Snape: Crime and Punishment

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 143772

There are several Snape thread going on right now, and since I'm not
replying to a specific person, I'm not sure where to place this. So, I
thought I would start a new thread.

Many people, for a variety of reasons, are insisting that Snape suffer
in some way for the way he treated Harry and Neville. Many futher feel
that the book will not make sense if this doesn't come to pass.

I'm here to say, that it is very likely that it will NOT come to pass.
Why? Because, in real life, this rarely happens. JKR is writing a
somewhat light and classic "Hero's Journey", but it is a journey with
dark subtext and a very real gritty sense of real-life reality. The
truth is there are mean nasty teachers out there, and they spend there
entire and very long teaching careers making the lives of their
charges miserable. 

We has such a teacher in our school. I believe she taught fourth
grade, and inveriably every student who previously loved school, hate
both school and the teacher as soon as they entered her classroom.
Still she spent her entire life as a teacher, and retired at a ripe
old age. They probably even honored her with a plaque for her many
year of service to education. She was never punished for her 'crimes'. 

I think Snape's lack of direct punishment or ever being called to task
for his mean nasty demeanor is just part of the harsh gritty reality
of these books. The universal appeal of the books is that they are
morally ambiguous. The good guy doesn't always win, the bad guys
aren't clearly defined, and it isn't always fair; just like real life.

The next reason I don't believe Snape will be called to task for his
actions is because we are looking at the events from the perspective
of modern American education; a situation in which I might add that
teachers are powerless and students run amok. But the reality is that
until just a decade or so ago harsh corporeal punishment was allowed
in British Schools; caning was common and frequent. In fact, they are
famous for it. To some extent this is reflected in Snape pushing Harry
and Ron's heads down and wacking them with a composition notebook in
the latest film. But the reality is, that Snape's action in the film
were extremely mild compared to real British schools of not that long ago.

Further, in the modern and not so modern world, Catholic Schools the
world over are noted for their harsh physical punishments of students,
and their absolute no-nonsense ridged rules and blunt authoritarian
enforcement, and yes, even their unfairness. 

The severity of Snape's actions are really a matter of perspective.
Has Snape every raise a hand to Harry? OK, Occlumency lessons don't
count, and Snape throwing a jar at Harry, which missed by the way,
when he found Harry in his pensieve also doesn't count since very few
people would have been that restrained under the circumstances.
Basically, when you condense it down, Snape has a bad attitude toward
Harry and Neville, and YES, he treats them unfairly. But mean, nasty,
and unfair fall far short of abuse in the context of these stories. 

I think accusations of /abuse/ on his part are not so much a matter of
reality, as they are a matter of overblown, overhyped, ultra-liberal
thinking. (Sorry, I know that stings a bit, and for the record, I do
consider myself a liberal; just not an overhyped ultra-liberal.)

In short, in real life, the bad guys don't always get punished. 

Let's see if I can add one more short note about Snape. I have already
said the even under the most ideal circumstances, the wizard world
will never forgive or forget that Snape killed Dumbledore. They may
come to understand, they may even understand to the point where the
courts will grant leniency to Snape, but they will never forgive his
actions.

I do believe that Snape is the only source of help for Harry in
finding the Horcrux. That knowledge reside inside Voldemort's inner
circle, and it is information that is held by an EXTREMELY FEW people.
Now that Snape is trusted above all others, I think he will help
Harry. I just don't see any other way out. As has been pointed out in
other threads, can we really expect Harry to accomplish in less than a
year what Dumbledore could not accomplish in many years? I don't think
so. Even starting with Dumbledore's information; Harry has a
monumental task ahead of him. One that, as I have also said before, he
is woefully unprepared for. Conclusion: there has to be some type of
shortcut, and I see that shortcut as Snape.

This is vital; don't get me wrong, just because Snape helps Harry
doesn't mean he will be elevated to the rank of hero. I've already
said that Snape has commited an unforgivable act in killing
Dumbledore. I have futher said that Snape understood he was commiting
an unforgivable act for which he would surely suffer, either in prison
or by death, a great punishment. That is the foundation of Snape
objection to Harry calling him a coward. Snape has done both an
immensely brave and simultaniously cowardly thing in killing
Dumbledore. He has made a sacrific in the extreme by his action, a
sacrifice that may indeed cost him his life. A sacrifice that will
doom him for all time even under the very best of circumstances.

Yet, despite sealing his own doom, I think the wizard world is capable
of understanding the nature and motivation of Snape's action after the
fact. And while that understanding may brind a degree of leniency,
Snape will still suffer imprisonment for his actions. That is, if he
isn't killed first.

I can't say exactly how Snape will play a role in helping Harry, and
certainly Harry will greatly resist any attempts at help that he knows
are coming from Snape. But I think in the end, Snape will in some way
redeem himself, but that act of redemption, while it will mitigate his
prior actions, will never erase them.

You heard it here first...again.

Steve/bboyminn