[HPforGrownups] Re: Thanking Snape? & Apologies (WAS Where was Snape?)

[Jake Storm]

No: HPFGUIDX 36610

>From: "cindysphynx" <cindysphynx at comcast.net>
>That said, I have to kick myself, because I overlooked perhaps the
>biggest, most important apology in the books.  In my favorite scene
>in my favorite book, no less:
>
>"Forgive me, Remus," said Black.
>"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," said Lupin, who was now rolling up
>his sleeves.  "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing you
>were the spy?"
>
>Now, what on earth are Black and Lupin apologizing for here?  Back
>when Voldemort fell, no one knew whom to trust.  Neither did anything
>wrong by failing to trust the other.  It was nothing personal, and it
>was unavoidable.  Yet there they are, going out of their way to
>apologize before, uh, murdering someone in cold blood.  A lot of
>people have expressed dissatisfaction with this scene, and perhaps
>one reason is that neither character has any good reason to be
>apologizing.  I don't know.

I think you belittle this apology, and to your peril. These were two best 
friends, back in the early 80's, and they both believed, at some level, the 
worst about one another. They're both feeling pretty bad about their mutual 
mistakes, and in patching it up, they're "getting the band back together!"

>So that brings me back to my original point:  wizards are rather
>clueless about when a Real Apology is in order, and they seem to come
>up short in that department.

Actually, my favorite apology is from the same book, just a bit earlier.

  "...Nothing will have changed."
  "Yeah, it will," said Ron fiercely. "You won't have to do all the work 
alone this time, Hermione. I'll help."
  "Oh, Ron!"
  Hermione flung her arms around Ron's neck and broke down...
  "Ron, I'm really, really sorry about Scabbers...," she sobbed.
  "Oh--well--he was old," said Ron..."

Hermione thought she was in the right the whole time, and indeed she was, 
but when the evidence still pointed to a case of ratricide, she finally came 
to her senses and apologised for the actions of her pet, abetted by herself 
by not keeping a tighter leash on him. Granted, it needed the catalyst of 
Buckbeak's case to make them come together, but when the chips were down, 
the apologies were there.

>Cindy (who apologizes at the drop of a hat and is trying to break
>herself of the habit)

You'll want to work on that, Cindy. People aren't going to think you're 
terribly Tough if you keep apologising, you know...

J

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