[HPforGrownups] Snape's liability

[Mrs.) Lee Storm (God Is The Healing Force]

No: HPFGUIDX 100626

| From: A Featheringstonehaugh
| Sent: Wednesday, June 09, 2004 15:14 PM
|
| I suppose everything in life can be somehow linked to everything
| else if the connection is stretched enough, but I  don't accept
| the argument that discontinuation of the lessons was responsible
| in any way for Sirius' death. It was Harry's inability or
| unwillingness to cooperate and his hostility toward Snape that
| held him back. Harry had been told of the importance of the
| lessons; he knew it was in his own interest to master the art and
| that this was not being done for amusement and yet...   Sure
| Snape ended the lessons - but even if he hadn't, there's no
| indication that Harry would have cooperated any more than he
| already had. Without practice, his progress would have stalled,
| leaving him with that dangerous "little bit of knowledge" we all
| know about. Innate ability may have been there, but mastery
| required effort on Harry's part, and effort was something he just
| couldn't put forth.. Snape couldn't make Harry learn, he could
| only teach - the rest was up to Harry, who couldn't or
|  wouldn't accept what was offered.

[Lee]:

Well, if I had to work with a teacher who I knew hated me and had given me
no reason to feel confident or comfortable around him/her, I would have a
very difficult time.  I'm a rather sensitive person; if I had been
constantly humiliated and berated in my potions class by Snape, how in all
Hogwarts could I feel even remotely comfortable at the thought that this
hateful, nasty, horrid person could read the essence of my
thoughts/memories?  No matter how important it might be for me to learn
Occlumency, the last person in the universe I'd want teaching me would be
my--uh--nemesis.

So, there would be two ways to tackle this: 1) Do everything I could to keep
this horrorhead out of my mind; 2) Get really flustered and not be able to
handle Professor Horrorhead.

The biggest thing I see is that Snape didn't really prepare Harry; he didn't
tell him plainly enough, IMHO, what to expect when the word "Legilimens" was
spoken.

Really, if one is going to teach something that requires clearing the mind
and, in essence, centering oneself, Snape should have taken a bit of time to
help Harry to get into that preparatory state.  True, one wouldn't have time
if suddenly besieged by Voldebeast (I like that, whoever used it), :-) but
certainly, if the behavior is taught correctly, it will become second nature
or a habit and certainly a lot easier to evoke when Voldebeast strikes.

I know for myself that I sure would have had a rough time and probably would
not have put forth a lot of effort, feeling that this horrible teacher sure
wasn't putting much effort into instructing me...only into making me feel
worse than I might be feeling already.

Does any of this sound understandable?  I think both Harry and Snape did
wrong things, but a personality clash can certainly make a working
relationship miserable and, sometimes, futile.

Cheers,

Lee :-)

Do not walk behind me,     | Lee Storm
I may not care to lead;    | N2FGC
Do not walk before me,     | n2fgc at optonline.net (or)
I may not care to follow;  | n2fgc at arrl.net
Walk beside me, and be my friend.