So, I had a review on ffnet that made me wonder.

[of_anoesis]

It wasn't a nasty review, by any stretch. I was just someone giving their opinion about how Severus Snape would act. An opinion which was was different to my own - shock horror - but the examples they used...

They said: "I can see Snape as a spy, I can see him as a killer, I can see him writing sonnets to Lily and then tossing them in the

Comments

[noxiaa]

Pfft. As the daughter of a son of a steel mill worker.. my Dad can swear with the best of them, and does, either in private or relaxed company. He can be the utmost professional person on the planet most of the time, but if he's angry or upset, all bets are off. That's not even getting into all the, young men especially, "fuck"s I hear on a regular basis now that I'm living in a working class area, myself.

The odd thing is, I couldn't think of anything that Snape wouldn't do. At least, until Jeni's list. XD But I see him as such a flexible character, that you can justify quite a few things in the hands of a good author. If the writer can make me believe that Snape would do it, Snape would do it.

[jenidralph]

Thanks for noticing me. ;)

I'll take this opportunity to apologize for jumping in on so many comments here. :P

[of_anoesis]

If the writer can make me believe that Snape would do it, Snape would do it.

I think you've hit the nail on the head there!

[bambu345]

I think I'll merely agree with the above analyses, and add my own .02. Fuck, yes! He would totally swear.

As for the things he wouldn't do, I suspect they're all related to anything involving humiliation and leaving him vulnerable. But as '42 says, with the Imperius curse, there's a pretty wide open field.

[of_anoesis]

I think we've covered a lot of ground in this post!

It occurred to me that JK lets her characters swear when angry, really, really angry - I mean, Mrs Weasley, story book housewife says 'bitch'. And personally, I find racist slurs way, way more offensive that cursing. Use the f-word to, I probably won't even blink, but the n-word? Yet Snape is famous for having said mudblood, even though he knew full well what it meant. He wasn't a shitty little second year like Draco, but - what? - three or four years older?

I'm now thinking about racism in canon...

Fanfic is full of purebloods being forced to marry muggleborns or integrate into muggle society, but there's no attempt at re-education in canon. Muggleborns are saved from going to Azkaban, but what then?

anything involving humiliation and leaving him vulnerable. Oh, this, completely!

[lemonade8]

We see Snape at work, in the presence of Malfoys and attempting to lord it over order members and death eaters. These are all instances where professional demeanor and social pressures would prohibit colorful language. It's probably why we don't see him saying it in the books (aside from the fact that Jo can't use it when writing for some YA publishers). Being in the HABIT of not saying it is probably why I can visualizing him not swearing up a storm. But not saying it ever? He's from an industrial town, had an abusive father, has insane frustrations and a short fuse... yeah. He says it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqTHmzMk0Cw

[of_anoesis]

True, true. The only time we see Snape without Harry being present is when he's in the company of Death Eaters of equal or superior status, so swearing would have been completely inappropriate....

Dobby's sock!

*cough*

[lemonade8]

Absolutely! He has to be in control, and he purposefully uses his words as weapons and to elevate his status. What he says when NOT manipulating them, or even when manipulating them in the right circumstance, would most probably include the f-bomb.

Leprechaun taint!

[of_anoesis]

Voldemort's nipple!

[droxy]

It's fanfic. This happens.

To me Snape would never wear pink robes or fall in love with Sirius Black.

I can go either way on swearing. A strict book Snape doesn't swear, but will have a very clever way of conveying the same thought. =)

[of_anoesis]

To me Snape would never ... fall in love with Sirius Black.

And yet there are plenty who ship them. Like you say, it's fanfic - a crazy, wonderful place.

Tbh, I think a really strict book Snape would never look twice at Hermione Granger.... who, for that matter, in canonly happily paired with Ronald Weasley. Which again is why fanfic is such a brilliant beast.

A strict book Snape doesn't swear, but will have a very clever way of conveying the same thought. =) And there's the problem - I would have had to have written that clever quip.... I can see I'm going to have to put some thought into this...

[droxy]

Yep. But then again I don't go bugging SNACK shippers. LOL I just don't read it. It's fanfic!

[of_anoesis]

It's called Snack? OMG. That almost makes is seem worthwhile!

And like you say, it's pretty easy to avoid the stuff you won't enjoy :)

[sixpence_jones]

My dad was a miner, the son of a miner. He then went and served in the Paras and special forces. All the men in my family are that way. Tough manual workers or military and they absolutely never, ever swore in front of a child or a woman. It just was considered a revolting thing to do and loss of control was considered unmanly.

However, catch them in only male company or when they had had a jar or six and they could swear the devil out of hell...and blaspheme! The most creative blasphemers I have ever heard. Honestly, Jesus was everywhere, but most often up a Christmas tree. True story.

What would Snape never do? He would not rape, would not forgive and I don't think he would ever cross the student/teacher divide (although I have read it done well I just don't think he would allow it to happen)

[of_anoesis]

To be fair to my poor, swearing Snape, he apologises to the only woman present once he lets the f slip. ooh, he's causing a lot of comment!

The amount of 'necessary' rape in fanfic is horrific. If you can't think of another way to introduce sex into a story, please, please do not write about it. Sex-or-die, however, is an amazing trope... :D

I don't think I could write student/teacher. I've seen it very well done, but then I've read some amazing kink as well and I can't see myself writing that either.

Snape would never forgive? Ooh, that's another topic altogether!