Snapes love for Lily (Was: DH rambles and crows eating)

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 172497

Alla:
> > Heeee, to  get to Snape for a second, I guess his death makes my 
point as well that she wanted to show suddenness and senselessness, 
but at the same time I cannot help but smile at the delightful irony
JKR brought there ¡V potion master dies from poison with no chance to
get an antidote or anything like that.
> 
> Leslie41:
> That may indeed be an irony, though I would guess Rowling finds it 
less than "delightful".  It's clear from the book that she intends 
for us to admire Snape just as much as Dumbledore.  Perhaps more.
> 
> Alla:
> > I wanted confrontation between Snape and Harry so badly, but now I
cannot help but think that JKR¡¦s way is so much better. She would 
not let Snape taunt Harry ¡V haha, I am Dumbledore¡¦s man, (or is 
he?) who loved your mother, Harry just learns it all afterwards.
> 
> Leslie41:
> Why should there be a confrontation now?  What is needed is 
understanding.  Of course she would not let Snape taunt Harry, 
because Snape's taunts of Harry usually had a point to them.  They 
were usually used to educate him.  And when those taunts failed (as 
with Harry's occlumency lessons), it's Harry that is seen to be at 
fault, not Snape.

<snip>

Carol responds:
i agree with everything Leslie says in this post, including the
snipped portions, but I want to add that I see no reason to think that
Snape wants to taunt Harry one last time. It seems to me that Snape is
desperate to reach Harry to give him the information he needs to
defeat Voldemort, that his scar contains a soul bit and that Harry
must sacrifice himself. That, after all, is what the last memory contains.

Snape is furious with Dumbledore when DD tells him that Harry has to
die: "Have you raised him up as a pig to be slaughtered?"

And think how Harry would have taken it if a living Snape dressed as a
Death Eater had given him this information or had even tried to talk
to him. Sadly, ironically, the only way he can do so is by giving it
to him in the form of memories as he's dying. So Snape's death, and
his last act, is far from pointless.

Harry doesn't even need to forgive Snape, merely to understand him. As
Leslie said, he came to Dumbledore for a selfish reason, the desperate
and unrequited love of a woman he wanted to save, with no concern for
her son or her hated husband. But we see him change, we see him
watching over Harry for Lily, but we also see him risking his life for
Dumbledore.

As for remaining unpleasant to the end, what is he supposed to do?
He's under cover posing as a loyal Death Eater, and the only way he
can do that is "acting [his] part convincingly [in the chase]" (DH Am.
ed. 688) and pretending to approve of the death of Charity Burbage,
putting on an indifferent expression as she pleads with him to rescue
her. When DD asks him how many men and women he has watched die, he
responds, "Lately, only those whom I could not save save" (687). But
to attempt to save Charity would only result in Snape's death along
with hers and sabotage all of Dumbledore's plans. Dumbledore is
"counting upon [Snape] to remain in Voldemort's good books as long as
possible, or Hogwarts will be left to the mercy of the Carrows" (DH
Am. ed. 688). 

So not only must he appear loyal to Voldemort, providing him with
seemeingly useful information with the key element left out,
Confunding Mundungus so that he provides that key element, taking part
in the chase of Harry (the price is George's ear, but if he had hit
his real target, the hand of the DE trying to kill Lupin, his loyalty
might have been suspected and the consequences would have been much
worse: a DE takeover of Hogwarts which his mere presence staves off.
What does he do as headmaster? He can't do much about the Carrows,
true, but he keeps on the old staff members (McGonagall, Flitwick,
sprout, etc.) who oppose them rather than replacing them with DEs. He
sends a fake Sword of Gryffindor to the vault and makes sure that
Harry and Ron get the real one. Meanwhile, he has Phineas Nigellus
keeping an ear on HRH (his eyes are blindfolded, thanks to Hermione).
His "terrrible" detention for the stolen sword consists of helping
Hagrid in the Forbidden Forest.

Snape has apparently set some sort of watch over the secret passages
and reinstituted the protections on Hogwarts since no Death Eaters get
in until he's kicked out. He's consulting with Portrait!Dumbledore and
following his recommendations. He reinstitutes Umbridge's rules. Why?
Surely, it's to make himself look like a tyrant (and loyal DE) and get
the kids to rebel. (He knows what happened under Umbridge. Why follow
her example unless he wants the same results?) When Neville and the
others go into hiding, he doesn't go after them or their protector,
Hagrid, out of hiding. When Harry arrives and McGonagall goes after
the "murderer" and "coward" Snape with conjured daggers, Snape doesn't
fight back. Rather than duel her and risk hurting innocent students,
he hides behind a suit of armor and leaps through a window. (The DEs
are already tied up and McGonagall is in charge; the students are in
no immediate danger and he can no longer protect them. He just has to
watch for LV to start keeping Nagini close and then somehow get to
Harry to warn him. But Harry hates him; it's highly unlikely that he
would have succeeded in attempting to talk to him. The only way he can
tell Harry what Harry needs to know to defeat Voldemort is to give
Harry his memories as he dies. He has already expressed his fury to DD
that Harry has to die: "And now you tell me you have been raising him
like a pig for slaughter--" (687).

It doesn't matter that Snape has been protecting him for Lily's sake
and not on principle. His motive has been love, and we are meant, I'm
sure, to see that as good--certainly better than if he'd been doing it
to pay off a lifedebt to James. And Snape keeps protecting Harry,
keeps working against Voldemort at great personal risk even after he
has killed DD on DD's orders. Voldemort never for a moment suspects
him. He dies for a wholly unrelated reason that shocks Harry to the
core. But he doesn't die for nothing. His death, bleeding to death
from Nagini's bite rather than dying instantly from an AK, gives him
the opportunity to dowhat he could never otherwise have done, persuade
Harry that he has to sacrifice himself to defeat Voldemort. (Imagine
Harry believing Snape telling him that in any other circumstances.)
Harry's reaction to the memories is "Finally, the truth" (691).

It's a brilliant and terrible stroke on JKR's part (terible for snape
and for Harry and for many readers). And as far as I'm concerned,
Snape's just reward is Harry's vindication of him to Voldemort in
front of everyone present at the battle. JKR has both Harry and
Dumbledore comment on Snape's courage. Harry names his second son
after him and DD). Surely, that's more than just a clue to exactly how
JKR wants Snape to be read. I didn't want Snape to love Lily, either,
Alla, but his love is devotion, not physical desire. Obsession or not,
it sustains him as Sirius Black's belief in his own innocence and
desire for vengeance on Wormtail sustained him. JKR pulls it off and
IMO mkes him noble, not selfish. What can he possibly gain from such a
love? Nothing for himself, except, at the last, the respect and trust
and maybe the affection of Dumbledore. But from the rest of the good
side, his reward is vilification. Until the end, after his death, when
Harry reveals the truth.

Carol, hoping to find out in the upcoming chat that Snape's portrait
hangs in honor beside Dumbledore's