Snape: motives, relationships with Harry/ Dumbledore/Voldemort. DADA

[Edblanning at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 31259

I'm new to group, so forgive me if my thoughts overlap with those of others.
I've been following the discussions of Snape with interest. My feelings are:

1) His hatred of Harry derives initially from his antipathy to James.  Like 
Harry's and Draco's, this was  was  instinctive. It was exacerbated by his 
jealousy of James's Quidditch skills, possibly academic envy (he is clearly 
clever, yet James and Sirius were top of the year) the Sirius/Lupin incident 
and the final insult of James saving his life. He sneaked around trying to 
get them expelled for rule- breaking in the same way as he tries to get Harry 
expelled.

2) Related to above, I think he is insecure and emotionally immature, 
desperate for approval. I think one of the reasons for his childhood 
obsession with reporting rule breakers is an attempt to gain Dumbledore's 
approval. I rather assume that D knew a lot of what the marauders got up to 
(although not the Animagus bit) and as with Harry, turned a blind eye or even 
gave tacit approval (what was D like at school?). I think he felt he never 
got the recognition he deserved, unlike the marauders, who had everything.

3) Maybe this is the weakness in character which led him to join Voldemort. 
Someone at last who was prepared to recognise his talents. Is it far-fetched 
to suggest he's been looking for a father-figure, first in D and then when he 
lets him down, in V? We don't know much about his childhood, but I'd bet it 
was pretty devoid of parental approval.

4) For some reason, he turned his back on V. Perhaps he realised that V was 
just using him, that the loyalty all flowed one way, that he wasn't a 
favoured son, after all. 
So he returns to Dumbledore and  becomes a spy. He is still trying to win 
approval and moreover to pay the debt he has incurred by becoming a DE. Now he
 has broken the rules and has to pay.

5) Then despite the risks he has taken everything he has done fades into 
insignificance when of all people, the Potter child defeats V.

6) In his dealings with Harry, Severus is obsessed with putting him in his 
place, assuming that  he will have ideas of grandeur, that fame will go to 
his head. I think he is aware, as the Sorting hat was, that Harry could have 
done well in Slytherin and fears that Harry himself might be open to 
corruption. Even worse, he is a rival in his relationship with D. D trusts 
Severus, but he favours Harry. 

7) In PS, we have no suggestion that Severus shares his mistrust of Quirrell 
with D as he does later of Lupin. Why? I think that he is desperate to be the 
one who protects the stone, who can take it safely to D, thus declaring both 
his loyalty and his claim to favoured child status. This is why he is so keen 
to keep Harry out of the way. And then the dratted child does it again! 
Similarly, he wants it to be he who catches Sirius.

8) I can't see any "official" guardian role for him with Harry. IMO he 
genuinely wants to get him expelled. He argues for it with D after the flying 
car incident. He saves Harry form Quirrell, merely as D says, so that he can 
get on hating James's memory in peace.

9) At the end of GoF, I am sure he is willing to resume spying or something 
equally risky. He still hasn't paid his debt.

10) Ironically, I think D is rather fond of him. He understands him 
perfectly, and accepts him warts and all, regarding him as a rather difficult 
child  (D's reaction to Fudge thinking he's unbalanced at end of GoF), but 
Severus can't understand this, his vision is too distorted by envy, hatred 
and lack of forgiveness. 

11) One more thing, about whether he wants the DADA job.
 Koinonia quotes Alan Rickman saying that he "wants to be a Professor of the 
Dark Arts...to be something else....like a black magician". Sounds to me like 
he's got the wrong end of the broomstick, there, surely that's the opposite 
of DADA. I think he loves his potions.

A Question.... Where was Severus whilst the trio were rescuing the PS? He 
must have known that with D gone, Quirrel would make a move. Was it just that 
he knew he couldn't get past Fluffy? Seems a bit weak.

And about the spying........If Severus is pretending loyalty to V, how is he 
going to prove it, unless he is willing to use the unforgivable curses 
(again)?

Eloise (who has never had acne and who would like to think there's a warm, 
cuddly Snape in there somewhere, but doubts it and who fears he will shortly 
meet a heroic but gruesome end whilst remaining as unpleasant as ever....but 
wouldn't he be a cool ghost?)


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]