[HPforGrownups] Re: It's over, Snape is evil

[Kathryn Jones]

No: HPFGUIDX 137633

eggplant107 wrote:

> I never liked Snape and was always a bit mystified why so many felt
> that deep down he's really just a sweetheart, but before HBP JKR could
> perhaps morphed him into a good guy, or at least into a less
> despicable character; but now JKR has burned her bridges as far as
> Snape is concerned. After what we saw in HBP if she tries to turn
> Snape into a good guy the last book in the Potter series will be a
> disaster because killing Dumbledore is quite simply unforgivable. 
> 
> Eggplant

Kathy writes:
     I don't think he's a sweetheart, I just think there has to be a 
point to him. JKR has deliberately written him in a manner that gets our 
attention. JKR writes in a manner that affects our emotions. Several 
times in the books, I cringed when Snape did something particularly 
despicable. When I read the tower chapter, I was absolutely floored, 
flabbergasted, appalled, (have I left anything out?) but my emotional 
reaction was "Oh, God, No, I can't believe she did that! How could she 
do that!" I think that I respond to Harry as a force of nature, 
Dumbledore as a master planner, and Snape as a victim of peer pressure, 
poor choices, more like a cork in the sea. I don't see Snape as being as 
powerful as Dumbledore or Voldemort. He has been portrayed as more 
intelligent than the the Deatheaters, but that's not saying much. He's 
been portrayed as having a bit more on the ball than most of the Order, 
which in some cases isn't saying much. He stands out in comparison. He 
wasn't referred to as the brightest student at Hogwarts in the Marauder 
days, James and Sirius were. JKR shows him as being highly effective, 
healing Draco, non-verbal spells, fighting skills, wandless magic 
(PS/SS), saving Dumbledore from the ring horcrux curse, and yet he has 
appeared powerless to make any definitive changes in his own life. To 
me, his character is a much more interesting puzzle than Harry's. Since 
Harry is the "hero" of the story, I have to wonder why JKR gave so much 
prominence to Snape's character.
Your post was a most interesting discussion.
KJ