Nice vs. Good, honesty, and Snape: Was Snape, Apologies, and Redemption

[littleleahstill]

No: HPFGUIDX 153020

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "lanval1015" <lanval1015 at ...> 
wrote:
>
> > > Betsy Hp:
> > I seriously doubt Snape cared about how he looked.  He's not 
> > Lockhart after all. <g>
> 
> Lanval:
> Actually, they both seem to crave admiration.


Leah:

No, I don't think so.  Lockhart craves celebrity and admiration for 
talents he does not possess.  Snape, I think would like some 
recognition for talents he does possess. I can't imagine him caring 
for the results of a poll in Witch Weekly, neither are photographs 
of himself stirring fantastic potions anywhere to be seen at 
Spinners End or in his office.  

> It's no coincidence IMO 
> that one of the memories Harry sees during the Occlumency lessons 
is 
> a girl laughing at a boy on a bucking broom, that Lupin mentions 
how 
> hard the loss of the Order of Merlin hit Snape, that Snape always 
> insists on being called 'sir', and so on. To Snape the world is a 
Bad 
> Place, because it has always refused to properly recognize Severus 
> Snape, Super Genius.>  

Leah:

Snape is basically insecure in the world, that's why he insists on 
being called 'sir'.  A character secure in themselves, like DD for 
example, doesn't need external reinforcement (though I notice DD 
insisting on the 'sir' with Riddle, and, on Snape's behalf, on 
the 'professor' with Harry).    I'm not sure that there's any 
evidence that Snape regards himself a 'Super Genius', but the area 
where he is secure is in his academic (if that's the word) talents, 
that's why Spinners End is full of books, and his office full of 
experiments. He is an exceptional and innovative potion maker, he is 
highly competent in DADA, and probably DA.   Very different, as 
I've said, from Lockhart. 

Leah