Snape's 'Other Women'
This should be good. ;) First a bit of canon . . . US Ed. p.740-1
"Snape's Patronus was a doe," said Harry, "the same as my mother's, because he loved her for nearly all of his life, from the time when they were children. You should have realized," he said as he saw Voldemort's nostrils flare, "he asked you to spare her life, didn't he?"
"He desired her, that was all," sneered Voldemort, "but when she had gone, he agreed that there were other women, and of purer blood, worthier of him-"
"Of course, he told you that," said Harry, "but he was Dumbledore's spy from the moment you threatened her, . . . "
I do think Voldemort has it wrong-even if Snape loved Lily obsessively, I believe he loved her as best as he was able. But Harry may have over simplified things and probably the truth lies between.
So who were these other women? Girlfriends? One night stands? Did they even exist? I just noticed for the first time that Voldemort said "he agreed that there were other women." That leaves quite a bit of wiggle room.
I would ask that we stick to canon-yes, yes, we all know he was shagging Lupin or waiting for Hermione to come of age :P but for the purposes of this discussion, please leave your favorite ship at the door.
"Snape's Patronus was a doe," said Harry, "the same as my mother's, because he loved her for nearly all of his life, from the time when they were children. You should have realized," he said as he saw Voldemort's nostrils flare, "he asked you to spare her life, didn't he?"
"He desired her, that was all," sneered Voldemort, "but when she had gone, he agreed that there were other women, and of purer blood, worthier of him-"
"Of course, he told you that," said Harry, "but he was Dumbledore's spy from the moment you threatened her, . . . "
I do think Voldemort has it wrong-even if Snape loved Lily obsessively, I believe he loved her as best as he was able. But Harry may have over simplified things and probably the truth lies between.
So who were these other women? Girlfriends? One night stands? Did they even exist? I just noticed for the first time that Voldemort said "he agreed that there were other women." That leaves quite a bit of wiggle room.
I would ask that we stick to canon-yes, yes, we all know he was shagging Lupin or waiting for Hermione to come of age :P but for the purposes of this discussion, please leave your favorite ship at the door.
i think they probably would. in cultures where intermarriage between races is considered miscegenation, the children of such relationships are as oppressed as their parents. look at the Holocaust (which JKR was obviously using as an example). simply being the child of a Jew and a Gentile would get you hauled off to the camps. the DE's committed multiple acts of terrorism against Muggles and wizards alike before they came into power, and then promptly initiated the process of "purification." they may have used half-bloods when necessary, but i doubt they had an easy time, either.
as for Snape/Lily... as far as i'm concerned there's no evidence in the books to prove a sexual attraction (of course, there's no evidence to the contrary, either- JKR really didn't address the issue of adult sexuality at all). Voldemort may have thought so, sure- i doubt he could conceive of wanting a Muggleborn for any reason other than the purely physical. the thing is, people tend to assume that sexual love is the epitome of emotional experience. for me, sex has little to do with love. my strongest relationships are based on, in one case, 18 years of profound friendship, and in the other, the simple, protective love of an adult for two children i've helped raise.
it is my contention that a great many of the DE's and their supporters would be as prejudiced as Bellatrix. ever hear of the 'one drop' rule? according to people of this mindset, there is no such thing as "dilution into insignificance". anyway, i wasn't talking about blood status so much as the fact that canon-Snape is known to be poor, ill-tempered, and homely- not a good catch by any means, no matter how good he might be in bed ;-)
I'm saying we don't exactly know. Just what the DEs espoused and were doing with themselves all the time is annoyingly vague. We know they killed people... but that's about all we know.
Whether they hold it against the product of such a union themselves is another thing.
i think they probably would.
Well, then we're back to "how the heck could Severus have been so well-placed in the DEs". Either it isn't that much of a problem (cf Voldemort's speeching about "I don't want to spill any more magical blood"), or he's getting an extremely special exception. We don't see anyone else, even Bellatrix, harping on his blood status...
the thing is, people tend to assume that sexual love is the epitome of emotional experience. for me, sex has little to do with love.
Umm... okay. I'm not sure what that has to do with it. I think you are probably unusual in that respect. I can't deny that it's possible Severus is the same way, but it just isn't the feeling I get re: Lily. He seemed rather upset by the notion that James fancied her, and I don't think that would be the case if he didn't fancy her himself.
anyway, i wasn't talking about blood status so much as the fact that canon-Snape is known to be poor, ill-tempered, and homely-
You specified "pureblood" women would be unlikely to want him.