Chapter 29, Career Advice - Broken Potion

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 116642


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "potioncat" <willsonkmom at m...>
wrote:

> 
> Potioncat:
> Did I hear my name?  ;-)
> I'm still curious as to why JKR wrote it this way.  Did she expect 
> everyone to think Snape broke it?  Did she expect anyone to question 
> it? Did he break it? ....
> 
> It's a little mystery, ...
> 
> If nothing else, it further divides Harry and Snape.  And when Harry 
> needs someone to rely on, he never even thinks of Snape.

bboyminn:

Well, I think you've hit the nail right on the head. JKR wrote it this
way to create a mystery. We are suppose to suspect that Snape broke it
on purpose just to harrass Harry, but at the same time, she wrote it
from Harry's perspective, and his back was turned. Since his back was
turned, and we have no other perspective, it forever remains a mystery. 

Personally, I think Snape broke it on purpose. But there is no way I
can prove that, just as there is no way Harry can prove that Snape
intentionally broke it. But that doesn't stop either Harry or myself
from increasing our contempt for and anger at Snape. This is one of
many events that further alienates Harry from Snape. This increases
Harry's belief that Snape is the, or at least his, enemy. With Harry's
attitude that Snape is an enemy, at one very critical point in the
story, he forgets that Snape is really an ally. 

Also, in that particular school year, class grades mean very little,
it's the results of the OWL test that count. I seriously doubt that a
student would be held back because they failed the class, even when
the /aced/ their OWLs. So, Snape is being petty and vindictive when
(if) he broke Harry's potion, but it's not an event of any greater
significants. It has no significants beyond the mini-war between Harry
and Snape. 

It was all a set up, and will forever remain a mystery. I also don't
think it has any far reaching significants to the story. That is, I
don't think this event or that potion will reappear in later books and
turn out to be the key to everything (or anything). It's just a single
 isolated event that we will forever speculate on but will never resolve.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Steve/bboyminn (was bboy_mn)