Principles Quotes in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Page 2

Moody starts off his Defense Against the Dark Arts classes with a demonstration of the three Unforgivable Curses. But, as he asks, why show them these curses if there is "no countercurse" (at least, to Avada Kedavra)? Practically speaking, what might "constant vigilance" mean? How should you practice it? What examples do we see if this vigilance in Harry Potter? Does Moody's principle have any application to your life? What are the costs to Moody of living this way? Is it worth it?

Moody congratulates Harry for being honest enough to tell Cedric about the dragons. And then, claiming, "I don't show favoritism, me," he proceeds to tell Harry what he should do to get around the first task – as in, he tells Harry and not Cedric. Of course, knowledge isn't enough; Harry still has to do it. But Moody has given Harry a huge helping hand. This scene is another one of those interesting Moody moments that reads so differently the second time around. On the first reading, we believed that Moody's motives were totally good. Maybe he was showing favoritism, but Harry is our main character and we barely know Cedric Diggory, so it didn't seem to matter. Of course, on the second reading, Moody's willingness to show such strong preference for Harry in the build-up to the third task seems a lot more sinister. One thing we like about Goblet of Fire is that the plotting is inventive enough that we didn't guess the ending the first time around and we still enjoy rereading it – a rare feat.

From the fight between Winky, Dobby, and Hermione about Mr. Crouch, what can we tell about house-elf principles? Do you think that it's possible for a species to have its own principles? Are there principles that all humans should generally follow? What are they?