My current opinion of Snape (Longish) / Re: Clues to Snape's Loyalties

[leslie41]

No: HPFGUIDX 170851

 
Sherry:

I see Hermione's support of Snape in a completely different way.  and 
just to be clear, I felt this before I was convinced of what a 
horrible person he was, inside and out after he murdered Dumbledore.  
Hermione strikes me as one of those people who just blithely believes 
a person in authority is good and is right, just because the person 
is in authority.  I don't get the impression that she actually 
*thinks* about whether or not Snape is all the things Harry believes 
him to be.  But to her, Snape is a teacher, and therefore, he must be 
good and he must be right.  Maybe Harry's reactions are often 
emotional and perhaps not always right.  but Hermione appears not to 
think at all for herself in situations like this, but just to accept 
authority figures on faith because of their position, never really 
considering if they deserve that or not.

Leslie41:

Interesting point.  We all know how besotted she was with Lockhart, 
as well.  But I don't see her doing that with Hagrid, who's a 
teacher.  The trio is avoiding him by HPB, and rightly so.  And I 
don't recall her just walking lockstep behind Umbridge because she 
was the authority figure.  Hermione does have an automatic respect 
for teachers (not necessarily all authority figures--I don't think 
she's particularly swayed by members of the Ministry, but there I 
could be wrong), which has to be *un*earned.  Which Hagrid does.  And 
Umbridge does.  

Snape doesn't unearn his.