Victory for TEWWW EWWW?? Snape the hero

[Dennis Grant]

No: HPFGUIDX 174229

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "lupinlore" <rdoliver30 at ...> wrote:

> Lupinlore, who has enjoyed the full transcripts of JKR's recent
> chat's and interviews, particularly where she admits that Snape had
> absolutely no excuse for his abuse of Harry

Except, of course, being human.

Let's recap:

1. Snape has loved Lily since childhood - even before either of them
attended Hogwarts. And its that particularly intense, unrequited,
secret love that can come out of the tumult of adolescence.

2. Every time he finally tries to act on it, to finally come clean and
reveal how he really feels, it goes horribly, horribly wrong. Instead
of the long dreamed for union, each attempt pushes her a little
farther away.

3. Then, somehow, she winds up involved not with the long-suffering,
ever-loyal Snape, her childhood friend and confidant, but with the
ringleader of the group of bullies who have been tormenting you since
literally the first day of school - to the point where she marries him
and has his child.

4. On top of that, something he does "at work" to get in better with
the boss endangers her. He seeks help, but too late - she is killed as
a direct result of his own actions.

5. Overcome with remorse, he embarks on the profession of the double
agent, completely changing his life, but keeping the fact of his
redemption *secret*. To all external appearances, he's the same old
Snape, the bad guy. Nobody knows the truth except Dumbledore, and
every day he has to put up with the snide comments, the sidelong
glances, the tacit respect covering for the internal disapproval.

6. And then one day the kid shows up, and not only does he have his
mother's eyes, he has his father's outward appearance and some degree
of his mannerisms and attitude (although Snape does a lot of
projecting here - Harry isn't quite the snot that young James was)
Just *looking* at him throws Snape's past misdeeds back in his face; a
constant reminder of the central tragedy of his live.

Harry - without realizing it, and unintentionally - provokes Snape
beyond all human endurance. No wonder he's a bit snippy!

Snape's path to redemption is a path of extreme loneliness, isolation,
and pain, but he stays the course right up to the end and pays the
ultimate price. It can, I think, be forgiven if some of that pain
leaked out along the way.

DG