Just a little Snape musing...

[valis2]

rickfan37 did her own build-a-snape here and mentioned this really excellent point:

Here’s the Urbane!Snape myth again. I don’t know, and we’re given no clue in canon. I simply don’t believe he’s a closet opera buff and spends his spare time humming along to great arias, or that he can quote Dante or Shakespeare at will.

It really made me think of something new. I've always been a bit apprehensive about fics where Snape quotes Byron and listens to Bach.

I think what really is happening is that giving Snape these "pretentious" hobbies is a way for an inexperienced writer to "shorthand" their characterization of him, because in just a sentence of quoting/playing classical music, they set him up (in their minds) as a certain sort of character, aloof, mysterious, educated, etc. It's a short-cut.

The thing is, the sort of character they're trying to develop is not canon. Snape is a pure-blood, and would most likely know very little, if anything, about the Muggle world (his matchbox comment notwithstanding). And I'm certain that most pure-bloods wouldn't want to involve themselves in any sort of Muggle-world scrutiny.

So authors who attempt this short-cut are really doing canon a disservice, when what they really need to do is discover what would make him an aloof, mysterious, and educated character in Rowling's world.

Just my little musing for the moment.

Comments

[valis2.livejournal.com]

In the fanfiction guide I wrote an entire passage on the subject of quoting/using languages beside English in HP fics, and honestly, when it comes down to it, it is up to the author to include it or not. Whether it works or not depends on how well they've integrated it. It also depends on how believeable it is. Honestly, I didn't mean for this to get linked to d_s, though it's nice that it did...I was just ranting a little bit to the poor flist about it. The fanfic guide is a much better gauge. I am not steadfastly opposed entirely, I just need for it to work really, really well.

And the thesaurus problem...I have to constantly remind myself to tone his language down...I always want to make him sound extremely wordy...it's hard! :)

And you are absolutely correct...I like my canon!Snape with a touch of fanon!Snape or he's just a bit too limited.