Snape as the One in Prophecy

[mompowered]

No: HPFGUIDX 136356

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "K.C. Spaight" 
<spaighter at y...> wrote:
> Sharkbait <snikker000 at y...> wrote:
> > I think Snape is part of the prophecy.  This part, (OotP pg.841) 
> > "The one with the power to vanquish the dark lord approaches..." 
> > Snape was caught outside the door when Trelawny was making that 
> > prophecy. And the part where it says "... and either must die at 
> > the hand of the other for neither can live while the other 
> > survives." Now that has me confused with all the other, neither, 
> > eithers so I think it's 2 others and 1 either? 
>  
> 
> Are you forgeting that the rest of the prophecy states that he 
will mark him as his equal?  It clearly indicates that it is Harry 
the prophecy is talking about.
> 
> spaighter

   I usually lurk about here, but thought I'd jump in on this one.  
It also struck me to try and apply the prophecy to Snape as he 
literally *approached* when this prophecy was being made.  Still, I 
think the prophecy probably does refer to Harry (DD, and LV think 
so).  The problem is, in literature prophecies are often not 
straightforward and can be interpreted many ways.  Certainly, LV 
marked Harry, and transferred some of his powers, etc to him, but 
does marking one as an equal imply a conscious decision that the 
person being marked is one's equal?  I don't think LV sees anyone as 
being an equal -- he marks his Death Eaters, but their marks are of 
servants, not equals.  If he had succesfully killed Harry, would he 
have then gone after Neville?  Might he mark someone as his equal 
who killed the only wizard he ever feared ?  
     The other problems with applying the prophecy to Snape are that 
the prophecy specifies "Born to those who have thrice defied him, 
Born as the seventh month dies".  We don't know much about Snape's 
parents other than that his father was a Muggle and his mother, 
Eileen Prince, was a witch who was likely at Hogwarts at the same 
time as Tom Riddle.  Did she know him, and could she have defied him 
three times?  The next part seems to definitely indicate someone who 
is to be born at the end of July, as both Harry and Neville were.  
However, the word "dies" in this line is not literal -- in means as 
the month ends.  If the word "born" here is also not literal, it 
could indicate that the One referred to in the prophecy is (re)born 
as someone who would/could vanquish the Dark Lord at the end of 
July.  This could then apply if Snape found out then who LV was 
targeting when Harry was born and turned spy for Dumbledore at that 
time, though this is a stretch (note that I don't favor a ESE!Snape 
theory, though admit it is possible).
     One more problem with applying the prophecy to Snape is that in 
OOTP, only the one to whom the prophecy applies can take the 
prophecy from the shelf -- and Harry is able to take it.  Can only 
the people whose names are actually on the prophecies remove them, 
or the people to whom a prophecy actually applies?  Suppose a 
mistake was made in interpretation and the wrong person had their 
name put on a prophecy when it actually applied to someone else.  In 
that case, who would be able to remove it?

Cheryl (who is thinking way too much about this book and cannot wait 
two more years!  Waaaaah!)