Political positions of the characters/James reacting to Remus' lycanthropy.

[M.Clifford]

No: HPFGUIDX 150471

a_svirn:
And IMO. But "Lucius's lapdog" is the essentially the same thing
as "Snivellus", that is to say, a rather juvenile insult. The most
obvious way to insult a man is to cast a slur on his courage and/or
manly powers, just as the most obvious way to insult a woman is to
impugn her chastity and/or looks. This is what takes place at the
Grimault Place – Snape and Sirius are trading insults, immature to
say the least. Sirius calls him a *lapdog* which has certain
effeminate overtones; Snape retaliates with accusing him in
cowardice. Would you take Snape's words as factual statement?

Valky:
Actually, yes I would, and I do. I do think that Snape believes Sirius
is a coward, and that Snape calling Sirius a coward represents
something factual in the context of their history.  We don't know what
it is, really, but I speculate that it is probably how Snape feels
about the pensieve scene. 

Snape can reasonably and factually call Sirius a coward for what
happened in the schoolyard. We have the evidence of what he might be
basing it on, and it stands up well. 

By the same token Sirius might surely be able to factually call Snape
a lapdog and a sniveller and an evil git, we have got glimpses and
hints of what this might be based on, such as Sirius contending that
Snape connived to get the Marauders into trouble during school years
(and apparently may have succeeded on more than one occasion per HBP),
Snapes determination that he would have Sirius dementor kissed without
any ado in POA, and of course the clear bias that he shows towards the
Malfoy family in general despite their obvious leanings towards the
side of dark, manipulation and evil doing. 

So all in all it is my estimation that these things do represent
something factual tothe men as tey are saying them, and hence factual
as far as canon goes in determining the backstory. 

> Valky:
> It's true in the sense that it's true, plain and simple, they were a
> couple of vigilante brute teenagers in the middle of a war who
> believed they were taking on the enemy, The Dark Arts.

a_svirn:
This is your imagination, plain and simple. *Vigilant* teenagers in
the *middle of war*?!  What I see is a rather peaceful afternoon and a
gang of bullies taking on a most likely victim for no better reason
than that they are bored. And Sirius's excuse is not only lame; it is
also hypocritical, because he tries to present their bullying as a
sort of a holy crusade for the cause of the Good. Which is most
certainly *not* true.

Valky:
I love my imagination ;) You're entitled to argue that all you want
a_svirn, but it doesn't sway my conclusion one way or the other. :) 
By the way I said they were vigilante not vigilant, slight difference.

You speak, I believe, here wih authority that you do not possess in
regards to the backstory of the Marauders and Snape.  It is not my
imagination that they were living in the midst of a war, a_svirn. Is
it in your imagination that they were not? Perhaps you will need to
reread the GOF chapter entitled Padfoot Returns in which Sirius makes
a conclusive statement that not only were they a. in the midst of a
world war, but also b. shock, horror, gasp!! ;) they were profoundly
affected by it.

<g>