RIP Dobby: A House-Elf Remembered

Dobby the house-elf, best
known for his
complicated relationship
with Harry Potter and his
work with the Order of
the Phoenix, died this
week after receiving a
fatal blow during a
skirmish with infamous
Death Eater Bellatrix
Lestrange. His date of
birth and age, like most
house-elves, is
undetermined.
Little is known of
Dobby's early life,
although records
indicate that he was
born into servitude and
spent much of his life as
a servant in the
household of the Malfoy
family, where cruelty and
harsh treatment were
everyday occurrences.
However, it is here that
he became privy to
Lucius Malfoy's scheme
to open the Chamber of
Secrets and chose to defy
commonly understood
house-elf law and
actively work against the
wishes of his master,
doing everything in his
power to protect Harry
Potter from the trouble
that awaited him back at
Hogwarts School of
Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Dobby's methods to save
the Boy Who Lived,
particularly his use of an
enchanted bludger that
would only target Potter
during a Quidditch
match, remain
controversial, and there
is still debate over
whether or not Dobby's
actions did more to help
or hinder Potter in the
early stages of his war
against He Who Shall Not
Be Named.
Either way, it was the
start of a friendship
between Dobby and the
young wizard, with
Potter returning the
favor by tricking Lucius
Malfoy into freeing
Dobby through a well
placed pair of socks.
Having received the gift
of clothing, the
traditional method
through which a house-
elf is relieved of his
duties, Dobby became
the first of his kind: a
free house-elf. For most
house-elves, freedom is a
mark of shame and a sign
of duties poorly
performed, but for
Dobby, it was an
opportunity to escape
the Malfoy family and
find his place in the
world.
After a year of searching,
Dobby was granted a
position at Hogwarts,
where, under a contract
with the late, great
headmaster Albus
Dumbledore ...