Snape's choice of memories for the pensieve (was: Death and Snape)

[Jen Reese]

No: HPFGUIDX 108519

> SSSusan:
> Fascinating thoughts, Marty.  The way you've written this causes 
me, 
> for the first time, to consider other possibilities for Snape's 
> pensieve selections besides simply, "These memories are awful and 
I 
> don't want Potter to know this about me."  Is it possible that 
> Snape's motive WAS preventing Harry from seeing something about 
some 
> OTHER person/people, not necessarily just that he didn't want 
Harry 
> to see him upside in grey undies?  
> 
> But then again, why WOULDN'T he have wanted Harry to know his dad 
& 
> Sirius were jerks at 15?
> 
> I am so intrigued by all of this!  Does anybody have any ideas on 
> this??


Jen: One theory (from Greywolf, I think) was the incident Harry saw 
was only a "cover memory" placed in the Pensieve to protect other 
memories. That way if Harry did get in there by chance, he would see 
perhaps a humiliating memory, but not the actual *worst* memory 
Snape is protecting. If this is true, then Snape probably 
specifically chose that cover memory because it was proof of James' 
arrogance. 

I like this theory, but wonder if Snape would really want Harry 
seeing him in a humiliating position, even if he's also seeing James 
as an arrogant bully? That's the downside of the idea for me.