bullies? twins, padfoot and prongs

[ginnysthe1]

No: HPFGUIDX 118642


Valky had written in reply to Carol(?):
The phrase "as though he had been expecting an attack" in no way 
leads to an assumption that James was still armed. 
<snip> The attack was not obvious, James wand was not drawn or 
aimed. Of that I am entirely certain. 

Potioncat responded to Valky:
Just to clarify, James calls out "All right, Snivelus?" Do you think 
Severus was wrong to go for his wand? Looking at the description of 
Sirius and Peter, James was up to something, we can see it, and 
Severus must have had reason to expect it.

Then Potioncat quoted part of Valky's post:
"Valky: No personal intent, Carol, but I just don't understand why 
others feel the necessity to construe the story to say that James 
attacked an unarmed opponent without warning, it's overkill. The 
words simply don't support it, and it doesn't change the fact that he 
behaved like an Ar*e following it."

Potioncat responded (to Valky):
Well, James did Expelliarmus, then Sirius did another curse.  What 
do you call it?  I would be willing to consider Expelliarmus 
defense, except that it doesn't stop there and at that point all 
Severus had done was to pull his wand to defend himself.

Then Potioncat quoted Valky again:
"Valky: Overkill! Carol.  James just simply isn't this bad, you just 
want him to be, right?  Sirius statement about James *Hating* the 
Dark Arts is adamant and sincere, How can you doubt that? Of all the 
things that Sirius has said?"

Potioncat responded:
Even if Sirius is correct and the reason for James' dislike of 
Severus is due to Dark Arts, it doesn't excuse this incident.  I am 
of the opinion that there is more to learn about this and I've seen 
Sirius be wrong before.  

I've not certain that knowing Dark Arts is any worse than hexing 
people just because you can.  I know James will go on to become a 
very good person, but I stand by my opinion that he is not a good 
person in this scene.

Kim now:
I think what may be missing in our interpretations is that in this 
scene James sees Severus in the light of his and Severus's own 
personal history together, a history which we can't see from our 
reader's POV.  As a possible history, I'll offer this:  After they 
first met one another, it somehow became apparent to James that 
Severus was a pureblood snob.  Severus may be a "shabby-genteel" 
pureblood snob (hence the dingy underpants?), but he's a snob 
nonetheless.  And pure-blood James doesn't like snobs.  Why this is 
so, I've no idea, but I think it is so.  (Also, pureblood Sirius 
doesn't like snobs either, does he, hence part of the reason for his 
dislike of his own family?)  Anyhow, over several years James has 
fallen for the mudblood young witch Lily and has also realized 
somehow that Severus, against his own "better" pureblood judgment, 
likes her as well.  (Lily may realize these same things about 
Severus, but she's not prone to be actively cruel to Severus in the 
way James and Sirius are).  So when Severus walks by the groups of 
kids that are sitting near the lake, James uses the opportunity 
first, to get revenge on his "rival" to Lily's affections, and 
second, to "ice the cake" by humiliating a shabby-genteel pureblood 
who has dared to be hypcritical enough to hanker after the mudblood 
girl that James has already chosen for himself.  In that light, the 
scene is entirely plausible (not that the behavior on the part of 
James and Sirius is any more justifieable).

Any thoughts?

Kim