severus snape & why he's my favorite character
Severus Snape is undoubtedly the most controversial character in the Harry Potter franchise. He may have been a hero. Maybe we mix our love of Alan Rickman with our love for the character. But he was still a bully. And he was still a Death Eater. So let's try and deep dive as to what, why, and who Snape is.
Childhood
Severus Snape grew up to parents who were on some level abusive or neglectful or just unlikeable. That, alone, can F up a kid from the get go. He also was poor and had no friends - attributing to more isolation. Snape's bitterness towards life was developed so early, it's no surprise that a general disdain towards everything and everyone would be ingrained in his personality.
When a person is unhappy in life, it's common for them to project this externally whether it be through their mannerisms, attitude, and/or social interactions. For a child to grow up unhappy, that's literally a whole psychological analysis on it's own. Borderline neglectful parents, low income, no friends - this literally has serious impacts to a child's social and emotional development - the way they approach emotions and relationships, how they view themselves and others, how they interact with people or react to certain circumstances. Despite Snape's actions in adulthood, major effects of his upbringing would've effected him even without joining a racist gang.
Meeting Lily was weird fate of some kind. She was his first friend and was the only other witch he knew besides his mom. He introduced her to the wizarding world and they bonded over magic. He had never experienced such a pure relationship before. Lily was easily the greatest thing that ever happened to him. She reciprocated the friendship and grew really close to him before they started Hogwarts.
The other special aspect of Lily's character was how accepting she was of people. She loved her sister even though she was mean. She supported Remus as he dealt with his werewolf disorder despite the stigma around werewolves. And Snape, who probably had no social skills & had no concept of what a real relationship was - was probably socially awkward and weird, yet Lily still managed to find a friend in him.
Hogwarts
Snape was sorted into Slytherin, obviously being separated from his only friend immediately. He also met James & Sirius on the train and that initial meeting did not go well. They sorta hated each from day 0 basically. Snape also had an interest with dark spells early on, which may have attracted attention of the would be Death Eaters.
Now Snape excelling in the dark arts is like sad children growing up to be emo, or like abused kids growing up to be bullies or criminals. Famous criminals and serial killers often had an unstable and unhappy childhoods and developed the urge of violence in later years. Or even looking at another character like Walter White - he had no control of his life but becoming Heisenberg became his escape, his way to feel alive, his way to obtain power of his life and over others, and all of this was entangled in severe violence and murder.
James and his squad were literally the dumb jocks that were deeply admired just for being cool, even if they were bullying someone. We see this archetype in other high school settings and I don't know about you - but I usually hate those characters. Extremely unlikeable and arrogant. Snape being the quiet weird nerd that he was had to have been the easiest target. It's always the emo kids, isn't it? We love Sirius and respect James but they were the douchebag teenagers that I would've tried to avoid.
There was a particular incident in which Snape followed clues and discovered Remus's condition, almost resulting in his death had it not been for James. After the years of bullying, I'm sure James saving Snape's life just made him hate James more. So while James would eventually begin to grow out of his arrogant bully era, Snape would commit to his hatred and was prepared to assume the worst of him at all times.
This is acceptable in an adult setting. If an adult is toxic now, it's probable that they'd be toxic always. Sirius didn't do him or James any favors by continuing cynical remarks in adulthood. So it's easy for Snape to observe that his bullies would always be what they were and not who they could be. There is also an irony in the opposite parallels between Snape and James. James was the bully and evolved into a decent person. Snape was a victim and evolved into the school shooter kind of dude. Snape probably saw himself as the "good guy" at some point only to become a gang member.
Speaking of this gang - Snape fitting in with the Death Eaters had a major influence on him. A person who spends their life feeling isolated will fall in line with the first group of people that accept who he is. Being a Dark Arts fanatic gave Snape the positive attention he was so lacking through his childhood and through school. It's very easy for a vulnerable teenager to mold their ideals to match their mentors'. This effectively ruined his relationship with Lily with the mudblood incident that we all know.
This is literally the plot of Mean Girls. Instead of being the mathlete, Snape was the potions prodigy. Except becoming one of the plastics meant being extra racist. And nobody achieved redemption by being hit by a bus.
The Wizarding War
Did anyone watch Cobra Kai? Remember that one kid that got severely bullied, put a mohawk on his head, then became the leader of Cobra Kai's gang violence that totally didn't align with karate concepts of self defense or discipline? That was also Snape just without the mohawk.
Literally every aspect of Snapes childhood and adolescence resulted in him joining a violent gang. Even in the real world, this could've been expected. Snape never got out of that victim mindset. Neglected as kid, bullied as a teen - he would always want to be the one in control even if he had to use violence do to it. And without his only friend Lily to steer him straight, he was easily influenced by his other "friends" and followed them to their life of crime at the ripe age of 18 instead of getting a real job.
On top of this, Snape was a prodigy. His skills deemed him useful and that gave him the purpose and self worth he didn't have before. Look at characters in Succession. Tom Wambsgans had no morals until he started questioning his loyalties. Before that he was just trying to climb the corporate ladder and would've said and did everything to do it.
Snape was a trustworthy spy for Voldemort.... that is until he overheard the prophecy that got the love of his life killed. Somebody somewhere suggested the prophecy was about newborn Harry Potter. The family would go into hiding and Snape, knowing that his life choices threatened the only person he cared about, decided to become a double agent for Dumbledore.
This is where the obsession arguments start. Even Dumbledore was like "bro you you only care about Lily, you don't give an f about James or Harry." Yes. True. It's a bit more than just love and lust though, contrary to some opinions. Again, Lily was the only person who had a genuine relationship with Snape. He was effortlessly himself and Lily accepted who he was from day 0. We all have those people in our lives that we trust and admire wholeheartedly and can easily be ourselves with. Lily was the only one Snape had that with. So yeah, it's about love and lust, but also that human need for connection. That was genuine.
Then we all know what happens. The Potters' are dead. Voldemort is gone. Baby Harry is now an orphan. Snape commits to the idea of protecting him at all costs, with or without the uncertainty behind Voldemort's apparent death. This was his choice of redemption. Snape's actions caused the murder plot of his parents. I mean. Snape becoming Harry's secret protector has to be a trope of some sort. Like Obi Wan could've finished the job bro, but he just left Anakin on the rocks to die. Surely he heard of Darth Vader's evil deeds and realized "man, I left a loose end" but decided to let Luke grow up to deal with it instead of trying to do something about it. (Don't yell at me, I love Obi, this is just a nit picky observation)
However, once again, Snape was isolated. Distrusted by everyone for being a Death Eater. Hated by said Death eaters for betraying them. Then he found himself stuck in a school teaching his 2nd favorite subject, not his 1st. Like dude. He had no community. No outlet. No balance. No one in real life in any similar circumstance was going to end up a pleasant person.
The New Hogwarts Bully
No denial from me that Snape was a big bully as a teacher. I've had some angsty teachers too and they were usually the worst when their home life was effed up. I even had a teacher that would get so angry at the class before us that our class would have an unpleasant lesson with little room for shenanigans otherwise we'd all get detention for no reason.
As for Snape's bias for Slytherin students..... there's no character analysis here. That's just him being the most purest Slytherin. My Slytherin sister would literally do the same.
Now let's add things up again. Sad childhood. Bullied teenager. Nazi by 18, school teacher by 21. And the only person he ever cared about is dead because of him. Obviously he's going to be a very sour person. Does this excuse his bullying tactics? No. And during Harry's years, there were definitely times he took it too far. Like Neville's boggart is Snape? That's fine for comedic purposes but dang. That's actually dark.
Now this is when my "gray character" argument starts. He's not a black or white character, as JKR herself has stated - but we still gotta acknowledge the "black" side of him. He was a horrible bully to students and no professors stopped him. That sucks. It was wrong of him. His behavior definitely presented him as a horrible person. Like I'd rather take Abby Lee Miller any day.
The Sorcerer's Stone
Time for Snape to get to work.
In Harry's first potions class, Snape really went for the vibe check at the get go. And sassy Harry let Snape know this was indeed James's son. I understand that Snape wants to keep Harry humbled. He is a celebrity whether he likes it or not and if he acts like James, then he really needs to be kept in check. From a parent's standpoint - I get it. We don't want a brat as the Chosen One. However, Snape's tactics in keeping Harry humble are quite rude and immature. He always assumes the worst of Harry and always wants to make sure that Harry knows he hates him for no reason. This develops into a toxic relationship that just never changes - similar to Snape's relationship with James.
This is an interesting moment to analyze that Harry is actually like both of his parents. Sure, he is a sassy troublemaker sports star & generally popular. But he also inherited Lily's natural ability to befriend those who are out of the ordinary. Ron, the poor kid. Hermione, the pretentious muggleborn. Luna, the weirdo. Hagrid, the half-breed oaf. Remus, the werewolf. Despite said celebrity status, he's not hanging out with the crowd that would inflate his ego. He chose that path the moment he decided to not shake hands with Draco.
Now, I'm unsure when Snape first suspected Quirrel. I know in the movie, Snape looks at Harry when his scar clearly started to hurt then Snape looks over to see Quirrel talking to himself. If it's not explicitly in the book, then I guess it would've been on Halloween. Did Snape go to Fluffy waiting for Quirrel specifically or just to see if the troll was indeed the distraction it was meant to be? Either way, 10 points to the cunning Slytherin. Also, if they get a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher every year, they'd be the obvious suspects for anything that happens that year.
The Quidditch incident was a great story element to allude that there might be more to Snape than we realize. Hermione sees Snape muttering a counter curse but doesn't look at Quirrel to see him also mumbling - so Snape is the obvious culprit. Snape indeed saved Harry's life that day and never got thanks for it. Dumbledore discusses the moment later and reveals that James saved Snape's life, so Snape's actions was a debt repaid.
Umm..... Okay. I think I've always accepted the reason, but I don't think this is the full truth. Part of it is because I'm not sure if it's in Snape's honor code to repay a debt to James. Also, this could've been Dumbledore trying to tell harry "yo Snape has some good in him & he was in love with your mother" without explicitly saying so. Whatever the case may be, this was a brilliant tactic by JKR to open the door to speculation. Is Snape more than just the bully we see on the surface? What's his history with Harry's parents? Complexities of the character start to get analyzed here.
Chamber of Secrets
Bully era continues. Although I'll forgive his anger about the car situation. They literally could've just waited by the car. Stupid Gryffindors really thought Mrs. Weasley would just let that enchanted car sit in the parking lot. Also, in the books, they did this whole scam to get Polyjuice potion ingredients and I'd probably suspect Harry too - like his track record for 2nd year was not that great.
Of course in addition to dealing with these meddlesome kids, Snape also had to interact with Lockhart more than he's ever wanted. This was the kind of guy Snape dd not want Harry to grow up to be. I'm sorry but their dueling encounter was low key iconic.
By the way, it's a total meme how Harry only ever uses one spell. The Disarming Charm was like his trademark, he kinda killed Voldemort this way, and where did he first learn the spell? Snape. During dueling club.
Dude. When Harry spoke Parseltongue for the first time.... Snape totally had some words with Dumbledore later. Shout out to Alan Rickman for conveying the genuine concern while everyone else was like "omg that was freaky." It was the diary that really sparked the horcrux theory, so at this point, what explanation could be given? Would Dumbledore even have an answer other than "what happened that night was extraordinary magic that we probably won't understand" cuz what else could you say. Horcruxes weren't exactly common knowledge.
Prisoner of Azkaban
Dumbledore choosing Lupin to be the new Defense teacher this year was a personal attack on Snape on many levels. But a good choice also as Lupin would reunite with Harry and feel that sense of friendship he'd been missing for so long. Harry, who naturally respected and befriended him, would become close to his father's friend - which considering their bond, this is the closest Harry's gotten to family.
The idea of Sirius Black on the loose was also quite triggering. Snape still believed it was Sirius who betrayed the Potters, therefore getting them killed. His rage is very much felt in the Shrieking Shack. In a way, I can see Snape being equally angry at himself with shared guilt. Snape already felt like he was doing his penance by being at Hogwarts, so his desire to see Sirius rot in Azkaban makes sense. Sirius was also a huge bully at some point, making it difficult for Snape to believe his innocence even after being told the truth.
Even then, his bitterness towards Sirius and Lupin would never cease despite the truth. He never believed people could change. Snape had very little faith in humanity for that open mindedness. This even extended to Harry. "Oh, he's meddlesome just like his father, they will both be the same, insufferable Gryffindors that people like too much for no reason."
Goblet of Fire
The summer of 1994 was full of suspicious activity - all the way to the Death Eater appearance at the Quidditch World Cup. Even without his secret council with Dumbledore, Snape is too smart to believe Harry put his name in the Goblet. There were signs. Snape had the Dark Mark - he knows Voldemort is out there. Regardless, Snape never waivered his bullying duties and still worked hard humbling Harry as he became a Triwizard Champion.
It's revealed to Harry that Snape was once a Death Eater. Harry is not surprised at all, having been suspicious of him since day 0. Dumbledore assures Harry he can be trusted but doesn't reveal why for obvious reasons. Snape would eventually continue his double crossing spy duties by the following summer.
Order of the Phoenix
Snape has to spend the year dealing with Umbridge and would totally prefer to stand in the presence of Voldemort himself.
With Harry having visions of Voldemort, Snape stepped in to teach Harry the ways of Occlumency. This is honestly so important in many ways. Firstly, it's a very important connection to Harry's existence as a Horcrux. Snape knows they're bonded but doesn't know how. Helping Harry fight this bond could be detrimental in defeating Voldemort, which Snape wants.
Also let's be real. These lessons were mentally taxing on Harry and Snape did not back down. Aside from their general disdain toward each other, Harry had to face the extent on how Occlumency can be used against him. With Snape being so tough on him, not only is he helping Harry learn control which is useful at some point later, Harry also feels like he is literally being tortured by Snape. With it being so easy for Voldy to infiltrate Harry's mind, these visions of Snape being seemingly cruel can mask all the help he is actually doing while maintaining his facade. This was also more or less a similar thought process when Dumbledore thought it was a good idea to distance himself from Harry during this year.
Of course it's no excuse for Snape to be a bully to everyone. He was still a cruel teacher. But he'd never harm Harry in the extent Umbridge would have / did. However, many Death Eaters probably had suspicions against Snape not being fully trustworthy. So the bullying teacher front would have certainly come in handy should anybody try to investigate who Snape was at Hogwarts.
Harry was also being his snooping self and discovered the memory of Snape being atrociously bullied by his father. It was quite the revelation to Harry after being told by literally everyone what a great person James was. Harry had to confront these two sides of his father and had his own identity crisis through the year - believing he was becoming more bad than good. Harry already had a knack for befriending people who had a reputation for being different, like Lupin and Luna. He also developed the understanding that there is more than one side to every person. "What matters is what part we choose to act on" - a lesson taught by Sirius himself who had his own duality between being a prick and being a good mentor to Harry. So later down the line, when Harry learns Snape's true motives and history, he ends up being quite accepting of the concept and who Snape was as a complete person.
Half-Blood Prince
In his last summer, Dumbledore asks Snape to kill him. Rather than damaging Draco's soul with murder, Snape would instead fulfill a promise and basically mercy kill his ally since Dumby was dying anyways because of that curse. Dumbledore is often criticised by the fanbase for asking too much of his pupils. These reddit threads could be directed towards Harry, Newt, and, of course, Snape, who has criticised as much for all of them. This is about the time when Snape learns Harry is a Horcrux.... we'll get to that later, but Snape was sitting on that for the whole year on top of knowing he'd be responsible for Albus's eventual demise.
The unbreakable vow was also an interesting turn of events. An easy yes for Snape given he already made the same vow already. However, this vow meant Snape had to protect Draco through the year. It's quite interesting only because Snape just spent the last several years quietly protecting Harry in the background in major or subtle ways. Now he must do the same for Draco. And if anyone noticed.... They both ended up okay ish in the end.
Of course in a very Rowling case of fate, Harry ends up with Snape's old potions book - unknowingly at the time. It's crazy to think about how obsessed Harry was with the Half-Blood Prince's notes. Harry truly learned so much Snape over the years. I feel like a lot of Harry's combat is slightly influenced by Snape's tactics and philosophy. The Occlumency lessons were a disaster, but Harry still gained needed experience that was useful later. Literally everything Harry knows about potions is from Snape - Snape never used the text book and when Slughorn did, Harry used Snape's annotations. There's just other subtle mannerisms Harry picked up as well that Harry made use of and I've seen others compare such examples on the internet from time to time.
I was too young to be there in 2005 when the "Snape killed Dumbledore" phenomena took place. To this day, it is quite the plot twist without any context. this moment gave rise to the "spoiler alert" warnings we see. This moment was also a true testament to Snape as a spy. He didn't just fool the characters, he fooled us readers & viewers. Alan Rickman did a great job of dropping a hint of remorse in the films - perfectly exposing the feelings Snape had to always hide.
He was a bully and an unlikeable person, but he never killed ayone to our knowledge. He never physically hurt people, just with words. Maybe as a Death Eater or even as an agsty teen, he threw Sectumsempra around. But even when he used on George, he left him alive. And despite all the bitterness and anger he felt towards Dumbledore, he stayed loyal to his desires and never waivered from the plans. He may have called him a fool, but still carried out all his orders even after he was gone.
Deathly Hallows
Now we've made to the Endgame.
The first thing I want to discuss is what Snape took from Grimmuald Place. He took a letter or a piece of a letter Lily wrote. Then he cut Lily out of a family photo. This is where the Snape haters call out the weird lust and disgusting infatuation Snape has for Lily. First of all... Yes. It's weird. The photo thing.... like what a creep. I agree. But like..... where else was going to get a photo of Lily Potter without her husband and child?
Here's the thing.... Snape does not give a shit about the Wizarding World. He hates everyone and everything. But this whole triple crossing spy business was for him to make his wrongs right. It's not for Wizard kind or even for Harry. As I described earlier, Lily was the only good thing in his life. Snape's own actions took that away from him. He has since been bitter and lonely. It's not about lust, it's about how Lily stood for everything good in this world. Harry is an extension of this and that is the foundation of Snape's care for him. Lily's love literally runs in Harry's veins.
Look at the Last of Us. Joel has "been on both sides" and has always done what he could to survive. He fought like hell to get Ellie across the country so she could fulfill her destiny as the cure for man kind. But when it meant she would die, Joel did the selfish thing, killed Abby's dad, and took Ellie home. My own opinion aside - Joel was out to save the world. But not our world - his world. Ellie became his whole world and he did what he could to protect her.
Snape's entire world was Lily and she was gone. Snape had nothing left of her until he found the letter and picture. Collecting these items was not a creepy display of lust. This was Snape collecting what was left of Lily to help remind him what he's sacrificing his life for.
This also proves that Snape wasn't entirely cold as we thought. He has a mind of steel and could act so cruel in unnecessary times. "Do not pity the dead, pity the living, and above all, those who live without love." Snape had love in his heart despite the coldness he displayed over the years. He was a complex character and I'm enjoying writing this essay so much.
I also just watched Steven Universe last year and Pear is like a more likeable and less creepy version of Snape. Do it for her. It's over isn't it? Snape sobs with the rest of us hearing those songs.
Snape as Headmaster during this year wasn't really seen that much. I'm sure he let the Carrows get away for some things but he must've also done so with just enough limits to make sure Hogwarts remained safe and didn't fall too far from god.
Snape was the mastermind behind the whole Sword of Gryffindor plot. He controlled where the real one and the counterfeit ones were and made sure Harry got his hands on the real one - per Dumbledore's request.
Also what the heck is a patronus for real? It can help ward of demenors and lethifolds but also send messages and guide people to destinations????? What?
Jumping forward to the Battle of Hogwarts - no, let's get to the meat of the story....
Snape died. Murdered by Voldemort and/or Nagini. Harry was there to for his final moments. I believe in the book and movie, Snape made a point to look into Harry's eyes. One final look into Lily's eyes before moving on to the other side.
The immense trust Dumbledore and Snape had for each other was something Harry couldn't recognize or appreciate until after. Snape literally died think Harry would sacrifice himself without knowing he'd survive Avada Kadavra a 2nd time, but because Dumbledore said it was the way, Snape made sure Harry knew the truth. Snape cared too much for Harry to be okay with this outcome - but for the greater good, both Harry & Snape did what Dumbledore said was needed... And it worked. Harry may have won that duel, but this was Dumbledore winning from beyond the grave. It's like Gojo buying Waystar like Logan wanted before his death. He won from beyond the grave too.
Harry takes Snape's memories and learns everything. Snape's past with Lily. Snape's actions that killed Lily. The triple crossing spy and dangerous undercover work he did in the name of Lily.
Again - what are patronuses???? James & Harry's were stags. Lily's & Snape's were does. While for the Potters' the Patronus may symbolize who they were as people, Snape's Patronus represented who he truly loved - a concept introduced to us when we see Tonks used a Patronus that was in a wolf form.
Harry knowing the truth, sacrificed himself to Voldemort, survived to tell the tale, and lived on to respect Snape for the true hero he was despite the anguish he experienced with him as his bitter teacher.
Overall
So after all this, why is Severus Snape my favorite character in Harry Potter? Because I literally just wrote this whole essay about him and he's the only character I feel like I can analyze like this.
JK Rowling has said this much herself - Snape is not black or white, he is all grey.
Harry learns from Sirius Black that "We both have light and dark inside us, what matters is what part we choose to act on." As I mentioned before, this was an important lesson for Harry to learn as he struggled with self identity and his connection with Voldemort. He also used this lesson to later accept that Sirius and James had their moments when they were not the heroes Harry idolized them to be. Harry also used this lesson to also understand Snape after learning his truth.
Snape was a cold and bitter man. He was a cruel teacher and unlikeable by most. But he was also a hero so full of love. He was beaten down by sadness, regret, and loneliness, yet risked his life and stood tall to protect Harry and honor Lily's memory - who, herself, stood for everything good in this world.
It was not lust. It was loss. It was hope. It was regret. It was redemption. It was the potential of what could have been. It was the strength to fight for the love that remains.
I understand Snape so much as a character and I wish everyone could too.