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Most of us would agree, Severus Snape must have been the busiest man in the Wizarding World.
I have been thinking about Severus and how he came to be Head of Slytherin House. I cannot remember any reference as to when Severus was given the Head of House position, so I will assume it was part of the 'deal' made between Dumbledore and Severus to bring him to Hogwarts as a staff member/spy.
I believe that Dumbledore most certainly wanted Severus under his thumb, he wanted to completely control every aspect of his life. What I cannot fathom is giving a damaged young man the horrible task of spying on Voldemort while maintaining a Professor's responsibilities, possibly brewing potions for the infirmary and being Head of the most complex and demanding House.
Surely, I thought, Jo was underestimating how many hours each day all those duties would consume, leaving no time for the Severus to sleep. If it is simply a plot hole, and she did not bother to calculate how much the poor man was expected to accomplish each day during the school year, then I could dismiss it without further thought. But given just how explicitly she described Severus' return to Hogwarts, and the extreme reaction Dumbledore had to Severus' confession, then the burdens that she had Severus take on become somewhat clearer.
Much has been said about the Calvinistic theme permeating the series. The phrase 'no rest for the wicked' comes to mind when you examine Severus' life. I wondered if this over-burdening of Severus might be construed as punishment. Really severe and inhumane punishment. Punishment that satisfies some notion (much discussed) that no matter what Severus does, it counts for naught, and his redemption is not only impossible, but he must also work tirelessly and without praise or assistance. Considering Severus' entire life seems to have followed this pattern, I have come to feel that it must have been intentional on the part of the author.
So, Severus' life in review: His youth a morass of humiliation and abuse. His teaching career a never-ending series of impossible expectations. His spying career a labyrinth of pain and deception, with a side order of constant fear. And finally, a devil's snare of protecting Draco, being Dumbledore's executioner, and protector of Hogwarts during that final, brutal year. His only reward for enduring such a miserable life was an early death, a release which cost him not only his blood, but his dignity and his privacy.
More and more, I must conclude that Severus' creator purposely choose to punish the character, from the cradle to the grave, without respite or relief.
It makes my heart ache.
It infuriates me, actually. I still read fic comments from Snape-haters who insist that Snape should have done this, that or the other thing. And I just want to scream, "WHEN??" at them. ;-) But then, I suspect many of them (and Rowling, for that matter, judging from her comments) cling to the idea that teachers do not actually do any work. Honestly, do you not sometimes get the impression that some fans think Snape assigned essays for no reason other than the "fun" he got from correcting lazy mistakes? Of course, part of that is what you always get when reading a book marketed to teenagers and told through the eyes of a teenager.
I think, though, that you may be giving too much credit to the author. She's never really given the impression of a person who sat down and thought through the timelines, etc., for each character. I also think that she does not view the Head of House job as requiring a significant investment of time or resources. IIRC, Harry comments to himself in the middle of PoA at one point that it was only the second time McGonagall had been in the Gryffindor common room since he started at Hogwarts.
In short, I don't think there is any indication that Rowling really gave any thought to just how much work she was heaping on Snape. But I also think that, were someone to put that question to her, she would consider it an entirely just punishment, as you say. The post-DH interviews certainly bear that out. There was a distinct flying by the seat of your pants feel to those, as well as great antipathy towards Snape. It was amusing though, wasn't it, to watch the audiences batter away at her disregard for all non-Gryffindor characters? ;-)
This also gets me angry, the idea that teaching isn’t hard work. It’s up there with the stupid expression, "those who can, do; those who can’t, teach" I always think about how Hermione is the brightest witch of her age, and many people thought that she would be teaching at Hogwarts. I see nothing wrong with that. But instead the one that becomes a teacher is Neville. And the impressing I get from this is that Hermione can use her brains for something better than teaching. Okay maybe this is just me, but it irritates me, because the way I read Hermione I think she would be a terrific teacher. Sorry for my rant.
Anyway, he is treated extremely cruel all through the book.
Yes, yes. It also makes my heart ache, and the reason I do not plan on watching the last three movies of Harry Potter or even re reading the series.
I also have been thinking about this lately, about how much time he had to sleep. Someone I had mentioned this to said that maybe Snape had some non-addictive draught of speed. I also think that McGonagall is another character that is over worked: teacher, head of house, working for the order, deputy head mistress.
I doubt that these characters got any sleep, and I know if it was me I would have gone insane.
This man's courage and edurance are astounding to me, and it breaks my heart that his creator saw fit to so misuse him. I just do my best to give him a little bit of happiness in my fanfics. Ahh... the joys of being a fanfic writer ;-)
think about it
hogwarts has about 1000 students (according to her)
and only one teacher per subject, that is just so ridiculous
i don't know about the UK but in canada we have ATLEAST 5 teachers per subject. and plus snape has so many other 'duties' no wonder the man is so grumpy all the time :(
Severus actually had more work to do in HBP, even though we don't see it: trying to find out what Draco was up to, saving others from Draco's schemes, teaching the DADA course for the first time. At this point, Dumbledore seemed more aware of the enormity of the burden Severus carried. He knew that Severus would be asleep at his desk, fully clothed, when Dumbledore and Harry arrived at the Astronomy Tower. This makes me think that Severus was someone who basically fell over from exhaustion, but still remained ready to jump into action whenever Dumbledore or Voldemort decided to call him.
Yes, his was a bleak and harsh life. It makes me wonder why people think he was somehow "protected" while working for Dumbledore, as if he was on vacation. It makes me wonder when Severus was supposed to have time, let alone the encouragement, for the "character growth" some people still think he never accomplished. It makes me wonder just what that chemistry teacher ever did to JKR to make her so bent on inflicing the crippling punishment of Severus' life on this character. Her teacher must have called her the equivalent of "Mudblood" or something. And yet, Harry gives his second son a second name of Severus, because Harry is just supposed to be all that much better than anyone else. Harry never had to confront the living, complex Severus at the end, just the author in DH chose not to confront his character or the issues he raises for the series as a whole.
I do wonder how she could hold such a grudge for so long over the treatment in one class, during one year. That also leads me to wonder just who else she took from her own life and used to model other characters after?
Who inspired Dumbledore? (Maybe a clergyman from her childhood.)
The harridan Molly?
The clinically insane Bellatrix?
Thinking about that is truly frightening. Did she really encounter such frightening people in her life, or did she take those who she perceived to have slighted her and caricatured them? The more I think about it the more disturbed I feel.
Not to mention, I work in education, and I have taught, and I would like to have a word with Ms. Rowling about her misinformed ideas.
I don't think Rowling really thought this out, but still, I do agree that she is deliberately punishing Severus, and that there is something really personal about it. And these are supposed to be kid's books! Yikes!
I wasn't clear if Snape began working at Hogwarts before Voldemort's demise or not. We know that he approaches Dumbledore when Voldemort set his sights on the Potters, and that Voldemort wanted Snape to work at the school to be close to Dumbledore. We know that he turned spy before Voldemort's death. I'm guessing he was working at Hogwarts too, because Snape tells Bellatrix that he remained at his post per Voldemort's orders.
The schedule that JKR gives him post-Voldemort's return is grueling. He doesn't even get his summers to himself anymore, since Pettigrew is staying at Snape's house when HBP begins. He could use a time-turner to get some sleep, but I don't know if DD would trust him to use this item just for sleep. More likely, like others have said, that he used a potion.
I recall reading an interview with JKR where someone asked if the Hogwarts staff had spouses. This might have been part of the question about if Snape had someone who loved him and commented on his redemptive patter. JKR said she was shocked by the intuitive question and that it would be answered in book 7. Well, we got our answer... apparently no spouses for anyone, and that Snape loved Lily apparently a lot more than she loved him.
I had to laugh at the comments about the teachers' lack of private lives. My son is in kindergarten. He absolutely loves his teacher but doesn't think teachers should have any fun or days off.
Some anti-Snape fans might comment on his lack of character growth. It seemed to me that Dumbledore deliberately kept him from growing. There were not-so-subtle reminders of Lily at every turn, and his poor choices. Not to mention that DD still gave obvious preference to his Gryffindors. I'm sure Snape caught hell for outing Lupin, even though Lupin had seriously endangered the school. Again, DD favors Snape's enemies over him. I had thought that DD truly cared about Severus, although manipulative seemed a bit clueless about Snape's feelings at times. My opinion of DD took a nosedive when we finally got to see him through Snape's memories. The early memories had no hint of kindness - the later memories were somewhat better, but not by much.
Snape might have a fairly good working relationship with the staff, (Minerva remarked that she didn't want Snape to brag about having the Quidditch cup again, seeming like a friendly rivalry, and Hagrid seemed to find him acceptable), but none seemed to go out of their way to befriend him. They all said 'I don't believe it' to Snape's apparent defection, but they were very quick to say they only trusted him because of Dumbledore. This after working by the man's side for 16-odd years.
The last year had to be the absolute worst. Snape no longer had to report to anyone but Dumbledore's portrait and no longer had to teach classes. However, he still had to deal with a student rebellion while saving them from themselves. He still probably had to patrol the corridors, and he had to guard the sword. Before the other professors had at least been polite and cordial, but now he would be scorned. There would be no 'safe' place, save his room.
I thought it was awful that Snape didn't even get the chance to declare his true loyalties and fight to protect the school. His death was ignominious, and he didn't even die for the 'right' reasons. After the death, he was largely forgotten, except for when Harry had the 'grace' to set the record straight as an aside to the battle. It boggles my mind how JKR can claim that he abandoned his duties, when the other Heads of House literally forced him out of the castle, and he was still working on Dumbledore's orders. The man didn't even deserve a portrait?!
Self-pimp: I actually wrote a fic, The Final Year, to illustrate exactly how grueling that last year had to be.
(Not that I think that Snape needed to be worked into the ground to keep him out of mischief, of course, but maybe Dumbledore did.)
...I'm sorry to post such a frivolous answer to your serious essay...
He deserved a better life and a better death.
Thank goodness for fanfic eh?
Thanks for sharing
Lucie