He's surprisingly non-violent in other respects as well. This suggests that his non-violence (or rather, his aversion to physical violence) is a personality characteristic, not just something he intentionally strives for as a āresponsibleā adult (/sarcasm).Ā
He could have been a notorious Death Eater with his skill in dueling and spell-creation, but he wasn't. Sirius didn't know he was a DE, Karkaroff didn't accuse him of any specific violent crime, Bellatrix accuses him of deliberately avoiding the action, and he didnāt kill anyone before Dumbledore.
He was relegated to being a spy at Hogwarts by Voldemort, which meant he probably had a relatively clean record (and imo, I don't think Snape revealed the full extents of his talents to Voldemort in the First War).
In PoA, he restrains Lupin without physically hurting him in the Shack, despite thinking he's working with Sirius. He threatens to give Lupin and Sirius to the Dementors, but when given the chance to do that when Sirius is unconscious, he takes him and the Trio back to Hogwarts (he does want Sirius Kissed, but he also wants Dumbledore's and the Minister's approval). Compare that with Sirius and Remus, who were going to kill Peter in cold blood in front of three teenagers, even though Peter's testimony could clear Sirius.
In OOtP, when he and Sirius are arguing, Sirius draws his wand out first.
IIRC, there are only three times we see Snape using magic to hurt someone potentially seriously.
1) During SWM when he cuts James's cheek. This was self-defense after he'd already been ganged up on, hung upside-down, and choked with soap. SWM also happened after the Prank, so he thought Sirius (and James) meant to kill him.
2) Avada to kill Dumbledore. This was a mercy kill.
3) Sectumsempra, aimed at a DE but accidently hit Fred. This was him trying to protect Lupin.
Dropping the branch on Petunia was accidental magic, he only used Expelliarmus (as opposed to something nasty) to knock down Lockheart, he only gives Harry a magical bitch-slap when Harry's stupidly chasing after him and the other DEs in HBP, and during his fight with McGonagall he was trying not to hurt her.
He's not just non-violent, he's non-violent compared to other "good" characters even when he has the ample opportunity (and probably the desire) to be violent. He invented hexes as a teenager, but no one (not Lily, James, Sirius, or Remus) ever accuses him of hexing people for fun like James does, and he's not on the detention cards either. He probably did use his hexes against the Marauders, but as self-defense when they attacked him first.
He was the victim of extreme physical bullying courtesy of the Marauders, his dad likely physically abused him and his mother, and he's surrounded by DEs who get tortured as punishment by Voldemort and also torture/murder their victims.Ā
As others have said on this post, I think on some level he might be averse to physical violence because of his experiences. This doesn't necessarily have to be as a moral viewpoint (although that's probably part of it), but witnessing physical violence might have a triggering effect on him. He's also indirectly responsible for getting James and Lily killed and was a Death Eater, so he knows the guilt that comes from that. It could be that he doesn't want to knowingly endanger/seriously physically hurt anyone else and have that on his conscience as well. Ā
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