BREAKING (This is a bit of a rant)
I believe I've just found a group of people even more psychotic and distanced from reality as the Korean pop community - a group of people called Slytherfen, who put Slytherins and Death Eaters on a pedestal and conjure up nonsense about the reality of both our world and JK Rowling's.
It's quite remarkable to me that people that read Harry Potter can come to the conclusion that the true manifestation of bigotry in Wizarding society is against the Slytherin House, that Severus Snape (and, by expansion, Draco Malfoy and company) is misunderstood by the person who created that character and... most of all, that he was a good friend.
After reading through a couple threads, I've deduced that the vast majority of these people don't have a good grasp on reading comprehension and real world relationships. But there is no way that Severus Snape's Mudblood comment was justified. Flinging derogatory words to your friends marks a sign of deep disrespect and there is NO reason why Lily shouldn't have ended the relationship based on that insult and all the other factors at play unless she was a masochist with no backbone. I wouldn't remain friends with somebody for very long if they hung around with Neo-Nazi friends, called me slurs and thought that I was beneath them simply because I'm Asian. As somebody with a Japanese mother, no way would I call my friends a 'gook' or a 'chink' and expect my friendship to last very long, especially if they're helping me out in a tight spot. As somebody that has been bullied and helped out of those situations, I'm really at a loss for words why somebody would be that condescending to their friend or even a stranger holding out a helping hand, unless they have extreme issues with their pride - which I would argue Snape seems to have.
By no means will I say that Snape's behavior isn't understandable. People who are treated poorly as children rarely end up being good people as a result of that behavior been inflicted upon them, especially those emotionally/physically abused by their parents. But although such behavior may be understandable, it's by no means excusable. I feel that endlessly justifying and apologizing for these issues do far more harm than good - for example, a lot of people justify racism in Japan by noting that it is a deeply homogeneous and conformist society. That is a part of the reality of the situation, but shunning people is by no means a good practice, and you solve your problems by acknowledging them and not constantly justifying the behavior you know is wrong.
I have more to say on this issue, but I think I'll write about it at a later date. But, if Harry Potter became as simplistic in moral values and as sloppy in philosophy as Slytherfen commonly appear to suggest, I highly doubt HP would have sold millions.
It's quite remarkable to me that people that read Harry Potter can come to the conclusion that the true manifestation of bigotry in Wizarding society is against the Slytherin House, that Severus Snape (and, by expansion, Draco Malfoy and company) is misunderstood by the person who created that character and... most of all, that he was a good friend.
After reading through a couple threads, I've deduced that the vast majority of these people don't have a good grasp on reading comprehension and real world relationships. But there is no way that Severus Snape's Mudblood comment was justified. Flinging derogatory words to your friends marks a sign of deep disrespect and there is NO reason why Lily shouldn't have ended the relationship based on that insult and all the other factors at play unless she was a masochist with no backbone. I wouldn't remain friends with somebody for very long if they hung around with Neo-Nazi friends, called me slurs and thought that I was beneath them simply because I'm Asian. As somebody with a Japanese mother, no way would I call my friends a 'gook' or a 'chink' and expect my friendship to last very long, especially if they're helping me out in a tight spot. As somebody that has been bullied and helped out of those situations, I'm really at a loss for words why somebody would be that condescending to their friend or even a stranger holding out a helping hand, unless they have extreme issues with their pride - which I would argue Snape seems to have.
By no means will I say that Snape's behavior isn't understandable. People who are treated poorly as children rarely end up being good people as a result of that behavior been inflicted upon them, especially those emotionally/physically abused by their parents. But although such behavior may be understandable, it's by no means excusable. I feel that endlessly justifying and apologizing for these issues do far more harm than good - for example, a lot of people justify racism in Japan by noting that it is a deeply homogeneous and conformist society. That is a part of the reality of the situation, but shunning people is by no means a good practice, and you solve your problems by acknowledging them and not constantly justifying the behavior you know is wrong.
I have more to say on this issue, but I think I'll write about it at a later date. But, if Harry Potter became as simplistic in moral values and as sloppy in philosophy as Slytherfen commonly appear to suggest, I highly doubt HP would have sold millions.