Snape and McGonagall Re: Snape and Lupin's Character Arcs

[lupinlore]

No: HPFGUIDX 119489


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "javalorum" <javalorum at y...> 
wrote:
> 
>  
> Hello,
> 
> I joined the group only recently so I hope this doesn't sound too 
> blunt, or too familiar if this topic was already discussed way too 
> many times before.

Welcome, Java.  Don't worry, a little bluntness often helps around 
here.  We have a way of going round and round like a dog chasing its 
tail.

> 
> With regards to the older group, Snape and Sirius especially, they 
> seem to be involved in their school days a lot more than normal 
> people. I can sort of understand Sirius, considering he was sent to 
> prison not long after he left school. But still, bring up "back in 
> the good ol' days, me and James ..." and is kind of ... hmm, sad. I 
> know James was his best friend at school and all, but it just seems 
> he got nothing else to remember besides school days. And, even 
though 
> he was sent away shortly after graduation, that was probably still 
a 
> good 4, 5 years inbetween. For a kid that age, with that much good 
> looks and charisma, I would imagine his life after school (and 
James 
> being so involved with Lily) was only going to be more exciting, 
and 
> more memorable. But then, maybe he just didn't talk to Harry about  
> that, and the book was more from Harry's point of view.

I agree that Sirius is a very sad character.  I don't think there was 
quite as much time as you suppose, only 2-3 years.  I'm also not so 
sure his experiences after school would be all that great.  A lot of 
people who have a great time at school because of looks and charisma 
find that the "real" world isn't so amenable.  It may well be that 
Sirius was disappointed in what he found after Hogwarts and was 
already developing a tendancy to try and hang on to the good old 
days, even before going to Azkaban.

> 
> But for Snape to hang onto his school days like that is very hard 
to 
> understand. It's not like he enjoyed it. A lot of things must have 
> happened after he left school, growing up, seeing the real world. 
He 
> wasn't sent to prison. Yet he's still only focused on age 11-17. 
> Maybe he's just that narrow-minded and mean, and he only focuses on 
> bad things happened to him. I would imagine a person like that, 
going 
> into the real world, can only find a lot worse memories than school 
> days. However, his worst memory was when he was 15, and his worst 
> enemy, after 20+ years, is still James Potter. I think Snape is 
quite 
> eccentric and entertaining too, but because of this, sometimes I 
> think he exists in the HP universe just for Harry (teaching him 
life 
> lessons, in both good ways and bad), and not so much of a real 
> character.

I agree that Snape is an over-the-top character who just isn't very 
believable at times.  As you say, it's hard to imagine that someone 
who's lived 20+ years after Hogwarts and gone on to be a Death Eater 
wouldn't have greater scars than a rivalry with a school jock.  Of 
course wounds inflicted in childhood tend to be the worst and longest 
lasting, but still.  

I also agree that Snape serves as a "moral device."  We have five 
characters now with terrible (or at least challenging) childhoods:  
Harry, Snape, Sirius, Lupin, and Voldemort/Riddle.  Four of them have 
never managed to overcome those childhoods.  Sirius perhaps didn't 
have a fair chance, but nevertheless he tried to remain the reckless 
jock he was at Hogwarts.  Riddle becomes evil.  Snape poisons his 
soul with so much bitterness and anger that he becomes a twisted 
emotional cripple.  Lupin develops an unhealthy desire to please 
people and be liked.  Each of these represents a path that Harry 
should avoid.

> 
> I hope this doesn't sound too harsh. I really like the book series, 
> but was somewhat disappointed by the last installment (still 
couldn't 
> help but reading it a few times though).

I agree that OOTP was disappointing and definitely the worst of the 
books so far.  Let's hope JKR redeems herself with HBP.

Lupinlore