baaad plotbunny, funny video, and Slytherin House

[pinkpolarity]

This thread on fanficrants has given me a silly shortfic parody bunny, wherein Salazar Slytherin enforces the "no electricity, must use parchment and quills" rule while the others are off distracting themselves. (Rowena Ravenclaw is busy reading the blogosphere. She has to be.) If I can manage to get some work done, I think I'll actually write this. Crackfic

Comments

[pinkpolarity]

Anton LaVey himself wasn't exactly quiet in his opinions, but he was certainly sly, cunning and ambitious, and would have made a wonderful Slytherin.

Gosh, yes. He even has the photo of himself with a snake to prove it. :)

Lastly, Slytherin most certainly would be a hot-house for individuality, simply because those who are ultimately self-serving tend to carve their own path and own methods in life.

Absolutely, even if only because the "default settings" don't work for the true individualist. "Recognize my authority!" "Why?" I think Slytherins that do serve groups do so because they've run the group through their own internal calculus and decided that the group serves their needs, and individualists (who subordinate groups by nature) do the same. I also think Slytherin affiliations are always somewhat looser than those of the other houses, as you point out with Lucius.

I think where I was going with the comment about Death Eater groveling is to wonder whether all Slytherins are *capable* of pulling that off if they have to. Lucius is often cited as the perfect Slytherin because he's able to adjust his behavior so perfectly to get whatever it is he wants, the manipulative, scheming subtlety that Slythfans see as representative of the house. But if someone can't manage that act, does it disqualify them from Slytherinhood? (Perhaps it does. I couldn't do it, but then, I'm half Gryffindor. Gryffindors, IMO, do dominance contests, not masked ambition, and backing off means nothing more than "I don't have what it takes to knock you out of the alpha role today." I suspect Tom Riddle had a bit of Gryffindor in him too, actually.)

Do what you have to do to live to see another day' is something I always think about when I think of a true Slytherin. There is nothing shameful about doing whatever it takes to serve your own skin.

True!

Here's another thought about Slytherin-- one of my barometers for whether I think someone has at least some Slytherin in them is how well they innately grasp social exchange theory. IMO, Slytherins understand that favors create debt, and will treat assistance as a transaction (I personally think "grokking" this is almost diagnostic of Slytherinhood). Other Slytherins understand this perfectly, but it creates awkwardness with people of other houses who consider lending aid to "simply be the right thing to do." (I've had a few of those situations in my own life with a Ravendor friend who loves helping people and doing research just about equally, so if you mention "gosh, I need to look into X sometime", they'll flood your inbox the next day with 25 articles about X-- and then become very hurt when you don't appreciate their help. But as I didn't ask for it, now I've got this unwanted social debt that I have to take time to discharge.)

If you wanna talk more about any of this, I would be delighted. It's not often I come across another Satanist in this fandom.

Gladly. :) I was a theistic Satanist for a little over a decade-- don't practice Satanism as a religion now, but I still lean that way in terms of philosophic bent. May I ask about you?

[bloodyrose82]

I think Slytherins that do serve groups do so because they've run the group through their own internal calculus and decided that the group serves their needs.

This is bang on target. The basic instinct of a Slytherin is self-service, so I suppose my advice to non-Slytherins would be to look out if a Slytherin suddenly joins your group. I think that a lot of Slytherins are often linked with Ravenclaw traits, because there is a certain element of intelligence involved with being fully cunning or manipulative. A Slytherin has to know when to utilise each of the tools at his/her disposal to get the desired result.

I also think Slytherin affiliations are always somewhat looser than those of the other houses, as you point out with Lucius.

Exactly! Although I wonder how often this is known by the associate.

This leads nicely onto your wonderful point about the social exchange theory (I adore Psychology!). This is how my mind works, and may be one reason why I tend to let people fall by the wayside easily (they simply do not pay up their 'debt'). I think there seems to be a common misconception that Slytherins are not nice people, and can't care about others, but I think in a lot of cases, being nice to someone is a wonderful way of gaining 'credit' that can be used later to cash in, although the careful Slytherin will be sure that this credit tips the scales in their favour only slightly (or risk being used). However, beyond that, is the key element of altruism. I have said for years that I don't understand the concept of 'true' altruism - always having some personal motive behind my actions. This is how Slytherins, in general, think, and like you said, those in their own house understand this mindset, and for the most part, beyond initial power struggles for 'top dog', the house would move along quite nicely, each person understanding their own role, and their advantages in them.

As you mentioned, it's the other houses who have a hard time grasping this, because they are motivated by different things, and this is why we see a lot of struggle with Draco and Harry in the books. Draco, in my eyes, has for a long time been quite content with the power he gains from irritating Harry and his friends, since the position of 'close friend' was won by Weasley in the first year, and thus giving him motivation in the opposite direction. I imagine a great many Slytherins are very stubborn.

But as I didn't ask for it, now I've got this unwanted social debt that I have to take time to discharge.

I love how you put this. I know the feeling all too well. This is a great deal of discomfort to be carried around from situations like the one you mentioned, until you feel that you have readdressed the balance.

...wonder whether all Slytherins are *capable* of pulling that off if they have to.

This is interesting. I imagine not all Slytherins can do this, because of the reason you mentioned (that not everyone in a house is 'pure' in the sense of house traits, and there will be elements of the other house traits). I wonder if perhaps there is a basic misconception in fandom that people of a house have to display their traits in a certain manner. Dominance contests, for instance, are something that Slytherins would participate in, should they serve a purpose beyond the simple 'I'm more dominant than you' (which I suppose could be the purpose in itself, to prove one point or another). It all boils down to motivation in the end, and I think that rarely can motivation be pinpointed as 'just one thing'. It's incredibly complex.

I adore talking about things like this though. The houses are one of the most fascinating concepts in the books, in my opinion, and the way in which house placement can have such an impact on the way a character is viewed.

May I ask about you?

I would probably classify myself the same. I don't practice Satanism as a concrete religion, but I tend to automatically come from that angle in terms of my own beliefs and personal philosophies. And I find it so much easier to tell people 'I'm a Satanist' when they want a quick answer, than to spend a few hours debating how far I agree with the basic principals. :o)