Emotional connections with the characters WAS: Re: Connections Interview

[dungrollin]

No: HPFGUIDX 171872

> > Dungrollin:
> > I have to admit that I don't engage at such an emotional level 
with the books; 
> <BIG SNIP>
> 
> 
> Alla:
> 
> Hey Dung. Are you sure though that you do not engage on such 
> emotional level with the books or you are just engaging with the 
> different character then Jen does and myself does as well?
<snip>
> The only reason why I am asking is because this statement of yours 
to me stands in contradiction with you saying at the end of the 
> paragraph that you feel pity for Snape and with your earlier 
> statement that you really do not want Snape to die.
<snip> 
I mean, if you were just saying that Snape is amusing for you on the 
intellectual level, his gift with words, etc, I would understand that 
this is not the emotional level connection, you know?
> 

Dungrollin:
You're right, I did seem to contradict myself. Sorry for the delay in 
replying, I read a big chunk of OotP over the weekend, and tried to 
watch myself closely to see my reactions. A big problem is that 
having re-read the books so many times I find it difficult to 
remember what my original reactions were.

Over the weekend the only really strong reaction I had was laughing 
out loud when the twins left Hogwarts. I distinctly remember a 
sensation of shock in the pit of my stomach when I read Snape AKing 
DD the first time, but honestly, *as I'm re-reading* I don't react 
much. The emotional reactions come later when I'm thinking about it 
and discussing things on-list, and even then, (and this is really 
difficult to put into words) they're not really real emotions. 

My reactions as I'm reading for the first time must be there, (the 
thrill during Spinner's End, the shock at the end of the Tower 
scene), but I read very non-judgementally, so it's in the analysis 
that I work out what I think the characters were going through and 
it's to the analysis that I react, rather than the text as a whole as 
I'm reading.

Perhaps I'm making a false distinction, or perhaps I shouldn't say 
that *I* pity Snape, more that I think he deserves to be pitied. 

As for not wanting him to die ... yeah ok, that's an emotional 
reaction! However, I'm almost certain that if we hadn't had years of 
waiting between books, if I'd read them all one after the other, I 
wouldn't think that Snape was DDM, I wouldn't care if he snuffed it 
or not, and I'd be desperate for Harry to survive. 

Does that make any sense at all, or am I blithering again?

Dungrollin
Who will quickly post the bragging rights predictions she has been 
agonising over before it's too late, and will then disappear until 
the list re-opens, having had too many near misses with spoilers.