Forcing Voldemort's hand (was Re: Timing & the Dada position)

[juli17 at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 138964

 


Jen wrote:   
I completely agree with you.  I  think DD gave Snape the position 
because he knew he was going to die soon  and he always needed 
Snape with him before.  
> 

lupinlore:
But DID he know that Severus would function only one year  in DADA?  
It's an interesting question.  The idea of the position  being cursed 
is simple conjecture from DD, based on the fact of what's  happened 
after he refused the position to Voldemort.  Now, he has  pretty good 
evidence, but no proof that we know of.

Even if he did  have proof, consider the situation.  He is placing 
Voldemort's "spy" in  the critical DADA position.  Perhaps, far from 
being a way to ensure  that Snape leaves at the end of the year, he 
sees this as a way to force  Voldemort to remove whatever curse he's 
put on the position.  He is, in  essence, forcing Voldy's hand.  Now 
Voldemort must either remove the  curse or lose his source of 
information inside Hogwarts at an absolutely  critical juncture.  


Amiable Dorsai:
Interesting  notion.  I assumed--and still believe--that Dumbledore's
prime  motivation was to put Horace Slughorn in a position where he
could be  confronted by Lily Evans' son.  I thought that he was
prepared to  sacrifice Snape in order to get the true record of
Slughorn's conversation  with Riddle about Horcruxes.

I hadn't considered the possibility that  transfering Snape to DADA
could have had a beneficial side effect.   Bravo.


Julie says:
I'll just add my two cents here! Whether DD believed in the curse
he certainly knew of it and the fact that no one had lasted more than
a year in the DADA position. This didn't mean that Snape had to be
"sacrificed" in any manner, but that he would leave the position  by
the end of the year, either by choice or not (which could also  mean
he'd return to the Potions position rather than leaving  Hogwarts).
 
OTOH, putting Snape in the DADA position does force Voldemort's
hand, if Snape can't stay there for more than a year because of the
curse. So there is the opportunity left open to Voldemort to remove
the curse if he wants Snape to stay in the position.
 
OTOH (pardon the seesawing!), what reason would Dumbledore 
have for wanting Voldemort to remove the curse at this juncture?
The curse does seem to have to unfortunate effect of bringing out
the worst in the DADA teachers, but it doesn't seem to force 
anyone to destroy themselves. Certainly Lockhart, FakeMoody 
and Umbridge didn't need much assistance--and in fact, the curse
proved useful in those cases by unmasking their true characters.
(Is it odd that the curse seems far more useful to the Order  than
to Voldemort, who seems to have invented a curse that keeps 
those he might plant or use from maintaining the position--and in
fact reveals their true intentions? How does that benefit Voldemort? 
But I guess that's a subject for another post.
 
While I'm writing this, I'm thinking the apparent nature of this  curse
also gives a possible different slant to JKR's answer about why 
DD has never given the position to Snape even though Snape has 
applied for it every year. JKR says it's "because Dumbledore fears 
the DADA position might bring out the worst in Snape."
 
Well, it brings out the worst in *everyone* who takes the position,
so Snape would be no different! So JKR's answer isn't  necessarily 
specific to Snape. She could have said the same thing if DD has
refused to give it to Flitwick, or McGonagall, or any other teacher. 
Granted, some people's worst is very different than other people's 
worst, which may be why some earlier teachers simply left the 
position and moved on, and weren't destroyed by it in the manner 
of Quirrell or Lockhart, or even damaged by their own weaknesses 
like Lupin.
 
We know Snape has a shady past and perhaps a potentially 
unhealthy devotion to the Dark Arts (if not to using them, at 
least to knowing all he can about them). But I think if Dumbledore
truly trusted Snape as much as he kept saying he did, then this 
wouldn't be an issue. I think the real reason DD didn't give  Snape
the position is because he was waiting for the time when giving
Snape the position would be most USEFUL to him and the Order.
And what better time than when Voldemort has solidified  his power,
the Dementors are on the loose creating havoc, and when the
time for the prophecy regarding Harry and Voldemort is looming?
Everything is coming to a head, and if Snape is ever going to 
make use of his connection to Voldemort, and Harry is going to
learn what he *must* know to defeat Voldemort--about Tom's past, 
the horcruxes, and even what Snape can teach him about DADA
(and about Potions in the guise of the HBP)--then the time is NOW. 
 
So while Dumbledore did need the information from Slughorn,
and maybe it would be nice if Voldemort lifted the curse (though
if he is destroyed in the final battle a year or two hence, it could 
become a moot point), I can't see either of these as being the
primary reason for Dumbledore giving Snape the DADA post. 
Most likely to me is simply that the time has come--and not
only for Snape and Harry to make the contributions they've been 
long preparing for, but perhaps for Dumbledore to do so too.
Which could well be to destroy as many horcruxes as possible
while teaching Harry how to destroy the rest, even though the
task would mean his death (and I think it did, as he knew from
the beginning--at least the beginning of HBP).
 
As for Snape's final outcome, well, it's now left entirely in 
Snape's hands. As with Harry, Dumbledore's done all he can
for Snape and has to trust Snape with his own destiny. (I am
obviously one who believes in DD!Snape, BTW.) Snape may
live, or Snape may die, but either way he will make good on
his long ago promise to Dumbledore to help bring Voldemort
down, and thus will finish earning his redemption. (And since
Dumbledore thinks death is but another adventure, Snape's
redemption is far more important to Dumbledore than Snape's
mere life.)
 
That's my interpretation anyway,
 
Julie
 


 


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