Calling Tonks Nymphadora, and Snape's button pushing in general

[leslie41]

No: HPFGUIDX 152121

Responding to a couple of people here....

> Alla:

> Um, I'd say what Snape perceives as a weakness in the person is not
> necessarily the weakness in the person. Somehow I am not seeing JKR
> sending the message that love, real love at the time of war makes 
> the person weak.

Leslie41:

I don't know if that's what she's intending, but that's what I'm 
seeing.  Being lovelorn makes a person weaker.  

> Alla: 
> That is of course even putting aside the question who gave Snape a
> right to mock Tonks in the first place.

Leslie41:

Well, no one (least of all myself) would call him a nice guy.

> Alla: 

> Tonks was not weak because of love per se, IMO, she was weak 
> because Remus was not returning her love, or so she thought.

Leslie41:

No, she was weak because of how she RESPONDED to that thought. She 
pretty much turned into a pile of goo.  For example, look at Ginny.  
By HBP it's not that she stopped loving Harry. But instead of pining 
endlessly, she went on with her life, became her own person, did her 
own thing...and as a result becomes far stronger than if she had 
continued her silent yearning for him. Had she continued pining, my 
guess is he would not have fallen for her at all.  It's not love 
that makes a person weak.  It's useless pining. 

> Sherry: 

> So, Sirius should have sat on his rear and let Harry be in danger 
> and done nothing?  Even though I do not like and do not believe in 
> the goodness of Snape under any circumstances, I don't believe his 
> taunting had much to do with Sirius rushing to save Harry.  

Leslie41:

No, you're right.  It doesn't.  but it establishes him, again, as a 
hothead, as someone Snape can get to with his taunts.  And if Snape 
can do that, well, so can others.  Like Kreacher for example.  

> Sherry:

> Sirius *had* to do it.  It's who he is.  It's not a bad thing that 
> he wants to protect his pack.  It's not his fault that he died.  
> Who would have applauded his sensibility if he had stayed
> home?  Probably, we would have all called him a coward and thought 
> he was a pretty unfeeling person.  His role as Harry's only 
> parental figure demands that he goes, no matter what Dumbledore 
> said.  And the person who deserves the blame for the death of 
> Sirius is Bella, not Sirius.  Sirius is the victim after all.

Leslie41:

Ah, but why is Sirius at the Department of Mysteries anyway? Because 
he has a bad temper.  He was yelling at Kreacher to get out of the 
kitchen.  He treats Kreacher very badly.  Understandable, but hardly 
admirable.  Dumbledore even comments on it.  This allows Kreacher to 
interpret the order "out" to accomodate his leaving the house, which 
sets the whole disaster at the Department of Mysteries in motion.  
It's no mistake that Sirius Black's bad temper was the catalyst for 
what happened there.  No, he's not "responsible" for his own death, 
but his own actions put himself there, where he was killed.

> Sherry 
> But we are led to believe that love is the most important thing, 
> the power the "dark Lord knows not".  I can't see her love as a 
> weakness.  I understand that Snape considers love as a weakness.
> Also, friends don't "dump" their problems on friends.  Friends 
> confide in friends.  I'm positive that is what Tonks was doing 
> with Molly.  It's what friends do.  It's the strength of 
> friendship.

Leslie41:

Again, I don't think love is the problem. It's the "lovesickness" 
that is.  

And yeah, friends confide in friends, but anyone who's been friends 
with someone who's lovesick knows that often times the person 
becomes self-destructive about the situation, and won't shut up, or 
see reason, or even LISTEN to anything said to them.  Because, 
they're loveSICK.  It's like a mental disease or something.

> Sherry:

> I have the definite impression that a calm stoic Harry is not a 
> person who is going to beat Voldemort.  Harry's emotions are his 
> strength.  

Leslie41: 

It's a very calm and stoic Harry who insists that Sirius and Remus 
spare Peter's life.  I would argue that Harry's best moments come 
when he really thinks through what's going on and listens and 
considers all alternatives. When he channels his inner Hermione.  
Had he given into emotion, he would have killed Sirius.  Or Peter.  

If he gives into emotion and kills Snape, my guess is that would be 
the worst mistake he could possibly make.  The worst mistake of his 
entire life.

> Sherry:

> Sure, as he matures, he will learn to control them, or to use them 
> more wisely to some extent, but in a general sense, Harry's 
> emotions are who he is.  We don't want him to turn into another 
> Snape after all.  

I think that we do.  At least in part.  It would be a good thing 
indeed if Harry could absorb some of Snape's discipline.  

> Sherry:

> and besides, the ever popular and wise Dumbledore said that 
> Voldemort won't be using that old trick on him anymore.  So, the 
> only one Harry has to learn to close his mind to is Snape.

Again, I think if he does that, it will be the biggest mistake he 
ever makes.