In defense of the Snape apologists :-)

[houyhnhnm102]

No: HPFGUIDX 136085

>Mari Wrote:
The ones I can think of I am setting out below (I know these
would have been brought up before). I summarised some of this
in post number 134540.

1) Saving Harry's life in PS

>>vmonte:
If you recall Snape did not know that Quirrell was working for
Voldemort during SS/PS. Voldemort kept Snape in the dark.

Page 28, HBP, U.S. edition:

"I think you wanted to know why I stood between the Dark Lord and the
Sorcerer's Stone. That is easily answered. He did not know whether he
could trust me. He thought, like you, that I had turned from faithful
Death Eater to Dumbledore's stooge...As it was, I saw only greedy and
unworthy Quirrell attempting to steal the stone and, I admit, I did
all I could to thwart him."

Remember Snape had a cushy and safe job at Hogwarts while the other
DEs were stuck in Azkaban.

Page 27

"I had a comfortable job that I preferred to a stint in Azkaban."

houyhnhnm:

These are somewhat circular arguments. You have to assume that Snape
really is a Death Eater telling Bellatrix the truth in order to prove
that he really is a Death Eater.  If he's lying to her then we don't
know whether he made the Quirrel/Voldemort connection or not.  The
following passage from PS/SS is suggestive, though ambiguous.

"It happened very suddenly.  The hook-nosed teacher looked past
Quirrel's turban straight into Harry's eyes--and a sharp, hot pain
shot across shot across the scar on Harry's forehead."

***

>Mari:
2) Choosing to go after the trio to the shrieking shack, to protect
them from someone he believed was in league with Voldemort,
in PoA.

>>vmonte:
Well, this is a matter of interpretation. I see a teacher that is
more concerned with exacting revenge and getting accolades, than a
teacher who is worried about his students.

houyhnhnm:

Yes, it is a matter of interpretation.  My interpretation is that
Snape's motives are always mixed. He is still trying to prove he
should have been Head Boy as much as he is trying to protect the
school or its students, but there is little evidence in the text to
prove or disprove this theory. Certainly, he shows no hesitation in
going after the dangerous lunatic who *he* believes betrayed the
Potters to Voldemort.

>Mari:
3) Trying to convince Fudge in GoF that Voldemort is back, when
Voldemort didn't want anyone to know this.

>>vmonte:
Moody had already threatened to tell dumbledore that Snape had it in
for Harry (I don't think that Snape knew that Moody was Crouch Jr.).
Snape probably felt that he had to prove his loyalty to Dumbledore.

houyhnhnm:

I don't even see a specious connection between these two ocurrences. 
Snape's showing fudge the dark mark is one of the strongest pieces of
evidence for Loyal Snape (I would not call him good).  It was
unnecessary and against Vodemort's interest for him to do so.

>Mari:

4) Alerting the order to what was going on in the Department of
Mysteries.

>>vmonte:
He took his sweet time didn't he. Funny how he never shows up to
anything. Where was he during the fight? Maybe he was afraid of
blowing his DE cover you say? He's the Potions Master no? He's got
all kinds of potions locked in his room doesn't he? And with all the
polyjuice that seems to be floating around Hogwarts you would think
that Snape would have some to spare for when he needs to go somewhere
in disguise. But I guess not.

houyhnhnm:

I admit that the timing of the events at the ministry is ambiguous. 
There is just enough time for the DEs to have obtained the prophecy
before the members of the order arrive, had Harry and the DAs not been
so intrepid.  On the other hand, if Snape really is a Death Eater
knowing how important the prophecy is to Voldemort, it is hard to to
imagine that he would risk the failure of the mission.  He sees six
teenagers go into the forbidden forest without brooms, without the
ability to apparate.  It is quite a leap to deduce that they could
somehow make it hundreds of miles to the Ministry of Magic.  Snape
could have waited much longer to alert the order without bringing
suspicion upon himself.  If he really is a Death Eater, why didn't he?

It seems to me that the evidence is way too ambiguous to make a purely
evil Snape plausible.  Lately, I have had the sneaking suspicion that
JKR is never going to resolve this issue.  I think Snape will
sacrifice himself for Harry in some way in book 7, but we will be
left, at the end of the book, not really knowing what was in Snapes
mind all along.

Myself, I think it would be purely evil for a writer to create a
purely evil character who lives in a house filled with books. : -)