Minerva NOT DD's Confidant? (was Two scenes for most everyone)

[leslie41]

No: HPFGUIDX 144052

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "lupinlore" <bob.oliver at c...> 
wrote:
> But Minerva ISN'T DD's confidant.  Neither is Snape.  JKR has flat 
> said that DD HAS no confidant.  

No, not on everything.  I should have confined that explicitly to 
educational matters, as she is deputy headmistress, but as we were 
discussing Snape as teacher and McG's reaction to it, I merely let 
that be implied.  I would think that the two of them discuss, at 
length, the various teachers and teacherly approaches.  

> And Minerva herself, when Harry 
> reveals what happened on the tower, immediately believed Harry and 
> implied that she had entertained severe doubts about Snape for 
> years and had possible said as much to DD.  

No.  She merely lumps herself in with all the others who wondered 
about him.  She believes Harry, yes.  But after saying "we all 
wondered..." she says "I can't believe it..."  

She says "people were bound to wonder."  Which is of course true.  
(I believe Snape's ultimately going to be proved one of the good 
guys, but I have my doubts, too.)  

Then, when Harry, sure that Snape was clearly on the side of the DEs 
during the battle, asks her about that, Minerva says "I don't know 
how it happened," and can't say that verify that Snape even fought 
in the battle at all. (another sign, imho, that Snape is DDM)  

It's Harry who immediately believes the absolute worst of Snape and 
beyond, and Harry who has entertained sever doubts about him and 
said as much to DD, not Minerva.  Even when faced with seemingly 
overwhelming proof that Snape is evil, she merely says that she 
questioned DD about Snape, because she "wondered," considering his 
background.  She never gives the impression that she had been 
entertaining "severe doubts".

> Therefore the idea that she was 
> in with DD, or knew what he was thinking about Snape, or approved 
> necessarily, is to flatly contradict both canon and JKR herself.  

I don't know that she was in with DD about the horcruxes, etc. 
(though I think it a possibility), but I think we can assume her 
position as confidante to educational matters.  And we were 
discussing the proper punishment for Snape as a teacher, whether or 
not he's "good," not his status as spy.  Your scenarios specifically 
deal with punishing him for his teaching.       

> Also, the relationship she had with Snape, if we go by what she 
> said at the end of HBP, was not warm, friendly, or approving.  

It's obvious at the very least their relationship was respectful and 
collegial.  Mostly I cannot believe McG intensely dislikes Snape 
because we haven't seen a hint of that, not at all.  Their 
interaction is not fraught with any sort of simmering discontent, or 
resentment.  We'd have seen that by now.

Generally, when characters dislike each other, or completely 
disapprove of each other, we know about it. Even the adults.   

Or maybe especially the adults.    

> But I am not arguing that she would do anything like in that 
> scene, necessarily.  It was merely an example of something that 
might happen 
> with Snape to satisfy nearly everyone -- and I do maintain that if 
> some similar scene does not happen to punish Snape for his child 
> abuse, JKR is a very poor writer who has no idea how to 
> satisfactorily deal with important moral issues.

Rowling is wise enough to know, I think, that sometimes nasty people 
don't necessarily get punished for their nastiness.  People who 
demonstrate transgressive behavior aren't always held accountable, 
or they are held accountable in less obvious ways.

Snape, who mistreats his students, is a fairly miserable person, and 
it's hard to imagine him taking true joy in anything.  That's a 
moral lesson right there.  That a person can be miserable, nasty, 
but ultimately essentially good is an even more pungent one.  

Rowling inasmuch reveals why Snape is allowed to treat students the 
way he does in a Barnes and Noble interview in 2000, when asked why 
DD would tolerate Snape's behavior.  In a way she's being asked why 
SHE would tolerate the behavior.  She says 

"Dumbledore believes there are all sorts of lessons in life; 
horrible teachers like Snape are one of them!" 

Not "horrible" in the sense of being a "bad" teacher.  Snape is 
unequivocally an effective teacher, as fear is often a great 
motivator.  He's just entirely unpleasant.  No one enjoys his class, 
least of all him. They may learn, but they don't enjoy the process.  
 
To my mind, Snape gets his cumuppance every day of his life. Being 
him is its own worst punishment.