Harry and Snape's redemption

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 150929

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Don L." <lauciricad at ...> wrote:

Don:
> My first post.  After reading and enjoying this forum since joining 
> several weeks ago, I believe, along with many readers, that the 
> Snape/Dumbledore/Potter triangle as it relates to redemption, 
> sacrifice and heroism to be the most fascinating and anticipated 
> aspect of the Harry Potter series as it draws to conclusion.  I have 
> read hundreds of books of fiction, my favorites haveing been the LOTR 
> series, the Chronicles of Narnia, now joined by the Harry Potter 
> series.  While undeniably different in plot and character, their 
> thematic approach to love, friendship, redemption and sacrifice flow 
> through each story defining strength and hope, and encouraging the 
> reader that in the end good indeed will always triumph over evil.

Geoff:
Welcome to the group


I would agree with you in your analysis that the themes of the books under discussion are 
similar but I feel that there are ways in which these three differ quite widely in their 
approach especially in the three characters of Aslan, Gandalf and Dumbledore.

I have said in the past that I do not see any characters in the Harry Potter books as being 
Christ; some may possibly be Christ-/like/ but that is not the same.

In the Narnia Chronicles, Aslan is quite definitely a Christ figure because the stories tell of 
Christ's life on earth in an allegorical fashion. The great lion is the son of the Emperor-
over-Sea who has come to save the inhabitants of Narnia from evil – personified by the 
White Witch. He gives his life for Edmund to save him and after being killed by the forces 
of evil who think they have won, he returns to life to defeat them. This sets out the basic 
foundation of Christian faith in a form for children.

But, moving on to the Lord of the Rings, Gandalf differs again in that, although he is an 
immortal, he is not a Christ figure. We are told in "The Silmarillion" that Eru created the 
Ainur – beings who we would consider probably as angels -in the beginning. The senior of 
these were the Valar but there was a lesser group of these called the Maiar; Gandalf was a 
Maia. He was sent to Middle-Earth along with others such as Saruman and Radagast to 
help the folk of Middle-Earth to oppose Sauron. Although he dies in combat with the 
Balrog and later returned to life, he does not fit the character of a Christ figure.

Dumbeldore, again, differs from these two. He is not God in human form; he is not an 
angelic being; he is an elderly and wise human wizard who draws upon the experience of a 
long life to lead the opposition to those who want to see evil, currently in the shape of 
Voldemort, taking over the world. If his death at the end of "Half-Blood Prince" did not 
happen but Snape in some way made it appear to have been so, then that of course is not 
returning from the dead. My own personal feeling is that he was definitely killed; for me, 
the jury is still out as to Snape's motives, and will probably remain so until the final book 
appears.

Hence, to reiterate my earlier comment, I feel that these three characters are very different 
in what and who they are and comparisons between them must take this on board and be 
carefully balanced.

Regarding Voldemort's attitude to love and sacrifice, I have remarked in the past that he is 
very similar in this to Sauron in LOTR. Gandalf points out on one occasion that Sauron's 
quest  for power and belief in the Ring blinds him to the fact that there are people in 
Middle-Earth who would even be prepared to consider its destruction to save their world. 
Perhaps this is why so much of Voldemort's planning has been directed towards killing 
Harry because he sees himas a potential usurper of his position and someone who is 
merely seeking revenge rather than the removal of the power base which he has 
constructed.