Whatever the case, it seems odd that Dumbledore wouldn't check everyone in the Order from time to time -- it appears that all he has to do to get a quick read on someone is to look into their eyes.
I think Dumbledore would have found himself with a lot fewer followers if he used Legilimency on them regularly. Frequent interrogations like that would most likely have demoralized the members of the Order. Or at least, that would happen if my theory on Legilimency is correct: that while a Legilimens can pick up some of the vague surface emotions and thoughts of their target without speaking the incantation (example: Snape "knows" that Harry had been stealing from his office because he can pick up that Harry is feeling guilty, even though it was actually Dobby doing the stealing), true Legilimency cannot be done without alerting the target (i.e. the flashes of memories Harry experienced). So Dumbledore wouldn't have been able to truly "read the minds" (sorry Snape) of those around him, unless he was prepared to face the mob of people furious that their privacy had been violated. At least, as long as my theory is correct. Which it probably isn't.
This could also help explain why Snape never knew Moody was a fake, etc. He wouldn't risk Mad-Eye's wrath by poking around in his mind, and surface readings (Legilimency without the incantation) of Barty Crouch's mind would have revealed his emotions were consistent with his outside self (i.e. Both the real and fake Moody hated DE who had gone free, though for very different reasons, reasons that Snape could only have learned about if he used full Legilimency).
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Date: 2004-07-15 08:24 pm (UTC)I think Dumbledore would have found himself with a lot fewer followers if he used Legilimency on them regularly. Frequent interrogations like that would most likely have demoralized the members of the Order.
Or at least, that would happen if my theory on Legilimency is correct: that while a Legilimens can pick up some of the vague surface emotions and thoughts of their target without speaking the incantation (example: Snape "knows" that Harry had been stealing from his office because he can pick up that Harry is feeling guilty, even though it was actually Dobby doing the stealing), true Legilimency cannot be done without alerting the target (i.e. the flashes of memories Harry experienced).
So Dumbledore wouldn't have been able to truly "read the minds" (sorry Snape) of those around him, unless he was prepared to face the mob of people furious that their privacy had been violated.
At least, as long as my theory is correct.
Which it probably isn't.This could also help explain why Snape never knew Moody was a fake, etc. He wouldn't risk Mad-Eye's wrath by poking around in his mind, and surface readings (Legilimency without the incantation) of Barty Crouch's mind would have revealed his emotions were consistent with his outside self (i.e. Both the real and fake Moody hated DE who had gone free, though for very different reasons, reasons that Snape could only have learned about if he used full Legilimency).