The Continuing Tragedy of Severus Snape: Will Snape live or die and why?

[inkling_rg]

No: HPFGUIDX 164609

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "justcarol67" 
<justcarol67 at ...> wrote:
>[snip]

I'd say that about three-quarters of the DDM!Snapers agree with you
> (and I know of at least one Snape-hater who's considering the
> possibility). I see no evidence of any Snape/Lily relationship, 
only
> an absence of evidence that he hates her, [snip long discussion of 
canon evidence for Snape/Lily.] 


You lay out a good interpretation of the events, Carol.  And I'll 
admit, as one of those three quarter DDM!Snapers, I don't see a 
smoking gun for Snape/Lily anywhere in the text. No. It's what JKR 
has said (or not said) *outside* the text that convinced me of 
LOLLIPOPS.

 This is a theory that's been kicking around the fandom since 
*forever* (it was practically the first theory I encountered when I 
joined Potter fandom, in the pre-GoF days of Spring 2000--to give a 
sense of perspective, this was back in the days of "Lily Riddle was 
a Slytherin and Voldemort was her dad and Harry is Hermione's 
brother" theories.) And yet, JKR has *never* taken the time to 
dismiss Snape-loved-Lily-- even though you'd think she would, if 
only out of pity for the message boards that are doomed to get at 
least one "i'm new and i think Snape loved Lilly what do u think?" 
posts a day until she does. But no, she's never taken aim at this 
lumbering, melodramatic dinosaur of a theory, even as the corpses of 
younger, seemingly fitter theories piled on the ground around it 
(let's all share a moment of silence for Florence and Vampire!
Snape.) Instead, the two times she has been asked *point blank* 
whether there was some kind romantic connection between Snape and 
Lily, in the Jeremy Paxman interview pre-OotP and in the mugglenet 
interview after HBP, she has been evasive and open-ended. 


If I may quote liberally: 

>>>[Paxman Interview] JP: Are we going to discover anything more 
about Snape? 

JKR: Yes. 

JP: And Harry's mother? Did he have a crush on Harry's mother or 
unrequited love or anything like that? 

JKR: Hence his animosity to Harry? 

JP: Yes. 

JKR: You speculate? 

JP: I speculate, yes, I'm just asking whether you can tell us. 

JKR: No I can't tell you. >>>

And this longer, more curious one with mugglenet (it does strike me 
as odd that she offers to "answer either one", and then suddenly 
changes that to "I can't answer, can I, really?" I almost wonder if 
she mispoke or was misheard the first time. In the end though, she 
elaborates on Lupin and Lily's relationship and stealthily avoids 
saying anything at all about Snape and Lily, and the interviewers 
don't press her on it. Silly ducks.) 


>>>ES: Was James the only one who had romantic feelings for Lily?

JKR: No. [Pause.] She was like Ginny, she was a popular girl.

MA: Snape?

JKR: That is a theory that's been put to me repeatedly.

ES: What about Lupin?

JKR: I can answer either one.

ES: How about both? One at a time.

JKR: I can't answer, can I, really?

ES: Can you give us any clue, without misleading us [Emerson 
misspoke; he meant "without giving too much away"] --?

JKR: I've never, to my knowledge, lied when posed a question about 
the books. To my knowledge. You can imagine, I've now been asked 
hundreds of questions; it's perfectly possible at some point I 
misspoke or I gave a misleading answer unintentionally, or I may 
have answered truthfully at the time and then changed my mind in a 
subsequent book. That makes me cagey about answering some questions 
in too much detail because I have to have some leeway to get there 
and do it my way, but never on a major plot point.

Lupin was very fond of Lily, we'll put it like that, but I wouldn't 
want anyone to run around thinking that he competed with James for 
her. She was a popular girl, and that is relevant. But I think 
you've seen that already. She was a bit of a catch.>>>



The final answer in both interviews? Not a sensible and long 
overdue "What? Snape/Lily? Oh, heavens, *no*" but a very evasive, 
very significant "I can't tell you." I can't see how you can read 
that as anything other than Rowlingese for, "yes there's something 
there, but if I come right out and say it, that'll spoil the 
surprise, won't it?"  


Whether you think it's icky or cliche or what, "Snape loved Lily" 
looks like a survivor. And as someone who's had a schmaltzy little 
soft-spot for it ever since I first read the theory way back in 
2000, I'm delighted.

-Inkling