(here via friendsfriends; I have just finished HBP and will attempt not to spoil it here)
Brava! You have caught the essence of Snape, and his contradictions, lucidly. Perfectly, even.
Personally, I dislike Snape for many of the same reasons as you apparently like him. DESPITE all the good things he does, he's still petty, nasty, mean, and spiteful. For no good reason. (Well, certainly none I can speculate on here.)
One thing, though:
[Rickman] invests the character with a physical and emotional attractiveness that I am not sure J.K. Rowling—at least originally—intended the Potions Master to possess, and as a result much of what intrigues me about the written character collapses into itself.
My understanding is that JKR consults on the movies, and particularly, has given the actors some specific directions about their characters. As a result, while the movies aren't canon, I'm disinclined to dismiss hints derived from them as irrelevant. Personally, I think he's not nasty enough onscreen, nor quite as threatening as my inner image -- but enough that I can forgive his not being, say, Christopher Lee in his prime.
I'm adding this post to my memories, if I may, so that I can refer other folks here rather than reiterate what you have said so well.
no subject
Brava! You have caught the essence of Snape, and his contradictions, lucidly. Perfectly, even.
Personally, I dislike Snape for many of the same reasons as you apparently like him. DESPITE all the good things he does, he's still petty, nasty, mean, and spiteful. For no good reason. (Well, certainly none I can speculate on here.)
One thing, though:
[Rickman] invests the character with a physical and emotional attractiveness that I am not sure J.K. Rowling—at least originally—intended the Potions Master to possess, and as a result much of what intrigues me about the written character collapses into itself.
My understanding is that JKR consults on the movies, and particularly, has given the actors some specific directions about their characters. As a result, while the movies aren't canon, I'm disinclined to dismiss hints derived from them as irrelevant. Personally, I think he's not nasty enough onscreen, nor quite as threatening as my inner image -- but enough that I can forgive his not being, say, Christopher Lee in his prime.
I'm adding this post to my memories, if I may, so that I can refer other folks here rather than reiterate what you have said so well.