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<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(The Master of Espionage @ Mar 18 2007, 01:15 AM) [snapback]31457[/snapback]
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...What makes people evil or not in this situation is not necessarily their actions, because they are usually the same, but their motivations...[/b]
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Been there, done that.
Suicide missions don't work in western culture.
I can't see JKR glorifying suicide in a children's book.
Especially with all that's going on in the Middle East right now.
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...So lets go back to Dumbledor's situation. From his condition after drinking the potion in the cave I would say it is pretty clear he is not going to make it to the castle in time to get the help he needs. He knows he is dying... [/b]
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The problem with that is that the events in the cave and any effect they had on Dumbledore could not have been a part of the plan. No one knew ahead of time what they would find in the cave, and Dumbledore had no way of telling Snape about it.
The only theory that works here is the one about Dumbledore's hand.
That the injury from the ring was fatal and that Snape somehow helped to postpone Dumbledore's death, for almost a year, but not forever.
I don't buy it. I find it too far-fetched.
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Not to seem querrelous but it seems obvious to me that Dumbledor knew what the liquid was and what effect it would have on him. Therefore, he knew he would need another person who would force him to finish drinking it. Ergo, Dumbledor had been to the cave before. Besides, do you really think that Dumbledor would drag Harry into a place where he couldn't protect him or had no idea what dangers were in store? I don't see Dumbledor as being that reckless with Harry's life. Assuming that he had been there before, Dumbledor knew exactly what condition he would be in after drinking the potion, and it is quite possible that Severus did have an antidote prepared. What Dumbledor didn't anticipate was the invasion of Hogwarts at exactly the time he was gone. I think what turned out as a test for Harry turned into something else altogether.
Due to the presence of the Death-Eaters, Severus was not allowed to heal the headmaster as planned. When Severus discovered the Death-Eater invasion, he realised that his job was to find Draco and Dumbledor, because his life hinged on those two people. No one else really mattered. The headmaster realized that, whatever the original plan had been, he was not going to survive. Therefore he did the best he could to protect everyone concerned. Draco was spared from killing him. Harry was hidden from his enemies. And Severus lived to fight another day.
Oh, and just as a side comment, this situation could easily have as much to do with euthanasia as it does murder or suicide.
Besides, giving your life willingly for your friends has a simple nobility to it. Ask any Christian on the block. "Greater love hath no man than to give his life for his friends."
I just had one more thought, just to cause some further headaches.
Why did Snape, upon hearing the Death Eaters had come, head directly for the tower?
I have my own take on this, and am curious to hear yours.