One of the saddest parts for me was when Snape wanted Harry to look at him when he was dying. He wanted to see Lily’s eyes one last time was the way I saw it...like he didn’t believe he would be going on to the same place that Lily did. I have heard that interpretation elsewhere, and it certainly makes sense. However, when I read it and the chapter following, I interpreted it as Snape asking Harry to see the real Snape as he viewed the memories in the Pensieve, not the Snape he had known at school.
I have heard that interpretation elsewhere, and it certainly makes sense. However, when I read it and the chapter following, I interpreted it as Snape asking Harry to see the real Snape as he viewed the memories in the Pensieve, not the Snape he had known at school. Nope. Starting in Book 1, JKR makes a point of having characters say, "he's got Lily's eyes."
Lily was the one good thing in his life, and Snape wanted Lily's eyes to be the last thing he ever saw.
Now that is a tragic ending.