Sadistic!Snape? (was:Snape's canon opposite/ Proving loyalty...)

[lealess]

No: HPFGUIDX 140251

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "nrenka" <nrenka at y...> wrote:
> 
> I think this discussion is missing something of the point.  The 
> primary issue is not whether Snape is a good or bad teacher.  It's 
> about the deliberateness of his actions, but the charge of *sadism* 
> is even more about his attitudes.  It's a simple question, really: 
> does he actually *enjoy* the distress of others?

Sorry, I thought I did say something about that, just not in the part
you quoted:

"The way Snape treats Harry Potter, Potter's friends, and Neville
Longbottom, has yet to be explained to my satisfaction. Sadism
doesn't really explain it, as it does not seem to apply to every
student, just these select few."

And my conclusion... "for now, I reserve judgment."

Is Snape a sadist?  He seems to single out certain students for
censure, for reasons which are unknown.  Perhaps his treatment of them
stems from disappointment he finds hard to conceal and not a desire to
inflict pain.

Did Snape enjoy Harry's pain after the death of Dumbledore?  If he was
a sadist, he should have been reveling in it, his moment of inflicting
incredible pain on a person he seemed to despise.  Instead, Snape
seemed to be in as much pain as Harry.  For that matter, if he was a
sadist, it seems he might have taken a little more pleasure in the
actual killing of Dumbledore itself, might have prolonged the
Headmaster's suffering, especially with a crowd of Death Eaters
watching.

nrenka:
> He doesn't send Black and Lupin to the Dementors
> ultimately--but he sure enjoys watching them twist for a while.
 
As far as Lupin and Black, all the adults are doing the twist in the
Shrieking Shack, talking about the revenge they will wreak... not just
Snape.  He really didn't do that much in the scene.  And he got bumped
around for his revenge-driven words.

lealess