Harry Potter Question??

Question

OK. I was rereading HBP last night before I went to bed, and something kind of disturbs me. In the section where Harry and Dumbledore are viewing Slughorn's memory about telling Tom Riddle about what horcruxes are, Slughorn tells Tom that it's a banned subject at Hogwarts, and that DD is "particularly fierce" about it. This gave me the impression that DD already knew what horcruxes were. If this is the case, what exactly is the significance of Harry retrieving Sluggy's memory? I don't understand why Harry would go to all that trouble retrieving the memory if DD already knows what a horcrux is. It makes more sense that he would just tell Harry. (We already know that Sluggy gave Tom info on them, why else would he have modified his memory? DD could have just filled Harry (and us) in.)

Answer 1

DD knew about Horcruxes. The memory tells DD and Harry the precise number of them that need to be destroyed.

Answer 2

Because DD needed to know what Slughorn had told Tom. DD didn't need to know what horcruxes were, but what Riddle knew: how much he knew, when and what he found out, how he would have started making them. I think it was a clue for DD to help him hunt down the rest of the horcruxes. I also think that DD tried very hard to teach Harry how to find information and do things on his own. It wouldn't have been as informative if he had just told Harry. Yes, DD knew Slughorn had told Tom, but he didn't know any details.

Answer 3

The memory not only confirmed DD's theory but also gave them valuable information. Like the fact that Voldie was interested in the outcome of having seven horcruxes. Before seeing that memory, DD only knew that Voldie had horcruxes but he didnt know how many he had. From seeing the memory, he could conclude that 4 more horcruxes remain and that they may be related to the school founders seeing that he already had those of slytherin and hufflepuff.

Answer 4

I think it was more that Dumbledore needed the details of what Slughorn told Riddle...i.e. Did he define how to create horcruxes; Did Tom let anything slip about his own plans. Also, I agree with the other answerers that Dumbledore is trying to teach Harry to use his talents to figure stuff out for himself. This goes along well with my theory on the Dumbledore/Potter relationship. Obviously, Dumbledore is not immortal he knows that eventually he's going to make a mistake that could prove fatal. Look what happened to his hand. Harry's unique connection with Voldemort and other elements of his persona make him a perfect protege. I think Dumbledore is training Harry to take over for him. Eventually he'll assume leadership of the Order of the Phoenix and handle threats from the Dark Arts. Keep in mind that even if Voldemort is destroyed in Book 7, there will still be Dark Wizards and the Ministry (let's face it) is poorly equipped to deal with them. Going along with that, he'll probably never marry, leaving Ginny to pine for the rest of her life. What a waste of a good rehead...Anyway...that's just my opinion.

Answer 5

To confirm the suspicion that the horcrux was the means of Voldemort's having cheated death.

To try and establish when Tom got the 'how to' information on them. To pin down when he could have started making them.

To get a clearer picture of Voldemort's psychology from a firsthand source. Invaluable for deduction and intuition.

As a writing device it established how many he planned to make. That there was more than one made would have been obvious to Dumbledore, how many more needed clarifying. Possibly Dumbledore trying to rule out the conclusion that as long as Harry was alive, enough of Voldemort was alive to prevent his final destruction.

Likely training Harry to do the detective work on finding all of them. Given how 'Half Blood Prince' ends.

Answer 6

i dont think they would tell harry because he shouldnt know so he had to find out a different way