Could Snape be part goblin?

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 94701

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "khilari2000" <hannah at r...> wrote:
> Hi, I have posted before, but only once, ages ago and under a 
> different name. Then my Yahoo account dissappeared. Anyway, with all 
> the posts about whether Snape is a vampire or not I thought I'd weigh 
> in with my theory. I do feel it's fairly logical and would be 
> interested in whether anyone can find anything in canon to 
> refute/support it.
> 
> To start with I thought it was unlikely that Snape is spying on 
> Voldemort, LV would have to be pretty stupid to accept him back 
> without real proof that he was a DE. So it seems like Snape has 
> either proven he is a DE, which I don't believe, or is not spying on 
> Voldemort. So then I thought, if he hasn't gone to join the DEs, 
> where has he gone? Well, the other two people on dangerous missions 
> that summer were Lupin and Hagrid, both liasing with non-human 
> beings. So I wondered if Snape were doing the same thing for the same 
> reason. Isn't there supposed to be a pattern of threes in the HP 
> books? In that case it would be logical for him to be liasing with 
> the goblins, as the other major non-human race mentioned in the 
> books. It would be a dangerous task to judge by the fact that the 
> goblin rebellions were eventful enough that they are all Harry ever 
> seems to study! And as the other two envoys were half-breeds it 
> seemed logical that Snape could be one too.
> 
> His appearance could be said to support this theory, as he is 
> described as having a hooked nose and sallow skin. Also goblins have 
> a sadistic streak, judging by some of the traps at Gringotts.
> I apologise for a long post, but thought that if I was going to toss 
> another Snapey theory into the mix I ought to justify it.


I must say this is, as far as I know, an original perspective, but
it's not one I see any evidence for. First, we see Snape's parents in
one of his memories, and they're clearly human. Also, he would never
have been accepted into Slytherin, much less accepted as head of
Slytherin House, if he had any such doubtful parentage. There aren't
even the dubious red herring-style clues ("swept out of the room like
an overgrown bat") that we find for the vampire theory. Sallow skin
and a hooked nose do not a half-goblin make. (Neither do the long
fingers you didn't mention: All of the really powerful wizards,
including DD, LV, and Ollivander, have them.) Nor do we see Snape
demonstrating any interest whatever in gold, the apparent be-all and
end-all of a goblin's existence. 

Carol