[HPforGrownups] Re: Snape and DADA

[annegirl11 at juno.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 112118

Magda said:
> The worst in Snape is his inability to understand people.  He
> consistently assumes the worst of others

Aura:
<taps nose> This was my first assesement of Snape's deeper motives, and I
still stand by it. I'd go so far to say that, in the literary sense, it's
his main character flaw.

Magda again:
> I think the key to this mystery is his soliloquy to Harry about not
> wearing emotions on your sleeve or you'll be easy meat for the Dark
> Lord.  Snape views almost all emotions as potential sources of
> weakness and therefore things to be clamped down on hard for 
> safety's sake.  

If his penseive memory of a small child cowering while a man shouted at a
woman is read that Snape grew up in an abusive home (and I think that's
exactly what that memory is to show us), then Snape would have learned to
protect his emotions starting at a very early age. I'm terribly tired so
I can't explain all the blahblahpsychologycakes, so you'll just have to
trust in my psychology degree that hiding ones' emotions for safety is
common to children who have grown up in abusive (or alcoholic) homes.

Magda:
> Talk about emotions or feelings or 
> settling for less-than-perfect results is so much self-indulgent
nonsense in
> the face of the larger battle.
> This lack of perspective would actually work against Snape's 
> efforts to teach DADA.

A very good insight! If Crouch-Moody was a little demanding as a DADA
prof, Snape would be sociopatic. At least Potions is a relatively
objective disciplen (I read it as wizard chemistry), so he can only
berate students on their ability to mix carefully and study ingredients.
But letting Snape attempt to understand why a kid is afraid of a boggart?
And then coach the kid out of his fear? Oi. Talk about the howlers DD
would get: "My child is afraid to go to sleep at night! He says Professor
Snape is going to let a vampire in his dormitory every night until my son
stops screaming and defeats it! Get that demented DADA professor away
from my child!" 

Aura

~*~
Well that's a horse of a different color.
Fanfic and original stuff at www.homepage-host.uni.cc/w/ofnone