I am afraid I disagree. I will not give a full explanation, but I heartily agree with duj and whitehound's reviews.

P.S- Essays aren't allowed on ffn. However, you can post them on LJ (livejournal) or another site like that.

~V.

I agree whole heartedly. However I do not feel that Dumbledore was fearful, I think that he was pleading, asking Snape to kill him because, 1) it Fullfils all of Snape's vows, and 2) because Dumbledore was dying anyway so why not die in a way that will keep Snape out of trouble.

I disagree with your theory. Strangely enough, most of the people who believe that Snape is evil base that assumption off of his teaching style. Just because someone is a nasty teacher who prefers to berate students for incompetence does not make them a twisted, evil person. My choir director would frequently compare us to vomit or yell at us for doing something minor, but that doesn't make him a twisted person with a grudge against the whole world. There isn't really much of an explanation in either canon or fanon as to the reasons for Snape's actions, just little snippets that can be interpreted either way and I'm not really sure what that is, only that what you say in the essay doesn't seem to click with everything.

The only thing you were really right about was the fact that Snape loved Lilly. Not in the sick twisted way you portrayed. But he did care for the headmaster as well... where as you put he never cared for him at all. And I just realized that its almost been one-year since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows came out. And by the way besides obvious things that were wrong... which this was a purely fictional piece anyway, you write really well. Keep up the good work.

Didn't Snape rush to the Order of the Phoenix in the fifth book after hearing Harry's message?

And at the tower in the sixth book. Dumbledore ASKED for Snape. Also in the sixth book, Snape refuses to harm Harry, as he did in previous books, such as the first one, where he was actually trying to protect Harry.

I had a firm belief in Snape's allegiance to the "good" side long before the seventh book came out. I forget which book it was, but one passage really stuck out to me, and made me realize Snape was faithful to Dumbledore. Not because of any vows, which would have been highly un-Dumbledore-like, but more or less because of Dumbledore's trust and that passage that I cannot recall.

Of course, all we really need to do is just look at the seventh book to refute many of your claims, but you wrote your "essay" before the last book was published, so it was a reasonable conjecture at best, but where your argument falls a great deal is at the part dealing with Dumbledore and Snape making unbreakable vows.

Didn't Dumbledore say that he thought the Sorting should be done later in life to Snape? And Snape seemed to be very taken aback. I don't think Dumbledore said that Snape should have been in Gryffindor, but he certainly hinted to it. I also don't believe in your assumptions about Dumbledore and Snape making unbreakable vows. Dumbledore is hardly someone who'd do that, and he's a trusting man, almost to a fault. I think it would be very out of character on Dumbledore's part to create unbreakable vows. And Snape killed Dumbledore because Dumbledore asked him to, at the tower and before the incident at the underground lake.

I agree Snape is a very deep character, and that he wasn't bad, but you portray him as a twisted person and that he was never good. I believe he redeemed himself over the course of the series...and perhaps before the events in the first book even began.

Not to add more negativity, but I have to agree with many of the points from previous reviews. Mainly that this essay seems to be based more on fanon than on canon.
Each section starts with a more or less factual statement, but you quickly delve into matters which have no supporting evidence in canon and you state your opinions as if they were fact. If this piece is meant to be an explanation of *your view* of Snape, then that's fine. However, it doesn't come across that way.

That said, I do appreciate it when an author devotes some time to exploring a character in depth, regardless of whether I agree with the author's conclusions. For that I commend you.

Pesrsuasive. But you made one mistake. Dumbledore holding anyone with an unbreakable vow is completely out of character for him. Dumbledore would never threaten anybody with death in any circumstance. The only situation where Dumbledore would even kill is if it was the only way to protect one of his loved ones. Therefore, Snape had to have had some basic decency, or at least be honorable enough to never break his promise, even if it isn't magically backed up.

If you had truly wanted to convince anyone of your "suppositions" it would have been wise to include some excerpts from the books to prove your allegations -- without the original text right next to your claims, the reader can easily believe that you simply interpreted the words incorrectly. To write a believable essay that actually proves anything (and is anything approaching credible), you should at least consider putting this whole assemblage into a cohesive and well-thought essay format, with paragraphs and everything. As it is, I don't think you have a chance of convincing anyone.

For one thing, some of the things you claim as being true are utterly unsupported by the text. The best example of this is your statement that "Snape was arrogant and proud, though ostracized..." What possible support could you tout for this? The most accurate information regarding young Snape is obviously from the "Snape's Worst Memory" chapter from OotP, where Snape talks to no one, sits alone next to the bushes to review his exam paper, and is hexed multiple times by one Mr. James Potter. This Potter happens to be ruffling his hair about a dozen times, showing off his Snitch reflexes for Peter, and basically showing off his jinxing abilities to the girls. Honestly, in all objectivity, who is it in this scene that seems "arrogant and proud?" The one who is jinxed "simply because he exists" and embarrassed in front of a crowd of people, or the one showing off for the ladies?

Furthermore, you go on to make wild claims about Snape's character and actions that couldn't possibly have support one way or the other -- which, honest to god, is NOT a good enough reason for you to use them as "evidence" to your ridiculous allegations. For instance, you assumed instantly that "Snape may be an evil and/or completely selfish son of a gun" and ran all of your theories past that initial bias. You can't in all seriousness expect a reader to examine your essay with any sort of objectivity if you yourself lack it woefully.

As a result of these glaring flaws in your theories (as well as others that would be too tedious to explain), whether you had anything worthwhile to say, I'm sure it was utterly undetectable.

Problematic: somebody with old-dirty underwear will have more to him than being an arrogant jerk...I mean you are failing to consider Snape's childhood experiences.
Also, the vows to Dumbeldore you are mentioning are vague. If he shouldn't harm Harry, how can he mistreat him verbally...how does he know it won't send Harry over the edge?
Also, I don't think Dumbledore is the kind of character who would keep a 'slave'. He wants people to act on their own. If he is to be any better than Voldemort, then he can't keep slaves.
I could go into debating many other points here...but have better things to do...

In a way, you are 100% on with Snape's character. Although we can not be completely sure about his past times with Lily on that perticular note per say because it wasn't mentioned in any of the HP books. However, we can still come to that conclusion based primary on how Snape is always "saving" Harry despite how much he incredibly loaths the him. Snape's character is in fact one of the most mysterious out of all of them, it will be interesting to see what happens in Deathly Hallows, perhaps we will finally get into the Potion Master's head without having to use Occumulentry to do it!

*we also know one main point that is going to be given to us in the next book. JK Rowling stated that Snape was "loved" but she didn't say in what way and in what form he was. The Lilly thing is seriously crossing my mind although I am not so certain that it is the all the fuel that is the cause of Snape's doings.

... O.o okay. Well, I read this... and I can't agree. You make Snape sound so shallow, but there's so much that we, the readers, don't know about him! I mean, there are hints about his life, and we know some things for sure (eg he was bullied by the marauders), and I know that a lot of this is your opinion, but still... I just think that there are elements of his character that you have overlooked or that we are not aware of.
I am convinced that he is not working wholeheartedly for the light or dark side, but again... that's my opinion. This review isn't making a lot of sense, ne? Well... that's all I have to say. I'm sorry that this review is so negative, you must have worked hard to produce this essay. However, maybe if you posted it at a more appropriate place, you would generate a more positive reaction. This is, after all, a place for stories.
love -little oro-

I will not go as far as writing a lengthy review like duj and whitehound have done. But I agree with them both wholeheartedly, and with the rest as well of course.

Severus Snape is a very complicated character, full of mistery. And he *is* the most well-rounded character of the whole Harry Potter series, and actually my favorite. Anyway, the point is that I do believe that he is one of the good guys. We all know that Dumbledore makes mistakes and he loves giving second chances. But I don't think our beloved Headmaster would make the greatest mistake of trusting Severus in such a way.

I always go back to the scene where Hagrid overheard them both arguing: Severus was complaining to Albus about not wanting to do something, but Albus said that he had already agreed to it. That says it all for me. I just cannot fathom how you could describe him as "selfish" if he has done his best to protect Harry from the beginning. Also, what you said about Severus loving Lily is just completely out of line.

However, we will not be sure of anything yet until July.

PS: You're supposed to write FICTION STORIES here. NOT ESSAYS!

He is twisted and ruthlessly selfish. He was not ever a “good guy,” but he was also not evil through and through.

You mean this earnestly? Well, I have already read your reviews before I even started the "story" (and duj is right, you are not supposed to publish an essay here) and I knew what to expect but this was too much for me. Look, extremists often don't hesitate to offer their lifes for their cause, so Snape being hold by any unbreakable vow to Dumbledore is actually rubbish.

And also that part with revenge - Dumbledore himself says that the death of the Potters (or, well, overhearing the prophecy leading to it) is Snape's biggest regret. So I can't imagine him acting out of any revenge.

Also, a man who keeps selflessly helping those pratty children is for me a good caretaker, a person really suiting his job - no matter his sour moods. I would have them probably as well if teaching darling Harry and other kids who don't hesitate to harm their classmates for their own amusement.

I agree with duj!! darn..the guy is a good guy I can tell...twisted? absolutly not ( ok maybe a little bit ..who wouldn't with all the crucio he got !?! Even Harry is sometimes...and he's not a bad guy)

maybe there'S a Vow with dumby but you can be sure about that yet..we'll know in july when the last book will come out..so before then Severus is a spy for the good guy and didn't have choise but to kill dumby ( maybe he's no even dead...who knows)

We all love Severus anyway ( ok maybe sometimes we want to slap him but that's all...)