by Muhammad Hidhir B Md Razak

Created on: September 24, 2007

Many have argued in favor of Harry Potter being able to trust Professor Snape as a friend, not a foe, particularly because of the revelation, at the end of the series, that he was indeed one of the 'good guys', and thus, beyond reproach since all that he did was for the best. Right? Wrong. Though Harry Potter can safely say that Severus Snape is no threat to his life, it will be long way(probably another entire series of books) before The-Boy-Who-Lived can count the ex-Potions Master as a friend.

Snape, no matter how integral he was in bringing about the downfall of Voldermort and in saving Harry's life, maintains an understandable disdain for the Potter family, for what it has given him and for what it had taken away from him, James Potter and Lily Evans respectively. Thus, it is my belief that he would have continued carrying this grudge, this festering bitterness, that would jeopardize any form of relationship resembling friendship between the two being discussed. After all, one does not forget years of ridicule one had to endure during his teen years. Especially during his teen years. Thus, Snape, no matter how admirable he was in his actions, would never have considered Harry Potter as a friend. And because I believe that friendship is a two-way street, neither can Harry Potter.

After all, 'years of ridicule' is not an unknown phenomenon in Harry's own life and a large amount of ridicule came from Snape himself. Therefore, though Harry Potter might have finally understood Snape, forgave him and even admire him, it is unlikely he would ever consider Snape a friend.

That being said, Snape is most definitely not a foe, or at least the kind that want Harry Potter dead. He is a foe of a different kind, a shadow of the past his father had passed on to him. Snape smashed the ideal picture of James Potter Harry had and for that, though it is not entirely his fault, Harry will always see him in a fiendish light. The black billowing robes and long greasy hair does not help one bit.

Hence, Harry Potter should consider Snape as a foe, not the ordinary kind one has to fight, but the extraordinary kind that one has no choice but to face and endure. Snape, for all his bitterness, is a redeemed man in the story yet both he and Harry Potter are human in nature. And humans do not switch from being enemies to friends easily. Not at all.

Learn more about this author, Muhammad Hidhir B Md Razak.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.