“Harry paid him tribute in forgiveness and gratitude” – which duh, every fan knows that Snape’s devotion to Lily Potter had him act as a double agent for Dumbledore and secret protector of Harry – but some fans started disputing Snape’s intentions.
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Author JK Rowling took to Twitter to answer the enduring question on Friday in an exchange with a fan who asked why one of Harry’s children received the middle name of Severus. “Harry chose to perpetuate the names of the two who had nobody in their families to do so”.
In fact, Harry was never inclined to think that Snape is a reformed Death Eater, and mistrusts him even though Snape has headmaster Professor Albus Dumbledore’s full trust. She continued later, “Snape was a bully who loved the goodness he sensed in Lily without being able to emulate her. That was his tragedy”.
She also revealed she would have had more children if she had been younger when she first became a mother, at 39.
Rowling patiently – and sometimes exasperatedly – explained that Snape, played by Alan Rickman in the “Harry Potter” movies, was not all good nor all bad. Rowling explained how Snape’s last moments with Voldemort were truly heroic.
Later, she added: “There’s a whole essay in why Harry gave his son Snape’s name, but the decision goes to the heart of who Harry was, post-war”. During the interview, she said that she understand why the Potter books “still means so much” to people “because I know how much it meant to me to meet Morrissey”.
“Snape is all grey. You can’t make him a devil: he died to save the wizarding world”, Rowling tweeted. “Please could we all keep our discussion about this fictional character civil?”
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Rowling’s seven Harry Potter novels have sold more than 450 million copies and been made into eight films. There’s enough rage on Twitter without Snape-related hate.
