Professor Snape HATED Harry Potter. But his feelings for Harry’s mum often motivated him to protect the boy. Is this why Snape’s Potions textbook ended up with Harry in his sixth year at school? Or was it just a happy accident?

From the moment Harry stepped onto the the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, it was no secret that Professor Severus Snape hated him.

Much later on, however, Snape shared with Harry that he had kept other feelings hidden. He was—and always had been—in love with Harry’s deceased mum, Lily.

So, despite truly hating Harry, is it possible that Snape planned for him to find his textbook in an effort to protect him? In this article, we take a look at why—or why not—this may have been the case.

Why Snape May Have Left His Textbook for Harry

Alright. So, let’s say that Snape did in fact leave his textbook for Harry to find in an effort to help him. Why would he have done this? To protect him, yes. But what would he have been trying to accomplish?

Because if the past was any indication, it certainly wasn’t to help Harry get better marks in Potions…

Reason: To Assist Dumbledore in Getting the Truth Out of Slughorn

Throughout the series, Dumbledore constantly seemed to be working an angle. So, maybe Professor Dumbledore simply asked Snape to give Harry his old text in an effort to execute yet another plan.

And which plan would that be, exactly? The one to entrench Harry into Horace Slughorn’s inner circle of “pet” students, of course! You know, so that he could uncover the truth about what the Professor had told Tom Riddle about Horcruxes decades before.

Think about how much effort Dumbledore put into convincing the former Hogwarts’ Potions Master to return to his old position. Dumbledore knew how much Slughorn loved teaching impressive students. So, he went out of his way to pick up THE Harry Potter before going to offer him the teaching position. He basically dangled The Boy Who Lived like a carrot in front of the old wizard. And it worked.

Once Slughorn agreed to come back to Hogwarts, Dumbledore then wanted to give Harry every advantage of succeeding in getting the truth about Tom Riddle out of him. And knowing how masterful a potions student Severus Snape was in his youth, perhaps Dumbledore requested that Severus leave his old textbook in a place that Harry could find.

Considering the great lengths and sacrifices that Severus later made at the request of Dumbledore—such as killing him—leaving his old textbook for Harry to find really doesn’t seem like that big of an ask, does it?

The following interaction between Snape and Harry supports the idea that Severus knew Harry had his old textbook:

“This is your copy of Advanced Potion-Making, is it, Potter?”
“Yes,” said Harry, still breathing hard.
“You’re quite sure of that, are you, Potter?”
“Yes,” said Harry, with a touch more defiance.
“This is the copy of Advanced Potion-Making that you purchased from Flourish and Blotts?”
“Yes,” said Harry firmly.

Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince

With even a quick glance at the textbook, Snape most certainly would have recognized his old textbook and all of its annotations. So, if he wasn’t in on it, why wouldn’t he have punished Harry for cheating? After all, he loved punishing Harry for much less!

Why Harry Finding the Textbook May Have Been an Accident

Now, on the other hand, the idea that Snape did not purposefully leave his textbook for Harry can also be explained quite simply.

Reason: Slughorn Was a Bit Absentminded

In terms of the textbook, remember that Professor Slughorn distractedly rummaged through a random cupboard to grab Harry and Ron old copies of the Potions text.

Perhaps, Slughorn, who was taking over the position from Snape, had simply been moving his stuff into the classroom and came across some previously used textbooks. Without really looking at them, he then offered the texts to students like Harry who were without a book at the beginning of term.

But when Snape was the Potions Master, these textbooks were probably kept under lock and key. So, if Snape had still been the Professor in that classroom, it’s rather unlikely that these books would have been available for student use. And Harry never would have ended up with Severus’ old textbook.

What do you think? Did Snape leave the textbook for Harry on purpose? Share your thoughts in the comments below!