Two scenes for most everyone

[juli17 at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 144243

 
Leslie wrote:
> This is not in keeping with canon, or the  relationship between Snape 
> and Minerva as it exists in the books. If  she loathed him that 
> mightily we would have found out about it by  now.
 
Amiable Dorsai wrote:
I'm at a loss to think of any scene that  illustrates that Minerva
approved of Snape's teaching methods.

Put up  with them? Yes.  Bit her tongue for Dumbledore's sake?
Certainly.   Acted in a professional manner toward a colleague? You  bet.

Approved?  Can you cite a scene?




Julie:
I don't know that she always approved of Snape's teaching  methods.
In fact, she undercut him several times on the matter of punishment,
specifically when he tried to take away Gryffindor points. 
 
Still, it is pretty clear in canon that McGonagall didn't strongly 
disapprove of Snape. And I'm not going to cite a scene here. I'm
just going to ask that we view the books in the most reasonable
manner, rather than demanding a specific piece of canon where
McGonagall says "I approve of/like/respect Professor Snape." 
We don't get that kind of incontravertible canon on most issues
(or, when we do, then we have no need to debate it, do we? ;-)
 
McGonagall has never bothered to hide her negative impressions
of people. She dislikes the way the Dursleys treat Harry, she has
little respect for Trewlaney as a teacher, she had less respect for
Lockhart, and she outright defied Umbridge. She made her feelings
clear about every one of them, even *while* she managed to act
in a reasonably professional manner.
 
If McGonagall loathed Snape, we'd know it. But she never expresses
any serious disapproval of him. The most she does is deliberately 
undercut him, as mentioned above, though with little or no actual
anger or resentment. It seemed to be her way of keeping the scales
balanced when she felt Snape was misreading a situation, or going
beyond what was reasonable punishment, particularly pertaining to
her Gryffindors. 
 
I don't think McGonagall and Snape had cozy little chats outside of
school functions. They aren't close friends. But she accepted him,
and showed no resentment of Dumbledore's trust in him. She
took him for what he was, a strict disciplinarian (not so different
from herself) who got results, but who also needed to be reined in
occasionally when he let his biases influence his judgment. (And
I'm not saying McGonagall knew everything Snape pulled either,
though if she discovered certain things--like Snape threatening 
to let Neville's toad die--I'm not sure she'd condemn his methods,
as she shares many of his same frustrations.)
 
McGonagall being shocked about Snape's murder of Dumbledore
("I don't believe it!"), and even saying, "I always wondered.." about
Dumbledore's reasons for trusting Snape, fits in with her mutually
cordial working relationship with him. Though she may have wondered
just what made Dumbledore trust Snape, she never gave any 
indication that she doubted Dumbledore's judgment, or that she 
couldn't or didn't accept a reformed Snape or respect him as a 
colleague. 
 
Julie 
 
 
 







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