Bad Writing? (was: JKR and the boys)

[cubfanbudwoman]

No: HPFGUIDX 162932

Carol:
> > Snape is just having a moment of petty vengeance against Harry 
> > for ostensibly stealing his potion ingredients and lying about 
> > it. 
 
zanooda:
> The incident in question (Snape dropping Harry's potion sample) 
> actually happened on the very first lesson after Harry saw Snape's 
> worst memory ("Career advice"). I'm not trying to defend Snape 
> here, but it was probably the time when Snape hated Harry the most. 
> IMO he thinks:"You saw me humiliated, you saw me powerless, but now 
> *I* have power over you". It's vengeance and self-assertion (is it 
> the right word?) at the same time. Again, not defending, it's just 
> a comment.


SSSusan:
FWIW, I'm with you, Zanooda, in how I read this scene.  However, 
having had this discussion/argument a couple of times before here, I 
can step up and explain part of the assertion against it:  the potion 
vial/phial's shattering takes place ever-so-slightly "off screen."  
We see Harry turn it in, we (along with Harry, since we're in his 
POV) hear the glass shattering and hear Snape's "Whoops" and turn 
with Harry to see the damage after the fact.

Again, like you, my assumption is that Snape dropped the vial 
intentionally, to send all kinds of messages to Harry ["I despise 
you, Potter" or "Don't forget that I have the power in this 
relationship" or "This is my kind of humor"].  However, the wall you 
will run up against in this assertion is that it cannot be proven as 
fact, since we're with Harry in his POV and he did not definitively 
*see* Snape drop the vial.  Harry "knows" it to be true, but Harry 
has been wrong about what he "knows" before.

In this case, I think what Harry "knows" is true, but there you have 
it.

Siriusly Snapey Susan