- Today's video is brought
to you by HelloTushy.com. Hey, brother! Ben, today, I want to
talk about Dumbledore, the guy with all the answers. The guy who is maybe
pulling all of the strings. It's kind of hard to tell
because throughout the series Dumbledore is almost
comically never giving Harry all of the answers. Why tell you what to do when I
can just let you fumble about in the dark and maybe
stumble into the answer? Don't go down the third corridor. Harry, do go down the third corridor. There's a three-headed
dog and a trap door, and a deadly plant, and flying keys, and a killer chess set, and a troll! And also potions. But let's face it, they're never gonna put that in the movie. A logic problem? Pfft! But it just leaves us all on the sideline. Like Dumbledore, can you
just tell him what to do and where to go, and then him and Voldemort are destined to duke it out in the end
'cause he's the chosen one? No! Let's wait the full seven years and then cryptically leave
him a sword and a ball and see what he makes of it. Oh, wait, I'm sorry. Can he not actually have the sword? No, he can't. And did Dumbledore know that? He did. Okay, so just give him the ball? Oh, this will be fun. Oh, the ball has a riddle on it. Oh, and the answer... Die. Cool. So yeah, all he really leaves
Harry with is the Snitch and a bunch of other
conversations along the way, during which he had plenty of
opportunities to tell Harry how to destroy a Horcrux, or to be like, "Hey, remember when you
destroyed the diary? "Do that again." Like come on, Dumbledore, at the very least tell him how
a goblin-made silver works. And let me be clear, in today's video I'm not exactly going to
be defending Dumbledore for subjecting Harry to all of this. But then again, prophecy-based
ethics are just a... (sighs) But that's a
whole different ballgame. Honestly, I'm just not there yet. So today, what I'm going
to do is try and reveal the method to Dumbledore's madness. And spoilers. This isn't
exactly a new idea. In fact, it's roughly 2,500 years old because what Dumbledore is implementing is called the Socratic method. And honestly, Dumbledore
might just be Socrates. But before we begin,
would anyone like to share with the class what
the Socratic method is? (upbeat instrumental music) Hey, brother! (logo whooshing) Guys, before we dive
on into today's video, we need to give a huge thank you to today's sponsor: HelloTushy.com. Now guys, imagine, if you will, that at the end of a long, hard
day you jump into the shower but instead of turning on the water, you just wipe yourself down with a bunch of dry paper towels. Uh!
(paper towel scratching) But so then why is that
enough in the bathroom? Accidentally burned myself. Well, it doesn't have to be
anymore with Hello Tushy's brand new 3.0 a modern bidet attachment. It meets all three of the big
S's that are oh so important when it comes to toilets: Sleek, stylish, and of course, sanitary. And not just for you. With the smart spray automatic nozzle, the Hello Tushy bidet
is also cleaning itself with every use. These things are seriously game-changers. Even if you have just one in your home, I guarantee it's going to become
your new favorite bathroom. Plus, they install in just minutes and no additional plumbing
or electrical work is needed. So head on over to HelloTushy.com/SUPER to get 10% off your order
today, plus free shipping. Again, this is a special
offer just for our viewers. That is HelloTushy.com/SUPER for 10% off, plus free shipping. That is HelloTushy.com/SUPER. Link is the description down below. The Socratic method, as
you may have guessed, is a method of teaching
developed by Socrates. Socrates was an ancient Greek philosopher from way back in the fifth century BC, and he is considered to have
one of the greatest influences over the Western world, along with his student
Plato, and Aristotle. Although on the whole, and I'm sure if this'll sound familiar given the topic of today's video, he's a bit of a mysterious figure. He didn't actually author any texts. And most of what we know
about him come from accounts from his student Plato. But one of his signature
contributions to the world as we know it is the Socratic method. The short version of it goes like this. Uh, but why? We've lost the kingdom. But why? Well, because we lost the battle. But why? Well, we had one less warrior. But why? Well, I guess really because
we had one less horse. Why? Because one of our horses lost a shoe. But why? Because we didn't have enough nails. Therefore, why did the kingdom fall? Because we didn't have enough nails. Honestly, I'm surprised
Socrates had to think so much to come up with this. I mean, this is a game
that's super popular with every three-year-old ever. Because your hair is messy. Because you put honey in it. I don't know why! You tell me, son! But like I said, that's just
the short version of it. Longer version is the
idea of promoting learning by asking questions and
engaging in further discussion with your student. And hopefully that will
lead to critical thinking and a better understanding of the subject. So for example, a teacher
may ask, "What is a square?" And you might say a square
is a shape with four sides. Ah, well, the door to this
classroom has four sides on it. Is it a square? No. A square is a shape
that has four equal sides. And then they get into an
argument about rhombuses and eventually discover right angles. But you get the idea. And Dumbledore is doing this constantly, and sometimes it's possibly
an excuse for not giving Harry all of the information, all in the name of Harry just
figuring it out on his own to grasp a better understanding. Which if you ask me is putting
a lot of faith in Harry. I mean, if he doesn't figure
it out, it's like, you know, the literal end of the world. But that said, Harry is a smart kid and normally does figure it out. Take for example when he's
concerned about whether or not he should have been sorted into Slytherin. He knows the Sorting Hat considered it. And then when he meets Tom Riddle in "The Chamber of Secrets," he learns that they're
actually very similar, which Harry hates and it
just furthers his concern. And in this case, Dumbledore
could have just said to Harry, "Don't worry about it, Harry. "If you were supposed to be in Slytherin, "the hat would have put you in Slytherin." And that could have been the end of it. There. Done. The headmaster said it so it must be true. I'm sure Harry would have just
forgotten that worry entirely and gone on to win the
House Cup year after year. Hooray! But of course, that's not how it works. Have you ever told someone
to just stop feeling sad about something or stop being anxious? Does that work? I mean maybe if the Sorting
Hat itself tried it, but Harry even goes to
the source and it's like, "Hmm, I don't know. Maybe you
could have been a Slytherin." - You would have done well in Slytherin. - The point is anyone
could just tell Harry he's meant to be in Gryffindor, and maybe it would help,
and maybe it would. But Dumbledore is able to recognize that this is the sort of thing
Harry needs to understand at a fundamental level. "'Professor Dumbledore,
Riddle said I'm like him. "'Strange likenesses.' "'Did he now? "'And what do you think, Harry?' "'I don't think I'm like him. "'I mean, I'm, I'm in Gryffindor, I'm...' "'Yet the Sorting Hat
placed you in Gryffindor. "'You know why that was. Think.' "'It only puts me in Gryffindor "'because I asked not to go in Slytherin.' "'Exactly.'" In this situation,
Dumbledore knows exactly why Harry is meant to be in Gryffindor, but rather than just tell him, he's coaxing him into
working out the problem so that he understands it himself. Asking him questions like,
"What do you think, Harry?" and, "Think." And this helps Harry discover that the information he already knows might contain the answer. He just has to figure out how to work the puzzle pieces together. But I also think there
was a greater lesson Dumbledore was trying to
teach Harry in that moment. It's emphasizing the idea
that our choices define us, which is a bit of wisdom
that can stretch far beyond just what house you belong in. It's the classic, "Give a man a fish "and feed him for a night, "but teach a man to fish "and feed him for the rest of his life." You can tell Harry he's
meant to be in Gryffindor and that might help him for a night. But if you can help him understand
the impact of his choices and what it means to be in Gryffindor beyond just what a hat told you, then you can defeat the Dark Lord. That said, maybe Dumbledore
actually should've taught Harry how to fish because
apparently it's as easy as just summoning salmon out of the river, which Harry, Ron, and
Hermione couldn't figure out for months out on the road
while they were starving camping next to rivers. Rivers, the body of water, not the codename for Lee
Jordan on Potterwatch. Who he's actually camping
next to is Dean Thomas whose party is fishing
for salmon in the river. Afterwards, they still don't do it! Okay. Rant over. Fast-forward to Harry and
Dumbledore's conversations about the prophecy and you
can see the Socratic method at work again. "'Imagine please, just for a moment, "'that you had never heard the prophecy! "'How would you feel about
Voldemort now? Think!'" Just tell people to think, that's all. "Harry watched Dumbledore
striding up and down "in front of him, and thought. "He thought of his mother,
his father, and Sirius. "He thought of Cedric Diggory. "He thought of all the terrible deeds "he knew Lord Voldemort had done. "A flame seemed to leap inside his chest, "searing his throat. "'I'd want him finished,'
said Harry quietly. "'And I'd want to do it.'" Okay. Blood thirsty much, Harry. It's the same as before. He can't just tell Harry this information. He can't say, "I need you
to want to kill Voldemort." Harry needs to understand it for himself because Harry doesn't have to do anything. He couldn't just abandon the plan and go along his merry way. I mean, the prophecy
doesn't enforce anything. But the fact is, Harry is brave, and he has lost a lot at
the hands of Voldemort, and he is uniquely
positioned to take him down. And once he realizes that and once he's armed with that
knowledge, he can't not do it. It's not natural to him. It's against the logic of the situation. And finally, we get to
one of the best examples which happens surprisingly on the Astronomy Tower with Draco. It's after Harry and
Dumbledore have returned from getting the fake locket and Draco has Dumbledore at wand point. "'They won't be long. I came on ahead. "'I've got a job to do.' "'Well, then, you must get
on and do it, my dear boy.'" And the two converse back
and forth for a while, with Draco revealing how his
master plan ultimately worked. Until Dumbledore finally
says the following, "But as for being about to kill me, Draco, "you have had several long minutes now, "we are quite alone, I am more defenseless "than you could have
dreamed of finding me, "and still you have not acted." And here is the lesson that Dumbledore is laying out for Draco. If you want to kill someone, your best opportunity is
when they're defenseless and you're all alone with them. And in this moment, Dumbledore has no wand and has been severely
weakened by the Emerald Potion he just drank trying to
retrieve the locket with Harry. And they are, as far as Draco
knows, alone on the tower. And they've been conversing
for several long minutes and Draco has still not acted. Therefore, the argument is against him. He is alone and defenseless. You are armed. These are the necessary
pieces for this plan you claim to want to do
to be put into action. And yet, you have not acted. Therefore, you do not wish to act. In this case, I really think
Dumbledore is truly trying to do one last good deed. He's not arguing with Draco. He's not even trying to stop him. He's not even making a case
for Draco to spare him. He's even egging him on, like, "If you're here to do a job, then do it." But the lesson he's
trying to instill in Draco by pointing all of these things out, by asking him question after question is to let Draco come to the realization that he actually does not
want to kill Dumbledore because he is not a killer. And in doing this he's
preserving Draco's ability to come back and do other good things. It's very funny, if you think about it. He's like tricking Draco into realizing that he's actually a good person. And honestly, what I really just love about this entire insight
into Dumbledore's methods is that it offers an explanation to the very common complaint that Dumbledore just left Harry
fumbling around in the dark. That he left way too much to chance and should've just told Harry what to do. And the point is, yeah, he could have, but instead he took his time. He asked Harry questions. He let him come to the
conclusions himself. And in that way, he's actually
leaving less to chance. And on the whole, that's
about as far as I needed to go for this particular topic. But as I kept digging, I
actually found way more parallels between Socrates and Dumbledore. For example, much like
Dumbledore, Socrates also believed that death was nothing to fear at all, and that possibly death
was the greatest blessing of the soul. A sentiment which very much
reminds me of Dumbledore's line from "The Philosopher's Stone." "After all, to the well-organized mind, "death is but the next great adventure." Speaking of death though, Socrates himself was
eventually sentenced to death by drinking a slow-acting
poison, known as hemlock. And in similar fashion,
Dumbledore himself dies shortly after ingesting the Emerald Potion that was guarding the locket. Also Snape contributed pretty
heavily to live to this cause but that's kind of besides the point. The point is that hemlock
and the Emerald Potion actually caused a lot
of the same symptoms. I mean, the Emerald Potion has a lot of extra magical damaging
stuff inside of it. But here are a few of the
things that they both cause: trembling, muscle pain, loss of speech, convulsions, and unconsciousness. In general, that's
considered the way Socrates was sentenced to death was pretty brutal. And continuing the parallel even further is how Dumbledore acts post-mortem. Once again, you see the
Socratic method at play as he helps Harry understand
why and how and where he is. "'Explain,' said, Harry. "'But you already know,' said Dumbledore. "He twiddled his thumbs together. "'I let him kill me. Didn't I?' "'You did.'" Think, Harry! But he also gets a little into what is known as the Socratic paradox. The Socratic paradox states
that the only real wisdom is in knowing that you know nothing. "'I, meanwhile, was offered
the post of Minister of Magic, "'not once, but several times. "'Naturally, I refused. "'I had learned that I was
not to be trusted with power.' "'But you'd have been better, much better, "'than Fudge or Scrimgeour!' "'Would I? I am not so sure. "'I had proven as a young man "'that power was my
weakness and my temptation. "'It is a curious thing, Harry, "'but perhaps those who
are best suited to power "'are those who have never sought it. "'Those who, like you, have
leadership thrust upon them "'and take up the mantle
because they must, "'and find their own surprise
that they wear it well.'" Harry insists that
Dumbledore would have been a better Minister of Magic. And while I think
Dumbledore kind of agrees, he also knows that that only remains true as long as he never actually
becomes Minister of Magic. His greatness is only intact as long as he never takes the
job he would be great for. And being aware of that is
what actually makes him great. Wait. Do you see the paradox? But Dumbledore believes the
same is actually true of Harry. That he is a great leader not because he wants to be a leader, but because he is forced into the role, which, again, you can
contrast with young Dumbledore who was actively trying to seize power as a young boy with Grindelwald. Was he a great wizard? Yes. Did that make him a great leader? No. The way Dumbledore gets
around this with Harry though is by understanding it on his behalf, never encouraging Harry to seek power, just be presented with power
and deal with it accordingly. Horcruxes, not Hallows. It's like the opposite of, "With great power comes
great responsibility." Dumbledore knows Harry is
burdened with great responsibility and that with that will come great power. Oh, that was a lot of philosophy
to try and think about it. But anyway, guys, I hope that gives you a greater understanding for why Dumbledore was acting the way he did, and just the Socratic method in general. Also a quick reminder that
this week is SCB Spirit Week. Today is Harry Potter Tuesday. Here are some of the awesome posts people have already been posting today. If you wanna participate,
it's not too late to post all of your Harry
Potter fandom stuff today. And we have a bunch of
other days this week celebrating different fandoms. Tomorrow is Marvelous Wednesday. Thursday is Disney-Pixar. Friday is Formal Friday. That's where you dress up just for fun. Saturday is "Star Wars" Saturday. And Sunday is SCB Sunday where you just celebrate whatever you want or wear some SCB merch. If you want to participate, all you have to do is post a picture of you celebrating your fandom
based on the theme of the day and make sure you use #SCBSpiritWeek. Ben and I are gonna be
reposting pictures all week. I'm already having so much fun with it. But guys, thanks as always
for watching today's video. Don't forget to leave a like on it if you haven't already, and subscribe so you don't miss any future Harry Potter action from us. If you wanna see Dumbledore's big plan and how he was pulling the
strings the entire time, you can check out this
playlist right here. But Ben, until next time, I
will see you in life, brother.
