One thing that always disturbed me about Snapeās death is its inevitability. Not just in the general pathos of his character, but his actual physical death. We can say āwell, if Bellatrix hadnāt aimed at Remus then he wouldnāt have died.ā Or āif Sirius hadnāt gone to the Department of Mysteries he would be aliveā.
With Snape thatās not possible. A lot has to happen for him to survive. Voldemort was always going to come for him. There was little Snape could do to avoid it. For him to survive, someone would have to help him, for instance, which was difficult considering that no one knew the truth about him yet, and would only know after Harry shouted it to Voldemort in the Final Battle. That person would need supplies to help him and they had very little time, considering that it was a throat wound that made him bleed to death in minutes.
And yetā¦there is something that always struck me as odd about his death. The lack of fighting. After Nagini strikes, Snape just falls down, and tries with his hand to stop the bleeding. We know he had his wand. Heās grasping it when talking to Voldemort. We know Snape knew - maybe even invented - a counter-curse that healed the effects of a curse which caused serious wounds and a lot of blood. Throughout the series, Snape helps healing people who suffer from Dark Magicās curses: Katie, Dumbledore, the petrified students. We know that Naginiās venom keeps the wounds open, but we also know there was an antidote: it was made in St. Mungoās when Arthur Weasley was bitten. We know there are potions that replenish the blood, that bandages could temporarily stanch Arthurās bleeding, and we know Snape was well attuned to the benefits of Bezoars and dittany, articles easily found in a potionās storeroom. We know the accio spell could summon some of these things, maybe enough to allow him to survive for a few more hours. After all, both Arthur and Harry survive being bitten by Nagini. Although Snapeās wounds are far graver it is also true he is a more powerful wizard than Arthur and is at least as resourceful as Harry and Hermione.
It is, therefore, not unreasonable to assume that Snape was capable and powerful enough to buy himself a few extra time. But the fact remains that Snape doesnāt even try to use magic to heal himself from a physical wound. And once Harry shows up in front of him he completely stops trying to stanch the bleeding with his hand, chosing instead to grasp Harryās robes.
I donāt want to go as far as saying that Snape wanted to die ā at least not until he saw Harry in front of him and gave his memories ā but that he crucially didnāt mind dying. This is perhaps confirmed by how Harry describes his eyes in the chapter āSacking of Severus Snapeā: āhis black eyes had a dead, cold lookā. Dead look is not an expression JKR uses often to describe her characters. It happens again when Snape realizes Voldemort is going to kill him: āSnapeās face was like a death mask. It was marble white and so still that when he spoke, it was a shock to see that anyone lived behind the blank eyes.ā
This is dark and very deliberate in how it evokes depression and despondency. It does far more than foreshadowing Snapeās death; it illustrates his state of mind. Snape wasnāt just going to die. He was already dead. He had no life in him. No will to live. His only motivation at this point was Harryās success - and thereās no doubt that he would continue to do whatever it took to ensure it - but even that couldnāt summon up enough life in him. His mission gave him purpose, but it didnāt give him life. It didnāt keep his eyes and face from a permanent state of blankness and emptiness.
It is obvious that Snapeās slower death allowed him to pass his memories on to Harry. However, an experienced writer, which JKR was at that point, could have easily found another device for a character to transmit information to another. In a world where the most common way to kill is through a Curse that instantly and inevitably finishes people off, the physicality and the slowness of Snapeās death gives him an agency and control that he purposefully relinquishes.
This is perhaps why his death always had such a huge emotional impact. Because Snape could potentially have survived had he truly wanted ā unlike Remus and Sirius who couldnāt escape the immediacy of Avada Kedavra ā but he didnāt find enough will in himself to fight death. Now whether he wanted to die, or he was relieved by it, or was simply tired, is up to interpretation. But it is immensely tragic. And it is meant to be. It leads the reader to the almost inevitable and terrible conclusion that dying really was Snapeās happy ending because it was what came closer to relieve him of his obvious suffering.
