Despised Lackey or Social Equal?: Snape's 'Respectability'

[eloiseherisson at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 90142

Julie:

> What I've been wondering about—and perhaps those of you
> familiar with class structure and the British boarding school system 
> could sound in — where would Snape's position as Head of Slytherin 
> House place him in the social context of Wizarding Britain in 
> general?  Ignoring Snape's unpleasant appearance and demeanor, what 
> type of status does a "job" like Head of House confer as opposed to 
> just being a Potions professor/Master?  

Eloise:
What a very good question. I'm not sure that it's really possible to answer 
it by analogy with the real world.

In the first place, we know of only one wizarding school in Britain, 
Hogwarts. We know (or believe thanks to Hermione) that as a school it is of very high 
status internationally. What we *don't* know, however, is how the status of 
being employed there fits into the WW mentality. Teachers, at least school 
teachers, must be few of a kind in the WW. Are they therefore celebrities or 
oddballs? Or simply nonentities?

Hogwarts and the WW do to an extent seem to be locked into a somewhat 
Victorian time warp. Back in those days, teachers at boarding schools, would 
obviously come from among the educated classes. They would themselves have been 
privately educated, meaning that they came from families with some means. OTOH, it 
was very much the sort of career that would (I think) be undertaken by a 
younger brother, the one not going to inherit. I guess it was probably (I confess, 
I'm guessing here as it's not a subject I've ever seen discussed) the upper 
middle class equivalent of an upper class younger son going into the clergy. 
Think Nicholas Nickleby where our hero, fallen on hard times and destitute, takes 
on a teaching position.

Learning itself was highly prized on Victorian times and prominent academics 
could become celebrities. However, I'm not at all sure that that sort of 
social cachet attached itself to the humble schoolmaster.

So Hogwarts, as so much of JKR's world is for me a bit of an anomaly, an 
unanswered question.

*But* you bring up another element here. Snape is not just any old teacher, 
he is *Head of Slytherin House*. Again, this really has no real world 
equivalent. It seems that the whole of the educated wizarding population of Britain 
(pace those who believe there *are* other wizarding schools - and in fact I think 
this is still consonant with the views of those who think that Hogwarts has 
other "campuses") were divided at the age of 11 into one of the four houses and 
that this division seems to be *much* more important that the dividing into 
houses which happens in a RL school*.

This is of course, partly a result of the fact that the wizarding population 
is relatively small and all apparently educated at the same school, so that 
what might be relatively trivial in RL terms ends (most people you meet in adult 
life won't have been to your school and won't care a fig what house you were 
in) ends up being something which everyone you meet understands and is an 
instant means by which they can categorise you. One can imagine being at a party 
and the opening gambit not being "What do you do?" but "Which house were you 
in?"

The house question is even more potent because the division is not random. 
Wizards do not become loyal to their house simply because of an artificial 
division, they have a much deeper loyalty to it because their house says something 
deep about their own nature and therefore they might be expected to have and 
even greater instinctive loyalty to members of their own house.

At this point I was going to say something about houses running in families, 
but this is probably irrelevant. The Sorting Hat is quite capable of placing 
different members of the same family into different houses. In Public Schools 
at least, there is a tradition (I'm not sure that it's universal) of always 
placing family members over generations in the same house.

But yes. I think that being Head of Slytherin *should* carry with it some 
status and this is probably recognised by the Malfoys.

Julie:
> Wealth:  We don't know from the books whether Snape has any
> income beyond what he earns as a potions instructor at Hogwarts (I 
> wonder what the remuneration at such an exclusive school would be 
> like?).  He may have additional income derived from being a Potions 
> Master (publication royalties, patents, consultation fees) or an 
> inheritance

Eloise:
No. We know nothing and I would guess that in any case he lives a fairly 
frugal life, allowing for investment in exotic Potions ingredients, that is. We 
have no idea what the remuneration might be. Is it pretty poor, as one would 
expect for a teacher, or *is* it a job of high prestige? (As an aside, I wonder 
if we can glean anything from Lockhart? Just why did *he* want the job?)

Regarding the Potions Master suggestion, I take it that you are regarding 
this as being a title of significance? This is one of those things which British 
readers tend to gloss over. "Master" is a normal way of referring to a school 
teacher over here. Just *why* it only seems to be used in reference to Snape, 
I don't know, but I would refer to McGonagall similarly as "the 
Transfiguration mistress" or Flitwick as the "Charms master". It's actually JKR's use of 
"professor" which is anomalous, unless we again draw 19th century parallels, when 
this becomes just another word for a school teacher

Maybe it use of "Potions Master" *does* have significance, but it certainly 
doesn't leap off the page to one used to British school terminology.

Julie:
> Family Background:  I tend to agree with whomever said Snape's 
> memories indicated a non-elite background, although I didn't take his 
> spitting at the Quiddith match as proof (spitting + sports just seems 
> to be a guy thing and I took it solely as a sign of spur-of-the-
> moment intense contempt).  Since he was a Death Eater, he surely 
> claims some degree of pure wizardly heritage. 

Eloise:
I always envisaged him as coming form a pretty upper class background, 
myself. Part of the reason for that was that I always thought we were meant to see 
something of Draco in him. Not an exact parallel, but I've always believed that 
to an extent he identifies with the boy and goes out of his way to treat him 
in the way he wasn't treated when he himself was at Hogwarts: that he favours 
Draco, to somehow make up for deficiencies in his own childhood.

But class and money don't always equate. It's been suggested in the past that 
the Weasleys are in fact an upper class family fallen on hard times.

Julie:
> 
> I tend to read Snape (his dress, speech patterns, method of teaching, 
> emphysis on respect and obedience) as someone with a chip on his 
> shoulder, who's self-made (or re-invented), who has struggled for 
> what he has and is very much on guard against loosing it, rather than 
> born to wealth and power and easy social connections like the 
> Malfoys.  
> 

Eloise:
Well, he's certainly struggled. It seems very clear that his family 
background was less than ideal, both in terms of relationships and material comfort. 
And of course, he *has* reinvented himself, from ex-DE to Dumbledore's right 
hand man. I've written a lot in the past about why I believe Snape is like he is. 
I think a lot of the chip is to do with Harry, a lot to do with the fact that 
so much of what he has done has been in secret and has necessarily gone 
unrecognised. We don't really know about his social connections (although most of 
his friends from the past seem to be dead or, at least until OoP, in Azkaban). 
I don't think he's had any opportunity to pursue any social connections much 
since the time he joined the DE's.

Julie:
> Magical Ability:  We've been told Severus Snape is a very powerful 
> wizard, and at a fairly young age—he's not yet forty in a potentially 
> 150+ life span—so we can probably safely assume that he's not yet 
> reached his peak ability. He is also one of an exclusive and limited 
> number of specialists in his field in Britain.  Snape lacks the 
> trappings of pretigious power that Lucius Malfoy displays, yet we 
> really don't know how the two compare magically.  

Eloise:
No, we don't (though I'd put my money on Severus any day). And we don't know 
how many people are aware of his ability, either. He specialises in a rather 
unshowy and apparently undervalued field of magic. 

Julie: 
> So taking any combination of the sources of status where does that 
> leave Snape?

Eloise:
Frustrated, I think. ;-)

Julie:
> Since Hogwarts is the only school of its type in wizarding-Britain, 
> am I safe in assuming that means any other magical training would be 
> viewed with suspicion and prejudice?  Not quite "the thing"?  

Eloise:
If it exists, I'd say yes.

Julie: 
> Wouldn't this increase the prestige of being one of the four
> Heads of House?  Would the Board of Governors have to approve an 
> appointee as Head of House, or would it be solely at Dumbledore's 
> discretion? Or would there be a board within a board composed only of 
> former Slytherins who would have to approve, just as Ravenclaws or 
> Hufflepuffs would approve a new Head of thier houses?  Or would the 
> other heads or even the Sorting Hat decide in a vacancy?

Eloise:
More good questions. I think that the Board of Governors probably *would* 
have to approve. I think they'd probably have to approve of any appointee, in 
fact, although I'd assume that they generally go with Dumbledore's 
recommendation. Of course, we don't actually know if there *is* another Slytherin teacher at 
Hogwarts, do we? Given Dumbledore's character, I suspect that although not 
impossible (because he is not prejudiced), it is unlikely. Although some of his 
appointments do leave that open to question. He doesn't seem *terribly* 
worried about some of the teaching that goes on. However when we look at his "bad" 
teachers, aside from DADA, we have Trelawney, whom he presumably employed 
because of the prophecy (and what a disappointment *she* must have turned out to 
be!), Hagrid, whom he has personal reasons to employ and Binns who presumably 
won't go away. I think that Snape is at Hogwarts because that is exactly where 
Dumbledore wants him. 

Actually, a thought just occurs. If Dumbledore didn't appoint Snape to DADA 
because he thought it would bring out the worst in him (*if* that's the 
reason), then what exactly did he think making him Head of Slytherin House would do 
for him? But perhaps it's that he *does* understand him so well. Here is one 
place where he can have the recognition he so craves and in a pretty public 
form. 

I digressed. I also think that Lucius would support Snape as Head of House 
because he either knows or suspects that he may be a fellow DE or be sympathetic 
to the cause. I don't think that's ever been made clear.


Julie:
> So I wonder.  Would a combination of magical abilities, and what must 
> be at least a respectable bloodline (perhaps a bastard branch or 
> tradition of vassalage to a `good' pure blooded family?) plus Head of 
> House be enough to place Severus Snape on equal footing with someone 
> like Lucius Malfoy?  

Eloise:
I don't know. I think there are still too many imponderables. As I say, blood 
and money don't always go together and for the Malfoys, at least Lucius, I'm 
sure that blood would be the most important. So if Snape is from a 
respectable, purebloodline and he's apparently not betraying that inheritance, then I 
think that Lucius would treat him pretty much as an equal on that level. However 
even within that parity of social standing, money or the lack of it would play 
a part. For instance, regarding marriage, then I would expect Lucius to want 
his family to marry into other wealthy pure blood families, rather than into 
poor ones (unless there was a good political reason for it). I couldn't see 
Severus being Lucius' first choice to marry his (notional) sister, for instance, 
if a wealthier wizard with similar credentials came along.

I think that basically the two of them would treat each other with the utmost 
respect and caution. I think their mutual history of which Snape definitely 
knows and Lucius might either know or else suspect is more important to their 
relationship than their respective positions in society.

Julie:
> Snape is able to project a strong aura of power and intimidation in 
> the books, besides the added impression of residual DE nastiness that 
> Harry and gang know about from his past, but set that aside (and it 
> can be as he was very careful, almost meek, in his dealings with 
> Doris Umbridge).  Unaware of any Death Eater connections or Snape's 
> reputation as a cold and nasty character, would someone like Lucius 
> Malfoy or Neville's Grandmother, or Amelia Bones consider Snape 
> of 'respectable' or 'proper' social standing?  Or would he only be 
> held in respect by other Slytherins (whose children he is 
> overseeing/training, and even post-Hogwarts he would retain some 
> power as Head of House for things like references and word-of-mouth 
> recommendations)?

Eloise:
I would imagine that some non-Slytherins would hold him in a degree of 
suspicion as anti-Slytherin prejudice seems fairly strong among those from other 
houses, especially as a result of the last Voldemort war. Someone like Fudge 
would certainly hold him as respectable (he did until he saw the Dark Mark). 
However these things are not mutually exclusive. We can regard someone to be of 
"proper social standing" and give them public respect whilst still disliking or 
despising them personally. Look at Mr Borgin's reaction to Lucius. He obviously 
wouldn't cross him and in a social situation, as face to face, no doubt would 
treat him with the utmost respect. But his personal feelings cut across any 
social respect or recognition that he gives him.

I would think that the fact that he was employed in a highly responsible 
position by Dumbledore would give pause for thought (at least up until the time 
when people started to think that Dumbledore was losing his grip). Neville's 
grandmother, I am sure, would respect him for that reason if for no other, as 
Molly does. But yes. He is a teacher at a world-class wizarding school and head 
of house. That gives him social respectability (if not status), whatever 
anyone's personal feelings.


Julie:
>Regardless of how Lucius and Severus interacted in school or as 
> fellow Death Eaters (or spies), Lucius has a child who is sorted into 
> Snape's House.  I would assume that regardless of how the two men 
> personally get along, Lucius would at least feign cordiality while 
> Draco was in school, and somewhat vulnerable to his Head of
> House's wrath or interference.  

Eloise:
Oh definitely. And Snape's treatment of Draco surely has something to do with 
the impression he wants to convey to Lucius.

Julie:
> Consequently the younger Draco would "suck up" knowing that if he 
> could gain his Head of House's favor it would make his Hogwarts 
> career much easier. (I imagine there's a separate course of study
> for young Slytherins called Manipulation and Self Preservation 101).  

Definitely. 

Julie:
> I don't think we've enough canon evidence to state that Draco
> believes his father and Snape are `friends' or that he knows that
> Snape was/is a Death Eater.  I agree that there seems to be some form 
> of interactions between Snape and Malfoy, Sr. due to Umbridge's and 
> Sirius' remarks, but I think Lucius has kept the younger Draco 
> isolated from the realities of the Death Eaters(per Draco's speech in 
> the Slytherin common room during the polyjuice adventure in CS). It's 
> more that Snape and Malfoy are fellow Slytherins and part of an "old 
> boys network" that share certain values, which Draco assumes he'll 
> one day take his own place in.  

Eloise:
I think this is spot on regarding Draco. What exactly Snape and Lucius know 
about their respective activities, though, I'm not at all sure.

> Would anyone care to comment?   Offer corrections on assumptions? I'm not 
at all sure.

Thank you for a most thought-provoking post.

~Eloise




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