James, a paragon of virtue? Was: Why Do You Like Sirius?

[nrenka]

No: HPFGUIDX 123514


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "horridporrid03" 
<horridporrid03 at y...> wrote:

<massive snippage; I have more things to do tonight, after all...>

> Betsy:
> If it's the interview I'm thinking of, we don't really learn 
> anything new.  As per the books, Snape has wanted the DADA position 
> for years, and for years Dumbledore has turned him down (Snape made 
> this clear while being questioned by Umbridge in OotP).  I don't 
> think she's told us *why* Dumbledore's made this decision.

Actually, she did--she says that Dumbledore thought teaching DADA 
might "bring out the worst" in Snape.  Yes, that can be read a number 
of different ways (if I were less lazy and about to go make s'mores 
I'd dig them out of the archives--poke me later and I'll try, 
honestly), but still, that does tell us a *good deal* about 
Dumbledore and what he thinks of Snape.  It doesn't tell all, but 
it's revealing.

> And I would hope she wouldn't tell us about it in an interview.  So 
> no - not a plain fact, more of a familiar tap-dance where she 
> appears to say more than she does.

"Bringing out the worst" could be a tap-dance, but I don't think so.  
Especially if we're talking about a Snape who has done Very Bad 
Things.

> Betsy:

<snip>

> but in my flitting about the fan blogs, most of his supporters are 
> fully aware that he probably participated in some horrors.  What I 
> take issue with is the idea that he's broken somehow and can only 
> achieve pleasure by causing pain in others.  If Snape was *that* 
> twisted, Dumbledore wouldn't let him teach *anything*.

On this very list, you will find a number of arguments aimed at 
minimizing Snape's participation in any kind of horrors.  Some, but 
not all.  I think he *does* take pleasure in the distress of others, 
but that's not his sole defining characteristic--you have to read 
some passages rather skeezily to get around that basic idea, though.

Snape is *something* enough that Dumbledore won't let him teach 
DADA.  The question is, what how and why?

-Nora goes off to stretch her legs and clean the snow out of her 
bindings