Snapeshots

The title suggests what this post is about… same as the last…! Harry Potter, again! And again, I advise you not to read further if you haven’t read the sixth book in the series yet.

Readers may be feeling quite outraged that in spite of being given a chance to mend his ways, in spite of the trust placed in him by Dumbledore, he chooses to betray him. And the Order. His horrific act has left many readers astounded and dismayed. Dumbledore was the favorite character of many readers, including yours truly. We will miss him in the last book, even though he is sure to make appearances through his portrait in his (now McGonagall’s) office.

However, this post is not an obituary for the greatest wizard who ever lived. Instead, it is a rather bold suggestion that it may be too harsh to judge Snape purely on the basis of his single act at the end of the book. I suspect that whatever Snape did might have purely been on Dumbledore’s orders. After all, the exact relation between them was never shown… Why was Dumbledore so convinced that Snape was on their side? Has something happened that we don’t know? For example, has he saved Dumbledore’s life in the past? Whatever the case, I would like to see it explained in the final book. However, I am going to defend Snape with what we DO know:

1. Snape saved Harry! In the first year, during the first Quidditch match, when Quirrel was trying to jinx Harry’s broom, Snape was the one who was actually muttering the counter-curse. Now, if Snape was on the bad side, why would he do that? He could not kill Harry for fear of losing Dumbledore’s trust and being sent to Azkaban; but if someone else was trying to do it, he could have simply sat quiet and let them do it. Instead, he chose to save Harry’s life and told the Death Eaters a cock-and-bull story (in the latest book) that he thought Harry was a Dark Wizard whom they could rally around once again.


2. Let us assume, for the sake of argument, that Snape really saved Harry because he thought Harry was a dark wizard. In that case, would he have treated Harry the way he did? He used to insult and deride him at every available opportunity… If he really thought Harry was a potential future leader of Death Eaters, he would have given preferential treatment to Harry, and not Malfoy.


3. In the end, while Snape is fleeing, Harry catches up with him and repeatedly tries to curse him. But each time, Snape deflects the curse – mind you, only deflects the curse – and never retaliates. In fact, when somebody uses the Cruciatus curse on Harry, Snape actually stops it. Now given the fact that Snape has always tried to hex or jinx Harry in classes (remember when he wanted to poison Harry to test Harry’s antidote? And the time when they were practising non-verbal incantations?), why didn’t he curse Harry then, when Harry was all alone and virtually defenseless? And even when he does attack Harry, he uses a minor curse which stops Harry for a few seconds, giving Snape just enough time to flee, and, indeed, taking all the other Death Eaters with him and away from Harry. Fact is, Snape has tried to hex him only when prompt medical assistance was right at hand.


4. Hasn’t Dumbledore frequently hinted that his existence is not as important as Harry’s? He may have left instructions to Snape that if ever he had to choose between Dumbledore and the Death Eaters, he should choose the Death Eaters just so that he could continue being the spy… Maybe Dumbledore felt it was imperative for Snape to continue his act for Harry’s safety, which he felt was more important than his own life… So when he “pleaded” to Snape, he might have actually been pleading him to remember his promise to him, and not waver at the last moment and give everything away.

So I am forced to think that Snape may still be on the right side, and he only hates Harry because of his father. Of course, the fact that the Order was astounded when they heard what Snape did, complicates matters a bit… It seems Dumbledore never told anyone his complete plan. Then there is also the matter of the Unbreakable Vow… So maybe Snape will break it for the sake of Harry and the Order, and die at the end of the last book? Again, your guess is as good as mine… :-)

Till next time.

I am back! And so is Harry!

Whew! It is good to be connected again! I had a few problems with my internet connection for almost a month, and that is why I have not been able to update my blog. My apologies.

Of course, I used the time to do a lot of constructive stuff… getting in touch with my inner self, re-assessing my goals, sorting out my priorities, and basically doing a lot of other impressive-sounding things which basically mean that I have been doing nothing but lazing around. And reading the latest book in the You-Know-Which series in a start-to-finish session. And it was worth it.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is snappier and more gripping than the previous installment. Much is revealed, and you find that some events in the previous books were not there just for the heck of it. The connections are shown in an interesting, exciting manner, and the secret of Voldemort’s survival of the Avada Kedavra curse bouncing back onto him is also revealed. So are a few details about Voldemort’s pre-Hogwarts, Hogwarts and post-Hogwarts days. Dumbledore is much closer to Harry than in the previous book (as is obvious from the cover art) and his mastery over ancient magic is shown (not, unfortunately, in duels, though). So is Snape’s cleverness and cunning. There is a new teacher, as expected, and we are shown why the professor teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts never stays for more than one year. There is loyalty, betrayal, love, hatred, luck and bad luck… a proper Bollywood mix! You fail to understand the importance of the Half-Blood Prince until the very last chapters of the book, wherein the identity of the person is revealed. And, of course, another big mystery is the identity of the person who dies at the end. All in all a good read, I would say.

Warning: You may not want to read further if you have not read the sixth book.
Now I am waiting eagerly for the seventh book. My predictions? Well, obviously a more important role for the Order, especially Lupin. Then there is Wormtail, who is under debt to Harry. Hagrid should have a more significant role to play in protecting Harry, owing to the fact that he cannot be hexed or jinxed easily. Obviously a more active role for McGonagall, and Slughorn may stay too. I suspect the Ministry of Magic will be visited again, and St. Mungo’s too. Neville’s parents could probably be healed, or maybe Neville will die? Just a guess. And Harry will probably learn to use the illegal curses, or he will have to find a ‘legal’ way to finish Voldemort. I just hope he returns to Hogwarts. And, of course, the tangle of all those love stories will be sorted out :-). Will Harry live? Well, your guess is as good as mine!

Till next time.

"Nuggets of Wisdom" by Haristotle:
Did you know that ‘half-blood’ is a proper English term? It depicts the relationship between persons having only one common parent, as in ‘half-brother’, ‘half-sister’, etc. It is different from the term ‘step-brother’, wherein there is no blood relation between the ‘brothers’.

Words from the wise:
"Hmm… so there may have been real half-blood princes? And what about a real Harry Potter?"