrophenBarbie I'm pretty sure some students get to stay in hogwarts over the holidays, it's only that Harry has to go back to maintain the protection spell.
@@snapeinvader I'm very positive they are not allowed to stay 2 months. Otherwise Tom Riddle would never have gone back to the orphanage over summer holidays as stated on pottermore. I think we can consider pottermore info canon.
I do like the whole genetic/dna theory ! :D I don’t think dobby hated serving them I think he hated the beatings and felt it would be disrespectful to ask them to stop so his only real hope was for his master to give dobby clothes
he did want to work for people that threated him well and gave him some type of payment. (We see that in the 4th book when harry mistakes the female elf for beeing dobby)
Me neither but mind you, it could be tied in well. I do recall an old tale of the Muggle shoe maker who was visited by some wild elves and made hundreds of pairs for him in a single night as he slept. Free but keen to assist and serve, they would simply do good turns for muggles in there surroundings. It amused the local Wizard family for it was never malicious and they were also served by them. (Not all families have a house elf) and they certainly couldn't afford a domestic one. So kept it as a village secret that passed down into muggle fairytale.
@@mochablondie Thanks. Il be honest that's usually not me. Haven't written anything since high school 15 years ago. I'd just had my surgery yesterday so was feeling inspirational in recovery probably I don't really recall doing it. So thanks for posting I got a chance to read it myself haha felt like I was on the moon most of yesterday. I wouldn't of dared post that as I am, glad it made you smile though.
@@xPadge112x It really did make me smile, your theory fit right in! I always loved that story growing up and love how you told it with a twist. Makes perfect sense! I'm glad you got to enjoy your own lovely comment, too lol. 😁 Hoping you recuperate quickly!
I never took Dobby punishing himself as a genetic or personality concept. I always took it that he was put through punishment training, and now anytime he disobeys his master he has been mentally programed to torture himself as he has always been tortured.
I think is a form of domestication. The fact that they are called “House elf” and not just “Elf”make me think there are other kind of elven people around the world. Maybe it happened a bit like we domesticated dogs, maybe some clan of elfs found themselves living side to side with wizards kind. With the wizard and human number increasing they started to have to accept jobs like cleaning and taking care of the house. Slowly, overtime, they became dependent of the human for food or shelter, maybe they change physically as well, making them unsuitable for the life their race use to live. Like wolves became dogs, so this elven people start to grew shorter and more loyal to the wizards, they lost the knowledge of their own magic and culture and just found happiness in their task. I can see wizard breeding them, they are pretty much considered as property, and maybe the younger elfs get trained to serve a family. Maybe at some point a binding charm was implemented, to show the ownership of each house elf. Hope I’m wrong, cause it sound like a really sad existence:(
could be the old theory of elves being the ones who introduced humans to magic, only to be subjugated by them -- despite their superior magical abilities -- due to the superior numbers of wizardkind. and the slave/master dynamic could be a blood curse?
One of the books put out by Rowling that supported or elaborated the Harry Potter books had a mention of elves. In it, Elves were entered using the same helpful elf idea as the ones from the Old Cobbler story. They "want" to be helpful, is the reason that they eventually became bonded servants.
The wild free elves -theory is one I've never heard but it makes me happy for some reason. Dobby belonged with them. House-elves are a fascinating subject, thanks for the great content once again ♥
My view was that during a goblin war with wizard kind, house elves sides WITH the Goblins. Upon their defeat, they were so ashamed, they agreed to this magical contract. This has been centuries and centuries ago, and this new value system is now all encompassing...with very, very few outliers. As far as House Elves procreation, i think there is a reason for male and female house elves. But, house elves have contracts with particular families...which means once the house elf dies, the next offspring takes their honored place...like a coming of age ceremony.
In the swedish translation of Harry Potter, the gobilns were called ”mörkalver” dark elves. I always thought they and the ”husalver” house elves where one and the same species.
In Scandinavia there is a dark race called laps. The are much like Eskimos (and probably related). Many Scandinavians look down on them. This would explain how the Navajo Native Americans were successful in infiltrating Nazi Germany simply passing themselves of as Laps. (Also known as Sami people.) (I'm assuming Laps sometimes come to Germany. They tend to be nomadic.) Most people don't even know they.exist.
@@karlbergen6826 YOu should not call them by any other name than Sami (and they are not dark, if you put a Finn and a Sami next to one another in same clothes, you might not always differentiate them from one another just from their looks), as that is their own name, and lapland is area in Finland only people living there would be called that, but Sami as a whole should not be called it's considered kind of racists. Also they are Finno-ugric people, related to Finns, Estonians and some other minority ethicities in Russia. Finns are not Scandinavian either. They are not related to Eskimos, as I said their relatives on top of Finns and Estonians, originally come from around ural mountains, Uralic people,. Though some of the relations are only find through linquistic routes as it has been so long since that all happened.
But here is the thing... are they really that powerful??? Sure, they can apparate where anti-apparation is put in place, but that could be due to using an entirely different system rather than being better. And their spells are kinda simplistic and limited... Like, bows and arrows are easier to make and have effects, but the gun is superior... Rather, it seems that the main danger of house-elves are the fact that they are underestimated and looked down upon so easily instead...
I can see that, in other works of fiction there are often times many different schools of magic. IE nature magic, black/white, or spirit. And they often times do not overlap in terms of compatibility but sometimes have similar effects. Or to put it a bit more simply, 2 x 2 = 4 but 1 + 3 = 4 as well. Same outcome different means.
I’m surprised you didn’t talk about the enslavement being a social construct and psychological abuse for generations. I think that’s what really kept them enslaved, even endure physical abuse like Dobby did.
I mean the books show how racist the wizards are tomard any other species (even with muggles and mix-blood wizards). The poor Hermione was gaslighted in the third book because she want elves rights.
@@LOSTmyHOST the elves didn’t really seem to care and how are you gonna convince people that they wanna be free if they themselves don’t really bother and when given freedom end up doing the same/similar somewhere else. If I remember right she goes to the kitchen at Hogwarts with all the elves in the kitchen and they all seemed to be pretty happy. It could also be possible elves were either created by, or molded by humans and without them they, like other species dependent on us, would die out or change massively without us.
The elves as they appear in HP stories are far more closely linked to the original European ideas of elves, pre-Tolkien. Don't confuse what is currently accepted and known worldwide about fantasy Elves with the original. Tolkien changed much about Elves to make them less evil and more fantastically wonderful. Original elves from folklore are mischievous to wicked. Not absolutely evil, not by a long shot, but when the old tales were told, and the old superstitions held sway, people did not want to be caught by elves. They were small - childlike in size - and not to be trusted. We've seen a lot in the HP books that is drawn from old British and European folk-lore and made into something else. That is what I believe happened "in the world of HP", done very cleverly by Rowling. Idea only, but it falls more in line with European folk-lore (from which elves exclusively come - they do not appear in any other folk-lore before Tolkien wrote his masterpieces): The elves, in the past, were a menace to Muggle and Wizard alike. At some point, someone managed to cast a spell over the entire race to change them, stop them being a threat. It worked, but bound the elves to wizards in a symbiotic relationship that wasn't expected nor intended. Wizards found that it was useful, and it did stop the many troubles this powerful race of mischief makers could cause. Over time, over the centuries, it grew into something not altogether wholesome. The elves became enslaved to their families. And some (obviously) mistreated them. It's just what I think might have happened. Makes a lot more sense than the theories put forth here. Something like this couldn't happen with the "Elves" as we know them post-Tolkien, nor would it have been necessary. Pre-Tolkien elves, however... much different beast.
i agree, there is a fairy tale that tells about poor shoemaker and how little people/elves used to appear at night, so that no one can see them, and help him to make shoes. It was all nice and all until shoemakers wife and him decided to pretend they are asleep and actually caught them working. When the wife decided to present them with their own small shoes as a thank you, elves got very happy, but they stopped working and left after that. Here you can clearly see three elements of what JKR used in her books: elves like to help, they prefer not to be seen when working, they stop working after presented with shoes (or cloths).
@@_Diana_S And that's one of the good stories. Some European areas, the tales are less... nice. But I remember that one. My grandmother told it to me as a child. Can't remember the details, but yes, it has all the elements needed to pull to create "house elves".
I liked the idea of house elves being inspired by Brownies, who would move into people's homes and do housework at night, when no one would see them, in exchange for food. But they would grow insulted if given almost anything else, and if given clothes they would put them on and never come back. So my favorite theory is that before muggles started hunting magical folk, house elves would place themselves within muggle homes as well. Due to the aforementioned witch hunt, this practice steadily declined. So when the 'Statute of Secrecy' was signed the practice was ended entirely. House Elves still enjoy house work and take pride in doing it well, so they now serve wizards exclusively.
It is the other way around. Tolkien REVIVED the pre-Christian European concept of elves. It was Christianity that turned the noble, divine-adjacent creatures into evil earth spirits.
Harry once remarked that house-elves were better at performing advanced magic than wizards. Despite this, house-elves must obey commands given by their masters, but they are capable of finding loopholes on occasion.
I think Slytherin was experimenting. He crossed a Squib with a goblin and accidentally invented the House Elf. From there they have been bred over the years to be subservient .
One thing i always alluded the house elves story and how when they are given clothes they are free is the story of the Elves and the Shoemaker how when the elves were given clothes in the story they danced and were never seen again, i know they were never in servitude but always thought it was a similar thing
“Indentured servitude” Nah, it’s slavery And it seems like psychological manipulation & generational trauma rather than biological factors causing emotional breakdowns when they express/realize their exploitation & abuse
Or it could have been that the house elves were so argumentative and self destructive between themselves that a weaker group realised their only way to survive was to become subservient to the more passive humans and so bound themselves to the humans for protection from the other elves.
I like to think that the strong elven magical power comes from a magical contract, as the most powerful magic most times comes with heavy repurcussions or prerequesits, it could be that the magical power from elves comes from a centuries old contract to serve the wizards and thus makes it hard or impossible to revolt against that. Maybe they lose all their magical powers if they decide to go against their master.
Here's a few thoughts. The house elves are not bound to ONE place or house, just the families they serve. Like when Dobby shows up at Harry's muggle family's house. That's proof of free will too. Yet IF he were summoned by a member of his household Dobby could be there in mere seconds, as if he'd just came from another room like a human. It only took Dobby seconds to remove Olivander & Luna to safety from the Malfoy house & be right back to be of further help. Not being bound to the Malfoys anymore didn't phase that. Who is to say they don't have a mate elsewhere that they support while they work away from them? May be that they can not procreate any longer because of enslavement & are forbidden to "fraternize" with other elves or are made sterile at the time of their Masters taking ownership of them by the magical contract for life long servitude. That's a dark thought but possible as to insure loyalty only to the humans. I think a nursery of baby house elves would be a riot & much like the pixies! Might just be they are A-sexual & don't even think about it even if they are free. One has to have purpose in life, the elves are proud of theirs as a rule. Too bad we will never know how Dobby's life would have gone if JK had not killed him off.
I personally believe the House Elves (HE) are indeed "domesticated" elves, and became (ironically) domestic servants much like the English folkloric Brownie and Slavic "Domovoi". They were the friendlier of the elves and seeing humans (wizards) doing magic were drawn to them, and wizards to the elves. They formed a bond and sadly, as it is in most cases, humaniy's urge for power brought them to capturing and domesticating (to a point) the friendlier elves. In my belief though the Wild Elves (WE) live in nature behind a shroud / barrier which conceals them from unwelcomed eyes, causing the human be it Wizard or Nomaj, to become bewildered and lose all sense of time. To me the WE would be lead by a Queen and a King (after Titania and Oberon), but would be much more... mischievous. Having elf arrows to jinx people and of course causing other manner of mischief. I bring up this idea of WE being like so because British Folklore of elves causing cows milk to spoil and so on, but also of how in America there are Pukwudgies and both Reality and Wizarding world they tend to act like such too. Just my food for thought, and don't get me started on my head-theory of Goblin and Elves being sister species of magical creature.
Intriguing theory. I have a hard time though, imagining that elves ever needed, or required, the protection of human wizards. It seems far more likely to me that their state of servitude is the result of some sort of magical pact, contract, or binding curse, which had been abused, and became perverted, and twisted, over the centuries. Causing them to become reduced from being helpful allies to becoming slaves in bondage. Their attitudes therefore, to my mind, are in one part caused by the binding magical contract in question, and also in one part something akin to Stockholm Syndrome. If servitude is the only existence they have ever known, then the concept of freedom may be truly terrifying to many of them. Unable to conceive of a life in which they are responsible only for their own happiness, and wellbeing, they may well feel that they no longer have any purpose at all. Just a thought. CHEERS! ✨🍻✨✌
i read down the comments a bit to see if someone else had a similar idea to me. i had a similar idea that at some point one or a few elves who wanted an easier life (so they thought) made some sort of unbreakable vow. and it snowballed from there. I elaborate in more detail on this in the comments myself.
My small theory is that maybe far in the past a wizard saved the king or queen of the elves and because of that. The elf king or queen was so moved and grateful that he made a law or pledge that his kind would return the wizard's help by helping or being in service of all wizard kind, and because their king or queen made that decreee, all the elves wholeheartedly and happily accepted it. That's probably why almost all seems to love what they do and don't wanna leave and also punish themselves as well
I think it makes sense that magical creatures interact with magic differently in general. For instance we see a centaur perspective on divination for a bit there in the books Also the house elves struck me as something similar to brownies or house spirits
Exactly. The house-elves always seemed like some form of Brownie to me. Brownies had the same conditions - they wanted work, but if you thanked them or gave them clothing they vanished. Think "The Cobbler and the Elves". This is old lore, part of the lore of the fae races. My own guess is that the high fae, the ones that looked like beautiful humans(only more so) and lived forever, the ones that rode in "The Fairy Rade" and sometimes stole children for pets or beautiful youths for lovers - basically the nobility of Underhill - wanted servants and created brownies & some other lower elf-types as perfect servants. As such, their social and emotional needs are encoded by the magic that made them. They need to work, they want to work. They must obey whomever they work for. However, some could have wandered off when their master died, looking for work, and found humans to work for (though ordinary folk might not be able to see them well, or maybe there's a proscription against being seen. That would explain why they fled when interacted with, as it proves they've been found out). And, in the case of the Wizarding World, they found wizards, who COULD see them and manipulate the magic that ruled them. I doubt they could remove the conditions they were created with, but they could probably manipulate them so that being seen wasn't the trigger, but rather being gifted with something they would only need if they ever left the house to go out on their own - clothing. Another thing that Brownies seem to need is for their masters to be "worthy" - usually you feed them bread & milk, and don't try to catch them or play tricks on them. They'll leave if not fed, or if you're mean to them. It's possible the wizards suppressed this, but it would be difficult to keep under wraps - could Dobby have slipped out from under those controls and recognized Harry as a "worthy" master and the Malfoys as "unworthy"? He can't get out of obeying the Malfoys, but he could help Harry as long as he had no direct order against it. Again, Brownies and other fae servants are known for being tricky even when they actually like you and are trying to help - they'll do it their own way, on their own schedule, and they sometimes enjoy making you look silly(not something their masters would have programmed in, but it seems to be a fae tendency in general - perhaps it could not be removed, or it only applies when they're dealing with humans). Remember Dobby trying to discourage Harry from returning to Hogwarts? He did so many things that were dangerous or made Harry look bad! I think he's a revert to the original design - though I admit I don't know why him and no other.
@@kristineweber8084 maybe they had an indentured servitude thing going on where wizards and witches offered a warm home or simply kindness and the elf swore a family debt. Which as they are magical creatures could have made their word magically binding innately. Not expecting the family to grow cruel down the line. Though I do have to wonder how long they actually live, because if they can’t get that old this theory goes out the window.
@@conner8319 Not all the fae lived long lives. Not sure how long Brownies and other servant-types lived. I don't think they evolved naturally, or at least not alongside humans; in all stories they are always the same. I still think magic gene-engineering myself, just a really long time ago by another race, not humanity.
Good work and definetly an interesting topic. If you need ideas for future videos here are two of my thoughts: - How would the life of the now dead ones continue? (Dobby, Fred, Sirius, Remus, Lupin et cetera ...) - What happend to Grimauld Place Number 12 ? Is the Potter household there or in Godrics Hollow? OR (as I would like to see the future of the building) an orphanage for young wizards? Anyways - keep going and greetings from Germany.
Have you ever read fanfiction? All these, and many more topics are already described, in numerous variations, and colorful details, there. You can find the Potters living both at Grimmauld and in GH, as well as in Hogsmeade, completely new location in England, Alaska, etc. :)
I always thought elves seemed more natural than wizards, so their magic was more physical and free flowing, but not really more powerful. Wizards are more imaginative and ambitious so while they need a wand to do similar things as elves but they can go much bigger and more terrible than elves would even think of, making them more dangerous and dominating. I don't see any elf being about to combat a great wizard like Dumbledore casting a Firestorm or the ring of fire like Grindelwald.
According to the theory of wild elves, I think that some wizards traped and tamed them to servitude with a binding contract that deprives house elves from their powers if they breakfree, maybe their lives as well.
House Elves are from the Fae lands and, according to legend and lore, Fae are very regimented in their dealings - a Fae does not offer assistance without manipulating the request to their own advantage and they are bound by the magic of Fae to uphold their bargains on threat to their own magic and even very lives. They're also prideful, vain, and swayed by those who cater to those vices. At some point in the far distant past the mightiest of Elven Fae entered into a contract with a mortal wizard of extreme cunning and intelligence. Through this contract, all of the descendants of the elves would be bound to serve Humans until they were released by the direct action of the human they served - i.e. the gifting of clothing. This is why the Elves in the HP universe are still bound and typically suffer extreme emotional trauma when their service is terminated. To them it is a breach of that ancient bargain (re: contract) and can have immediate affects upon the elf, particularly those released unwillingly. Most of this is entirely psychosomatic, however, as we can see that after his release Dobby's magic is not affected - though, perhaps, in the end his abrogation of the ancient contract does come due; he dies. Also, as to their magic: House Elves are *true* sorcerers - they need no casting implements, rituals, gestures, or vocalizations which humans require to focus their magic since it is not an inherent PART of humans. Humans must channel through 'things' in the HP setting - typically Wands because that is an easily identifiable crutch and they can be fabricated via powerful enchantments to amplify as well as channel human magic. Elves can use wands, of course, but they do not naturally amplify elven magic. Other items can easily be enchanted to act as channeling and focusing implements; such as jewelry, household items and the like but they are less convenient and much more difficult to aim spells through. Horcruxes are an offshoot of wand making turned to dark purpose.
This might be a video or maybe one in the future, but considering human magic seems to origin from latin, and elven magic being stronger, maybe done in an elvish language, there could also be even stronger magic languages out there!
I wonder. Wizards have the power to magically command obedience (Imperious curse), and also to magically command adoration (like a love potion). Could there have been a permanent spell created that magically altered the elves as a species to love obeying and serving? Or maybe not so permanent. Maybe Dobby is proof that the spell is wearing off. Like the spell on an invisibility cloak. It might take centuries, and by then the elves have been socially programmed as well as enchanted.
Maybe this will be covered in the Hogwarts Legacy? There's the goblin war. I'd be interested to know if they include any backstory. We know wizards don't allow goblins to have wands bc 'they don't need them' according to Ron. But also bc the wizards won the war. I wonder if elves also had their own wizarding war too?
All you have to do is research the brownie from Scottish folklore which was the inspiration for house elves. These brownies voluntarily would go to homes of muggles to clean and play pranks on lazy servants. However, if you left your clothing on the floor the brownie would leave your home forever. Perhaps because of their power house elves feel they have an obligation to care for lesser creatures such as humans. Consider Dobby for example. Even once "free", he pledged himself in service to Potter. Elves view humans as their pets. Just like I serve my cat, feed him, clean up after him. I am basically his house elf, we just don't have a binding magical contract. So, if free elves by their nature seek to serve humans, it makes sense that at some point wizards would have offered to provide permanent lodging in exchange for a magical contract. The elves would have seen it as a way of fulfilling their desire to care for the lesser species and the wizards obviously get a loyal assistant. However, as humans tend to do, some humans abuse this arrangement and come to see house elves as lesser beings. We primarily see this abuse from people with an evil bent, the Black family and Malfoy family. Yet, as we see at Hogwarts, this is not always the case.
dobby could have had a kinder master before the malfoys who encouraged some level of magical skill so to make things easier and the malfoys went against that. there is most likely is a few races of elf and i feel it would be cool if magical beasts touched on it maybe have a forest elf hunter show up on a vendetta for a little bit, or a water elf help guide them through a sewer into the enemy base.
My theory is that, likely millennia ago, wild elves were small, weak, and had little magic. Wizards saw them as useful pets, able to understand and execute simple commands. Over time, magic, strength, size, and intelligence were bred in, much like dogs were bred for various traits from an original wolf stock. That led to two issues. As they evolved into modern elves, they came to be seen as more of a threat: maybe there was a series of elf uprisings that had to be suppressed, or just ongoing and escalating management problems. And as they became more useful, it was common for more powerful families to poach elves away from less powerful ones. With either scenario, it became common to bind the elves with spells to remain loyal; those spells affected their DNA and became a trait that was also bred for. As for reproduction, the analogy to dogs gives rise to a very uncomfortable idea: there exist professional house elf breeders. These breeders train (indoctrinate) elves to strengthen loyalty, while skirting ethical laws against slavery by providing a path to freedom that very few owners will ever likely follow, an indoctrination so strong that the elves cannot bring themselves to knowingly take that path if given a choice. And like pets, the elves are spayed or neutered before being sold, to help keep supply low and quality high.
I kind of see house elves as dogs of the wizarding world (sorry). Some house elves may have come to humans for protection etc...same as dogs. There were still probably wolves living in the wild (hence the reason why there is a "house" in front of elf, there are also wild elves). Eventually they probably evolved separately, and unfortunately there were/are probably house elf breeders or something. The reason why they can't survive anymore in the wild probably has to do with what genetics they inherited. Even the house elf personalities are like dogs, for example Kreacher shows a good example of a rescued dog. One that was mistreated and gets adopted to a new owner. Hence, Kreacher, and rescue dogs, don't trust or like their new owners for a long period of time.
What if elves and goblins share a Heritage and goblins or descended from the wild ones and what happened to their cousin species is part of why the kinda hate wizards.
Remember the short lady who was Credence/Corvus’s nanny in the fantastic beasts films? She was half house elf. Yeah, somebody smashed or got smashed by their house elf.
Imagine a storyline in which Hermione successfully pursuades Elves to break free and they form their own small group in the forbidden forrest, where they live as a society and reject any wizarding interference just like the centaurs. Dobby, meanwhile, is loyal to Harry and tries to bridge the conflict with little success. It would be a huge new conflict with consequences for actions Hermione never thought of. Of course it may be too much for a more simple story like Harry Potter but I'd definitely see this fitting in. It too could end with the Elves taking side in the Battle like the centaurs for the benefits of the heros of the story.
I like it as-is. Not every world needs social justice and there are real- life modern humans who prefer servitude. They're just quiet about it to avoid judgement.
One theory I heard about magic in regards to needing a wand is that it was the Ministry that mandated their usage. Make people so reliant on their wands that they’re basically useless without one, it’s easy to learn what spells were used, there are so few wand makers that it’s easy to control the source, and other things. Before wands were common everyone used wandless magic and some to amazing effects. Basically it’s a control tactic that works very well. Perhaps that’s a thing with the Elves is that they aren’t reliant on wands and thus use the older and more powerful styles.
Its interesting to me how J.K Rowling created a sort of magical caste system in her wizarding world, despite the fact that the books are meant to be children escapist fiction. Its a world where wizard-kind are treated like a privileged upper class with even the poorest wizards able to attend Hogwarts for free with their books and school supplies paid for, gaining access to places like Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley and vote for who will be Minister of Magic. Meanwhile other sentient magical creatures like goblins and house elves are suppressed, are forbidden to learn but the simplest of spells that helps them serve the wizarding upper class, and aren't allowed to carry a wand. And any humanoid creatures considered too wild or dangerous are not even allowed to mingle with the rest of wizard-kind and are relegated to the fringes of society, be they giants, centaurs and even werewolves are treated like second class citizens. I don't know if Rowling intended on showing class struggle and segregation in her work, but it she sure doesn't hide these problems in the society she created.
Rowling must have intended to create a fictional world that reflects the societal problems in the real world. It’s brilliant, because as a child you are naive and don’t understand why things are the way they are in books but as you get older and gain a more sharper lense, you uncover the hidden messages. I mean the whole premise of the fight against bad and good is about a man who wants to extinct and subjugate mudbloods and muggles and for purebloods to reign over them. The pureblood ideology already dates back to the founding of Hogwarts due to Salazar and and his heir carrying on his legacy of purebloodedness. Sounds familiar? Then of course there are heroes like Hermione who want to fight for equal rights for elves etc. Our world is full of racism and societal injustice. Rowling played it out in the books, made us aware of the problems and in a way was very ahead of time concerning „wokeness“, of course with positive connotations, because today the term has been mangled into the extreme like everything else.
One major issue I think you missed is that the magical contract between an elf and his/her master is actually a source of power for the elves. Kreacher is able to apparate out of the cave because his master, Regulus, ordered him to go home. The magical contract of servitude caused Kreacher to be able to override the protections Voldemort placed on the cave. It was a higher order of magic that Voldemort did not anticipate. So, perhaps there was something for the elves to gain when they first elected to enter into these magical contracts long ago. It seems like witches and wizards have since largely forgotten this, but elves have not.
@@kristineweber8084 A house elf's "highest law" is to obey his/her master. There are certain magical laws with an order to them, where some can override others in certain circumstances. It isn't clear from Rowling, but I believe that Kreacher's magical contract with the Blacks is why he could override the protective spells cast by Voldemort. It is sort of a magical loophole
Well, Rowling herself wrote about goblins, their magic and the strong possibility that they would benefit from wands. So, there are differences in magic. Regarding elves, the idea of domestication such as the bond between dogs and men vs wolves and men makes sense. Wizards breeding specific elves for specific traits isn’t far fetched.
My theory is: The Elves, who are powerfull, are also impulsive, emotional (banging their head on things when they do something wrong) and to be fair not the sharpest tool in the box! They realised they could not be left in controll of their power. Perhaps after someone overreacted and blew up a village or town?! So they made a deal with the wizards, and them being what they are abused the trust. Perhaps slowly, or perhaps the elves were so desperate they agreed to the harsh terms. And the reason no elf wants to be free is because its equal to a death sentence in the long run. Dobby realising that he would rather be dead than suffer under the Malfoys any longer.
They are basically magical dogs. In slavic culture there's household creature called Domovoy, which keeps house clean, cozy and well, secure familys wellbeing, but its feared by people and not a slave.
Theory: Ancient elves were actually powerful, independent, and unruly, more so than Wizard kind. Over time, possibly after or during some great war, elves of that era began to change to stop the elves' barbaric nature and become more peaceful. But their awesome elven magic still carried a prevalent threat acknowledged by other magical beings. So they put a self-imposed limiter on their magic for the entire race, a spell that locks their magic to a very specific contract between them and Wizard kind, i.e. presenting clothes being the only way to free them, as part of a plea deal. Of course, treatment of house elves were probably much different in ancient times.
The way i always saw it is that wizards will always be more powerful than elves due to wands, how it amplifies and channels magic. The magic we see in Harry Potter is "childish" if you think about it. We see it from the students perspective, it's not mature because they are still in school learning so we don't know the full potential, even though the later movies get darker with the war, it's not really high stakes with the exception of Avada Kedavra. This is the reason I love the Fantastic Beasts movies, say whatever you will about it's flaws but the way it showcase the "adult" magic is beautiful, it gives us a sense of magic in full potential
Tolkien just called the Irish Aes Sidhe "elves" and was like "this is English, germanic, English...not Gaelic." He hated writing or saying "Irish", a lot of weird bigotry from Anglos
Seems more likely that they're like Dogs and Cats, naturally inclined to loyalty toward those that have treated them well. At some point some dark wizard put a curse on the entire species, binding them to service. Since most Elves are now born into service and so long as they are treated well they actually enjoy it, even those who are freed will go seek out a friendlier family to help out.
Hello ! Nice theories ! Mine goes as follows : Long time ago, for reasons we do not know of, elves and wizards made a magic oath/pact of some sorts between powerfull houses (hence the Malfoys having elves but not the Weasleys), magically bonding elves and wizards so that elves can not harm their masters nor free themselves until a gift of clothing is provided. The question is : do elves age ? According to the description of Kreature, we could think so, but how fast/slow ? Maybe Kreatur is the only elf the Black family has ever had ? Also, with what we know about the gobelins/wizard relationship, we can also think the magical binding between elves and wizards was a scam or the result of a conflict of some sort ? Let me know what you think about these ^^ Have a nice day !
@@korie4198 True ! I remember now ! Also I thought of something else in the meantime, maybe there was a war between elves and wizard and the prisonners of war were made slaves ?
I think you touched on a possible issue with your theory. Just a small portion. That's along the evolution portion. It seems to me that many of the house elves had limited freedom outside of the home, possibly only when it came to running chores. But, they may also be allowed to take leave as long as it doesn't interfere with their chores or duties. So, it could be along these lines that the breading happens. Do they have their own living areas in the estate they stay in? That seems likely, and possibly separate. Now that all depends on how wealthy their owners are, and what freedom they are allotted. It's also possible that another species subjugated the elves, like the goblins. Then they were gifted or traded to the wizard world later?
Sorry but I believe differently. I think that elves and goblins are the same species of creatures (since if I am not wrong those are the only two human like creatures who are gifted with speech as even giants like Grawp needed to learn the human tongue). Just like in the older days the initial human societies were divided into 2 (people who owned land and those who didn't, aka, bourgeoise and proletariats), these creatures are also divided into two distinct group. Those who can do some kind of skilled labour are the goblins and those who do semi skilled or un skilled labour are the elves. It so happened that over the years the elves became poorer and poorer because they were satisfied with what they did. But on the contrary, since goblins managed the whole economy of the wizarding world of Britain (especially the 2 wars) and didn't let Voldemort or his minions control them, they became more and more respected by the wizards. And since they were the sole caretakers of very powerful magical artefacts (like Hegla Huffelpuff's cup, Philosopher's stone, etc.) and reputable for their security features, all the goblins were deemed powerful because the wizards never got to know the goblins too well. This may be also why the goblins had the audacity to revolt in the past. In short, those with a stronger self esteem became Goblins and those without a self esteem became goblins. This is also why Dobby could revolt against the Malfoys because somewhere in his genes, he had that self esteem of a Goblin.
When I wrote my fanfic of HP, I explained it as a magical contract--a wizard 'captures' an elf through guile (usually tricking the elf into taking something the wizard owns such as food) and then demanding compensation for the theft. The 'compensation' of course, is lifetime servitude. There is an 'escape clause' of: "when the elf has suitably compensated the wizard, the wizard shall show this by gifting the elf a possession," which traditionally has been an article of clothing. I based all of this on the myth of the brownies that helped the cobbler make his shoes at night and once the cobbler was satisfied with their work, he gave them suits of clothing that his wife made for them.
In my mind the elves are immortal as long as they have a master, and when given clothing, the immortality spell is broken and they can now age and die. Dobby's abuse under the Malfoys was so bad that he wanted to give up his immortality so he wouldn't have to serve them
We know that (most) wizards have a massive superiority complex. Even Dumbledore thought that wizards should rule over others at one point. It's not hard to believe that a long time ago wizards saw elves as a threat because they are powerful but also thought they would make good slaves. We know blood curses are a thing, it's completely possible a powerful wizard found a way to place a blood curse and a few select elves that forced them to work for magical families and then killed off others they found in the wild.
They can touch clothes. You just can't give them clothes. So if you toss a sock to your elf and say "clean this" then that isn't the same as handing them an old sock that is trash and house elves are allowed to do with trash as they choose. That counts as giving it into their ownership of they choose to accept it.
@@TheLastKentuckyIrregular9524 I guess this means every time Lucius handed Dobby a basket full of laundry he has remind him; "These clothes are not for you Dobby"
@@barbiquearea Perhaps, though I think it has more to do with whether or not the elves are expected to handle the item(s) and how they perceive it. Harry's sock wasn't owned by Lucius nor did he intentionally give it to Dobby, but Dobby chose to recognize his offhand disposal as an offer of freedom. Doing Lucius' laundry would be a task, and the clothing would distinctly not be under the ownership of Dobby. But Lucius' probably did need to be very careful about disposing of old clothes around the elf.
I think you got it wrong about the origins of the powers of the elves . They are not bound to a master but the house . Remember when Dumbledore wanted to know if Harry was the real master of 12 square Grimmauld . He says there was an easy test . If he was really the owner of the house so Kreattur must obey him. By the way , there is another theory why elves are bound to serve the wizards. Ancient magic the same magic who protect the dragon.
My theory is that elves are unable to use wands. Dobby disarmed narcissa malfoy with ease, but didn't use the wand at all. 🤔 but theres probably way more to it.
Hearing elves so many times in the video made me think of Santa in this universe and how it could easily make sense given wizards longer life spans and elves being totally loyal to their masters
If I had to guess, I’d say the House Elf compulsion to obedience is the result of two things. 1) centuries of selective breeding and 2) an ancient curse of some kind placed upon the entire species. The reason for this curse could be anything. But it explains why even a rebellious elf like Dobby has a strange compulsion to self harm when disobedient. It could also just be a psychological disorder caused by their situation, but I’m no psychologist.
What if house elves are actually more like dogs than humans? I mean working dogs love their work, love their masters, and are extremely loyal just like house elves. Perhaps they were even domesticated like dogs. If you think of them more like dogs then it makes sense why most wizards weren't too concerned about paying them so long as they weren't mistreated.
the thought ive always had was they are brownie,* in English and Scottish folklore, a small, industrious fairy or hobgoblin believed to inhabit houses and barns. Rarely seen, he was often heard at night, cleaning and doing housework; * in their lore you leave out sweets and they wont trash your house and be content with doing chores. now how they are enslaved, if they were a organized species a leader may have been tricked to enslaving the group with a magical contract without knowing how serious it was. the clothing part is probably the termination clause. as for how they make more elves there is probably breeders who sell fixed ones and keep and trade good ones for breeding. its a wild concept but answers a good bit
I was always with Hermione and SPEW. I would have proudly bought one of her badges. I could never understand why Harry and Ron kept making fun of her for trying to help an enslaved group of people.
We always saw House Elf "enslavement" through the eyes of Dobby, an admitted anomaly, and people like Harry and Hermione, who were raised in the muggle world. Ron and Hagrid, and the opinions of other elves, all say the same thing; the House Elves LIKE the way they live. They choose to serve. There are these weird rules like the self-punishment, but the only people who ever referred to them as enslaved are Dobby, Hermione, and possibly Dumbledore. They are exactly where they want to be. They enjoy the tasks that they do. Stop thinking of them through the lens of human values. Remember, goblins also have very different values than humans do.
One thing you left out of your controlled breeding argument is the topic of wizards’ magic. We have seen that there are certain types of magic that can carry on through bloodlines. The Greengrass’s affliction of Blood Malediction, the ability of Parseltongue, and Lupin’s fear that he has passed his own condition of Lycanthropy to his son. My guess is that there exists a form of magic that binds a moderately magical creature, a house elf, to a family or bloodline. Thereby increasing their own magical potential. House elves do seem to be at their most powerful level when they are acting in the service of others and not themselves.
Its probably something as simple as there was a war years ago, wizards and witches won and the condition was each elf born would serve wizards until that wizards feels like freeing them. Almost like a binding contract but all these theories are so good.
I've heard that everywhere I won't bother. It seems they are planning to cancel making the other two fbs that were planned, because they are not making money. That's what some say anyway.
Perhaps the hostages sent from tributary states to the Imperial center might be a fun concept. If the nation of free elves agreed to provide a tribute of servants and put a hereditary bind on those sent, much would be explained.
There is also the theory of the use of dark magic, such as Imperio, which is forbidden because there is no counter or cure. In fact, the elves exhibit symptoms of a geas - an ancient Irish magic that serves as a binding vow, potentially providing a benefit, but always coming with a curse of punishment for breaking that vow, which can extend beyond death, and span across generations.
My personal thought is the reason they punish themselves is that, when they were “given” to a wizard, they made a promise, similar to the unbreakable vow, so they end up punishing themselves whenever they speak ill of their master, to offset whatever punishment their promise would cause. As for the elves being enslaved, maybe they were, in general, like brownies - small beings who did chores in exchange for gifts of food. And because clothing makes brownies leave forever (look it up) it became a way to free themselves from contracts... I mean, Jo knows about Boggarts, so I’d be surprised if she wasn’t 100% thinking of brownies when she made house elves... I mean, they are essentially the same thing, except brownies are more mischievous... though I’d suppose generations of breeding only the most well-behaved would explain that...
I read a theory once that the elves in the HP universe were originally powerful magical human toddlers, who had been magically morphed by a dark wizard to serve as slaves for him.
I think a very important detail is that throughout the series, every time these creatures are mentioned, they're specifically referred to as "House Elves," implying distinction is important; there may be other kinds of elves out there. We don't really see much of the world in the series, only Britain and the surrounding members of the U.K. in terms of families and such. Book 4 is really the only glimpse we have of other countries, and elves historically hail from Norse mythology, i.e. Sweden, Denmark and Norway. It's possible that other nations have their own elves that may be quite different. I'm of the opinion that house elves could be enslaved due to some kind of penance or punishment involving humans that took place long ago. Maybe there was a war between them, where elves with more advanced magic fought against humans and their rising magical powers, seeing them as a threat. Humans won, and as part of the terms of their surrender, house elves were placed under magical indentured servitude. Over the years this servitude evolved into outright enslavement, imbibed with some kind of genetic magical curse that makes it naturally difficult for them to raise their hands against humans. It would help explain why even free elves are so unwilling to take payment for work, and why they are compelled to help humans to the point of self-inflicted harm when they fail to follow through with orders or make harmful comments against them.
My own theory from what the books told (no pottermore) is that house elfs started out wild, but then found the humans and their chores. And they by magic nature loved doing the chores of humans in secret, creating tales of them. The wizards discovered the elfs, and they made pacts with them but started to mistreat them. The elfs took it on their servant mentality, but they are still sentient, and like Dobby can rebel against extreme mistreatment. I know it is a stretch, but many of the magical beings in the Harry Potter univers have natures and abilities specific in interaction with humans. It also somewhat falls in line with what Nick said about a good houseelf is not known to its owner. I like to think that the elfs like being slaves and doing human work by their magical nature, which is not obligated to make conventional sense to humans, but I could be completely wrong, and I am not set in stone on this.
Another very popular theory is that Elves are bound by an Oath, like an unbreakable vow, to serve wizards. The most likely explanation given in this theory is that Elves are attuned to magic and feed off it, and that the Oath between a wizard and an Elf stipulate that the Wizard's line will feed him. Of course, this would mean that the Elves enslavement is unnecessary, since an Oath can be worded differently to, for example, pay them, give them vacations etc for their services, PLUS the magic. But it's not said anywhere that Ancient Wizards (and even modern) weren't barbaric and opportunistic
I think there is something to the notion that wizards bred house elves under controlled forms sinister as it may seem. As you said, there are wild elves too and considering that the species is formally knows as *house* elves as a distinction to their wild counterpart there are way too many similarities to be found with how we in real life has created an entire new species known as *house* cats originally bred from wild animals.
Umm Dobby did actually like to do housework the only thing he wanted was be be free at the same and example get paid. That's why when he went to work a hogwarts with Winky, Hermione said he should have more days off but he said that he likes to work so he doesn't want any more days off
I'm pretty sure that a war was explicitly mentioned where wizards won and thus a magical treaty was written. This is why magical creatures are not allowed wands and they seem to be compelled to certain things, with certain exceptions of magic-resistant creatures like the Giants. I imagine that part of the war involved wand theft. I also believe that the war is why the elves' numbers are so low, most of them were likely killed off as the greatest threat to the wizards.
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What if the house-elves and their descendants became subject to a curse or enchantment of some kind.
A combination of the imperious curse and the unbreakable vow which could be passed from parent to child
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I honestly don't remember the House Elves playing a role in the battle for Hogwarts. I only read the books once though, and there was a fire that destroyed all my books. I'll have to hit the library, I guess.
My 34 yr old daughter and I both did and were always curious about the history of the elves.
@@edmundprice5276k
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I loved how eventually Kreacher became genuinely loyal & caring to Harry. Also how it simply shows the difference between mistreatment and good treatment.
Wonder why more channels don’t cover this it was interesting. Kreacher was obviously abused for years and had Trauma because of it. So it’s natural that he was wary or even hostile to Harry’s treatment at first as even Sirius had treated him poorly.
@@RaycastAF Yep and to be fair with Sirius, Kreacher was just an additional reminder of his family & the problems it had.
@@RaycastAF Kreatcher basically had PTSD from watching Regulas sacrifice himself to steal Voldemort horocrux. Kreatcher definitely stepped up to protect his master Harry.
@@Jessidafennecfox and voldemort forced him drink the portion of disparity
@@RaycastAF I'm quite sad that they didn't show this part of the story in the film. It would explain so much about that horcrux and how it ended up stolen from that basin. Instead it was covered in mystery making that plot unfinished.
I always held the theory that House-Elves were bound by an inherited variation on the unbreakable vow made by a common ancestor.
Wouldn't that mean if an Elf broke the unbreakable vow they would simply die, if so that would be untrue to the story as we see Dobby break this "inherited variation" of the unbreakable vow multiple times. Unless your suggesting the vow was to serve the master until he or she presented him with an item of clothing. Please specify.
@@battyshagz7779 that’s where I felt it must be a variant of that charm. It rather than binding them to it by threat of death, they are bound by magic to obey, unless cast aside by the owner.
Yes, that was also my thought while watching this: a powerful, transgenerational spell. Something like a curse that is passed down from parents to offsprings. Maybe their personalities adapted to cope with their new reality. Or perhaps they were already a meek, handy race to begin with.
@@KIP-JRTFB359 I understand, this is one of the more plausible theories as to why House Elves are so willing and loyal despite their immense power and mental dexterity, thank you for specifying
@@battyshagz7779 He does not refuse a single order until freed. The self-punishment is likely a condition designed to preserve their life when edging to disloyalty.
Interestingly enough, Dobby never stopped serving wizards. He just started serving Harry and the order instead.
All House Elf owners should have treated their Elves like Harry treated Dobby. He never needed Hermione to tell him either.
@@karlbergen6826 are you actually saying " we all need to be good slavemasters" xD
While that is true, the difference is that Dobby was given the choice and he CHOSE to help Harry. He didn't have to but wanted to and that made all the difference. He could finally have control over his own life.
@@ich3730
No the opposite. House Elf Owner must be kind to their elves. I can't see any joy in being me to them.
@@karlbergen6826 still pressing that wizards should own a sentient, living being, whether kind or cruel
My own theory is that perhaps the wizards and elves fought each other in a war centuries ago and the elves lost. As part of their surrender, they were collectively put into some sort of binding magical contract which requires them to serve a wizarding family. We know wizards have fought against other intelligent magical beings such as goblins, so I don't think it's a stretch to say they may have fought elves in the past. Additionally, I don't think the natural selection argument works when you factor in the loophole of giving elves clothes so they earn their freedom. If they were bred for centuries to be loyal servants, giving them such an easy way to earn their freedom seems like a huge oversight. Now on the other hand if the elves served wizards as a condition of losing in a war, I could see the act of giving an elf freedom as more plausible should the family decide that the elf had "paid their dues" of sort. I think this would actually make for a strong motivator for the elves if they believe that being a good servant may one day earn them their freedom
Yeah this theory makes a lot more sense to me. The conditions of enslavement seem a bit too specific to be the result of breeding. We've been breeding dogs since caveman times but they still don't physically punish themselves for disobedience or automatically become free from the authority of their human upon something as specific as giving them clothing
I agree with this theory.
I like this theory. And there is a real life example of how the Spartans conquered their neighbors the Messinians, and then enslaved the population, turning them into helots. The helots were the slaves of the Spartan upper class, making up the backbone of their economy, as well as acting as domestic servants to the elites. And helots were virtually 'bred' to be servants, as any rebellious helots would be singled out and killed immediately, while the Spartans also imposed psychological warfare and propaganda on them to make their forced servitude more appealing than going against the grain, with many even becoming very devoted to their station. In fact during the Boeotian War where Sparta went to war with Thebes and Thebes took a large part of their territory, they liberated the helots living there. Some Thebans even ordered a group of Laconian helots to recite their anthem, but they refused on the grounds that doing so would displease their masters, even though they no longer had any power of them.
I like the idea of how the bond of servitude originated but I think over time, presumably centuries, since the contract began it seems it’s taken a deeper cultural role in house elf society. If you recall the house elves that worked at Hogwarts were actually not seeking freedom and were quite content and proud of their service and would become insulted if someone tried to pay them or otherwise reward them for their service. In fact even some of the more miserable house elves such as Kreacher never appeared to seek freedom.
There is nothing in your statement, except the mention of goblins, that is backed up by book Canon.
Kreacher is such a great character. Went from hating mudbloods and non purebloods and being loyal to dark Wizards to seeing how kind and caring harry, Hermione and Ron are towards house elves and "lesser" races. Becomes truly loyal to Harry and loving him in the end. When he rallies the house elves of hogwarts to fight the death eaters in the Great hall with forks and knives its hard not to get teary eyed
An inspiration to minimum wage workers everywhere!
that's the way of dignifying house-elves, just good treatment
Have you ever heard the classic tail “the elves and the shoemaker“?
In this story and old shoemaker wakes up one morning to find that leather he has put out the night before has been magically made into a pair of shoes. He sells the shoes by twice as much leather and the next morning there are two pairs of shoes made this goes on. One night the shoemaker and his wife hide to watch the leather that has been put out to see what happens. They find that two tiny elves in rage appear in the night and make the shoes. The Shoemaker and his wife want to thank the elves for helping them to become so prosperous so they make them tiny clothes and tiny shoes and leave them out. They hide and watch as the elves appear the next night find the clothes and rejoice! The elves never come back.
I believe the story is J. K. Rowling‘s inspiration for House elves. Elves dressed in rags that, unseen, work for the master of the house until they are given proper clothes and us are free to leave.
The Shoemaker and his wife in the story were unaware of the elves existence and once they were they immediately made them clothes and set them free. Whether or not these elves were actually bound until receiving clothes is unclear but as I said, could easily be the inspiration. It all seems to fit.
This however, does not explain the full history of house elves in the Harry Potter world.
Yeah i remember reading that story when i was younger
Yes this explaines it it’s the same in the movie if u give en elf a pice of cloth he’s free
How interesting. Hadn't heard that one before. Thank you so much for sharing it
Makes total sense
That seems like the source of the design. If you want a reason that makes sense I would make it so there are free Elves and with there magic so powerful they punish there criminals with a curse that they must serve Wizards as penance for there crimes.
Hah, good point! I knew the story but never made the connection
I like the "wild elf" theory and would like to add to it..
What if many, many centuries ago the Elf population split into two different groups. One group desired a peaceful existence. They worked the land, farming, fishing, hunting and gathering. They knew the value of hard work. It's how they lived.
The other group were more warlike. They constantly attacked the villages of the peaceful group taking whatever they wanted and killing whoever got in their way.
The peaceful group of elves were brought to the brink of extinction and went to the Wizarding world for help. The Wizarding world was willing to help, just not for free. The elves had nothing to offer other than their own servitude and thus entered into a magical agreement to serve the Wizarding community.
The Wizarding community wiped out the warlike elves completely. There is no mention of this in any history book because as Hermione would say, the Wizarding world tends to gloss over any atrocities they may have committed throughout history.
Over the ensuing centuries subservience is ingrained into the elves. They adopt the name "house elves" and evolved to what house elves are today.
That shared ancestry with the warlike elves would explain anomalies like Dobby.
Also, as to why Elf magic is stronger. The trademark of a good house elf is to go about their work unnoticed. House elves would have observed their masters performing magic unnoticed for centuries. It stands to reason that they would have observed weaknesses in wizard/witch magic. They would have never pointed any of this out to their masters as it wasn't their place to do so. But they could use those observations to better their own magic. Gradually over the centuries it all added up to the point that elf magic surpassed wizard magic.
One personal theory I have with the house elves is that there simply aren’t many of them. That Wizard kind in a potential uprising would outnumber the house elves 20 to 1. Powerful as they may be, those numbers combined with their docile nature and small size does not fare well for them.
Maybe even 50 or 100 to 1. Also, what sort of money to the house elves have? If there was a race war, what side would other races side with?
@@terrierislander1 good chance they’d side with the house elves - wizards being racist supremacists is a lot of what brings the races to Voldemort’s side in the wizard wars. The giants, for example, who Dumbledore wants to recruit but Fudge essentially blocks with his racism
*fare
@@potato6785 history has shown that factions don’t ally with the most good willed group but chooses the alliance that will benefit them the most. The wizards would likely make better promises. They are the faction that is best able to rule the top of the magical world. Why? Because they can blend in with the muggles, live among, influence the world Among them, unlike house elves. Also power in numbers is the nunmber one reason why muggles hold the most power
Given the fact that house elves live with the day to day of wizards and as such privy to many of their private affairs. Wouldn't it be kinda simple to quickly understand that the humans wouldn't be a united front once they actually gain independence? And hence would just need to ally with the ppl to that would side with their cause? Like Hermione.
That said going by folklore. Elves or the fey in general tend to help humans out of a natural inclination. Like how in legends they'd fix your shoes, clean your house and give you gold. But the moment you show gratitude (I guess in the HP world its the form of giving clothing). They'll leave your home.
JK Rowling just went civil rights with it for no real reason but to push her agenda. But the fey are really meant to be a kind of force of nature. Like good luck and bad luck. Like you're just as likely to be blessed by the elves as you are cursed by them.
I think they are more based on the folklore brownie, a house spirit or hobgoblin and were named elves based on pointy ears and name recognition. Their servitude is a part of their magical nature and perhaps acts like a curse on rules they must obey, almost like part of a story or fairy tale.
They're definitely based on them. They game freedom when they're giving clothes and brownies in fairy tails will disappear if they're given clothes. I was not aware that there was anyone who knew that brownies and did not think this
I don't think house elves are actually superior to wizards in terms of magical ability and especially martial magic. Its more likely that most witches and wizards have been lulled into a false sense of security over house elves and don't consider them a threat. This complacency could also explain how Dobby was able to help Harry under Lucius's nose and how he was able to rescue Harry and co from Malfoy Manor despite the danger they were in. I also assume their ability to apparate in and to most places that have restrictive charms place on them was by design. Its not that their magic overrides security charms that prevents normal apparations, its just that they are not seen as enough of a threat to warrant blocking their ability to apparate. Plus allowing them to apparate anywhere allows them to do their jobs more effectively as domestic servants, and immediately be at the beck and call of their masters.
But don't forget that Dobby knocked Lucius on his ass by just snapping his fingers, so he obviously had some level magical mastery if he was able to do that.
Regulas Blacks house elf was not able to leave the dark cave until he was called back by him. Then he could get out.
@@Joreel devils advocate. Lucius’ surprise at having any offensive magic leveled at him by a house elf still accounts for that. Disarmament which sends one flying is an extremely basic spell not denoting mastery necessarily (Harry’s favorite)
@@ricthomas9788 was he ordered into that cave? I can't remember, if so that's why he couldn't leave.
I think your theory has a lot of merit and a lot of sense to me. Wizards like the Malfoy family have the attitude of superiority that no one especially an elf can beat them in terms of magic. They prove that in almost every book and movies.
One of the common theories I've found among fans is the idea that elves seem to need a wizard master or at least an employer like Hogwarts or MACUSA (there's a scene in FB1 where a house elf is cleaning there). I've seen a few variations on why they would need such a situation. We never really see house elves consume anything in cannon except Winky who basically is drinking all the time, so one version of the theory I've seen floated around is that house elves need a magic source to survive. They have their own form of magic, or are able to channel what they have access to, but when cut off they pretty much starve, or loose their casting ability which would have made them very vulnerable.
As such, that's why they don't seek freedom or need compensation and why, no matter how badly they're treated, they remain loyal or punish themselves. Freedom is equivalent to a death sentence (survival instinct is powerful). Which is why Hogwarts provides sanctuary for any house elf, and why Dobby is seen as so crazy by his fellow elves. As to the gifting of clothing, that seems more symbolic, a ceremonial symbol agreed upon that severs the connection between an employer and elf, where its originates from I couldn't tell you.
As to why there only seems to be one elf per family, we've only seen a single elf in very small households (the Malfoys are numbered 3 and Sirius is the last member of his), so it could be that the number of elves is based upon the number of magical people (since Hogwarts houses hundreds and has enchantments with dozens of elves working there, there's a larger magic source). If Elves need an external magic source, it would make since that the larger the source the more elves that could be supported. We don't know how long elves live for, so it could also be that they have a mating cycle or a low fertility rate that requires specific circumstances or makes child bearing very difficult. Maybe a pregnant elf needs much more magic to carry to term.
We also see that Dobby ends up serving Harry much like he did the Malfoys, although it's not explicitly shown. Likewise, despite having the same amount of Black blood as Draco, Harry is recognized as Sirius's heir because he can command Kreacher, showing that transfer of the source isn't necessarily based on blood but master discretion or perhaps a free elf's own (Dobby is a crazy outlier and I love him).
Good theory, I'm just thinking of the summer holidays in hogwarts. Wouldn't the house elves starve if the students are not around for a long period like this?
@@MsKatastrophenBarbie I'm pretty sure some students get to stay in hogwarts over the holidays, it's only that Harry has to go back to maintain the protection spell.
@@snapeinvader I'm very positive they are not allowed to stay 2 months. Otherwise Tom Riddle would never have gone back to the orphanage over summer holidays as stated on pottermore. I think we can consider pottermore info canon.
Dumbledoor tried to hire him and give him 10 galleons a week and Dobby said it was too much and wanted less money
I do like the whole genetic/dna theory ! :D I don’t think dobby hated serving them I think he hated the beatings and felt it would be disrespectful to ask them to stop so his only real hope was for his master to give dobby clothes
he did want to work for people that threated him well and gave him some type of payment. (We see that in the 4th book when harry mistakes the female elf for beeing dobby)
I like the theory of there being "wild" elves. Haven't heard that one before and it's totally possible
Maybe "wild" elves are actually goblins. They do look very similar.
Me neither but mind you, it could be tied in well.
I do recall an old tale of the Muggle shoe maker who was visited by some wild elves and made hundreds of pairs for him in a single night as he slept. Free but keen to assist and serve, they would simply do good turns for muggles in there surroundings.
It amused the local Wizard family for it was never malicious and they were also served by them. (Not all families have a house elf) and they certainly couldn't afford a domestic one. So kept it as a village secret that passed down into muggle fairytale.
@@xPadge112x I love this 🥰
@@mochablondie Thanks. Il be honest that's usually not me. Haven't written anything since high school 15 years ago.
I'd just had my surgery yesterday so was feeling inspirational in recovery probably I don't really recall doing it.
So thanks for posting I got a chance to read it myself haha felt like I was on the moon most of yesterday. I wouldn't of dared post that as I am, glad it made you smile though.
@@xPadge112x It really did make me smile, your theory fit right in! I always loved that story growing up and love how you told it with a twist. Makes perfect sense! I'm glad you got to enjoy your own lovely comment, too lol. 😁 Hoping you recuperate quickly!
I never took Dobby punishing himself as a genetic or personality concept. I always took it that he was put through punishment training, and now anytime he disobeys his master he has been mentally programed to torture himself as he has always been tortured.
I always thought Lucius or Draco just told the elf to punish himself if it fucked up, because they were too lazy to do it themselves.
@@BigMisterApple It? Are you a Malfoy?
Shut up light
Abused kids also punish themselves to reduce acute anxiety
Im pretty sure its genetic. He has to obey his master which naturally implies punishment in case he somehow brings himself to disobey him.
I think is a form of domestication. The fact that they are called “House elf” and not just “Elf”make me think there are other kind of elven people around the world. Maybe it happened a bit like we domesticated dogs, maybe some clan of elfs found themselves living side to side with wizards kind. With the wizard and human number increasing they started to have to accept jobs like cleaning and taking care of the house. Slowly, overtime, they became dependent of the human for food or shelter, maybe they change physically as well, making them unsuitable for the life their race use to live. Like wolves became dogs, so this elven people start to grew shorter and more loyal to the wizards, they lost the knowledge of their own magic and culture and just found happiness in their task. I can see wizard breeding them, they are pretty much considered as property, and maybe the younger elfs get trained to serve a family. Maybe at some point a binding charm was implemented, to show the ownership of each house elf.
Hope I’m wrong, cause it sound like a really sad existence:(
could be the old theory of elves being the ones who introduced humans to magic, only to be subjugated by them -- despite their superior magical abilities -- due to the superior numbers of wizardkind. and the slave/master dynamic could be a blood curse?
That's interesting and kind of what I was thinking. I've seen a lot of fantasy stories that has that storyline. Do you know Is that pretty old lore?
One of the books put out by Rowling that supported or elaborated the Harry Potter books had a mention of elves. In it, Elves were entered using the same helpful elf idea as the ones from the Old Cobbler story. They "want" to be helpful, is the reason that they eventually became bonded servants.
The wild free elves -theory is one I've never heard but it makes me happy for some reason. Dobby belonged with them. House-elves are a fascinating subject, thanks for the great content once again ♥
My view was that during a goblin war with wizard kind, house elves sides WITH the Goblins. Upon their defeat, they were so ashamed, they agreed to this magical contract. This has been centuries and centuries ago, and this new value system is now all encompassing...with very, very few outliers.
As far as House Elves procreation, i think there is a reason for male and female house elves. But, house elves have contracts with particular families...which means once the house elf dies, the next offspring takes their honored place...like a coming of age ceremony.
In the swedish translation of Harry Potter, the gobilns were called ”mörkalver” dark elves. I always thought they and the ”husalver” house elves where one and the same species.
In Scandinavia there is a dark race called laps. The are much like Eskimos (and probably related). Many Scandinavians look down on them. This would explain how the Navajo Native Americans were successful in infiltrating Nazi Germany simply passing themselves of as Laps. (Also known as Sami people.) (I'm assuming Laps sometimes come to Germany. They tend to be nomadic.) Most people don't even know they.exist.
@@karlbergen6826 YOu should not call them by any other name than Sami (and they are not dark, if you put a Finn and a Sami next to one another in same clothes, you might not always differentiate them from one another just from their looks), as that is their own name, and lapland is area in Finland only people living there would be called that, but Sami as a whole should not be called it's considered kind of racists. Also they are Finno-ugric people, related to Finns, Estonians and some other minority ethicities in Russia. Finns are not Scandinavian either. They are not related to Eskimos, as I said their relatives on top of Finns and Estonians, originally come from around ural mountains, Uralic people,. Though some of the relations are only find through linquistic routes as it has been so long since that all happened.
@@Hiekkalinna it sounds racist
@@Hiekkalinna YOU missed the entire point of their comment. 😂
@@Hiekkalinna I have heard that only white people can be racist so naturally Sami are racist.
But here is the thing... are they really that powerful???
Sure, they can apparate where anti-apparation is put in place, but that could be due to using an entirely different system rather than being better. And their spells are kinda simplistic and limited...
Like, bows and arrows are easier to make and have effects, but the gun is superior...
Rather, it seems that the main danger of house-elves are the fact that they are underestimated and looked down upon so easily instead...
I can see that, in other works of fiction there are often times many different schools of magic. IE nature magic, black/white, or spirit. And they often times do not overlap in terms of compatibility but sometimes have similar effects. Or to put it a bit more simply, 2 x 2 = 4 but 1 + 3 = 4 as well. Same outcome different means.
Yea, a bow and arrow gets through a metal detector but that doesn't make it superior.
I’m surprised you didn’t talk about the enslavement being a social construct and psychological abuse for generations. I think that’s what really kept them enslaved, even endure physical abuse like Dobby did.
I was astonished he didn't talk about it !! Generational trauma is powerful it creates long-lasting schemes
its J.K. rowling dude, Dont put more thought into her books then she did xD
I mean the books show how racist the wizards are tomard any other species (even with muggles and mix-blood wizards). The poor Hermione was gaslighted in the third book because she want elves rights.
@@LOSTmyHOST the elves didn’t really seem to care and how are you gonna convince people that they wanna be free if they themselves don’t really bother and when given freedom end up doing the same/similar somewhere else. If I remember right she goes to the kitchen at Hogwarts with all the elves in the kitchen and they all seemed to be pretty happy. It could also be possible elves were either created by, or molded by humans and without them they, like other species dependent on us, would die out or change massively without us.
@@eljay_sys excuses
The elves as they appear in HP stories are far more closely linked to the original European ideas of elves, pre-Tolkien. Don't confuse what is currently accepted and known worldwide about fantasy Elves with the original. Tolkien changed much about Elves to make them less evil and more fantastically wonderful.
Original elves from folklore are mischievous to wicked. Not absolutely evil, not by a long shot, but when the old tales were told, and the old superstitions held sway, people did not want to be caught by elves. They were small - childlike in size - and not to be trusted.
We've seen a lot in the HP books that is drawn from old British and European folk-lore and made into something else. That is what I believe happened "in the world of HP", done very cleverly by Rowling. Idea only, but it falls more in line with European folk-lore (from which elves exclusively come - they do not appear in any other folk-lore before Tolkien wrote his masterpieces):
The elves, in the past, were a menace to Muggle and Wizard alike. At some point, someone managed to cast a spell over the entire race to change them, stop them being a threat. It worked, but bound the elves to wizards in a symbiotic relationship that wasn't expected nor intended. Wizards found that it was useful, and it did stop the many troubles this powerful race of mischief makers could cause. Over time, over the centuries, it grew into something not altogether wholesome. The elves became enslaved to their families. And some (obviously) mistreated them.
It's just what I think might have happened. Makes a lot more sense than the theories put forth here. Something like this couldn't happen with the "Elves" as we know them post-Tolkien, nor would it have been necessary. Pre-Tolkien elves, however... much different beast.
i agree, there is a fairy tale that tells about poor shoemaker and how little people/elves used to appear at night, so that no one can see them, and help him to make shoes. It was all nice and all until shoemakers wife and him decided to pretend they are asleep and actually caught them working. When the wife decided to present them with their own small shoes as a thank you, elves got very happy, but they stopped working and left after that. Here you can clearly see three elements of what JKR used in her books: elves like to help, they prefer not to be seen when working, they stop working after presented with shoes (or cloths).
@@_Diana_S And that's one of the good stories. Some European areas, the tales are less... nice. But I remember that one. My grandmother told it to me as a child. Can't remember the details, but yes, it has all the elements needed to pull to create "house elves".
I liked the idea of house elves being inspired by Brownies, who would move into people's homes and do housework at night, when no one would see them, in exchange for food. But they would grow insulted if given almost anything else, and if given clothes they would put them on and never come back.
So my favorite theory is that before muggles started hunting magical folk, house elves would place themselves within muggle homes as well. Due to the aforementioned witch hunt, this practice steadily declined. So when the 'Statute of Secrecy' was signed the practice was ended entirely. House Elves still enjoy house work and take pride in doing it well, so they now serve wizards exclusively.
@@kyra8901 Makes sense to me. I'd forgotten the stories I'd heard about Brownies. Thanks
It is the other way around.
Tolkien REVIVED the pre-Christian European concept of elves.
It was Christianity that turned the noble, divine-adjacent creatures into evil earth spirits.
Harry once remarked that house-elves were better at performing advanced magic than wizards. Despite this, house-elves must obey commands given by their masters, but they are capable of finding loopholes on occasion.
I think Slytherin was experimenting. He crossed a Squib with a goblin and accidentally invented the House Elf. From there they have been bred over the years to be subservient .
One thing i always alluded the house elves story and how when they are given clothes they are free is the story of the Elves and the Shoemaker how when the elves were given clothes in the story they danced and were never seen again, i know they were never in servitude but always thought it was a similar thing
“Indentured servitude”
Nah, it’s slavery
And it seems like psychological manipulation & generational trauma rather than biological factors causing emotional breakdowns when they express/realize their exploitation & abuse
Can we all just take a moment to thank this man for putting his script in the description.
Or it could have been that the house elves were so argumentative and self destructive between themselves that a weaker group realised their only way to survive was to become subservient to the more passive humans and so bound themselves to the humans for protection from the other elves.
I always thought the house elves were put into a magical binding contract with owners
I've wondered if there isn't a connection between goblins and house elves - if they might share a common origin?
I like to think that the strong elven magical power comes from a magical contract, as the most powerful magic most times comes with heavy repurcussions or prerequesits, it could be that the magical power from elves comes from a centuries old contract to serve the wizards and thus makes it hard or impossible to revolt against that. Maybe they lose all their magical powers if they decide to go against their master.
Here's a few thoughts. The house elves are not bound to ONE place or house, just the families they serve. Like when Dobby shows up at Harry's muggle family's house. That's proof of free will too. Yet IF he were summoned by a member of his household Dobby could be there in mere seconds, as if he'd just came from another room like a human. It only took Dobby seconds to remove Olivander & Luna to safety from the Malfoy house & be right back to be of further help. Not being bound to the Malfoys anymore didn't phase that. Who is to say they don't have a mate elsewhere that they support while they work away from them? May be that they can not procreate any longer because of enslavement & are forbidden to "fraternize" with other elves or are made sterile at the time of their Masters taking ownership of them by the magical contract for life long servitude. That's a dark thought but possible as to insure loyalty only to the humans. I think a nursery of baby house elves would be a riot & much like the pixies! Might just be they are A-sexual & don't even think about it even if they are free. One has to have purpose in life, the elves are proud of theirs as a rule. Too bad we will never know how Dobby's life would have gone if JK had not killed him off.
I personally believe the House Elves (HE) are indeed "domesticated" elves, and became (ironically) domestic servants much like the English folkloric Brownie and Slavic "Domovoi". They were the friendlier of the elves and seeing humans (wizards) doing magic were drawn to them, and wizards to the elves. They formed a bond and sadly, as it is in most cases, humaniy's urge for power brought them to capturing and domesticating (to a point) the friendlier elves. In my belief though the Wild Elves (WE) live in nature behind a shroud / barrier which conceals them from unwelcomed eyes, causing the human be it Wizard or Nomaj, to become bewildered and lose all sense of time. To me the WE would be lead by a Queen and a King (after Titania and Oberon), but would be much more... mischievous. Having elf arrows to jinx people and of course causing other manner of mischief. I bring up this idea of WE being like so because British Folklore of elves causing cows milk to spoil and so on, but also of how in America there are Pukwudgies and both Reality and Wizarding world they tend to act like such too. Just my food for thought, and don't get me started on my head-theory of Goblin and Elves being sister species of magical creature.
Intriguing theory. I have a hard time though, imagining that elves ever needed, or required, the protection of human wizards. It seems far more likely to me that their state of servitude is the result of some sort of magical pact, contract, or binding curse, which had been abused, and became perverted, and twisted, over the centuries. Causing them to become reduced from being helpful allies to becoming slaves in bondage.
Their attitudes therefore, to my mind, are in one part caused by the binding magical contract in question, and also in one part something akin to Stockholm Syndrome. If servitude is the only existence they have ever known, then the concept of freedom may be truly terrifying to many of them. Unable to conceive of a life in which they are responsible only for their own happiness, and wellbeing, they may well feel that they no longer have any purpose at all.
Just a thought. CHEERS! ✨🍻✨✌
i read down the comments a bit to see if someone else had a similar idea to me.
i had a similar idea that at some point one or a few elves who wanted an easier life (so they thought) made some sort of unbreakable vow. and it snowballed from there. I elaborate in more detail on this in the comments myself.
Great video again.
That would be a good next video. Comparing all the different type of magics.
My small theory is that maybe far in the past a wizard saved the king or queen of the elves and because of that. The elf king or queen was so moved and grateful that he made a law or pledge that his kind would return the wizard's help by helping or being in service of all wizard kind, and because their king or queen made that decreee, all the elves wholeheartedly and happily accepted it. That's probably why almost all seems to love what they do and don't wanna leave and also punish themselves as well
I think it makes sense that magical creatures interact with magic differently in general. For instance we see a centaur perspective on divination for a bit there in the books
Also the house elves struck me as something similar to brownies or house spirits
Exactly. The house-elves always seemed like some form of Brownie to me. Brownies had the same conditions - they wanted work, but if you thanked them or gave them clothing they vanished. Think "The Cobbler and the Elves". This is old lore, part of the lore of the fae races. My own guess is that the high fae, the ones that looked like beautiful humans(only more so) and lived forever, the ones that rode in "The Fairy Rade" and sometimes stole children for pets or beautiful youths for lovers - basically the nobility of Underhill - wanted servants and created brownies & some other lower elf-types as perfect servants. As such, their social and emotional needs are encoded by the magic that made them. They need to work, they want to work. They must obey whomever they work for. However, some could have wandered off when their master died, looking for work, and found humans to work for (though ordinary folk might not be able to see them well, or maybe there's a proscription against being seen. That would explain why they fled when interacted with, as it proves they've been found out). And, in the case of the Wizarding World, they found wizards, who COULD see them and manipulate the magic that ruled them. I doubt they could remove the conditions they were created with, but they could probably manipulate them so that being seen wasn't the trigger, but rather being gifted with something they would only need if they ever left the house to go out on their own - clothing. Another thing that Brownies seem to need is for their masters to be "worthy" - usually you feed them bread & milk, and don't try to catch them or play tricks on them. They'll leave if not fed, or if you're mean to them. It's possible the wizards suppressed this, but it would be difficult to keep under wraps - could Dobby have slipped out from under those controls and recognized Harry as a "worthy" master and the Malfoys as "unworthy"? He can't get out of obeying the Malfoys, but he could help Harry as long as he had no direct order against it. Again, Brownies and other fae servants are known for being tricky even when they actually like you and are trying to help - they'll do it their own way, on their own schedule, and they sometimes enjoy making you look silly(not something their masters would have programmed in, but it seems to be a fae tendency in general - perhaps it could not be removed, or it only applies when they're dealing with humans). Remember Dobby trying to discourage Harry from returning to Hogwarts? He did so many things that were dangerous or made Harry look bad! I think he's a revert to the original design - though I admit I don't know why him and no other.
@@kristineweber8084 maybe they had an indentured servitude thing going on where wizards and witches offered a warm home or simply kindness and the elf swore a family debt. Which as they are magical creatures could have made their word magically binding innately. Not expecting the family to grow cruel down the line.
Though I do have to wonder how long they actually live, because if they can’t get that old this theory goes out the window.
@@conner8319 Not all the fae lived long lives. Not sure how long Brownies and other servant-types lived. I don't think they evolved naturally, or at least not alongside humans; in all stories they are always the same. I still think magic gene-engineering myself, just a really long time ago by another race, not humanity.
Good work and definetly an interesting topic.
If you need ideas for future videos here are two of my thoughts:
- How would the life of the now dead ones continue? (Dobby, Fred, Sirius, Remus, Lupin et cetera ...)
- What happend to Grimauld Place Number 12 ?
Is the Potter household there or in Godrics Hollow? OR
(as I would like to see the future of the building) an orphanage for young wizards?
Anyways - keep going and greetings from Germany.
Have you ever read fanfiction? All these, and many more topics are already described, in numerous variations, and colorful details, there. You can find the Potters living both at Grimmauld and in GH, as well as in Hogsmeade, completely new location in England, Alaska, etc. :)
I always thought elves seemed more natural than wizards, so their magic was more physical and free flowing, but not really more powerful. Wizards are more imaginative and ambitious so while they need a wand to do similar things as elves but they can go much bigger and more terrible than elves would even think of, making them more dangerous and dominating. I don't see any elf being about to combat a great wizard like Dumbledore casting a Firestorm or the ring of fire like Grindelwald.
Good point.
Wizards dont need wands, they use them to channel their magic. Before wands were created every wizard used their hands.
According to the theory of wild elves, I think that some wizards traped and tamed them to servitude with a binding contract that deprives house elves from their powers if they breakfree, maybe their lives as well.
Can you do a follow up comparing house elves and other HP elf beings to traditional elves of our folklore? You've really got my curiosity piqued.
House Elves are from the Fae lands and, according to legend and lore, Fae are very regimented in their dealings - a Fae does not offer assistance without manipulating the request to their own advantage and they are bound by the magic of Fae to uphold their bargains on threat to their own magic and even very lives. They're also prideful, vain, and swayed by those who cater to those vices.
At some point in the far distant past the mightiest of Elven Fae entered into a contract with a mortal wizard of extreme cunning and intelligence. Through this contract, all of the descendants of the elves would be bound to serve Humans until they were released by the direct action of the human they served - i.e. the gifting of clothing.
This is why the Elves in the HP universe are still bound and typically suffer extreme emotional trauma when their service is terminated. To them it is a breach of that ancient bargain (re: contract) and can have immediate affects upon the elf, particularly those released unwillingly. Most of this is entirely psychosomatic, however, as we can see that after his release Dobby's magic is not affected - though, perhaps, in the end his abrogation of the ancient contract does come due; he dies.
Also, as to their magic: House Elves are *true* sorcerers - they need no casting implements, rituals, gestures, or vocalizations which humans require to focus their magic since it is not an inherent PART of humans. Humans must channel through 'things' in the HP setting - typically Wands because that is an easily identifiable crutch and they can be fabricated via powerful enchantments to amplify as well as channel human magic. Elves can use wands, of course, but they do not naturally amplify elven magic. Other items can easily be enchanted to act as channeling and focusing implements; such as jewelry, household items and the like but they are less convenient and much more difficult to aim spells through. Horcruxes are an offshoot of wand making turned to dark purpose.
This might be a video or maybe one in the future, but considering human magic seems to origin from latin, and elven magic being stronger, maybe done in an elvish language, there could also be even stronger magic languages out there!
Eh, not all magic was latin... mostly just europeans. A lot of magic could be done without speaking any languages.
I wonder. Wizards have the power to magically command obedience (Imperious curse), and also to magically command adoration (like a love potion). Could there have been a permanent spell created that magically altered the elves as a species to love obeying and serving? Or maybe not so permanent. Maybe Dobby is proof that the spell is wearing off. Like the spell on an invisibility cloak. It might take centuries, and by then the elves have been socially programmed as well as enchanted.
Maybe this will be covered in the Hogwarts Legacy? There's the goblin war. I'd be interested to know if they include any backstory. We know wizards don't allow goblins to have wands bc 'they don't need them' according to Ron. But also bc the wizards won the war. I wonder if elves also had their own wizarding war too?
I was thinking the same about that game adressing racism. Maybe the goblins are fighthing for their rights???
It doesnt make sense that some goblins wouldnt just steal wands or buy them illegally.
All you have to do is research the brownie from Scottish folklore which was the inspiration for house elves. These brownies voluntarily would go to homes of muggles to clean and play pranks on lazy servants. However, if you left your clothing on the floor the brownie would leave your home forever. Perhaps because of their power house elves feel they have an obligation to care for lesser creatures such as humans. Consider Dobby for example. Even once "free", he pledged himself in service to Potter. Elves view humans as their pets. Just like I serve my cat, feed him, clean up after him. I am basically his house elf, we just don't have a binding magical contract.
So, if free elves by their nature seek to serve humans, it makes sense that at some point wizards would have offered to provide permanent lodging in exchange for a magical contract. The elves would have seen it as a way of fulfilling their desire to care for the lesser species and the wizards obviously get a loyal assistant.
However, as humans tend to do, some humans abuse this arrangement and come to see house elves as lesser beings. We primarily see this abuse from people with an evil bent, the Black family and Malfoy family. Yet, as we see at Hogwarts, this is not always the case.
dobby could have had a kinder master before the malfoys who encouraged some level of magical skill so to make things easier and the malfoys went against that.
there is most likely is a few races of elf and i feel it would be cool if magical beasts touched on it maybe have a forest elf hunter show up on a vendetta for a little bit, or a water elf help guide them through a sewer into the enemy base.
My theory is that, likely millennia ago, wild elves were small, weak, and had little magic. Wizards saw them as useful pets, able to understand and execute simple commands. Over time, magic, strength, size, and intelligence were bred in, much like dogs were bred for various traits from an original wolf stock. That led to two issues. As they evolved into modern elves, they came to be seen as more of a threat: maybe there was a series of elf uprisings that had to be suppressed, or just ongoing and escalating management problems. And as they became more useful, it was common for more powerful families to poach elves away from less powerful ones. With either scenario, it became common to bind the elves with spells to remain loyal; those spells affected their DNA and became a trait that was also bred for.
As for reproduction, the analogy to dogs gives rise to a very uncomfortable idea: there exist professional house elf breeders. These breeders train (indoctrinate) elves to strengthen loyalty, while skirting ethical laws against slavery by providing a path to freedom that very few owners will ever likely follow, an indoctrination so strong that the elves cannot bring themselves to knowingly take that path if given a choice. And like pets, the elves are spayed or neutered before being sold, to help keep supply low and quality high.
I kind of see house elves as dogs of the wizarding world (sorry). Some house elves may have come to humans for protection etc...same as dogs. There were still probably wolves living in the wild (hence the reason why there is a "house" in front of elf, there are also wild elves). Eventually they probably evolved separately, and unfortunately there were/are probably house elf breeders or something. The reason why they can't survive anymore in the wild probably has to do with what genetics they inherited.
Even the house elf personalities are like dogs, for example Kreacher shows a good example of a rescued dog. One that was mistreated and gets adopted to a new owner. Hence, Kreacher, and rescue dogs, don't trust or like their new owners for a long period of time.
What if elves and goblins share a Heritage and goblins or descended from the wild ones and what happened to their cousin species is part of why the kinda hate wizards.
Remember the short lady who was Credence/Corvus’s nanny in the fantastic beasts films?
She was half house elf.
Yeah, somebody smashed or got smashed by their house elf.
Imagine a storyline in which Hermione successfully pursuades Elves to break free and they form their own small group in the forbidden forrest, where they live as a society and reject any wizarding interference just like the centaurs. Dobby, meanwhile, is loyal to Harry and tries to bridge the conflict with little success. It would be a huge new conflict with consequences for actions Hermione never thought of.
Of course it may be too much for a more simple story like Harry Potter but I'd definitely see this fitting in. It too could end with the Elves taking side in the Battle like the centaurs for the benefits of the heros of the story.
Hermione try but even her friends didn't care nor any other wizard. Saddly she was at the time being targetted too because she was mix-blood.
I like it as-is. Not every world needs social justice and there are real- life modern humans who prefer servitude. They're just quiet about it to avoid judgement.
One theory I heard about magic in regards to needing a wand is that it was the Ministry that mandated their usage. Make people so reliant on their wands that they’re basically useless without one, it’s easy to learn what spells were used, there are so few wand makers that it’s easy to control the source, and other things. Before wands were common everyone used wandless magic and some to amazing effects. Basically it’s a control tactic that works very well. Perhaps that’s a thing with the Elves is that they aren’t reliant on wands and thus use the older and more powerful styles.
Its interesting to me how J.K Rowling created a sort of magical caste system in her wizarding world, despite the fact that the books are meant to be children escapist fiction. Its a world where wizard-kind are treated like a privileged upper class with even the poorest wizards able to attend Hogwarts for free with their books and school supplies paid for, gaining access to places like Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley and vote for who will be Minister of Magic. Meanwhile other sentient magical creatures like goblins and house elves are suppressed, are forbidden to learn but the simplest of spells that helps them serve the wizarding upper class, and aren't allowed to carry a wand. And any humanoid creatures considered too wild or dangerous are not even allowed to mingle with the rest of wizard-kind and are relegated to the fringes of society, be they giants, centaurs and even werewolves are treated like second class citizens. I don't know if Rowling intended on showing class struggle and segregation in her work, but it she sure doesn't hide these problems in the society she created.
Rowling must have intended to create a fictional world that reflects the societal problems in the real world. It’s brilliant, because as a child you are naive and don’t understand why things are the way they are in books but as you get older and gain a more sharper lense, you uncover the hidden messages. I mean the whole premise of the fight against bad and good is about a man who wants to extinct and subjugate mudbloods and muggles and for purebloods to reign over them. The pureblood ideology already dates back to the founding of Hogwarts due to Salazar and and his heir carrying on his legacy of purebloodedness. Sounds familiar? Then of course there are heroes like Hermione who want to fight for equal rights for elves etc. Our world is full of racism and societal injustice. Rowling played it out in the books, made us aware of the problems and in a way was very ahead of time concerning „wokeness“, of course with positive connotations, because today the term has been mangled into the extreme like everything else.
Their books supplies arent paid for though.
@@ashtonhaggitt216 Tom Riddle didn't have any money as a kid, so hogwarts paid for his school supplies
One major issue I think you missed is that the magical contract between an elf and his/her master is actually a source of power for the elves. Kreacher is able to apparate out of the cave because his master, Regulus, ordered him to go home. The magical contract of servitude caused Kreacher to be able to override the protections Voldemort placed on the cave. It was a higher order of magic that Voldemort did not anticipate. So, perhaps there was something for the elves to gain when they first elected to enter into these magical contracts long ago. It seems like witches and wizards have since largely forgotten this, but elves have not.
Kreacher always had the power to apparate out of the cave. Permission to leave did not give him the power, it gave him permission to use it.
@@kristineweber8084 A house elf's "highest law" is to obey his/her master. There are certain magical laws with an order to them, where some can override others in certain circumstances. It isn't clear from Rowling, but I believe that Kreacher's magical contract with the Blacks is why he could override the protective spells cast by Voldemort. It is sort of a magical loophole
I've always thought that house elves derive their magical power from service to wizards.
Well, Rowling herself wrote about goblins, their magic and the strong possibility that they would benefit from wands. So, there are differences in magic. Regarding elves, the idea of domestication such as the bond between dogs and men vs wolves and men makes sense. Wizards breeding specific elves for specific traits isn’t far fetched.
Could you do a video explaining the moment when Dumbledore said nitwit blubber oddment tweak in the Philiosopher's Stone
Nitwit, blubber, oddment and tweak are simply “a few words”.
@@rhondacrosswhite8048 def not i have a theory but idk if its right.
@@asat9360 what is your theory
Didn't you understand that he was being funny?
@@kellysouter4381 First all dont act so mean. Second i explained my theory
My theory is: The Elves, who are powerfull, are also impulsive, emotional (banging their head on things when they do something wrong) and to be fair not the sharpest tool in the box! They realised they could not be left in controll of their power. Perhaps after someone overreacted and blew up a village or town?!
So they made a deal with the wizards, and them being what they are abused the trust. Perhaps slowly, or perhaps the elves were so desperate they agreed to the harsh terms. And the reason no elf wants to be free is because its equal to a death sentence in the long run. Dobby realising that he would rather be dead than suffer under the Malfoys any longer.
Perhaps they take an unbreakable vow when entering a family's service.
No. In that case Dobby would have died in the second book
They are basically magical dogs. In slavic culture there's household creature called Domovoy, which keeps house clean, cozy and well, secure familys wellbeing, but its feared by people and not a slave.
Theory: Ancient elves were actually powerful, independent, and unruly, more so than Wizard kind. Over time, possibly after or during some great war, elves of that era began to change to stop the elves' barbaric nature and become more peaceful. But their awesome elven magic still carried a prevalent threat acknowledged by other magical beings. So they put a self-imposed limiter on their magic for the entire race, a spell that locks their magic to a very specific contract between them and Wizard kind, i.e. presenting clothes being the only way to free them, as part of a plea deal. Of course, treatment of house elves were probably much different in ancient times.
The way i always saw it is that wizards will always be more powerful than elves due to wands, how it amplifies and channels magic. The magic we see in Harry Potter is "childish" if you think about it. We see it from the students perspective, it's not mature because they are still in school learning so we don't know the full potential, even though the later movies get darker with the war, it's not really high stakes with the exception of Avada Kedavra. This is the reason I love the Fantastic Beasts movies, say whatever you will about it's flaws but the way it showcase the "adult" magic is beautiful, it gives us a sense of magic in full potential
Yup, so Tolkien had a MUCH better representation of elves.
I would love to see Tolkien style elves see HP elves
Tolkien just called the Irish Aes Sidhe "elves" and was like "this is English, germanic, English...not Gaelic." He hated writing or saying "Irish", a lot of weird bigotry from Anglos
Seems more likely that they're like Dogs and Cats, naturally inclined to loyalty toward those that have treated them well. At some point some dark wizard put a curse on the entire species, binding them to service. Since most Elves are now born into service and so long as they are treated well they actually enjoy it, even those who are freed will go seek out a friendlier family to help out.
Hello ! Nice theories !
Mine goes as follows : Long time ago, for reasons we do not know of, elves and wizards made a magic oath/pact of some sorts between powerfull houses (hence the Malfoys having elves but not the Weasleys), magically bonding elves and wizards so that elves can not harm their masters nor free themselves until a gift of clothing is provided.
The question is : do elves age ? According to the description of Kreature, we could think so, but how fast/slow ? Maybe Kreatur is the only elf the Black family has ever had ?
Also, with what we know about the gobelins/wizard relationship, we can also think the magical binding between elves and wizards was a scam or the result of a conflict of some sort ?
Let me know what you think about these ^^
Have a nice day !
In the books, the heads of the previous house elves were mounted in Grimwald Place (The Black family home).
@@korie4198 True ! I remember now !
Also I thought of something else in the meantime, maybe there was a war between elves and wizard and the prisonners of war were made slaves ?
I think you touched on a possible issue with your theory. Just a small portion. That's along the evolution portion.
It seems to me that many of the house elves had limited freedom outside of the home, possibly only when it came to running chores. But, they may also be allowed to take leave as long as it doesn't interfere with their chores or duties.
So, it could be along these lines that the breading happens. Do they have their own living areas in the estate they stay in? That seems likely, and possibly separate.
Now that all depends on how wealthy their owners are, and what freedom they are allotted.
It's also possible that another species subjugated the elves, like the goblins. Then they were gifted or traded to the wizard world later?
Sorry but I believe differently. I think that elves and goblins are the same species of creatures (since if I am not wrong those are the only two human like creatures who are gifted with speech as even giants like Grawp needed to learn the human tongue). Just like in the older days the initial human societies were divided into 2 (people who owned land and those who didn't, aka, bourgeoise and proletariats), these creatures are also divided into two distinct group. Those who can do some kind of skilled labour are the goblins and those who do semi skilled or un skilled labour are the elves. It so happened that over the years the elves became poorer and poorer because they were satisfied with what they did. But on the contrary, since goblins managed the whole economy of the wizarding world of Britain (especially the 2 wars) and didn't let Voldemort or his minions control them, they became more and more respected by the wizards. And since they were the sole caretakers of very powerful magical artefacts (like Hegla Huffelpuff's cup, Philosopher's stone, etc.) and reputable for their security features, all the goblins were deemed powerful because the wizards never got to know the goblins too well. This may be also why the goblins had the audacity to revolt in the past. In short, those with a stronger self esteem became Goblins and those without a self esteem became goblins. This is also why Dobby could revolt against the Malfoys because somewhere in his genes, he had that self esteem of a Goblin.
When I wrote my fanfic of HP, I explained it as a magical contract--a wizard 'captures' an elf through guile (usually tricking the elf into taking something the wizard owns such as food) and then demanding compensation for the theft. The 'compensation' of course, is lifetime servitude. There is an 'escape clause' of: "when the elf has suitably compensated the wizard, the wizard shall show this by gifting the elf a possession," which traditionally has been an article of clothing.
I based all of this on the myth of the brownies that helped the cobbler make his shoes at night and once the cobbler was satisfied with their work, he gave them suits of clothing that his wife made for them.
In my mind the elves are immortal as long as they have a master, and when given clothing, the immortality spell is broken and they can now age and die. Dobby's abuse under the Malfoys was so bad that he wanted to give up his immortality so he wouldn't have to serve them
That’s a good theory!
What about all the house-elf heads on the wall of the Black manor house? Mounted and stuffed when they died of old age!
@@kristineweber8084 Oh, I didn't notice that, good catch!
We know that (most) wizards have a massive superiority complex. Even Dumbledore thought that wizards should rule over others at one point. It's not hard to believe that a long time ago wizards saw elves as a threat because they are powerful but also thought they would make good slaves.
We know blood curses are a thing, it's completely possible a powerful wizard found a way to place a blood curse and a few select elves that forced them to work for magical families and then killed off others they found in the wild.
If I tell a house elf to do the laundry does he go free.
They can touch clothes. You just can't give them clothes. So if you toss a sock to your elf and say "clean this" then that isn't the same as handing them an old sock that is trash and house elves are allowed to do with trash as they choose. That counts as giving it into their ownership of they choose to accept it.
@@TheLastKentuckyIrregular9524 I guess this means every time Lucius handed Dobby a basket full of laundry he has remind him; "These clothes are not for you Dobby"
@@barbiquearea Perhaps, though I think it has more to do with whether or not the elves are expected to handle the item(s) and how they perceive it. Harry's sock wasn't owned by Lucius nor did he intentionally give it to Dobby, but Dobby chose to recognize his offhand disposal as an offer of freedom. Doing Lucius' laundry would be a task, and the clothing would distinctly not be under the ownership of Dobby. But Lucius' probably did need to be very careful about disposing of old clothes around the elf.
I think you got it wrong about the origins of the powers of the elves . They are not bound to a master but the house . Remember when Dumbledore wanted to know if Harry was the real master of 12 square Grimmauld . He says there was an easy test . If he was really the owner of the house so Kreattur must obey him. By the way , there is another theory why elves are bound to serve the wizards. Ancient magic the same magic who protect the dragon.
My theory is that elves are unable to use wands. Dobby disarmed narcissa malfoy with ease, but didn't use the wand at all.
🤔
but theres probably way more to it.
Hearing elves so many times in the video made me think of Santa in this universe and how it could easily make sense given wizards longer life spans and elves being totally loyal to their masters
Its obviously an unbreakable vow they force young elves
If I had to guess, I’d say the House Elf compulsion to obedience is the result of two things.
1) centuries of selective breeding and 2) an ancient curse of some kind placed upon the entire species.
The reason for this curse could be anything. But it explains why even a rebellious elf like Dobby has a strange compulsion to self harm when disobedient.
It could also just be a psychological disorder caused by their situation, but I’m no psychologist.
What if house elves are actually more like dogs than humans? I mean working dogs love their work, love their masters, and are extremely loyal just like house elves. Perhaps they were even domesticated like dogs. If you think of them more like dogs then it makes sense why most wizards weren't too concerned about paying them so long as they weren't mistreated.
Agreed. Most dogs surely can PHYSICALLY win against humans.
This is my theory
the thought ive always had was they are brownie,* in English and Scottish folklore, a small, industrious fairy or hobgoblin believed to inhabit houses and barns. Rarely seen, he was often heard at night, cleaning and doing housework; * in their lore you leave out sweets and they wont trash your house and be content with doing chores. now how they are enslaved, if they were a organized species a leader may have been tricked to enslaving the group with a magical contract without knowing how serious it was. the clothing part is probably the termination clause. as for how they make more elves there is probably breeders who sell fixed ones and keep and trade good ones for breeding. its a wild concept but answers a good bit
I was always with Hermione and SPEW. I would have proudly bought one of her badges. I could never understand why Harry and Ron kept making fun of her for trying to help an enslaved group of people.
Because she was disrespecting the elves' wishes and trying to force them into a freedom they did not want.
I think Dobby liked serving; he didn't like the Malfoys.
Same I think the fact that they treated him cruelly and physically abused him was a factor for why he rebelled against them.
We always saw House Elf "enslavement" through the eyes of Dobby, an admitted anomaly, and people like Harry and Hermione, who were raised in the muggle world. Ron and Hagrid, and the opinions of other elves, all say the same thing; the House Elves LIKE the way they live. They choose to serve. There are these weird rules like the self-punishment, but the only people who ever referred to them as enslaved are Dobby, Hermione, and possibly Dumbledore. They are exactly where they want to be. They enjoy the tasks that they do. Stop thinking of them through the lens of human values. Remember, goblins also have very different values than humans do.
One thing you left out of your controlled breeding argument is the topic of wizards’ magic. We have seen that there are certain types of magic that can carry on through bloodlines. The Greengrass’s affliction of Blood Malediction, the ability of Parseltongue, and Lupin’s fear that he has passed his own condition of Lycanthropy to his son.
My guess is that there exists a form of magic that binds a moderately magical creature, a house elf, to a family or bloodline. Thereby increasing their own magical potential. House elves do seem to be at their most powerful level when they are acting in the service of others and not themselves.
I'd love to see a movie where theres an elf that is looking for a rebellion.
Its probably something as simple as there was a war years ago, wizards and witches won and the condition was each elf born would serve wizards until that wizards feels like freeing them. Almost like a binding contract but all these theories are so good.
Just watched fb3 and not feeling so happy with it
I've heard that everywhere I won't bother. It seems they are planning to cancel making the other two fbs that were planned, because they are not making money. That's what some say anyway.
Personally i just dont like prequels.I want stories to always move forward
Perhaps the hostages sent from tributary states to the Imperial center might be a fun concept. If the nation of free elves agreed to provide a tribute of servants and put a hereditary bind on those sent, much would be explained.
I think JK Rowling wanted to point out the British Empire's influence before WW2
There is also the theory of the use of dark magic, such as Imperio, which is forbidden because there is no counter or cure. In fact, the elves exhibit symptoms of a geas - an ancient Irish magic that serves as a binding vow, potentially providing a benefit, but always coming with a curse of punishment for breaking that vow, which can extend beyond death, and span across generations.
Yeaaahhh I love the videos where we explore your ideas and theories. I've read the books too many times to enjoy book content videos.
My personal thought is the reason they punish themselves is that, when they were “given” to a wizard, they made a promise, similar to the unbreakable vow, so they end up punishing themselves whenever they speak ill of their master, to offset whatever punishment their promise would cause.
As for the elves being enslaved, maybe they were, in general, like brownies - small beings who did chores in exchange for gifts of food.
And because clothing makes brownies leave forever (look it up) it became a way to free themselves from contracts...
I mean, Jo knows about Boggarts, so I’d be surprised if she wasn’t 100% thinking of brownies when she made house elves... I mean, they are essentially the same thing, except brownies are more mischievous... though I’d suppose generations of breeding only the most well-behaved would explain that...
I read a theory once that the elves in the HP universe were originally powerful magical human toddlers, who had been magically morphed by a dark wizard to serve as slaves for him.
I think a very important detail is that throughout the series, every time these creatures are mentioned, they're specifically referred to as "House Elves," implying distinction is important; there may be other kinds of elves out there. We don't really see much of the world in the series, only Britain and the surrounding members of the U.K. in terms of families and such. Book 4 is really the only glimpse we have of other countries, and elves historically hail from Norse mythology, i.e. Sweden, Denmark and Norway. It's possible that other nations have their own elves that may be quite different.
I'm of the opinion that house elves could be enslaved due to some kind of penance or punishment involving humans that took place long ago. Maybe there was a war between them, where elves with more advanced magic fought against humans and their rising magical powers, seeing them as a threat. Humans won, and as part of the terms of their surrender, house elves were placed under magical indentured servitude. Over the years this servitude evolved into outright enslavement, imbibed with some kind of genetic magical curse that makes it naturally difficult for them to raise their hands against humans. It would help explain why even free elves are so unwilling to take payment for work, and why they are compelled to help humans to the point of self-inflicted harm when they fail to follow through with orders or make harmful comments against them.
My own theory from what the books told (no pottermore) is that house elfs started out wild, but then found the humans and their chores. And they by magic nature loved doing the chores of humans in secret, creating tales of them. The wizards discovered the elfs, and they made pacts with them but started to mistreat them. The elfs took it on their servant mentality, but they are still sentient, and like Dobby can rebel against extreme mistreatment. I know it is a stretch, but many of the magical beings in the Harry Potter univers have natures and abilities specific in interaction with humans. It also somewhat falls in line with what Nick said about a good houseelf is not known to its owner. I like to think that the elfs like being slaves and doing human work by their magical nature, which is not obligated to make conventional sense to humans, but I could be completely wrong, and I am not set in stone on this.
Another very popular theory is that Elves are bound by an Oath, like an unbreakable vow, to serve wizards. The most likely explanation given in this theory is that Elves are attuned to magic and feed off it, and that the Oath between a wizard and an Elf stipulate that the Wizard's line will feed him. Of course, this would mean that the Elves enslavement is unnecessary, since an Oath can be worded differently to, for example, pay them, give them vacations etc for their services, PLUS the magic. But it's not said anywhere that Ancient Wizards (and even modern) weren't barbaric and opportunistic
This should be a podcast!!! I’d listen everyday!!!
I think there is something to the notion that wizards bred house elves under controlled forms sinister as it may seem. As you said, there are wild elves too and considering that the species is formally knows as *house* elves as a distinction to their wild counterpart there are way too many similarities to be found with how we in real life has created an entire new species known as *house* cats originally bred from wild animals.
Umm Dobby did actually like to do housework the only thing he wanted was be be free at the same and example get paid. That's why when he went to work a hogwarts with Winky, Hermione said he should have more days off but he said that he likes to work so he doesn't want any more days off
I'm pretty sure that a war was explicitly mentioned where wizards won and thus a magical treaty was written. This is why magical creatures are not allowed wands and they seem to be compelled to certain things, with certain exceptions of magic-resistant creatures like the Giants. I imagine that part of the war involved wand theft. I also believe that the war is why the elves' numbers are so low, most of them were likely killed off as the greatest threat to the wizards.