Harry, Snape and Dementors WAS: Re: CHAPTER Chamber of Secrets Chapter 18:

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 189349


> Alla:
> 
> If Snape would have given Harry an Outstanding for acknowledging his method and still asked him to learn another one, different story.  As it is, I am doubting Snape's good faith.
> 
> He did not even acknowledge Patronus in theory. I am not asking him to show it in practice.
>

Pippin:
There is no canon for what Snape did or did not tell the class about the patronus. 

I agree that Harry is wise to prefer the patronus to a spell he's never tried, at least until he can find a boggart to practice on. But Harry is not actually fighting dementors here. He's not  writing to inform the public in the Daily Prophet or even  the Quibbler. He's writing an essay which is going to be read by one person and one person only: Severus Snape. Now, Harry cannot be expecting to change Snape's mind, so what is Harry's purpose in disagreeing with his teacher? I doubt it's a compulsion to  intellectual honesty: Harry  certainly wasn't troubled by that in his compositions  for Trelawney!

I think Snape's fairness or lack of it is beside the point:  Harry chose, deliberately, to treat the subject in a way which he expected would annoy his teacher. It's no different than poking a caged tiger with a stick, or charming Goyle's toenails, IMO. The purpose is to provoke an angry reaction, one which Harry knows cannot hurt him. He's not going to flunk DADA no matter what grade he gets.

Pippin