Reasons Why I Hate Severus Snape
His Behaviour Toward Harry Potter
Now, if know the fandom well enough, I would say that as soon as this is read everyone will be up in arms, saying that Snape protected Harry, that James was a bully and obviously there would be resentment stirred up by someone who looks exactly like him.Â
Firstly, letâs look at Snapeâs first interaction with Harry.Â
âPotter,â said Snape suddenly. âWhat would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?â
Powdered root of what to an infusion of what? Harry glanced at Ron, who looked as stumped as he was; Hermioneâs hand had shot into the air.
âI donât know, sir,â said Harry.
Snapeâs lips curled into a sneer.Â
âTut, tut - fame clearly isnât everything,â
He ignored Hermioneâs hand.
âLetâs try again. Potter, where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar?â
Hermione stretched her hand as high into the air as it would go without her leaving her seat, but Harry didnât have the faintest idea what a bezoar was. He tried not to look at Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, who were shaking with laughter.Â
âI donât know, sir.â
âThought you wouldnât open a book before coming, eh, Potter?â
Harry forced himself to keep looking straight into those cold eyes. He had looked through his books at the Dursleyâs, but did Snape expect him to remember everything in One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi?
-Harry Potter and the Philosopherâs Stone, The Potions Master
There you go. There has been no aggression Harryâs part. He was sitting in his Potions class, just as attentive as any other student and he is singled out among a class to answer a question without any lesson beforehand. Snape refuses to look at Hermione, who actually knew the answer, and continues to pick on Harry. Harry is respectful and simply tells him he doesnât know the answer. Then he accuses Harry of not looking at his books before coming, despite the fact that these questions are completely random.
Letâs also take into account Harry is essentially Muggle-born. Not all Muggle-borns are as studious as Hermione. Harry had no parents to teach him magical things; he was kept as far away from magic as possible up until he went to Hogwarts. He did not have the same freedom that Hermione did to study as soon as she learned what she was. How can he be expected to know these answers right off the bat? There was no indication in his Hogwarts letter that he be familiar with all the course materials by the first day.Â
Now letâs address those counter-arguments I mentioned earlier. James Potter and Severus Snape were enemies. James Potter at times bullied Severus Snape (to be noted: âI mean, he never lost an opportunity to curse James so you couldnât really expect James to take that lying down, could you?â -Remus Lupin, OOTP). James Potter also saved Severus Snapeâs life, but that apparently isnât a factor in Snapeâs opinion at all. What matters is: Harry cannot be held accountable for his deceased fatherâs actions. Harry didnât even know about the bullying until fifth year (at which point he felt ashamed of his father and begrudgingly sympathetic towards Snape). Â
Even ignoring this, Snape is a teacher. It is his duty to teach his students no matter what his feelings are outside of the classroom. To refuse to provide a safe environment for a child to learn is completely unfair. Not only this, but when Harry discovers Snapeâs past, Snape refuses to continue teaching him Occlumency. This isnât just about schoolwork anymore, this about Harryâs personal safety and the safety of those around them. Harry had the potential to be possessed by Lord Voldemort and made to kill people or himself and yet because Snapeâs pride was damaged, he stopped teaching him to defend himself.Â
Which brings me to the third counter-argument: Snape protecting Harry. For what he can remember of the first eleven years of his life, Harry Potter was stuck under a cupboard, given little to eat and bullied. Despite the fact that Snape could probably relate to such a situation, he shows him no sympathy and continues the bullying Harry, as shown above. As for protecting Harry he did a rather terrible job of it. Harry faced Quirrel anyway, he faced Tom Riddle anyway, he faced Voldemort anyway, he was forced to harm himself by Umbridge anyway. Perhaps the only thing you could allow Snape is spying for the Order, but it not an action taken out of any care for Harry, but his lingering feelings for Harryâs mother.Â
And we ought not forget that Snape had a hand in Harryâs orphaning in the first place. Admittedly, he did not know it would be the Potters targeted, but so eager was he to ensure the death of an unknown infant that he went to his master straight away. And when he approached Voldemort about the consequences of his choice, Snape asked for Lilyâs life only. Seemingly, he felt no remorse about endangering the child, only the mother.Â
His Behaviour Towards Neville Longbottom
Iâd like to see anyone try to excuse this away. Neville Longbottom was a bumbling young man who really never wanted to harm anyone. And yet Snape bullied him to the point where the thing he was most terrified of in the world at thirteen was his Potions professor? How can that sort of man be admirable?
âTell me, boy, does anything penetrate that thick skull of yours? Didnât you hear me say, quite clearly, that only one rat spleen was needed? Didnât I state plainly that a dash of leech juice would suffice? What do I have to do to make you understand, Longbottom?â
-Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azakaban, The Boggart in the Wardrobe
Neville was bad at Potions, thatâs easy enough to figure out. But the way Snape treated him was ridiculous. If a student is struggling, they should be allowed to come in for help. But as Snape constantly snarled things like âidiot boyâ and scared Neville out of his wits, he didnât have that option. He wouldnât have felt safe enough to do so. Snape even went so far as to try to poison Nevilleâs pet toad, Trevor, in third year. He knew Neville wouldnât do well on the Shrinking potion but he tried to make him test a bad potion on his only pet. When Neville got the help he so desperately needed in Potions from Hermione, Snape decided to deduct points for him getting help to save his petâs life.Â
The sole counter-argument I have heard about this is that Neville ought to have been the Chosen One, and so Snape resented him for not being chosen, because Lily died when Harry was picked. Even if this were his true motivation, would that make it okay? Again, he resents a child for merely existing in a way that inconveniences him. If this is accurate, Severus Snape wants Neville Longbottom dead. Neville Longbottom could not be The Boy Who Lived, because Snape had no cause to ask for Alice Longbottomâs life.
His Behaviour Towards Hermione Granger
For some of his behaviour, we can reference bullet point one. She shows eagerness in class and he continually ignores her for no apparent reason. Hermione gets her teeth hexed in GOF and he claims to see no difference and lets the students off without punishment. Not only is this blatant favouritism, itâs also playing on her insecurities. Again, as a professor it is his duty to intervene when students are breaking the rules (which he is always eager to do when he can target Harry and his friends) and yet he does not. He deducted points when she helped Neville in Potions class.
He wasnât able to treat her quite the same as he did as Ron and Harry, because she was so good at Potions. But apparently it still wasnât enough to win her fair treatment, because he was willing to call her an âinsufferable know-it-allâ in front of a room full her peers. Even Ron, who did the very same on many an occasion, was sure that this was out of order. An authority figure should not make fun of a student.Â
Why did Snape do this? Because she spoke out of turn on occasion? Unlikely. Even in his very first instance of knowing her, he refuses to acknowledge her hand. He simply doesnât like her, a dislike which accumulates as she becomes friends with Harry Potter. She showed nothing but respect for him as far as I can tell and yet he bullied her anyway.Â
His Behaviour Towards Remus Lupin
âDonât ask me to fathom the way a werewolfâs mind works,â hissed Snape.
-Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, The Servant of Lord Voldemort
Snape alludes to Lily that Remus is a werewolf after the Whomping Willow incident, despite the fact that it is supposed to be a secret. And he proceeds to blame all four of them for the prank. Remus wouldnât have been in his right mind during the full moon and probably would have killed Snape or turned him. But Remus was not at all in control of this. Snape couldnât have honestly thought Remus was part of the prank because 1) Remus never showed any antagonism towards Snape and 2) It would have ended up with Remus in Azkaban or executed. And yet Snape lumps both Remus and James in with the prankâs initiator, Sirius. Despite the fact that he followed someone he suspected to be a werewolf to his place of transformation, it is somehow Jamesâs or Remusâs fault?
And then thereâs the fact that he outed Remus to the whole school as werewolf. He subjected Remus to prejudice and unemployment and Remus just sat back and took it, as if a whole year with a job he enjoyed had been too good to be true. Which, for Remus, it probably was. With continued use of Wolfsbane, Remus would have been no danger to anyone. It would rarely affect his teaching ability. But Snape didnât care that Remus would have little to no way to support himself, because he wanted revenge on him for their childhood or for taking the DADA position or cooperating with Sirius. None of which are fair reasons to do what he did.Â
Counter-argument: Remus was friends with Snapeâs bullies. Yes, he was friends with James and Sirius. Whether or not James and Sirius were always the aggressors is another argument entirely, but for the sake of this, letâs say that it was usually them that initiated fights. But, as shown by Remusâs actions in Snapeâs Worst Memory, he did not participate in it. He even showed unhappiness by his expression as he ignored the scene. He is willing to admit the wrongness of standing by, which is more than you can say of Snape.Â
âOf course he was a bit of an idiot!â said Sirius bracingly, âwe were all idiots! Well - not Moony so much,â he said fairly, looking at Lupin.
But Lupin shook his head. âDid I ever tell you to lay off Snape?â he said. âDid I ever have the guts to tell you I thought you were out of order?â
âYeah, well,â said Sirius, âyou made us feel ashamed of ourselves sometimes: that was something.â
-Harry Potter the Order of the Phoenix, Careers Advice
And then we have Snapeâs reaction towards his friendâs horrible actions:
âWe are, Sev, but I donât like some of the people youâre hanging round with! Iâm sorry, but I detest Avery and Mulciber! Mulciber! What do you see in him, Sev, heâs creepy! Dâyou know what he tried to do to Mary Macdonald the other day?â
Lily had reached a pillar and leaned against it, looking up into the thin, sallow face.
âThat was nothing,â said Snape. âIt was a laugh, thatâs all - â
âIt was Dark Magic, and if you think thatâs funny - â
-Harry Potter the Deathly Hallows, The Princeâs Tale
Even taking into account that Snape was around fifteen here, he refers to Mulciberâs actions as a laugh, even though he tried to god knows what to Mary MacDonald. Whatever it was, it was dark magic and Snape actually defends his friendâs actions, which is more than Remus did when his friends were being bullies.
Even before he joined the Death Eaters, where itâs pretty much required to use Unforgivables on innocent people, he showed tendencies of dark magic. He created a spell which inflicts bloody wounds on someone as a sixteen-year-old, or earlier. For those who think James Potter was an idiot at fifteen, at least he wasnât trying to figure out creative ways to end someoneâs life.Â
Time to talk about a possible counter-argument: Harry used Sectumsempra against Malfoy. Hell, he even used Unforgivables at different points in time. I wonât excuse his use of the Cruciatus, that was simply for vengeance (even if he was using it on someone who killed Muggle-borns, tortured his friends and spat at his teacher). But the Imperius was used to gain access to a vault that possibly contained a horcrux so he could save the world. I think that warrants an excuse. And his initial (and only successful) use of Sectumsempra was done before he even knew what the spell did. For all he knew it could have been an altered Bat Bogey hex. He didnât create it with the intent to harm someone.Â
I know that anyone who sympathizes with his character is going to jump immediately on the âSnape-loved-Lily-and-she-was-a-Muggle-bornâ train.
âI never meant to call you Mudblood, it just - â
âSlipped out?â There was no pity in Lilyâs voice. âItâs too late. Iâve made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends - you see, you donât even deny it! You donât even deny thatâs what youâre all aiming to be! You canât wait to join You-Know-Who, can you?â
He opened his mouth, but closed it without speaking.
âI canât pretend anymore. Youâve chosen your way, Iâve chosen mine.â
âNo - listen, I didnât mean - â
â - to call me Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?â
-Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the Princeâs Tale
Racist words donât just slip out. They need to be a regular part of your vocabulary. Which they are for Severus Snape. Lily says it plain and clear: he uses the word Mudblood to address Muggle-borns. His interactions with Petunia as a child, âWouldnât spy on you anyway,â he added spitefully, âyouâre a Muggle.â show that he thinks himself superior to Muggles. He even hurts Petunia, however unintentionally. He makes no attempt to deny his inclination to join a terrorist group that plans to wipe out Muggles and Muggle-borns.Â
Now, I donât think that anyone in modern society would try to distinguish between a racist and say, someone who uses the N-word just to fit in. Certainly not someone who joins the KKK to fit in. So I think itâs a little ridiculous that anyone would allow that for Snape.Â
As for Lily, itâs possible for someone to have conflicting beliefs. It is possible for him to be all for blood purity and still love Lily Evans. He showed no inclination to leave the Death Eaters before it affected her fate. He even calls her Mudblood, showing that despite their friendship/romantic feelings he has towards her, part of him still does think that her Muggle heritage makes her lesser. Therefore, his love for her does not make the argument for his prejudice void.Â
His Lack of Value for Human Life
Snape was willing to let Harry and James die. Letâs say that wanting to let James die is reasonable (which itâs not - James refused to let Snape die when he had the opportunity to do so), what grudge could he possibly hold against a one year old baby? Harry had done nothing to provoke any sort of anger except being Jamesâs son. He was a defenseless child.Â
Also under this topic is his behaviour towards Sirius Black in the Prisoner of Azkaban. Yes, Sirius Black bullied him at fifteen. But was this reason enough to lie to Cornelius Fudge to get Sirius Black sent back to Azkaban? Hermione and Harry were not Confunded, but Snape claims they were because he could tell. Either Snape lied about having the ability, or lied about thinking they were Confuded. He chose to tell the Minister that to discredit anything that Harry and Hermione might say in defense of Sirius, rather than out of any genuine belief they had been tricked. An innocent man would have gotten his soul sucked out. He wouldnât even allow Sirius the mercy of death.Â
With his disregard for human life is his joining the Death Eaters. Thereâs really no excuse to be made for his initial endeavor to join. He chose to join a group of people who wanted to kill others because they were thought to be lesser than pure-bloods. He likely participated in a fair number of these killings in the four years he was a Death Eater. He also probably would have continued to do so, if not for the fact that Voldemort targeted the girl he âlovedâ over a prophecy he told Voldemort about.
I could also talk about his behaviour towards Ron Weasley, his general prejudice against Gryffindors or discuss to the validity of his being a victim of bullying, but I think this post has been long enough to convey my feelings: Severus Snape was not a good man. Harry may have been willing to forgive and forget, but Iâm not.
kianamaiart
pixelskylines
prguitarman
stormborns
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
