Poor, Picked-on Snape? (Was Depictions of Mental Illness)

[melclaros <melclaros@yahoo.com>]

No: HPFGUIDX 51486

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "kiricat2001 <Zarleycat at a...>" 
<Zarleycat at a...> wrote:
> --- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, Irene Mikhlin 
> <irene_mikhlin at b...> wrote:
> > 
>> 
> I know the assumption exists that Snape was the friendless outcast, 
> mercilessly picked on for seven, long years by the mean, handsome, 
> popular, arrogant, jocks that make up MWPP, but canon seems fairly 
> thin to support this.  I could just as easily say that intelligent 
> Snape was taught these curses by his parents, for whatever reason, 
> and decided one day early in his Hogwarts career to cement his 
> reputation among his fellow Slytherins like Evans and Rosier by 
using 
> one or two curses on that slow, pudgy, stupid Gryffindor first-year 
> Pettigrew.  However, Pettigrew was rescued by his friends, who also 
> were no slouches when it comes to magic, and, lo and behold, a 
> rivalry was born.
> 


A view of SS in school which I share to some extent. I actually think 
he was probably quite popular with a certain crowd..the word Sirius 
himself uses is "famous". Kids in school who are "famous" have 
followings. 

and as to this:

>And then there's Severus Snape, who I would say has some rather
>serious difficulties and possibly always has had. What sort of
>person knows all of those curses at the tender age of eleven? 

Alright...Mom time here. Eleven is NOT a tender age. Eleven is a 
DISGUSTING age. The nastier the better. If SS knew a lot of gross 
hexes I can pretty much guarantee he had a slew of kids following him 
around *begging* him to demonstrate them.



>not only doesn't look to his personal hygiene now; it seems from 
>Sirius' comments about him that he never did, not even as a 
>schoolboy. 

Again we're talking about adolescent boys here! I have one myself. I 
have friends that have them. They ALL have one thing in common. A 
fatal allergy to Soap in any form. Yes, they'll shower...spend an 
hour under it if they're left to their own devices, but never will 
soap touch their greasy hides or heads unless someone stands outside 
the door reminding them CONSTANTLY.

As far as Snape as an adult...I too subscribe to the simmering 
cauldron sludge theory as an explaination for the condition of 
Snape's hair.

Melpomene