Neville's accident in his first potions class.

[terri-testing.livejournal.com]

It seems clear that Neville's cauldron- and shoe- melting reverse-effect potion was the result of a strong surge of magic as well as merely adding porcupine quills a little soon.  But what emotion could have prompted such a surge?  Fear, presumably, that's what normally seems to inspire Neville's outbreaks to date.  But what could have prompted a surge of fear--strong fear, maybe panic--right at that point in the class?


It obviously wasn't anything the professor was doing, he wasn't even near the boy, He wasn't hovering over Neville making him nervous, or insulting Neville's technique.  Canon tells us that Snape was across the room, "telling everyone to look at the perfect way Malfoy had stewed his horned slugs, when..."

Unless, of course, that was the trigger.

Neville had spent years being terrorized, nearly killed, by his family to "force some magic out of me."  But they were satisfied by ANY display of magical power.  Snape?  First Snape makes the dunderhead comment, then he demonstrates that he expects his students to remember what they've read, and now he makes it absolutely clear that only "perfection" counts as a satisfactory performance.  Algie, Augusta, Enid, can be pacified by a random magical outburst; the professor demands absolute competence as well as power.

Of course Neville freaks, and proceeds to demonstrate instantly that yes indeed, a panicked random magical outlash will get him in trouble in Professor Snape's class (and maybe in school in general), rather than getting him off the hook as it did at home.  To an abused kid who expects to be killed for nonperformance, all of a sudden school (or at least this class) is more dangerous than home--the bar is higher, insurmountably high.

Insight courtesy of potionpen/nightfall rising.

Comments

[hwyla.livejournal.com]

While I think you might be onto something in regards to Draco's slugs being a trigger for EXTRA magic, I don't agree that it was the reason Neville made the mistake.

And I disagree that Snape has suddenly set the bar insurmountably high. Maybe in Neville's mind he has, but Snape didn't say anything about Draco's 'perfect' slugs being merely satisfactory and I don't recall him saying anything about anyone else's potion at all - neither good or bad. I do not see his pointing out someone's perfect technique as equivalent to "...only 'perfection' counts as a satisfactory performance"

Neville might see it the way you suggest, but Snape doesn't react to Neville having a magical outburst. He knows exactly what caused the failure. I think that IF the failure was really that different to count more as accidental magic than a mistake in brewing then it would not have been so obvious to Snape exactly what Neville did wrong.

In other words, I think the same result would have happened, but perhaps Neville's magic made it a bigger mess? One where the other students were at risk of getting the potion on them and had to therefore get on their chairs. That sounds like a rather large spillover.

One interesting thing to note about the timing - the porcupine quills are presumably the last ingredient since they must be added AFTER removing from the flame (altho' I suppose it's possible that much of the potion is finished off the fire - or that the cauldron goes back on the fire after the quills are integrated) - but Neville is ahead in the recipe since Draco is still at the stewing slugs stage.

Was Neville rushing through the process? Is that why he made the mistake? The instructions are on the board. Was it more likely that Snape (who posts the improved book recipes on the board) never mentioned just how important it was to remove the cauldron from the fire before adding the quills? Or that Neville didn't notice/remember the warning because he was rushing?

[sweettalkeress.livejournal.com]

"Was Neville rushing through the process? Is that why he made the mistake? The instructions are on the board. Was it more likely that Snape (who posts the improved book recipes on the board) never mentioned just how important it was to remove the cauldron from the fire before adding the quills? Or that Neville didn't notice/remember the warning because he was rushing?"

Speaking as someone who's taken tons of chemistry classes and labs, I think it might just be that this potion is finicky and has to be timed closely, so that even if your timing is off a little you still screw up. That's true of pretty much every organic-chemistry experiment, and a good many others too.

[oryx_leucoryx]

I doubt Severus would start first year students off on something particularly finicky. Harry describes it as 'a simple potion to cure boils'.

[hwyla.livejournal.com]

I agree. It seems as if the only way one CAN mess up this potion (other than using the wrong ingredients) is by putting in the quills while the cauldron is still on the fire.

[guardians-song.livejournal.com]

Perhaps this can be explained as panicked!Neville having the quills in hand and dropping them into the cauldron in his fit of fear?

[hwyla.livejournal.com]

I think he would have made the mistake with or without Snape's comment on Draco's slugs - altho' I agree that the reason it was such an extreme reaction might be due to a magic surge.

Why would you have the quills in your hands at all if you're preparing to remove a hot cauldron from the fire? Not really a smart thing to do without both hands.

Altho' I will accept that pureblood Neville has probably never had to lift a pot full of something hot before - so possible. But a cauldron is heavy enough empty for one to want to use both hands.