Favoring Crabbe & Goyle? [was:Re: OT: Drill Sergeant]

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 94894

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "nkafkafi" <nkafkafi at y...> wrote:
> >Carol:
> > Did I answer all your questions, SSS? And can you and Neri answer 
> mine
> > (regarding evidence of actually, as opposed to ignoring, Crabbe and
> > Goyle)?
> > 
> > Carol, who would have presented these opinions in her original post
> > but wanted to hear from Neri first
> 
> Neri:
> Carol, I agree that Snape ignores Crabbe and Goyle completely, but 
> this is a BIG plus, considering the the kind of attention he pays to 
> Harry and his friends. It really would be a tedious overkill for me 
> to count here all the points taken, detentions, extra homework, 
> terrorizing and cruel remarks that the Gryffindors get from Snape on 
> a regular basis. If you're seriously claiming Snape doesn't practice 
> favoritism, please find me a *single* case of him punishing, or even 
> just frowning at Crabbe and Goyle (or at any other Slytherin for that 
> matter). 
> 
> Thinking of this, I can see Harry refusing to take Slytherins into 
> the DA in book 6, and Hermione convincing him otherwise by saying 
> that he must not behave like Snape.

Carol:
I guess what I'm saying is that it's a sort of reverse favoritism
(picking on Harry and Neville and trying, not exactly tactfully, to
get Hermione to stop interfering) while ignoring the misbehavior and
failed potions of the Slytherins. I don't think Snape specifically
*favors* Crabbe and Goyle (or any other Slytherin), except that he
lets them get away with things he won't allow Harry (or Ron or
Hermione) to get away with (because, IMO, it's very important to him
that HRH follow directions and rules). I'm certainly not denying the
detentions and point docking, etc., that he gives the Gryffindors (and
possibly the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws as evidenced by the rosebush
scene in GoF). Nor am I denying that he ignores Draco's misbehavior, 
but, as I've argued elsewhere, I don't think his favoritism of Draco
(which I think is a cover because of his spy connections) extends to
his grading standards.

We aren't really disagreeing here except maybe in our definition of
"favoritism." We both believe that Snape ignores Crabbe and Goyle, in
contrast to his treatment of Harry et al. I just don't consider
ignoring people to be favoritisim, especially considering that C and G
are likely to have *failed* the Potions OWL, in which case, they won't
be in Snape's NEWT Potions class. I think he made sure that Harry (and
possibly Neville) *would* pass the OWL exam because they'd be able to
apply what he forced them to learn without his presence to distract them. 

I'm betting that HRH, Draco, a few Revenclaws and Hufflepuffs, and
possibly Neville will have NEWT Potions with Snape next year, but
Crabbe and Goyle won't. Why? Because Snape's "favoritism" meant they
got no attention from him and consequently they didn't learn to follow
directions. Also we know his low tolerance for "dunderheads," and I
can't see him making exceptions for the sons of arrested Death Eaters
(even if he wanted to) without losing the respect of the rest of the
school, staff and students alike.

Carol, who hopes for Harry's sake that Snape's methods worked, whether
we Muggles approve of them or not