#preferentialist

[ladymisteria]

"AFTER ALL THIS TIME?" NO WAY!

Over the years I've heard an endless multitude of people praising Snape as "The true hero of the saga", "A martyr without blemish and without fear", "The only character who has really loved Harry in all the saga" ...

Well, let me tell you how I, personally, saw the character of Severus Snape - and how I'll probably see him forever: a horrible person who (at least in the end) did a right thing.

He wasn't a poor victim and certainly he didn't love Harry.

Did he come from a horrible family? Yes.

Was he bullied by all the Marauders ('cause even Remus, who will always remain my favorite character, pretended most of the time not to see what James and Sirius did)? Yes.

Has being a shy and reserved person isolated him? Yes.

Does this justify being a horrible person? ABSOLUTELY NO!

On the contrary, it would have to turn him into an empathic and kind person by reaction. Because of the desire to not let others live what he experienced.

Instead, since the first time we see/read him, Snape is the representation of a bully who knows he has the power and the means to do what he wants without anyone telling him anything. He is one of those hateful and "preferentialist" professors that everyone (at least once) have had.

But as the saga progresses, we realize that Snape isn't a "simple" obnoxious teacher at all.

Already in The Prisoner of Azkaban, in fact, it's clear to everyone that he is a person full of anger, desire for revenge and very few feelings of guilt. From what do we understand it? From Neville's boggart.

In short: Neville could have been afraid of anything: from spiders, like Ron, to the same Bellatrix - the one who tortured his parents to the crowd. Instead, he is afraid - he is literally terrified! - by Snape.

If this doesn't say much about his person...

His gratuitous nastiness spills over onto everyone (Hermione, Ron, Neville, Harry)... Even on someone with whom he could have been more empathetic: Tonks - in The Half-Blood Prince.

Snape well understands what Tonks feels at that moment. He too was rejected and kept away from the person he (albeit in his own way) loved.

And instead of showing himself (at least a little) comprensive, what does he do? He "turns the knife in the wound"! I'm not saying that he could had to hug Tonks or to offer her handkerchiefs (I shudder at the thought), but he could - for how horrible it sounds - simply ignore her.

Then we come to the Deathly Hallows and the "moment of truth"...

We see Snape's memories and we understand many things. But understanding doesn't necessarily mean forgetting and forgiving.

Every time I see/read that moment (I won't deny it) I cry. Partly because it's a moment (together with the "family reunion" in the forest) very strong and touching, but above all because its' my conviction that - if he had acted in the right way from the beginning - he coulded becomes the best character of the whole saga: superior to family traumas, superior to the bullies who have harassed him at school...

Instead, he has reduced himself to being a mere capricious child.

- "Am I an Half-Blood? Why choose to stay on the side of those like me and with the Muggle born, when can I bully them?";

- "Is Lily in mortal danger? Why warn her, when I can safely ask Voldemort to slaughter her entire family except her, so that after - once a widow and with no children - I can have 'free field' with her?"

- "Lily is dead? I take revenge by bullying her son for surviving in his place. Especially since he is Potter's son!"

- "Can't I get revenge on the Longbottoms for not being chosen by Voldemort, instead my Lily? I bullize their son to the point of becoming his biggest fear in the world."

- "Dumbledore denied me again the chair of Defense Against the Dark Arts and assigned it to Lupin? Then I make him lose his job by saying to all that he is a werewolf! Who cares if I am a former Death Eater and it isn't his fault for Dumbledore's continuing refusals? Plus, he is an old enemy of mine, so even better! "

- etc.

Not forgetting that he voluntarily chose to devote himself to the Dark Arts and later to unite (because initially it was his choice, let's not forget it) to Voldemort...

Undoubtedly, with the benefit of hindsight, Snape has also done good things (protecting Harry above all) - and undoubtedly he is one of the bravest characters in the saga (deciding to play the double game with the most powerful and cruel Dark Wizard existing requires a good dose of courage, one cannot deny).

He still fought Voldemort, in the end.

The problem is all in the motivation for which he did it: not for the love he had for Lily, but to "free himself" from guilt caused by his role in her death.

Did it have any good points? I think so.

Was he a martyr? I'm sorry, I can't really pretend that his bad deeds don't exist, so definitely not.

#my opinion #severus snape #Harry potter #not a hero #hell no #sorry not sorry #anti severus snape #anti snape #lily potter #always #neville longbottom #tonks #marauders #remus lupin #james potter