Although to me, it seems like something that's been bred into them by now. Just because of how the nature of house-elves is taken for granted at this point. It doesn't seem like something that's done regularly - unless it's well-hidden, which is possible. They've been around as servants for quite some time... so, if it's bred in, it could explain Dobby's partial deviation from the mold. The enchantment is diluted, so Dobby is still bound to the Malfoys, but isn't constrained by brainwashing.
I guess you could read that Dobby's getting his ideas from twisting what the Malfoys say, but as vvvexation said, he could have heard of it from other house-elves or some such. And he does say, "Dobby remembers how it was when He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was at the height of his powers, sir! We house-elves were treated like vermin, sir!" (p177-78, US edition) - which implies he communicated with other house-elves back then, and that his appreciation for Dumbledore's opposition to Voldemort (p15) could stem from back then.
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Although to me, it seems like something that's been bred into them by now. Just because of how the nature of house-elves is taken for granted at this point. It doesn't seem like something that's done regularly - unless it's well-hidden, which is possible. They've been around as servants for quite some time... so, if it's bred in, it could explain Dobby's partial deviation from the mold. The enchantment is diluted, so Dobby is still bound to the Malfoys, but isn't constrained by brainwashing.
I guess you could read that Dobby's getting his ideas from twisting what the Malfoys say, but as vvvexation said, he could have heard of it from other house-elves or some such. And he does say, "Dobby remembers how it was when He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was at the height of his powers, sir! We house-elves were treated like vermin, sir!" (p177-78, US edition) - which implies he communicated with other house-elves back then, and that his appreciation for Dumbledore's opposition to Voldemort (p15) could stem from back then.