In defence of Peter (was: Thoughts on Wormtail's activities in OOTP )

[Susan Miller]

No: HPFGUIDX 81557

Shirly wrote:
 (Snip) In fact, LV seems to have so little regard for him - he 
 always calls him Wormtail and never Peter, have you noticed? - that 
 I'd think he'd just keep him around as a servant/lackey/scapegoat.

Constance Vigilance (Me):
Actually, I don't think Wormtail is an insult to Peter. He and his 
buddies used their nicknames as conspiritorial secret aliases. I 
think LV is used to nicknames, having given himself one, and tends to 
keep up the habit. Besides, it is handy to have the name Peter 
Pettigrew out of circulation. He is supposed to be dead, after all. 
And it does add to the mystique. If you think of it, Dumbledore calls 
Tom by his name. I believe the purpose of that is to puncture the 
mystique and bring him back to his earthly roots.

Constance Vigilance