Suffering the Harry hangover...
So, since I am posting my thoughts about DH here as much for my own recollections as for others' opinions, I have to add a few things to my last post:
1) I was impressed with the revelation of Harry's "death" to Voldemort by Narcissa! It was a little stroke of genius for JKR. The only thing that saved the Malfoy's (and Snape, for that matter) from total degradation and evil, was love. The love that Narcissa had for Draco is the most fundamental thing about her-- it's her prime directive :o)-- and it saves her and Lucius from ultimate evil. Snape's love for Lily is that which saves him from ultimate evil! None of these become moral paragons in book 7, but it is LOVE that saves them. I might argue that Snape's love actually is more selfless than it might seem... his motive is always his love for Lily, but through it, he gives everything to save her son, also the son of a man who he hated. He did have to be convinced by Dumbledore to do it, but he never wavered, even as the cost grew greater and greater. Of course, we know that until the end, it was still Lily that motivated him, but it motivated him to acts of selflessness-- what did he stand to gain from taking care of Harry? He'd never have her, he'd put himself in danger, he'd have to protect and care for someone he couldn't bear... yet he continued to do so.
And I must hand it to JKR-- at every turn, it truly is love that saves Harry, and the world. Early theories suggested that Harry would have to love Voldemort to kill him, or that somehow, they would end up in the Dept. of Mysteries, in the "love" room, and that would kill Voldemort. But the answer was so much simpler! Every act that moves Harry, Ron, & Hermione toward victory, is one of love. Narcissa's love for Draco causes her to lie to Voldemort, Snape's love for Lily causes him to consistently help the son of his enemy, Ron & Hermione put their lives on the line to help their friend, Dobby dies in his selfless act of saving Harry, Harry's love (not for Pettigrew, but for Lupin and Sirius) caused him to save Pettigrew's life, which saves his own in the end... the list goes on and on.
It really did end up being all about the love...
1) I was impressed with the revelation of Harry's "death" to Voldemort by Narcissa! It was a little stroke of genius for JKR. The only thing that saved the Malfoy's (and Snape, for that matter) from total degradation and evil, was love. The love that Narcissa had for Draco is the most fundamental thing about her-- it's her prime directive :o)-- and it saves her and Lucius from ultimate evil. Snape's love for Lily is that which saves him from ultimate evil! None of these become moral paragons in book 7, but it is LOVE that saves them. I might argue that Snape's love actually is more selfless than it might seem... his motive is always his love for Lily, but through it, he gives everything to save her son, also the son of a man who he hated. He did have to be convinced by Dumbledore to do it, but he never wavered, even as the cost grew greater and greater. Of course, we know that until the end, it was still Lily that motivated him, but it motivated him to acts of selflessness-- what did he stand to gain from taking care of Harry? He'd never have her, he'd put himself in danger, he'd have to protect and care for someone he couldn't bear... yet he continued to do so.
And I must hand it to JKR-- at every turn, it truly is love that saves Harry, and the world. Early theories suggested that Harry would have to love Voldemort to kill him, or that somehow, they would end up in the Dept. of Mysteries, in the "love" room, and that would kill Voldemort. But the answer was so much simpler! Every act that moves Harry, Ron, & Hermione toward victory, is one of love. Narcissa's love for Draco causes her to lie to Voldemort, Snape's love for Lily causes him to consistently help the son of his enemy, Ron & Hermione put their lives on the line to help their friend, Dobby dies in his selfless act of saving Harry, Harry's love (not for Pettigrew, but for Lupin and Sirius) caused him to save Pettigrew's life, which saves his own in the end... the list goes on and on.
It really did end up being all about the love...