Lusting After Snape

[juli17 at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 129339


potioncat wrote:

> >So Snape is deliciously enjoyable because, as a literary 
> >character, he can get away with all the nastiness he wants and we 
> >can enjoy it vicariously without actually hurting anyone in the 
> >Real World.
> >(More major snips)

Kathy replied:

> 
> This is an absolutely great theory!  I know that I have much the 
> same disposition as Snape, just about as much patience and I can tell you 
> that motherhood hit me hard.  I can "do" (change diapers, feed, 
> clothe, take them to the hospital and dentist, perform first aid) but 
> when it comes to "nurture", I struggle.  Fortunately I have very 
> understanding children. It is interesting to note, while I am confessing 
> anyway, that my other favourite character is Dr. Gregory House, from the TV show 
> "House".  I hugely admire anbody who can be that obnoxious and get away with 
> it.  This must confirm something! 
> 
> KJ
> 

Julie says:
 I LOVE Dr. House! What an amazing character. And I too admire how
he says exactly what he thinks and get away with it. I think we'd all love 
to have that freedom sometimes, to tell people they're morons when 
that's how they're acting, etc. And I agree with potioncat that Snape
also uses that technique very well, and it is sometimes very enjoyable
to read. However, I don't think Dr. House and Snape are competely
equatable on this issue, because we do see glimmers of House's
humanity beneath his very snarky exterior. We see precious little
beneath Snape's exterior. And Snape has many more secrets than Dr.
House.

I also think that the enjoyment of watching/reading a character get
away with being blunt to the point of nastiness (as we all feel an 
impulse to be sometimes) isn't something specific to women,
though women do suffer more social criticism for such behavior.

Another thing that makes Snape fascinating, which I don't find tied
to gender, is all his secretiveness. If you can't read a character,
and aren't really sure what's going under the surface, that makes 
a character much more interesting than one who's an open book. 
And that is a large part of the fascination of Snape, at least for me.

The one thing I do think may be far more common in women than
men is the impulse to save someone. Or, more specifically perhaps,
the impluse to save a man from himself. It's a big component of
the romance genre, the idea that the right woman can turn a bad/
unhappy man around. And while I don't fantasize about Snape 
(really, he's not attractive to me in that way!), I do have a desire
to see him overcome his demons and reveal at least a glimmer
of goodness I believe (or want to believe) exists inside him. 

So, I want to see Snape saved from himself If it doesn't happen, if 
he turns out to be evil, or simply unable/unwilling to change and find 
some small satisfaction in life and with others, than I will be disappointed
from a personal standpoint. As with Harry, Hermoine, Lupin, etc, etc, 
I'm emotionally invested in the character of Snape. That's part of 
the joy of reading fiction. And while I'd be happy to see Voldemort
die, as well as Lucius Malfoy, and I don't really care whether Peter
survives, or the Dursleys, or Draco, I do want to see Snape redeem 
himself in the end. I really do. 

But that's just me. Others may have different but equally valid 
conclusions for Snape that would be more emotionally satisfying for 
them!

Julie 




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