Snape, Peter, and 'life debt' (WAS: Re: Snape as Neville's teacher ...)

[Zara]

No: HPFGUIDX 168573

> Dana:
> PS pg 217 UKed Paperback:
> 
> 'Well, they did rather detest each other. Not unlike yourself and Mr. 
> Malfoy. And then, your father did something Snape could never 
> forgive.'
> 
> 'What?' 
> 
> 'He saved his life.'
> 
> 'Yes...' said Dumbledore dreamily. 'Funny, the way people's minds 
> work, isn't it? Professor Snape couldn't bear being in your father's 
> debt 
 I do believe he worked so hard to protect you this year 
> because he felt that would make him and your father quits.'
> 

zgirnius:
I woiuld like to start off with another quote from canon:

> PoA, "Owl Post Again":
> "Pettigrew owes his life to you. You have sent Voldemort a deputy who 
is in your debt.... When one wizard saves another wizard's life, it 
creates a certain bond between them... and I'm much mistaken if 
Voldemort wants his servant in the debt of Harry Potter."

> "I don't want a connection with Pettigrew!" said Harry. "He betrayed 
my parents!"

> "This is magic at its deepest, its most impenetrable, Harry. But 
trust me... the time may come when you will be very glad you saved 
Pettigrew's life."

zgirnius:
Two things strike be about my quote. First, that Dumbledore explicitly 
mentions magic here. Whereas he mentions nothing of the sort in 
discussing Snape in Dana's quote from PS/SS. To me, this means one of 
two things: either Snape was never affected by any 'magic at its 
deepest' regarding James Potter, or if he was, this effect is gone by 
the time Harry comes to Hogwarts. This could be because Snape 
discharged the debt in some way, or because James died. At any rate, 
nowhere in my quote does Dumbledore suggest Peter will do anything of 
his own volition. Whereas in Dana's quote, Snape is credited with 
taking certain actions on the basis of a psychological motivation (the 
funny way his mind works).

My second observation is that I am deeply skeptical that Peter's life 
debt will force him to do anything in DH. First, because if it worked 
that way, surely it ought to have made him do more in GoF than a lame 
suggestion another person be used in the rebirthing ceremony at the 
start of the book. And second, because a person doing something because 
magic forces them to, is neither deep not impenetrable. I would 
describe it as obvious, myself. 

Finally, I find the wording of Dumbledore's statement precise in a very 
odd way. "you will be very glad you saved Pettigrew's life" is phrased 
to avoid the suggestion of agency on Peter's part. If the magic acted 
by forcing someone to repay a debt, the most natural phrasing of this 
remark, to me, would be something along the lines of "The time may come 
when Peter will return the favor".