Snapedom

I've always liked the Dante idea, that Snape struggled through his originally rather selfish love of Lily to something better. Though Dante never betrayed Beatrice, as far as I know--from the little I've read, he hardly knew her.

I'm not too familiar with the Heathcliff argument, but I think any comparison between him and Snape breaks down pretty fast. Snape's very much a creature of his society and works through its organizations, formal and informal--Hogwarts, the DE's, the Order. Heathcliff's a throwback to something before society--you get this reiterated again and again by the housekeeper-narrator. Thus I think there's no heaven or hell for either Heathcliff or Cathy after their deaths, just a return to their natural element, the pre-social wilderness of the moors. As you say, we can't know whether that brings them peace as we'd understand it, so I can't say I'm consoled by their story. I would agree with you that it's complete.

So's Snape's story, for me. He's active to the end, communicating through his memories what Harry must do. That he dies not knowing whether he was successful, that after death he doesn't receive the appreciation that some of his fans might have wished him to have is the Greene element at work again. Severus's story isn't particularly consoling in many ways, but it's complete.

I haven't read "The Little Prince", so I can't comment on that. I haven't read your essay, either. Do you have a link?