[HPforGrownups] Re: Chapter Discussion: Prisoner of Azkaban Ch 19: The Servant of Lord Voldemort

[Bart Lidofsky]

No: HPFGUIDX 190704

Alla:
>
> But he joined the gang of terrorists who considered Muggleborns lower species of life and to me that shows that yes indeed this was his mindset starting from the time poor Lily asked him that question.

Bart:
I recall a story about a spiritual teacher who, in town to give a 
lecture, was staying at a hotel. He stepped out on the balcony with one 
of his hosts, where they spotted a gang of teenagers stripping a car. 
The lecturer said, "I know what they are doing is wrong, but look at the 
skill and almost art with which they are working, together in harmony. 
It's almost like poetry...hey, WAIT A MINUTE! That's MY car!"

Similarly, I suspect that Snape, like many bigots, depersonalized the 
targets of his bigotry, and didn't associate them with people he knew 
and liked, personally. It is only when Lily becomes the target of Morty 
that he realizes, "Hey, that's MY friend!" Even then, DD has to push to 
get Snape to see the extra step that every victim is somebody's friend, 
and what the Morty and the Deatheaters (whom, good name for a music 
group) are doing is just plain wrong.

However, Snape cannot look at Harry without seeing James. He looks at 
Harry's behavior as the person who does not differentiate pushing an old 
woman into the path of a speeding car, and pushing an old woman out of 
the path of the speeding car; he looks at Harry's actions as the sort of 
things James would do, but does not look further to see the difference 
in motives. James was a privileged, upper-class a**h**** when he was in 
school. Snape was an underprivileged nerd. One can infer from canon 
(notably Narcissa's attitude towards him in Spinner's End) that Lucius 
Malfoy probably took Snape under his wing when they were in Slytherin. 
Consider: Snape's notes in HBP show him to be a superior potions 
student, yet Sluggy gives no indication of Snape being exceptional, 
while he had nothing but praise for Lily (and look how he treats Harry 
for simply following Snape's instructions). It can also be inferred that 
Snape saw James as the golden boy who had nothing to do but to bully the 
nerd, which drove Snape even more into the hands of the Death Eaters. By 
joining with them, he had protection, friendship, and probably even 
admiration.

So, while Snape was bound to protect Harry, he still resented that 
Harry, too, had become the golden boy, and mistook his behavior for 
attention-getting, considering himself to be above the rules, and 
possibly even saw Harry as the bully in the Harry/Draco relationship.

     Bart