What turned Snape (Was: JKR site update SPOILERS)

[zgirnius]

No: HPFGUIDX 158961

> Neri:

> If for some reason Snape *didn't* have a life-debt to James then JKR
> has to be clarify it, preferably in a way that doesn't contradict
> Dumbledore's words in SS/PS. But simply not mentioning the life-debt
> at all would leave a big hole in the plot and a big hole in our
> understanding of Snape's motivations. 

zgirnius:
The language used by Dumbledore in PS/SS in no way suggests there was 
magic involved in Snape's sense of indebtedness to James, and its 
motivating him to save Harry. We are using the term 'life-debt' and 
thinking of it in magical terms because of Dumbledore's comments 
regarding Harry and Peter in PoA. We could get lots and lots of 
clarification on Peter and how that debt worked (as promised in the 
interview snipped), without getting anything more on Snape's sense of 
indebtedness. Then we could conclude that, in fact, that is all it was.

Or Rowling could do the whole fancy LID deal with the debt passing on 
to Harry, I am not arguing she won't. I am just saying that if she does 
not want to go there, she has drawn a clear enough distinction in how 
Dumbledore spoke of Snape/James and Peter/Harry, that she does not 
*need* to go there.

As far as Snape's hate for James, we already have some good reasons for 
it, and LOLLIPOPS would just add on another.