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Triggered to analyzing the concept of pureblood marriage practices and issue of what is considered incest by brain eating Bellatrix/Sirius and it's oh so wrong attractiveness but even more so by Sirius' mum sceaming "house of MY fathers" incessantly.
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qt_ninja suggested an easy solution to the problem, which gives some interesting implications about gender politics in the wizarding world. That is that in marriage the couple takes the name of the more powerful family rather than necessarily that of the man. This would explain Kreacher's preference for Sirius' mom to his dad and also the house being that of HER fathers.
I prefer to take a hint from Sirius' comment upon looking at the Black family tree that he is related to everyone because there are so many purebloods that if you only allow your family to marry from them it ends up that way and say that marrying one's relations is not so taboo, or at least not so long taboo as it is in the muggle world.
So I propose that inbreeding was common and even encouraged until well into the last century. I imagine that they would see it as a sort of consolidating of their magical ability, that it would multiply it in the same way that we know that inbreeding increases hereditary illnesses etc. Eventually the disease issue came to such a point that the ministry banned marriage between siblings (and quite likely cousins) in the middle of the 1900s (making it legal for Harry's grandparents generation but illegal for his parents peers) or possibly sibling marriage could be banned about the turn of the century or the twenties and cousins in the 60s. Regardless it's fairly recent legislation and some of the pureblood families probably ignore it regardless (they seem to have issues with authority when it's not their own). All this inbreeding is literally destroying their genetics and leading to them being quite literally insane but it's hard to get these families to let go of their traditions.
This gives us Mrs. Black being a cousin, or even sister (or half sister), to Mr. Black and makes 12 Grimmuald Place and the House of Black that of her fathers. It also explains her being nuts, and Bellatrix being sick and twisted... and almost every other pureblood bigot being insane. It also explains why the Weasleys are a little cooky but not maniacs as their lineage contains many inbred individuals but also crosses out a great deal due to their "muggle loving" nature.
In another post I need to explore the different kind of wizarding families and the difference in origins and practices between families like the Blacks and families like the Bones or like.
Ozma - Eponine
qt_ninja suggested an easy solution to the problem, which gives some interesting implications about gender politics in the wizarding world. That is that in marriage the couple takes the name of the more powerful family rather than necessarily that of the man. This would explain Kreacher's preference for Sirius' mom to his dad and also the house being that of HER fathers.I prefer to take a hint from Sirius' comment upon looking at the Black family tree that he is related to everyone because there are so many purebloods that if you only allow your family to marry from them it ends up that way and say that marrying one's relations is not so taboo, or at least not so long taboo as it is in the muggle world.
So I propose that inbreeding was common and even encouraged until well into the last century. I imagine that they would see it as a sort of consolidating of their magical ability, that it would multiply it in the same way that we know that inbreeding increases hereditary illnesses etc. Eventually the disease issue came to such a point that the ministry banned marriage between siblings (and quite likely cousins) in the middle of the 1900s (making it legal for Harry's grandparents generation but illegal for his parents peers) or possibly sibling marriage could be banned about the turn of the century or the twenties and cousins in the 60s. Regardless it's fairly recent legislation and some of the pureblood families probably ignore it regardless (they seem to have issues with authority when it's not their own). All this inbreeding is literally destroying their genetics and leading to them being quite literally insane but it's hard to get these families to let go of their traditions.
This gives us Mrs. Black being a cousin, or even sister (or half sister), to Mr. Black and makes 12 Grimmuald Place and the House of Black that of her fathers. It also explains her being nuts, and Bellatrix being sick and twisted... and almost every other pureblood bigot being insane. It also explains why the Weasleys are a little cooky but not maniacs as their lineage contains many inbred individuals but also crosses out a great deal due to their "muggle loving" nature.
In another post I need to explore the different kind of wizarding families and the difference in origins and practices between families like the Blacks and families like the Bones or like.
Ozma - Eponine
