Re: Which actually brings things back to Terri's post
(Anonymous)
Actually, it's not really inevitable for wizards, either. If a wizard/witch wants to have pure-blood descendants, then they need to make sure that their offspring don't "taint" the blood by marrying Muggles or Muggle-borns (as that will keep them trapped as half-bloods). If they want to have pure-blood descendants, then they need to marry half-bloods or pure-bloods, and once they reach pure-blood, they need to marry only pure-bloods if they want to remain "pure".
(grin) Okay, it isn't quite inevitable. Still, it's highly likely, which is *not* like race.
Although pure-bloods don't need to marry only other pure-bloods for their descendants to remain "pure." They could marry second-generation half-bloods, too. (See below.)
Also, keep in mind that insofar as this is a real concern in the society, everyone in this position has other people in exactly the same position who can help them by marrying them.
If you're a second-generation half-blood (Muggle grandparents but no Muggle parents), then your children will be pure-bloods as long as you marry either 1) a pure-blood or 2) another second-generation half-blood. Admittedly, you can't marry a Muggle, Muggleborn, or first-generation half-blood, but pure-bloods face the same restrictions if they want their children to be pure-bloods. And the pure-bloods know that their children will still be pure-bloods if they marry you, because the children's grandparents will all be witches and wizards.
Crucially, if second-generation half-bloods as a group really care about this, there are plenty of people in the same position, looking for a spouse like you. It wouldn't be difficult to find a suitable person to marry, and you could even marry someone with a background similar if not identical to your own.
If you're a Muggleborn or first-generation half-blood (1-2 Muggle parents), then it doesn't matter who you marry, as long as your spouse isn't a Muggle. Your children will be second-generation half-bloods, period.
Again, this isn't like race in the real world.
Of course, people don't get to control who their descendants marry (hopefully!), so no one *knows* that their descendants will eventually be pure-blood. At a minimum, though, they do know that their descendants won't be Muggleborn, and they know that any half-blooded descendants could soon have pure-blooded descendants of their own.
Muggle-borns who only want their descendants to be half-bloods are a special case, in that their offspring will at least be half-bloods no matter what. That one is inevitable and is part of the Fantastic in the Fantastic Racism of blood prejudice, and doesn't make it any less racist.
It's only Fantastic because you keep putting this into the "race" category. If two first-generation immigrants marry and have a kid, then that kid is a second-generation immigrant, not a first-generation immigrant. Magic? Fantastic? Not really.
Lynn
(grin) Okay, it isn't quite inevitable. Still, it's highly likely, which is *not* like race.
Although pure-bloods don't need to marry only other pure-bloods for their descendants to remain "pure." They could marry second-generation half-bloods, too. (See below.)
Also, keep in mind that insofar as this is a real concern in the society, everyone in this position has other people in exactly the same position who can help them by marrying them.
If you're a second-generation half-blood (Muggle grandparents but no Muggle parents), then your children will be pure-bloods as long as you marry either 1) a pure-blood or 2) another second-generation half-blood. Admittedly, you can't marry a Muggle, Muggleborn, or first-generation half-blood, but pure-bloods face the same restrictions if they want their children to be pure-bloods. And the pure-bloods know that their children will still be pure-bloods if they marry you, because the children's grandparents will all be witches and wizards.
Crucially, if second-generation half-bloods as a group really care about this, there are plenty of people in the same position, looking for a spouse like you. It wouldn't be difficult to find a suitable person to marry, and you could even marry someone with a background similar if not identical to your own.
If you're a Muggleborn or first-generation half-blood (1-2 Muggle parents), then it doesn't matter who you marry, as long as your spouse isn't a Muggle. Your children will be second-generation half-bloods, period.
Again, this isn't like race in the real world.
Of course, people don't get to control who their descendants marry (hopefully!), so no one *knows* that their descendants will eventually be pure-blood. At a minimum, though, they do know that their descendants won't be Muggleborn, and they know that any half-blooded descendants could soon have pure-blooded descendants of their own.
Muggle-borns who only want their descendants to be half-bloods are a special case, in that their offspring will at least be half-bloods no matter what. That one is inevitable and is part of the Fantastic in the Fantastic Racism of blood prejudice, and doesn't make it any less racist.
It's only Fantastic because you keep putting this into the "race" category. If two first-generation immigrants marry and have a kid, then that kid is a second-generation immigrant, not a first-generation immigrant. Magic? Fantastic? Not really.
Lynn