CIAO DOLCE VITA (Longish)

[hickengruendler]

No: HPFGUIDX 135836

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Sherry Gomes" <sherriola at e...> 
wrote:
 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sherry now:
> 
> I don't know about the characters in the wizarding world, but there 
is no
> excuse, unless Dumbledore faked his death, that would ever let 
Snape off the
> hook, for me, anyway.  He murdered Dumbledore.  For whatever 
reason, whether
> some cockeyed noble plan, mercy killing, saving Draco, saving his 
own
> worthless skin, keeping his cover, or just for his own whims,  to 
me, it's
> just plain murder.  Nothing would ever be a believable or 
acceptable excuse.
> I wonder if it ever would be to Harry?  Consider that because of 
Snape
> rushing off to spill the beans about the prophecy, Harry's parents 
are dead,
> Sirius spent 12 years in Azkaban ... will Harry ever be able to 
forgive or
> even come close to understanding any plan or motive that could even 
try to
> justify Snape's actions on the tower that night?  It will be 
interesting to
> find out, if that is what happens in book 7.  Personally, I hope 
not.
> Deliberately murdering Dumbledore for a supposedly noble purpose 
seems to go
> so against everything else in the books.  It would be a huge 
disappointment
> for me.  But I'm not one to say that because an author doesn't do 
what I
> like in a book, it's not well done.  I may not like it, but that's 
ok, too.
> I just wish book seven was out now, so we could all find out!  Of 
course, if
> Snape is to be redeemed, it could come in book seven through some 
other
> means, but murdering Dumbledore was not the act of a man who has 
sought
> redemption of any kind.
> 
> 
> 
> Sherry

Hickengruendler:

While admittingly not yet confirmed in the books, it is IMO highly 
likely (in fact, it's one of the very few things I'm almost certain 
about), that Snape also was the spy, who told Dumbledore that 
Voldemort was after the Potters. Dumbledore already hinted at this in 
HBP (chapter 25) and since we don't know about any other spy for 
Dumbledore in the Death Eaters, it seems a reasonable conclusion. 
(But like I said, not yet confirmed, therefore there's still another 
possibility open, at least theoretically). I think this would be at 
least an attempted redemption for telling Voldemort about the 
prophecy. Snape was the one who made it possible that Voldemort was 
after the Potters, and he also was the one who through his actions 
tried to save them. But of course he failed, James and Lily are dead, 
and therefore his "evil" deed has a much bigger impact than his good 
one. I think that's the real reason why he saved Harry several times 
in the books. He still thinks that he's in James' guilt.

And about Dumbledore: Well, if the theory is right, and Dumbledore 
really wanted Snape to do it, because it would help in the fight 
against Voldemort, than I consider it a truly heroic deed. Of course 
the big question is if this where Snape's reason to do it, and we 
won't know it before maybe 2007 (sigh), but if it is, than I at least 
will forgive him at once.

What I will never forgive him is the truly despisable way he treats 
the kids in class, especially Harry, although he is responsbile for 
his parents deaths.

Hickengruendler