In Defense of Snape (long)

[horridporrid03]

No: HPFGUIDX 122349


>>Betsy:
>What else do you expect Snape to teach Neville and Harry?
<snip>
>Snape's job, what he's been hired to do, is to give these kids a 
basic knowledge of Potions and to get them past their OWLs.  Which, I 
think, he's done.  Anything else, in regards to the prophecy, would 
be sticking his oar into Dumbledore's business. Snape has too much 
respect for Dumbledore to do such a thing.<

>>Alla:
<snip>
>I expect Snape to teach Harry Occlumency, the task in which he 
failed magnificently, IMO only.<

Betsy:
Was this what SSSusan was talking about?  Because Neville was not 
involved in the Occlumency lessons.  So I'm confused about that.

As far as the Occlumency lessons for Harry - yes those did fail, but, 
as I've said before, and as I *know* you'll disagree <g> Harry held 
some of the blame.

>>Alla:
>Sticking in Dumbledore's business? Snape is either Dumbledore 
trusted leutenant and then he is ALREADY quite deep in Dumbledore's 
business, or he is not which raises some other evil possibilities, 
but that is not the point now,<

Betsy:
Let's turn this around a little.  What about McGonagall?  What extra 
stuff has she done for the prophecy boys?  She's a trusted lieutenant 
herself, why isn't she doing special projects with Neville and 
Harry?  As far as I can tell she has only acted in her role as Head 
of House and Transfiguration Professor.

The prophacy stuff is Dumbledore's baby.  Snape and McGonagall will 
do as they're told by Dumbledore, but they will not overstep their 
bounds -- is what I was trying to say.

>>Alla:
>And may I disagree about Snape ... respecting Dumbledore? He was 
given a task, he gave in to his emotions, old wounds, whatever and 
did not do such task.
>I called it unsubordination at best.<

Betsy:
Which leads us to the Occlumency lessons, which was an assignment by 
Dumbledore for Snape.  And yes, Snape ended the lessons prematurely.  
Which you're absolutely correct, is insubordination.  And I wonder 
what the fall-out will be.  I think we've only seen the tip of the 
iceberg on this.

However, I do think Snape respects Dumbledore.  I think he has *huge* 
respect for him.  He does things for Dumbledore he'd never do for 
anyone else.  I don't think Dumbledore would hold Snape so close if 
there wasn't mutual respect going on there.  A good barometer on that 
is Hagrid.  Hagrid has no patience for anyone disrespecting 
Dumbledore, and Hagrid respects Snape, so Snape must respect 
Dumbledore.  
 
>>Betsy:
>I don't see how Snape's behavior has weakened Harry.  I don't even 
see how it's weakened Neville.  Both boys did quite well in the MoM 
battle.  I'm not sure what it is you feel Snape should do for them.<
 
>>Alla:
>I'd like to speculate for a second. It is a possibility that if 
Snape performed better as a teacher, there would be NO battle at MOM, 
don't you think?<

Betsy:
No, I think the battle would have occured.  Though I know you won't 
like the reason I think that way. :)  No matter how much Occlumency 
Harry learned, he wanted to see the end of the dream. So Harry would 
have left his mind open to Voldemort in order to see what was in the 
DoM, and he would have been fooled. And the MoM battle would have 
occured.

Betsy