Snape: Hero AND Abuser

[leslie41]

No: HPFGUIDX 143559

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "colebiancardi" <muellem at b...> 
wrote:
> The scene of the pensive could be misleading - if that is Tobias &
> Eileen fighting, who knows what they were fighting about?  

<snip>

> At any rate, I don't know if that scene means that Eileen or Snape 
> were ever abused by Tobias.  Snape makes no mention of his mother 
> or father, of course that would give too much away.  

Well, I like to speculate as much as anyone, but Occam's razor would 
seem to indicate that the woman being yelled at is his mother, the 
person doing the yelling (with the hook nose) is his father, and the 
small boy cowering in the corner is Snape.  

We're supposed to get an indication here through this scene that 
Snape does come from a background in which he has seen at least some 
emotional abuse.  

But Snape borrowed DD's pensieve so he could remove a variety of 
memories that he didn't want Harry to see.  If his entire history 
was swamped with such memories, one would think that would be hard 
to hide under any circumstances.  

I think much of the time we think harder about these things than JKR 
herself.  The pensieve scenes merely are JKR's way of fleshing out 
his background and character.  She wants us to know that:  

His father was a severe person
He had a rather unhappy childhood, and much of the time he was
     bored and alone  
As a teenager he was tormented by his peers, most specifically by 
     James Potter and Sirius Black

There are of course other elements as well.  "The Prank," and now 
the revelations about his paternity and the fact that he grew up 
(and probably remains) poorer than the Weasleys.

Those elements are enough to explain his character.  No one hates a 
bunch of teenagers more than someone who has been notoriously abused 
by them in his own youth.  

These things seem to me things that we can assume about him at this 
point.   

> However, we do not see him, outside of the calling Lily a 
> mudblood, that today's grown-up Snape is a pureblood supporter
> or that he feels that half-bloods should not be taught in the
> wizarding ways.  That would be hypocritical of him, as he is a
> half-blood himself.  

Hypocrisy?  Well, that's pretty typical behavior for him thusfar.  
It would be hypocritical for him to be nasty to students when he was 
the victim of abuse, wouldn't it?  

To me, Snape is a prime example of a "self-hating muggle."  Those 
who are familiar with the paradigm as it relates to Jews, African-
Americans, etc. will certainly see parallels.

The most vicious anti-semetic remarks I've ever heard have come out 
of the mouths of Jews, for example.

Now I say these things as someone who truly finds Snape compelling, 
and sees him ultimately on the side of good.  His character is 
deeply flawed, however, in very interesting ways.
 
As for why he joined Voldemort's minions, it makes perfect sense. 
Voldemort no doubt offered him what he wanted most but lacked.

Friends, money, esteem, and power, not necessarily in that order.  
It's the downtrodden who are always most susceptible to such a force 
as Voldemort.