Severus Snape & Mulciber & Avery
Quote from Dark Angel on June 1, 2023, 2:19 pmI agree with @timeladyjamie. I never saw Snape's fellow Slytherins as his friends. If anything they are acquaintances who would include him here and there in a prank against muggleborns. Canon doesn't say much but I also imagine they used him for copying homework and the like.
If they were actually his friends, he wouldn't have to fight off the Marauders 1 vs. 4.
I think that Slytherins generally do not believe in actual friendship. Draco doesn't seem to treat Crabbe and Goyle as his equals but rather as some sort of bodyguards, he doesn't see them as his equals. For some reason, that's how I see Slytherin, you associate with whoever is useful to you.
That is how I saw them also.
Quote from Naaga on June 1, 2023, 2:21 pm
I don't think so. But I do think a decent friend wouldn't let his friend get picked on by four guys.
JKR said in an interview that He wanted Lily and he wanted Mulciber too. He never really understood Lily’s aversion; he was so blinded by his attraction to the dark side he thought she would find him impressive if he became a real Death Eater.
I can understand Lily's aversion and I can understand Severus not understanding. That seems to be a thing with children and teenagers, being jealous of other friends their best friend has. What I didn't understand is Lily wanting him to stop associating with Mulciber and Avery. I believe he roomed with them. That is kind of impossible.
I personally don't think as JKR interviews as the final say of how the book should be interpreted. I always add this because many fans want to shut down others interpretations. Anyway, here are my thoughts. The idea of Severus thinking Lily would be impressed if he became a Death Eater doesn't sit right with me. It sounds wakey.
Quote from Dark Angel on June 1, 2023, 5:50 pm
And with regards to Snape liking Mucliber and Co., did he like them or what they represented? He was a teenager and even back in my day, teens always wanted to belong to the group of cool kids or any group rather than being the lone outsider. As Severus was already being bullied by Gryffindors, ostracizing himself within his own house would be social suicide. I compare his behavior to those kids who start smoking because of peer pressure; either you comply or your are out of the group.
I agree.
Regarding Lucius and the other Death Eaters, when did we see an interaction between Snape and Lucius in canon, except after Snape gets sorted and is welcomed by prefect Lucius? I really don't remember because it's been a while since I last read the books and i have read so many fanfics that they have become my new canon.
I personally have a hard time believing Lucius and Snape were such good friends. He was around 5 years older than him during Hogwarts. Before the Half Blood Prince many fans thought that Snape was pure blood and wasn't poor and that he was hanging out in the Wizarding World with all the old families.
Quote from SanctuaryAngel on June 1, 2023, 10:43 pm
Thanks for your thoughts. That is pretty much what I think.
He was a poor Half-Blood who had to work as hard to remain in good social graces with the rest of the bigots.
(Hence why I believed he didn't actually wholeheartedly believe in blood purity for the reasons above, and considering he didn't have a favored blood status, either. But that's another issue entirely.)
I tend to think that many didn't know his Half-Blood status. Either they assumed he was pure blood or just went with don't ask don't tell way. I also don't think that he wholeheartedly believed in blood purity. I think his prejudice toward muggles was because of things he experienced in the muggle world. Basically some muggles being prejudice toward him and Eileen. I am not blaming it all on Tobias. I also bring in Fantastic Beast (I know some people don't count it in their canon) and I think of Mary Lou Barebone and her hate toward the magical world. It is like she is some kind of witch hunter. I tend to think there might have been a Mary Lou that Severus ran into at one time in the Muggle world.
