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Half Blood Prince Thoughts

Posted on July 26, 2005
Filed Under Personal Posts |

PoURight, everyone who’s likely to read this should have finished ‘Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince’ by now, so here’s my initial thoughts on the book. Surprisingly, it’s about the big Snape Stuff that hits the fan.

What gets me is how JK Rowling has taken the theme of “Harry must choose between what is right and what is easy.” This occurs again and again in the series, and each decision that has to be made is getting harder and harder for harry. Now if we were to replace ‘Harry’ with ‘Severus’ and the ending of the Half Blood Prince becomes the ultimate posing of that question. Consider that Snape, right from Chapter 2, says that he has always expected Voldermort would ask him to kill Dumbledore:

Snape caught hold of her wrists and removed her clutching hands. Looking down into her tearstained face, he said slowly, “He intends me to do it in the end, I think. But he is determined that Draco should try first. You see, in the unlikely event that Draco succeeds, I shall be able to remain at Hogwarts a little longer, fulfilling my useful role as spy.”

Snape knows what decision he has to make - and he appears torn by the choice. Yet again, Dumbledore knows exactly what needs to be done - Snape must stay close to Voldermort, stay in the inner circle for the Order:

“Well — I jus’ heard Snape sayin’ Dumbledore took too much fer granted an maybe he — Snape — didn’ wan’ ter do it any more —“ [said Hagrid]
“Do what?”
“I dunno, Harry, it sounded like Snape was feelin’ a bit overworked, tha’s all — anyway, Dumbledore told him flat out he’d agreed ter do it an’ that was all there was to it. Pretty firm with him. An’ then he said summat abou’ Snape makin’ investigations in his House, in Slytherin. Well, there’s nothin’ strange abou’ that!” Hagrid added hastily, as Harry and Hermione exchanged looks full of meaning. “All the Heads o’ Houses were asked ter look inter that necklace business —”

The deed itself shows Snape, on my reading, hating himself, knowing what must be done, and while the easy option for him is to let Dumbledore live, the unbreakable curse, the need for him to help the Order, but to do so to appear to betray everything and leave his last “safe place” behind…

Snape gazed for a moment at Dumbledore, and there was revulsion and hatred etched in the harsh lines of his face.
‘Severus … please …”
Snape raised his wand and pointed it directly at Dumbledore.
‘Avada Kedavra!’

And even then, when running from Hogwarts (casting no offensive spells at Harry), he takes the time to tell the bespectacled hereo exactly what he needs to do in order to defeat the forces of darkness.

“Blocked again and again and again until you learn to keep your mouth shut and your mind closed, Potter!” sneered Snape, deflecting the curse once more.

Pure Murder She Wrote plotting, if you see something in chapter 27, it’s because you actually saw it (ever so slightly) in chapter 2. The same goes for the lcoation of the horcruxes, who Rab is, and a number of other posers that we get to sit on for two years.

More later when I get the Spiderman ending out my head…

Comments

One Response to “Half Blood Prince Thoughts”

  1. Vikki on July 26th, 2005 21:30

    You’re a geek, but I love you

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