for whom are the books named?, Re: Possible message in Evil!Snape

[ladyljd]

No: HPFGUIDX 137058

Del wrote:
> > But DD is the wise mentor of the hero, and usually the mentor is
> > right, *especially* when everything seems to point to the fact 
> > that he is wrong. That's one of the major points of the mentor: 
> > to teach the hero to look beyond appearances. And Harry so far 
> > has almost NEVER looked beyond the appearance of Snape. 

anthyroserain:
> To add to what Del is saying: Harry may be the hero and have his 
> name in the title, but a smart coming-of-age story doesn't suggest 
> that the hero never learned anything through all the books. 
> Dumbledore is fallible and sometimes wrong, but this was the 
> greatest lesson he ever taught, one that Harry would be foolish to 
> reject, and one I think (or hope) JKR will back up in the end.


Sorry I've been so long in responding to this.  RL issues have 
imposed themselves on my HBP speculation time!!  

Anyway, you know that I certainly agree with your arguments.  The 
fallacy of relying on appearances and prejudices is what I hoped we 
were seeing develop in the character interpretations of both Lupin 
and Snape.  And perhaps this is so with Lupin but I am ever more 
convinced of JKR's ill intentions where Snape is concerned.  I won't 
waste your time on all of my theories on what Book 7 will contain.  
What I will say is that I'm beginning to doubt that Snape will be 
involved in the redemption JKR is clearly planning for the next 
installment.  

We are treated to a rather sympathetic back-story of Tom Riddle in 
HBP.  Could this mean he is capable of some form of redemption?  If 
there is more Snape back-story, you can be certain it will NOT be 
sympathetic.  After all, JKR has said that Snape's knowledge of love 
makes him EVEN MORE CULPABLE than Riddle.  Perhaps this puts Snape 
in the beyond redemption column for JKR.

Further, what if whatever Snape does next is somehow contributory to 
Riddle's redemption - whether he intends it to be or not.  Even if 
Snape hates Lord Voldemort (regardless of whatever side he's on) he 
could have reason to feel love or admiration for Tom Riddle.  
Perhaps the presence of these feelings could be a redemptive factor 
for Riddle regarding of Snape's actions.  If Snape were to betray 
LV, he would be acting the Judas role in redeeming him.  And if he 
were to die supporting Riddle it would be analogous to Lily's and/or 
Dumbledore's sacrifices.  

More and more, I believe JKR sees Snape himself as immaterial to the 
story.  Yes his actions will be a major trigger of the final outcome 
but his ability to direct or (pun intended)spin this tale have come 
to an end.  If there were a poll on this, I'd vote for him to be 
dead by or before chapter 13 of book 7.

Regardless, I believe JKR will destroy our (mistaken) belief in the 
depth of the Snape character.  Her hero MUST be proven right at all 
costs.  Harry is her hero and he has fixed his opinion of Snape 
after careful thought - and at a very late stage in this story.  He 
cannot be wrong and remain Our Hero.  Therefore, whatever his 
actions and/or motives, Snape MUST be proven to be evil through and 
through.  All of his actions throughout the series can be taken at 
face value.  There is no more depth to this character.  

In this case, the only thing left regarding Snape would be to reveal 
the full extent of his evil machinations over the years.  And quite 
frankly, I don't believe JKR will bother with this.  The full extent 
of ESE!Snape's actions can be left to our collective 
imaginations.    


ladyljd