For me, he is a hero.

  

“I knew from the beginning what Snape was. Do I think he’s a hero? To a point, I do, but he’s not an unequivocally good character. Snape is a complicated man. He’s bitter. He’s … spiteful. He’s a bully. All these things are still true of Snape, even at the end of this book. But was he brave? Yes, immensely. Was he capable of love? Very definitely. So he’s— he’s a very— he was a flawed human being, like all of us.”
- J.K. Rowling