#controversial: death eaters are bad

[remusawoooo]

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33

how do you read this and come out thinking dumbledore is in the wrong? I am definitely looking at you weird, sorry. It is quite literally spelled out to you why exactly he is disgusted (actually, why aren't you disgusted as well???)

("I have asked him", did you lick his boot and kiss his ass while at it? ofc he did, what am I asking?)

Snape is a little bitch who is really just a "nice guy TM" at that point. he is stinky, friendless and bitchless but really none of that compares to the fact that he is a fucking supremacist lmao. Albus just went to hear him out, took one for the team and used his privilege to conduct these deals. I am so curious of the thought process that leads one to think snape is the victim here. (totally unrelated would love to know their stance on certain issues)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33

Albus is so much better than me (should have said "yeah me too buddy") He is still so slayful and so cuntyyyy, what a diva. "What use would your death be to anyone?" wow, I would kms before getting on this man's bad side.

[urmumsgyatt]

there’s just something so ironic about regulus fans trying to convince me that he’s ‘not a fascist’ and ‘misunderstood’ then having timothee chalamet be his fancast. a fucking zionist. marauders fans are hilarious😭😭

[remusawoooo]

I'd argue this is actually the worst thing about this fandom, lol

Dumbledore: shown to be put on pedestal and is acknowledged to not be perfect within canon. This is a major subplot in deathly hallows if anyone missed out. he is flawed, sacrificed his life for the greater good, and died a good man.

Barty Crouch Jr.: Has a nuanced backstory that shows a 19 year old yearning for Father's love and recognition while still framing him as a horrendous blood supremacist who tortured and killed.

Regulus Black: again, a story that adds layers to his actions and characters. a person who acted on his ego rather than morality. someone who was radicalized into blood supremacy quite young and without much persuasion. his acts are explained within the little description we get. maybe he could've changed if he lived, we don't know. imagine wtv you want here but he is still someone who engaged in fascist ideology while someone who grew up similarly rejected the ideas far younger :/

Tom Riddle a.k.a Voldemort: has an entire book worth past filled with nuanced depiction of his upbringing, his miserable circumstances, lack of connections and family. he is still a cunt and a fascist leader.

the back stories are there, their bad actions are there. there doesn't have to be a correlation because a backstory doesn't explain bigotry.

My favourite thing about this fandom is that the canon story has so many characters that are just bad guys - no explanation, no questions, they’re just bad. But this fandom takes those characters and loves them and adds backstory and reasons why those characters mad those “bad” decisions because no one is born a “bad guy” right? Not Reggie, not Barty, not Bella, not even Tom :) And the idolized and well-renowned characters like Dumbledore? We take them down a notch, because no one is born perfect either. I love that. It makes it all feel so much more human and approachable and accepting.

Reblog if you feel the same! I feel like this aspect of the fandom needs some love :)

[sevilynne]

I don't get how people still hate Severus when Harry was the one who apparently experienced "trauma" from him, and Harry is Severus's #1 biggest defender now.

"Snape bullied kids!"

And Minerva (And other professors) did too but you completely ignore them and focus on your prejudices with Severus. The fact that Severus threatened Neville into poisoning his toad and Minerva literally locked out a child from the Gryffindor common room when apparently there's a mass murderer inside of Hogwarts shows a huge difference. You justify Minerva's actions because you either like her or you don't hate her as much as you do with Severus.

Severus says Hermione is a know-it-all and Minerva degraded (and publicly humiliated) Neville saying that he'll never be able to transfigure a teapot.

Then here we have Hagrid disfiguring a child and insults his appearance because he hates his dad.

And the difference is, Severus would never disfigure a kid.

Madam Pince literally hexed Ginny and Harry's things. Mcgonagall sent four children into the forbidden forest with HAGRID, she knew what she was doing when she sent them with Hagrid. If Neville did that? He would serve detention with her.

She bent the "First Years aren’t allowed their own Broomsticks" for HARRY. That's favouritism and that's all because Slytherin was dominating the House Cup. Would Severus bend the "First Years aren’t allowed their own Broomsticks" for Draco just because he wants a medal sticking in his office? No.

Minerva let Severus bully the Golden Trio (Primarily Harry) through Years 1-6, why did she let that happen? Why didn't she tell her colleague off? Well, that would be hypocritical considering she also does that.

In Year 7, she allows DEs to torture students.

She was mad at Fake Professor Moody because he transfigured a student and not the fact that he was repeatedly banged a students head on the ground.

Minerva is just as bad as Severus, she gave them harsh punishments but you guys look in deep in Harry's biased point of view that you guys think Minerva is just strict and Severus bullied children.

And if Minerva was just "strict" to Harry, imagine what she did with other students? She practically bullied them.

Haha... But no. We should just look at Severus because he's the bad guy and not because the wizarding world's punishments are completely different from real life / muggle views. These type of stuff are normal (and controversial) in the wizarding world. SEVERUS WASN'T THE ONLY PERSON TO DO THIS.

Everyone did this as a professor, it's normal in the wizarding world. This is not to justify Severus's actions, but if you hate Severus and like other professors... Then you're a hypocritical person.

"Severus became a DE!"

He was in Slytherin, he was influenced by the Pure-Blood obsession that people in his house had. He simply became a DE because he was a curious child who wanted to learn about the dark arts.

Did Severus torture or kill people like death eaters like Barty and Bellatrix did? Haha...

To put my last post about this in summary:

Severus was neglected by his parents (And heavily implied that he was also abused), gets bullied by two boys resulting in 4v1 (This was because he wanted to go to Slytherin. He sneered back and James & Sirius wanted to bully Severus because they were two spoilt brats who cannot let "Snivellus" sneer back since they'll never get used to someone sneering at them [Since they always get away with it] They come from two rich pure-blood families, what did you expect?), almost gets killed and Remus nor Sirius gets any consequences about it, his life is worth a detention to Dumbledore. James flexes to Lily that he saved Severus's life (With a modified version of the prank since she'll know about Sirius were primarily involved in a negative way and it's his best friend right?) and Lily, his apparent best friend, BELIEVES HIS BULLY OVER HIM. This is what you call the only positive thing in his life? If this is what you call the only positive thing in his life, then his life is fucked up. Lily holding her smile and blushing while James does horrible things to her best friend, gets surprised and furious when Severus calls her a mudblood, then his private part being showed to the whole school.

I would be heavily embarrassed if I were Severus, no, I would honestly cry and drop out.

Severus got manipulated and heavily influenced by rich, pure-blooded Slytherins because he was given the respect that he never got in his life, he was influenced to have prejudiced thoughts when he never had those thoughts when Lily got her letter, infact, he comforted her. That says A LOT about this. Severus was invited into that DE cult because he wanted more of that respect—more of that power—more of the fame. He just wanted to feel respected. Because that was what he was not given at Hogwarts.

"Snape deserved the bullying, he bullied the Marauders in the train. / Someone had to do it."

Who threw the first direct insult? Sirius. Who threw the first indirect insult? James. What did Severus do? Sneer back. Did he deserve those years of bullying? No.

You literally take references from ATYD and other #severussnapeslander Wolfstar, Jily, Rosekiller, and Jegulus fics from AO3. Don't act like Sirius and James aren't worse.

When did he deserve to almost die? When did he deserve to get bullied every single day? When did he deserve to get sexually harassed?

How would you feel if it was you?

How would you feel if the people who bullied you were painted as heroes?

People who sexually assaulted and almost killed you?

The lack of empathy from Mstans just prove that they are vicious bullies bullying an eleven year old and calling the kid derogatory names doesn't make you less of an evil person as Severus is.

At least have the respect to call him by his last name.

"James and Draco aren't similar! James is better than Draco."

James literally sounds like the worst version of Draco Malfoy.

┌── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──┐

"Imagine being in Hufflepuff, I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" - Draco Malfoy, Philosopher's Stone.

"Who wants to be in Slytherin? I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" - James Potter, Deathly Hallows.

- Laughs at a muggle woman getting SA'd in Quidditch world cup, finds it funny, and makes a joke of Hermione getting SA'd. -

“Granger, they’re after Muggles,” said Malfoy. “D’you want to be showing off your knickers in midair? Because if you do, hang around . . . they’re moving this way, and it would give us all a laugh.”

- Sexually assaults Severus and finds it funny, uses it to impress Lily. -

There was another flash of light, and Snape was once again hanging upside-down in the air.

'Who wants to see me take off Snivelly's pants?'

— Both are rich purebloods —

- Draco saves Harry to make sure his family doesn't get in trouble -

"There's something there," he whispered. "it could be the scar, stretched tight.... Draco, come here, look properly! What do you think?"

Harry saw Draco's face up close now, right beside his father's.

"I don't know," he said, and he walked away toward the fireplace where his mother stood watching.

- James saves Severus to make sure his friends doesn't get in trouble -

└── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──┘

We aren't even talking about James and Draco being bullies who have no empathy for their victims, sure, James isn't just one-dimensional and Draco is morally grey, but James was just caring around his friends, other than that? Not so much. He was stuck with his friendgroup being sycophants (Sirius because James loved him as a brother, Remus who didn't want to speak up about the bullying because James and Sirius picked him up even if he was a poor half-blood, and Peter who wants to fit in.) Draco was stuck with Slytherins being sycophants because he was a rich, high status pure-blood with friends he made as slaves.

Both were spoiled, arrogant, attention-hungry, and self-entitled, traits common among children of their background. Draco would bully the kind of people James befriended, while James would bully the kind of people Draco associated with.

"Snivellus—"

If you're fine with calling Severus a derogatory name, you must be fine calling Luna "Loony" as well.

"Severus called Lily a mudblood."

Severus was a mudblood as well, you wouldn't care if people–of–colour use the N-word on others but you care if Severus does?

Severus also said that in the heat of moment, his best friend did literally NOTHING for the minutes of time he was getting assaulted and she was a prefect.

He said that for masculinity.

Lily didn't do anything for the period of while he was getting assaulted, instead, she held her smile.

Severus would've casted an unforgivable to James or Sirius or anyone who would've done that to Lily, but Lily did the opposite.

Instead, she stood there, blushing.

Severus apologized to her numerous of times, probably not even knowing what his best friend did.

Not justifiable, but still a very good argument.

"Lily was a good friend."

You call LILY a good friend? The one who would believe her best friend's bully over her best friend? The one who would laugh and blush while her best friend gets physically assaulted? The one who watched her best friend get assaulted AND she was a prefect.

Lily was NOT a good friend, she was a terrible one. I also will always held on that Lily secretly waited for the Mudblood incident to drop Severus off, you know, since Severus was a weirdo.

“They don’t use Dark Magic, though.” She dropped her voice. “And you’re being really ungrateful. I heard what happened the other night. You went sneaking down that tunnel by the Whomping Willow, and James Potter saved you from whatever’s down there—”

They don't use dark magic? It doesn't stop them from bullying kids. She doesn't even know the whole story and yet, she is judging.

- She lashes out on Severus instead of her sister -

"I don’t want to talk to you-" she said in a constricted voice. "Why not?" "Tuney h-hates me. Because we saw that letter from Dumbledore.”

It's basically Severus's fault because they got the letter and Petunia didn't? She blames Severus for getting the letter and not her sister for her jealousy?

Lily, whose furious expression had twiched for an instant as though she was going to smile said - let him down!

Ah... Yes, let's watch our best friend get assaulted infront of the whole school and let them be. That's a very nice best friend.

Now tell me, where was she a good friend? She was not an angel, she was terrible.

She also blames Severus for having Evan, Mulciber II, Avery, Wilkes, Rodolphus, and possibly having Narcissa, Lucius, Rabastan, and Regulus as well. Did she expect that she would only be Severus's friend considering he's in a house full of pure-bloods? It was an unspoken rule in Slytherin to basically have pure-blood friends. She doesn't get that, she doesn't understand him, because he is evil in her eyes.

She doesn't get the points that Severus makes, because Severus was already bad in her eyes.

He had questionable company, sure, but Severus wanted companions too like she did with other Gryffindors, so why can't he have friends in his house. She's friends with Gryffindors who basically despise him.

So if he was friends with people that would've called her a mudblood and she didn't like it, why is she inlove with a Gryffindor who bullied Severus anytime he got?

Severus called Lily a mudblood because he was being humiliated infront of the whole school, he didn't want her to see him being weak, so he lashed out.

He was a Slytherin, pretty common by now that his banquet of friends used that word pretty often, and there you have it. Severus never meant to hurt Lily, but it did slip out of his tongue.

Not justifying his actions here (Pretty obvious by my wording) but Lily was NOT innocent in terms here.

"Snape was obsessed with Lily."

Ahh... Yes. Severus was the one who forced Lily to go out with him, Severus was the person to bully her best friend, Severus told her to go out with him and he wouldn't bully his best friend anymore.

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Because it's not him.

Severus grieved Lily the way Sirius grieved James, yet you don't call Sirius obsessed because he loved James as a brother, Severus's love for Lily was never proved to be romantic.

Aha! Now I made you think.

The same patronus means true love—not obsession. He stayed away from her marriage but still loved her from afar, when he realized the information he gave Voldemort could harm Lily, he offered his life to Dumbledore. He even asked Dumbledore to save James for the sake of Lily.

Sirius would've done the same for James.

After Lily's death, he was devastated, he wished he were dead, he became spy for Dumbledore, and all of that.

Severus and Lily were childhood best friends; Lily was Severus's only "true" friend.

His patronus was a doe, pure light magic (Hence most DEs can't perform a patronus). It wouldn't be affected by obsession.

I don't get why some people think Severus was purely obsessed with Lily, because there will always be a special person in someone's heart and Lily just happens to be Severus's special person.

Even Sirius and Remus who were capable of making such lies about Severus in order to hide everything from Harry, didn't say nothing about Severus stalking Lily or tried to persue her.

She dies and he feels suicidal.

Why do people think this is obsession? Severus had no one, the reason why Sirius could hold himself before he died is because he wanted to take care of Harry, to love him like he loved James. Severus couldn't because he's a death eater and he couldn't love himself, how can he love Harry when Harry looks exactly like his bully. And Severus can't take care of Harry legally anyway, Sirius could because he is his godson.

If Severus was obsessed with Lily, then Harry was obsessed with his dead dad : /

JK. Rowling even said that he wasn't obsessed, how are people so pressed about it?

I just don't get it, why would JK. Rowling write Severus's obsession with Lily and offering his whole life just to have s*x with her everyday on a CHILDREN'S BOOK?

Meanwhile James: - Doodled her initials in his OWL paper, publicly humiliated her friend just to make him look bad in front of her, tried to blackmail Lily into dating him, threatened to hex her and had a map that literally tracked down everybody's (including Lily's) movements. -

"Severus made sure Remus was gone from Hogwarts."

Yes after Remus endangered three children, he already got away with it the first time, he shouldn't in another time.

Remus was completely irresponsible and forgot to take Wolfsbane, sure, he was a good DADA professor, but almost killing three children?

I don't think the Grangers nor Weasleys would want to hear about this.

Thank you for reading my paragraphs of how stupid Mstans can be.

Not everything is about defending Severus, but the double standards are crazy...

Yes, Severus told the prophecy, bullied children, etc. But he's a two-dimensional character who saved the Wizarding World, if Severus didn't apologize to Lily, you'd attack him too.

So... Stop using ATYD references and start adding braincells in your head.

Have a great day! 😓

(Add more if you want to.)

[hbpseverus]

snape opinion of the day: people often claim he gave the slytherins preferential treatment. and i guess my controversial take is... good, honestly he should. because the way slytherins were vilified at that school and the prejudice against them was insane. take harry for an example, he just stepped into this wizarding world, hardly knows anything about it, but before he even arrives at hogwarts he already shares the opinion that slytherin was the evil house, to the point where he begged the sorting hat not to put him in slytherin (while, still, basically knowing nothing about this school). of course a lot of slytherins came from death eater parents and wanted to be in slytherin and thrived in this environment, but there had to have been others too, right? 11 year old children who came to hogwarts with an open mind and happened to be sorted into slytherin and, just like that, were automatically labelled evil by all the other houses and, if we're being honest, by the adults and headmaster aswell. i think this applies to severus himself, too - yes he wanted to be a slytherin, but i don't think as a child he understood how this would put him into a box. i genuinely do believe that if he had been in a different house, away from the prejudice from other houses and all these aspiring death eaters who all only dragged each other deeper into this ideology, his story could have been completely different.

so back to adult snape. he knows best what it's like to be sorted into slytherin and how isolating it can feel, especially as someone who might not fully belong there (halfblood, poor, ...). he knows that no other adult besides him at this school is going to be there for these children. so yes, he should let his slytherins know that there is one grown up in this place who will stand up for them.

finally it's also important to note that he was by no means the only head of house guilty of this behaviour. mcgonagall might have even been worse sometimes when it came to favouring her gryffindors. harry is simply an unreliable narrator in this case - when mcgonagall bends and breaks all the rules for him she is praised, whereas snape is painted in a bad light for doing the same.

[rewritingcanon]

What would you say are your more controversial opinions about the hp characters?

ohhhh okayyy. i feel like my opinions on a lot of the characters aren’t controversial because i dont feel super strongly towards anyone in any negative light but here are some i could think of at the top of my head:

i’m glad the malfoys faced more extreme backlash after the second wizarding war. a lot of people in the fandom seem to be very sympathetic towards draco and scorpius for getting dogpiled with the brunt of it (which yeah, it sucks, especially for scorpius) but the prejudice makes complete make sense to me. if i was someone who didn’t know scorpius’ character, and had someone from my family get killed in the second war due to death eaters or something— seeing the malfoys still be wealthy and walk around freely without any jailtime, i would be bitter too. they’re hated on but they’re still one of the richest families ever, so they’ll live LOL

another anon has asked about this and i haven’t responded to them yet but when i do i will link it here for my reasons. basically: the best character in the cursed child is harry potter. i think the way they wrote his character and ptsd carried the play. it was def his story, not albus’.

i do think dumbledore has some aspects of him that may be considered morally gray, but mostly i dont think he is. he does everything for the good of the world, and his complete selflessness leads him to sacrifice anything for it— even himself and the people he loves, when necessary. i completely understand why people wouldn’t agree with his methods though.

james potter isn’t a sunshine character he’s a dickhead. fans of him made him a golden retriever character to be more palatable for modern times. i like him the way he is: an asshole and then less of an asshole 👍 this is what true stanning looks like

pansy parkinson is racist and out of all the female side characters, developing HER is so questionable from fandom

harry had questionable descriptions about a lot of male characters to make people think he could be a little 🏳️‍🌈 there was bill, there was sirius, there was cedric. but draco is not a part of that list. harry was not feeling draco whatsoever throughout the series but drarry shippers cling to that one ‘obsessed’ line

furthermore, harry rejecting draco’s offer of friendship wasn’t a sad or a ‘what if’ scene. draco was being a classist piece of shit and harry didnt want to fuck with that, there isnt any way in any timeline he wouldve accepted draco’s friendship.

slytherin sucks just generally lol. people want so bad to pluck anti-heroes out of a series that was written specifically with the mind to make all the characters suck.

hermione and ron’s drama isn’t as toxic as people make it out to be. yes, this includes the time hermione sent birds after him. people act like its the end of the world but she was tackling puberty and the end of society soooo i give her a pass to tweak out.

mostly every harry potter character has horrific names. like literally mostly everyone. even the name harry potter 🙁

movie romione wasn’t that bad LOL

severus snape’s ‘redemption’ or whatever was so ass. he bullies kids for five years and then everything is chill because… true love? on harry’s mum? are you kidding me 💀

weasley family angst goes hard but people (especially percy stans and some ron&ginny stans) acting like they’re the most toxic family to walk the earth make me want to rip my hair out and eat it. molly loves her kids guys shes not evil. jesus.

genuinely trying to think of more but i can’t right now…. maybe i will reblog and add to it. i feel like most of my opinions aren’t that controversial though 😭

[darkcrowprincess]

Controversial Harry Potter opinion:

I actually really hate the concept of turning/comparing death eaters and just the messed up tangled mess that is pure blood families/culture into nazis for several reasons. One because I feel like that is a cop out. But two and this is really really big, wizards and witches (especially when you add in half bloods and muggleborns and magical creatures) are really really complicated and their reasons for doing things are complicated. Especially when you take in muggles, and what muggles did to witches and wizards in the medieval times and salem witches trials. Add that with hogwarts and houses. That is why I see it less as that, and more so that this a culture that not only screams very old traditional community but also screams really old toxic religious community. This is why I see it as a cult. This is a dangours cult. A half blood(Tom) saw these old families with lots of money and connections and saw power. So yes it is a cult. A very religious, very traditional obessed and very complicated cult. With kids growing up with this stuff as propaganda and religion. Which why I feel bad for kids that find it very hard to escape this cult. Especially slytherin kids! This is just how I personally saw it growing up when reading the books. This just my opinion. Especially when I got to reading Books 5-7. Tom Riddle during book 6 gave me so many Manson/cult leaders vibes. Because to me I do not think Tom gives a shit about blood puirty. Yeah he hates muggles. But I think Tom only cares about Tom and getting as much power for himself as possible.

Main reasons why I see it as a cult:

Tom Riddle and mainly all of his backstory in book 6.

The concept of all the pure blood families/ the sacred 28 that relates to incest and arranged marriages. How everyone is related to each other in some way because of this. It's screams toxic religious cults.

How isolated pure blood families are and how they dont allow and outside knowledge of the muggle world into the very traditional world. It screams very lds/Mormons. Especially in school and in the ministry. Even the Weasleys who are bloody traitors do not have very much accurate knowledge on what muggles are really like.

Sirius leaving his family and staying with the Potters.

Regulus Black.

Draco Malfoy.

Just the whole concept of Wizardy world and Muggle world and the separation. And the using of the word muggle and no mage. It gives me very how Mormons see other people vibes.

Magical Creatures.

(Don't like don't read. Post hate and I'll block you!)

[ruinofchimera]

I think it’s also clear that Snape is Voldemort’s exception when it comes to class and blood status. He has underprivileged minions like Greyback who operate on the fringes, but there aren’t exactly a whole lot of other dirt poor half bloods who’ve made it into his inner circle, and there’s a reason why Bellatrix distrusts him far more than any of the other Death Eaters who claimed they’d been under the Imperius curse, and it’s because she doesn’t consider him as one of them.

Lily, as a beautiful and charming Gryffindor who is beloved of the very well connected Slughorn and the headmaster and the wealthy pureblood James Potter, actually seems to have more room for social mobility than teenage Severus as they look towards adulthood despite him being nominally more privileged as a half blood. All dependant on patronage of course, so that’s problematic in itself, and patronage won’t save anybody from terrorists in the end. Lily to her immense credit recognises this in joining the Order when she could’ve kept her head down. But that tension isn’t nothing when it comes to unpicking their dynamic.

There’s a reason I’ve been steering clear of the whole Snape and Voldemort dynamic, despite how relevant it would be to just about every discussion I’ve had about Severus. See, if there’s anything in the series that haunts me—keeps me tossing and turning at night—it’s that twisted, enigmatic relationship between Tom and Severus. Not just what’s written plain as day in the books, mind you. I’m talking about what’s lurking beneath, the things left unsaid. Because Snape is indeed Voldemort’s exception, and not only in being let into a circle that’s usually locked tight for purebloods. No, Tom crosses lines for Severus over and over again, bending his own rules. I refuse to chalk that up to bad writing; there’s something deliberate about the way their interactions stand out. Voldemort’s treatment of Snape falls right out of step with the essence of Tom’s character. That alone not only leaves acres of space for interpretation—there’s a bloody demand for it. In any other fandom, their relationship would’ve been taken apart a hundred ways already—fanfiction, art, endless headcanons. But here, Snape’s entire existence got reduced to Lily Evans, and fans call it a day. Meanwhile, his massive, fascinating dynamic with Voldemort just sits there, untouched, quietly shaping the entire outcome of the story. As I said at the start, once I get going, there’s no reining me in. So, hands up—I’ll stop myself here. Maybe one day I’ll dive into the complexity of their relationship in a proper meta, but for now, I’ll spare you from my rambling about that deliciously controversial relationship.

Now, as for Severus and Lily, the tension between them isn’t just part of the story—it is the story. Brutal, unforgiving, and about as tragic as you can get. Their mutual raw emotional wreckage is the precise reason why it works so damn well for me. If someone (or a horde of someones) wants to water that down to the sob story of a certain ginger flower’s suffering—fine by me, really. I’ve said it all on that sensitive matter. Be that as it may.

[wafflinglumos]

About to say something controversial, potentially, Lily cared more about her friendship ending with Snape, then Remus cared about the Prank.

Vice versa too, Snape cared more about his actions against Lily, then Sirius cared about his actions against Remus.

Glorious angst right there on both their parts. Sirius’ vindication in his actions, and Remus’ cowardice stopping him from truly being upset with him(or if you’re a wolfstar fan, potential romantic interest). Snape’s humiliation and venom filled words, and Lily’s exhaustion and hurt.

Also, LET THE RECORD BE SHOWN, that Lily was going to forgive Snape, IF Snape had denied becoming a Death Eater, because he did not deny it, THAT was the official end of their friendship.

LET THE RECORD BE SHOWN AGAIN, when met with his actions against Remus again, Sirius JUSTIFIED his actions and felt ZERO remorse towards his actions toward Snape, potential remorse could have been felt after the prank, but after twelve years in Azkaban, I doubt he felt that bad about it when in a room with the rat that murdered his best friends, and ruined his life.

Oh my God, the angst writes itself people, you could do SO much with that, and I’m not even a Snape fan, and I LOVE Sirius.

This isn’t a slander post towards anyone, but this also is NOT a romantic snily post, not a fan of that. Let Lily be sad about her six-seven year long friendship ending guys :(

[mitsuki91]

Controversial headcanon as I don't think my last post about it was read by so much people:

Lily choose James because he is the one who can hurt Severus the most. Who can make Severus feel the same betrayal she felt when he called her a Mudblood and choose the path of a Death Eater.

Of course he is also good with her, I mean he has to be at least bearable for her to give him a chance, but... Do you really think that Lily was so fast to forget all the bully he did and the disgust she felt for him? Lily? Who can't even forget one world by her best-friend?

Of course this is part of a biggest headcanon, where Lily loved Severus and she was not the holy virgin mary everyone want her to be... She was angry, jealous, petty and even childish.

Of course I see her maybe fall in love with James with time (even if, for me, is a "tiepid" love, more the fact that he treats her well and they were in a fucking war when he fight for her, not a real passion), but the first step she took... Well, it was Severus fault. Because otherwise why she started dating James just at the end of seventh year? Yes, because it is the only time and place where Severus can see her like this.

And she wants to hurt Severus so much. So bad.

As he broke her heart hard and first.

[moonlightdancer26]

I love Percy Weasley (and Ronnie, but thankfully I've seen more Ron defenders and appreciation posts popping up in recent years, as they should) SO MUCH. He's legitimately one of my favourite characters and my poor little meow meow. Him and Severus have SO MANY parallels. They were both intelligent, ambitious young men who came from poverty and experienced bullying from the people who were supposed to support them. Controversial opinion, but the other Weasley kids (ESPECIALLY Fred and George) were unnecessarily brutal to poor Perce to the point of being malicious. Of course young Severus and Percy went along with the "wrong" crowd when the "right" crowd continuously mocked, belittled, and taunted them, while the "wrong" crowd told them that they were brilliant, that they would go so far, and that anyone who tried to belittle them just didn't get it, that they were just jealous of how successful they were gonna be. Long story short, Percy is adorable and precious and so cute and smart and I want to brush his hair out of his face and kiss him on the nose.

I just drank carrot juice for the first time in 15 years I’m currently going through something

Anyway, I 100000% AGREE. I’ve answered a somewhat similar ask a while ago. I have a headcanon that Percy was actually Snape’s secret fave student. I just know Percy would scold Ronald in a Hermione-like way whenever he’d say anything bad about Severus, “Who cares if he can be a git sometimes? He’s an absolute genius at Potions and passes down his knowledge to his students. If you just got your head out of your arse for a bit, you’d see just how much I’m right.”

Percy’s like my fourth fave HP character, I totally see a younger-Snape in him. Percy was belittled and ridiculed by his family and his ambition and desire for power led him to walking out on them and going after his dreams so his talents can finally be acknowledged. Snape was relentlessly bullied by the Marauders (four Gryffindors) which was dismissed by the headmaster of Hogwarts (also a Gryffindor) and was already ostracised by the rest of Hogwarts for being a Slytherin, he soon joined the Death Eaters alongside Lucius and the Slytherins after graduating because he likely believed that he would finally get recognition for his great knowledge in the Dark Arts. They also both did it at age 19 (I think Sev might’ve joined a little before he turned 19, either way it was after graduating).

Controversial opinion, but the other Weasley kids (ESPECIALLY Fred and George) were unnecessarily brutal to poor Perce to the point of being malicious.

I CAN’T EXPLAIN HOW MUCH I AGREE WITH YOU. I’ve made a few posts talking about this and defending Perce, x, x, x, x, x (my all-time fave Ron defender liked this post and I’m simply never getting over that), x (probably my fave post I’ve made on my blog), and x. Also I hate the claim that their treatment of Perce was normal because “that’s just what siblings do,” like no I literally have 5 other siblings, and while yes we all act like psychos together, we’ve never come close to doing the shit the twins did to Perce and Ron. There’s a difference between being an asshole to your siblings and endangering their life and constantly mocking them. They never took his dreams seriously, and honestly that would be such a horrible thing to go through. Tbh I’m impressed Percy didn’t leave them sooner 💀

and same, I’m such a hardcore Percy apologist that I will go absolutely insane if I see anyone criticise him 😭 He’s literally so hated and for what

[remusawoooo]

I'm all about curating my content and ignoring ships I don't like, BUTTTT

isn't there something so insidious about taking a character that was vehemently against dark magic and supremacy (to the extent of giving his life fighting them) and shipping him with a voldemort fanatic who couldn't wait to become a death eater.

[glamlet69]

Little rant

This might be controversial, but I have to say it because it has been bothering me so much when reading comments on Snape posts.

The whole Snape vs. The Marauders thing is not an either/or debate. They were all deeply flawed individuals with their own issues and trauma that made them act out in ways that deeply hurt each other.

Severus' childhood was shit. He was an outsider and the only one that treated him kindly was Lily. But then he called her a slur, which in the Harry Potter universe, is just about as bad as saying the n-word (even though I hate making that comparison). It was in the heat of the moment because he was embarrased and hurt, but that does NOT JUSTIFY IT. He also abuses children in his adulthood on a daily basis. That is also NOT JUSTIFIED JUST BECAUSE HE WAS BULLIED AS A CHILD. He also abuses Harry so much just because he looks like his dad. THAT IS NOT JUSTIFIED JUST BECAUSE HE WAS BULLIED BY JAMES.

Sirius Black (I'm going to focus on him because he was Snape's main antagonist) grew up in an incredibly toxic and blood-supremecist family. He hated it and saw how evil it was. It was the start of the war. People were literally being murdered by Death Eaters. And then his own brother wanted to become one. He knew what they were capable of. THAT DOES NOT JUSTIFY HIS BULLYING OF SNAPE, especially because he had not become a Death Eater yet. He was absolutely awful to him, even into adulthood, when he was fighting for the good side, and that is not okay. BUT lets not forget, Snape did become a Death Eater for a period of time. His sad past does not justify it. Sirius went to prison wrongfully and lost 12 years of his life. That does not justify his incredibly immature behavior towards Snape or his toxicity around Harry.

Same goes for James. I consider Remus a little bit more of a victim in this whole thing, because he was suffering as a werewolf, and Snape wanted to expose him as one, even though it would mean his expulsion from not only Hogwarts, but society. Even into adulthood, Snape spent Remus' entire time at Hogwarts literally trying to ruin Remus' life. That is simply NOT OKAY.

Lily really didn't deserve any of this and I hate the hate she gets from Snape-lovers, just because she didn't want to be his friend after getting called a LITERAL SLUR. She was literally defending him. Snape messed that up for himself. Also, Lily didn't get with James immediately afterward. They grew up a little and grew as people a little and came together.

As you can probably tell, I am a tad more sympathetic to the Marauders (I've been in the fandom since I was in sixth grade). But I understand that ALL OF THESE PEOPLE are INCREDIBLY FLAWED AND NUANCED. SIRIUS AND SNAPE ARE EQUALLY FLAWED. I understand why people love Snape as a character and I believe that is completely valid even though I do not love him as much myself. I also think that the author who will not be named did a pretty shitty job on Snape's redemption arc, but I can appreciate it for what it should have been. Really, this comes down to bad writing on her part. We should have gotten a much better and more fleshed out redemption for Snape (and better character motivation for that matter). We should have had Harry reckon a little more with the Marauders as flawed individuals. Someone should have called Sirius out on his bullshit and someone should have called Snape out on his bullshit as well. But we didn't get that due to poor planning for the series.

What I'm trying to say is, I wish people would stop utterly trashing these characters in order to justify the shitty behavior of their favorite one, because they all suck as people.

[pureblood-and-mudblood]

Dramione is the het ship between Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter fandom.

Canon

As Draco was raised with violent disgust for Muggle-borns, he treated Hermione with disdain. Hermione's friends and herself shared a strong enmity to Draco from virtually the moment they met, and her beating Draco in school marks, for which his father berated him. From time to time, Draco would call Hermione a mud-blood which usually set off the temper of her friends and once the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. Most of the time, Hermione would ignore Draco but occasionally snapped back at him and in their third year, she even punched him.

some parts of the saga, Draco even seems obsessed with Hermione. Even though he considers Muggle-borns to be inferior, he hasn't ever picked on one other than Hermione. In the second book, when the basilisk is released, he wishes for Hermione to be its next victim. In GoF, when the death eaters appear in the Quidditch World Cup, Draco appears near Harry's tent and advises them to get Hermione out of there if they don't want anything to happen to her. He even makes a comment about her knickers. In another scene in the same book, he overhears Ron talking about Hermione's dancing partner and he makes a surprised comment about that "know-it-all" having found a date. When Hermione walks into the ballroom, Draco just stares at her and, quoting from the book, "even he didn’t seem to be able to find an insult to throw at her".

At various points in the books he acknowledges Hermione's intelligence. For example, when he finds out about the DA and the charm Hermione made with the coins, he takes notes and uses it to communicate with the Death Eaters he wants to get into Hogwarts. In the 6th book he stops messing with her (coinciding with the imprisonment of his father, who incidentally in the 2nd book tells Draco off for Hermione getting better grades than him.

In spite of his dislike toward Hermione, Draco was reluctant to confirm her identity when he was asked to do so by his parents and aunt Bellatrix, avoiding even looking at her. As an adult sobered by his wartime experiences, Draco was civil, if not friendly, towards Hermione and her friends.

Fanon

Dramione is among the most popular ships for both characters.

Fanon

Dramione is among the most popular ships for both characters.

On AO3, it is the most written ship for Hermione, followed by Hermione/Ron, and the second for Draco, bested only by Draco/Harry. It is also the third most written ship in the Harry Potter fandom.

It is one of the most controversial ships in the Harry Potter fandom, due to Draco bullying Hermione and calling her racial slurs. However, many fans believe that Draco is reformed and became a better person, and others like the Good Girl/Bad Boy dynamic. Some also reference the fact that Emma Watson had a crush on Tom Felton to prove the legitimacy of the ship.

A Very Potter Musical

Throughout his first two years of Hogwarts, Draco has a particularly serious crush on Hermione. He wanted a rocketship and Hermione. It's not until after Hermione turns him down after her first year when Draco has returned to the past, that he realizes that he should move on considering "what a b***** Hermione is". Draco later meets Luna Lovegood in the Forbidden Forest while waiting to catch up to his time.

Trivia

Rowling was not in favour of this pairing.[1]

Tom Felton, who portrayed Draco in the films, references Draco/Hermione in two chapter titles from his memoir Beyond the Wand — "The Potter Auditions or When Draco Met Hermione" and "Dramione or The Chicken and the Duck."[2]

[tedwardremus]

I like the way you responded to the anon that was projecting their own feelings about Ron.

I know you are doing the whole controversial asks and I respect the way you laid down facts.

Ron deserves so much respect, why is he always treated like he’s ‘lazy’ or not on the same level as his two best friends?

I feel it’s all because people rely on the movies instead of reading the books and understanding the source. Plus, Harry also slacked off many times. Hell, when he got with Ginny I can bet he didn’t even care about his grades, but we don’t see hate towards him since he’s the main guy.

Hermione literally walked out of Divination and has done some pretty messed up stuff (disfigured Marietta’s face) she also sent canaries on Ron. Wouldn’t that scene alone make people view her as unable to keep her feelings in check?

Yet, she wasn’t held accountable for her actions. Why? Because Emma Watson is the actress or because people want a Mary-Sue that does no wrong (whom takes all of Ron’s lines and personality?)

The fun thing about Harry Potter is the depth of the character's flaws and contradictions. This doesn't make them evil or awful people but very perfectly human.

Hermione is ruthless, petty, competitive, and ambitious, but she is also kind, generous, girly, and has a dirty sense of humor. She is a fully fleshed-out character.

Every character can be annoying sometimes. They can frustrate us. Their world view is imperfect. But they are also marvelous and wonderful and loved by others.

JKR really doesn't understand politics, institutional power, or war, but she did a great job with her characters, and they shine on the paper—the good guys, the bad guys, and the ones in between. They are little worlds inside the heads of even the most minor characters, and that's what makes this fandom so much fun.

If people want to knock on my door, which is the Tumblr inbox, and share their thoughts, I will always welcome them with a slice of cake and a cup of tea into my home, and I will never insult them or tell them off for having a different opinion than my own. I may explain why I think differently and back it up with examples from text, but I always hope I am a polite host in the inbox.

(and I may, for full transparency, make my own posts about my distaste for people propping up baby death eaters and misunderstanding the entire point of the series but hey - we are all allowed our opinions.)

But, at the end of the day, if someone tells me they think Hermione was the worst friend ever, that Barty Crouch Jr. was a sex god, or that Sirius was a dramatic little whiny baby, that's their cross to bear, not mine. I may not understand it. I may be baffled by it. I may wonder why our copies of the books are so different from each other to reach such radically different conclusions. But It does nothing to change how I interrupt the characters or think about the story.

Because in my heart I am this girl from Mean Girls:

[ladycatryx]

In Defense of Harry Potter

If you or someone you love is a trans person in crisis: The Trevor Project‘s 24/7/365 Lifeline [US]: 866-488-7386 Trans Lifeline [US]: 877-565-8860 TrevorChat, (online instant messaging option) International Support: TrevorSpace

I minored in Gender Studies for both my Bachelor's and Master's. I have a bookshelf full of queer theory. I have several trans friends.

And I went to a Harry Potter themed party the other day.

Like many of my fellow 90s kids, I grew up reading Harry Potter. It was an era-defining feature of my adolescence, eagerly anticipating book releases and midnight movie theatre screenings. But unlike many of my peers, it is not merely a feature of my past. I still regularly read and write Harry Potter fanfiction. I have beautiful art books and unofficial compendiums chock-full of lore and behind-the-scenes details. I am a HP trivia wizard---or witch, as the case may be. I have so much investment into the lore and the world of Harry Potter, and I often find myself in Hogwarts and the surrounding Highlands in my dreams---even moreso now that Hogwarts Legacy has given us a first-person and 3D experience of the layout and landscape of the Wizarding World. So I relished the chance to don my Slytherin robes and get all dressed up in character. The pictures turned out great. But I couldn't post them on any of my social media. I have been told, in no uncertain terms, that anyone who continues to support or engage with the Harry Potter franchise is a TERF and a fascist. Full stop. To quote one of my friends, "I don't interact with Harry Potter media anymore. And frankly I treat any interest in it as a sign of transphobia for my own safety. So I really don't care to know much about the [Hogwarts Legacy] game aside from the disgusting blood libel it chose to use in it's narrative. It's a hard line for me as a trans person."

It's a controversial topic, to be sure. Now I absolutely hate cancel culture's tendency to drag something someone said 10 years ago into the spotlight and blow it out of proportion, even sometimes taking it out of its original context to spin it as a bad actor with bad intentions, and then to deny people the ability to apologize or acknowledge personal growth (see: what happened to Lindsay Ellis. Thanks, I hate it). But let's be clear: that's not the case here. JKR has only dug herself deeper into the hole, being belligerently and purposefully ignorant and cruel despite a PR team probably begging her to shut up, and despite an entire world of people who have attempted to teach her better. She has acted, and continues to act, in bad faith, even writing trans and queer-coded villains and serial killers into her latest books. This is not a person who has attempted to apologize and make right her wrongs when they've been pointed out. This is someone who has been given every opportunity to not be an awful person and instead has doubled down on her hurtful and hateful views.

So, now that we know JKR's true colors, clearly the entire world of Harry Potter is suspect, as is anyone who continues to enjoy it....right? Sure, maybe not everyone who still rocks their House Pride merch is a TERF, but, like the sandwich-eaters of Chick-fil-A who just need their chicken fix, they certainly can't be counted as allies....right?

I've struggled with this.

And maybe this entire blog post will be read as nothing more than a selfish person defending their right to enjoy a thing guilt-free in order to conveniently overlook or dismiss the harm they're doing by persisting in centering their nostalgia over the real-life danger JKR's views presents to trans people. You can be the judge of that, I suppose.

My impulse since all of this has been to lean into "death of the author," an argument that says, essentially, it is not authorial intent that matters for meaning, but the text itself that is authoritative. In theory, the text can speak for itself, and the way readers engage with it and interpret it can stand in isolation from whatever meaning was meant by the author. (For an excellent video on this subject, click here, and here for a JKR-specific one). But I'd like to expand on that here, because 1) as the links above point out, engaging with the work of a living author still empowers them and gives them a platform and 2) is usually just an emotional response to silo oneself from the guilt of consuming the content of a problematic creator. In other words, it's a cop-out.

But I'm a sociologist. I'm currently an ABD Ph.D. student. I specialize in theory, gender, religion, and culture---the latter is just an elaborate system of signs and symbols that we are embedded in and have to make meaning out of. And meaning-making is a messy business. Interpretation is a vital and integral part of meaning-making. Messages aren't just handed down from the heavens and absorbed---social actors are actively engaged in the process of receiving them. Sometimes there are interferences, misunderstandings, and mixed signals that scramble the meaning. Intent does not equal impact, and so the messages we receive and understand do not always correspond to the meaning that was meant. (Again, not saying JKR is misunderstood or that we're misreading her intentions here---she's pretty unequivocally awful. But I am saying that in a world where meaning is what we make it, a trash person can still produce something of value, since beauty is in the eye of the beholder.)

Sometimes reading a meaning other than that which was meant into something can have humorous consequences. Sometimes the results are disastrous. Sometimes it means that we humans, as pattern-seeking creatures, see the face of Jesus on a slice of toast, or a baby-shaped cloud in the sky the same week we find out a loved one is pregnant. I think the fact that we can make meaning where there is none and make beauty out of nothing is spectacular, miraculous. In this age of disenchantment, many people are looking for ways to reconnect and reenchant their lives, to create sacred rituals out of their mundane routines. We are meaning-seeking creatures, and with many people feeling burned by, disillusioned with, or distrustful of traditional religion, we are turning to nontraditional sources of wisdom and inspiration. For literal millions of people, the Harry Potter books have been one such source. And I think there is value to them still, despite what has come to light about their author.

In college, I was heavily involved in interfaith activism. I no longer identify as Christian, but I was raised Christian. And I started to feel the parallels from my own experience.

If a person has been hurt by a Christian, feels Christianity is toxic, identifies passages in the Bible that have been used to oppress or were the product of a time that was openly endorsing of slavery, homophobia, misogyny, etc...their experience is valid. They have a right to say "Hey, I was raised with this thing and at one point it meant a lot to me (or maybe not, maybe it was always forced) but it hurt me and I no longer feel comfortable there and I choose not to engage with Christianity anymore." They have a right to be wary if they hear someone is Christian and they don't know anything else about that person.

But no religion is a monolith. The Bible is not a monolith. For every passage that may be hurtful or harmful or be interpreted in bad faith to support a particular agenda, there are dozens more about love, kindness, and compassion. Religion has been the driving force behind so many wars and evils...but it has inspired countless good as well. The Bible has been wielded as a weapon to cause suffering as well as been looked to as a resource of hope and peace.

I'm not saying that cancelling someone for resonating deeply with the Harry Potter series and not wanting to give it up because of what it means to them is like asking someone to not be a Christian or to give up their faith so as not to offend others. Of course, the comparison seems flippant. Religion is religion! We give it special legal protections because of its literally sacred status. It concerns matters of ultimate importance. The other is...fiction.

But what is sacred is a social construction. I'm going to bracket here any discussion about the existence or nonexistence of deities, an afterlife, and etc. What does religion actually do for people? What does it mean in the lives of the faithful? It is a source of comfort. Of hope. Of inspiration. Of answers. It can be a moral guide, with lessons and instruction and a guide for how to live that others can model their own lives on.

Casper ter Kuile, cofounder of the podcast Harry Potter and the Sacred Text, (check out their values statement if you want to know where they stand---spoiler alert, they're as progressive as it gets) would not find the comparison ridiculous. In fact, ter Kuile (who is, by the way, a gay man) founded the project with a fellow student while at Harvard Divinity School. In his book The Power of Ritual (2020) he talks about how the HP books have been a source of solace and inspiration and sacred reflection for him---and not just for him, but for thousands. Millions.

"Millions of readers already treated the Potter books as sacred in their own way. Therapists and counselors report young people using Hogwarts as their psychological safe space to go to in times of struggle and pain. And it isn't simply a refuge from the world. The Harry Potter Alliance, founded in 2005, has mobilized thousands around the country to act on marriage equality, fair-trade chocolate, and other progressive issues, using the narratives and rituals from the books to motivate and shape winning campaigns. Just as social justice movements have reinterpreted biblical narratives like the Exodus story and quoted the psalms, so too the Harry Potter Alliance references characters and plotlines from the wizarding world to motivate readers into action" (2020:44-45).

The HP books have helped people (and kids) cope with the loss of loved ones, understand privilege, learn that adults, authority figures, and even the government that makes the laws can lie and be corrupted and may not always have one's best interests at heart. That what is legal is not necessarily right or just. That evil doesn't just look like pale, snake-faced men who attempt to murder babies---sometimes it's enough for people in power to do nothing, to care more about maintaining their own relative privilege, power, and comfort. That often bullies lash out because they too have been hurt, and that hate can be easier to speak than love when it's all that you know...but that in the end, it is our choices that matter, not our abilities or the circumstances of our birth. The books have powerful messages, and they have nuance.

Take, for example, Petunia Dursley. As ter Kuile points out, universally disliked. But:

"As Vanessa and I reread that first chapter, we saw a young woman, unsupported in motherhood, suddenly given a second infant to care for after the death of her sister. Imposed on by a world she has always envied and feared, with no explanation, she feels vulnerable to a society that can only spell danger. No doubt, Petunia is abusive to Harry. She neglects him in the most foundational years of his life. But this sacred reading illustrated that narratives of good and evil nearly always are more complex when we risk our hearts to explore a sacred reading. It not only gave me a new lens for understanding a character, but it challenged me to realize I'd let the polarizing news narratives construct simplistic binaries of innocence and guilt" (2020:49).

The books aren't perfect. Even the messages JKR wrote into the books aren't all good, even if many are. Many people despise Dumbledore despite the twinkle in his eye and his many wise sayings for the way he used Harry like a pawn, like a tool---keeping him in the dark and just getting him to survive long enough to get him to die at the right time. By putting him in danger year after year, putting responsibility on his shoulders that no child should ever have to bear. For thinking that there would ever be an acceptable reason to leave him in the care of abusers, blood or no, magical love ward or no. And I love fanfiction because this messiness is explored and unpacked.

And yet, in canon, this jock who married his high school girlfriend and became a cop named his son after that guy and the incel who lusted after his mom man who tormented him and his schoolmates for years (I do love Snape as a literary character though, speaking of nuance...) instead of, oh, Remus, Rubeus, Arthur...y'know, any of the other men that were actually decent father figures to him in his life.

And yes, there are some heinous things in the book, like giving the Asian character the name Cho Chang and the Black man the name Shacklebolt. The antisemitism of the way goblins are portrayed: big-nosed, greedy, and money-hungry. And don't get me started on the fucking shofar. It has become trendy to shit on the books and other related IP, even to the point of ridiculousness. (Case in point: the uproar over the inclusion of a trans character in Hogwarts Legacy. And not from TERFs, but from the progressive community. At first I didn't understand---performative allyship? Surely her inclusion, and the ability to make trans characters in the character create, is better than the alternative, right? Apparently, it's her name that's the issue: Sirona Ryan. I had to actually look up why people were mad because again, I didn't get it. Evidently, people took issue with the "Sir" and the "Ryan," arguing that two such masculine-sounding elements on a trans woman's name was the equivalent of naming her "Penis McMan." Yes, really. Guess we better tell Serena Williams she's canceled too for perpetuating the "Black women athletes are too muscular and masculinized" stereotype). Anyway, it's been a dogpile lately to point out the plot holes and the poor world-building. And I admit, fanfiction authors often wield some amazing transformative alchemy, building on some of the half-assed parts of the lore and magic system and turning it into something far superior to what is canon. Nevertheless, it is reductive and revisionist history to portray the books as something other than the international bestsellers that they are. They are not the most amazing, brilliant things ever written, and yes, there are series out there that deserve the fame and attention and accolades that the Harry Potter series got. But nor are the HP books terrible derivative drivel that suddenly everyone wants to portray them as. In reality, they're a mixed bag.

What they undeniably are is important to people.

People read sacred texts because:

"the thousands of years in which generations have engaged these texts is something we need to pay attention to; and that we can step into a continuous stream of conversation between the text and human beings that has lasted centuries" (The Power of Ritual 2020:38).

There are nuggets of wisdom and timeless truths to be found, even in fiction. There is nostalgia for those of us who literally grew up with these characters, being of a similar age to Harry, Ron, and Hermione as we first read the books. The HP series is fairly unique in being both culturally relevant---a pop culture touchstone (I can't recall ever attending themed midnight release parties at a bookstore for any other series)---and possessing of longevity. The HP generation is passing the books along to their kids now. It connects generations in a way not many other franchises do. Star Wars and Lord of the Rings are the only other ones that come to my mind at the moment.

JKR is a TERF (which is not a slur, incidentally). Unapologetic. An awful person, certainly.

But I've seen people call her evil.

We can debate the meaning of the term, certainly. Evil itself is not black and white---her own books taught me that. If someone is evil, can anything they produce contain some good? Or is it irreparably tainted? Can someone be evil and still donate millions of pounds to charities for the homeless and victims of domestic violence? Could an evil person be capable of writing such emotionally deep and nuanced characters?

I think we are all capable of great evil and great good. Again, I'm not advocating for forgiveness or redemption here---she's done nothing to earn such goodwill. I don't support her.

But I think there are ethical ways to continue to engage in and enjoy the franchise. Don't buy officially licensed merch---but the fan-made stuff on Etsy labeled "Red House" or "Magical School Badger House" I find fair game. Buy your copy of Hogwarts Legacy used, or borrow from a friend. (Personally, I'm pessimistic enough to think that there's nothing I personally can or can't do that will financially impact her in any meaningful way...throwing away all my HP merch and not buying the $7 Slytherin slipper socks at BoxLunch isn't going to make a dent. It's up to the major companies and corporations that have partnered with her in the past to license Harry Potter-themed merch to roll back their association, and for production studios and actors to refuse to associate with the franchise. That's what she'll notice and care about. But I digress.)

On a personal level, I find deep psychological satisfaction from identifying as a Slytherin. (I'm also that bitch who is way too into her MBTI archetype and knows her rising sign and other obscure details of her natal chart, so sue me.) Just the other day, I got into an argument with my partner, who accused me of employing leading questions to get information about his mental state and plans for the day---he prefers directness, I find subtlety to be much more polite. We speak different languages. That's not the point. The point is, he felt manipulated, and even though he knows me well enough to know it wasn't out of any malicious intent, it felt slimy to him. From my perspective, my approach comes from a history of emotional abuse from my father, who has Borderline Personality Disorder and a host of other mental illnesses I inherited (yay, trauma!) In other words, it's a survival tactic. (Self-preservation: also a Slytherin trait.) I had to learn to prioritize myself from a very young age to avoid being taken advantage of. To some, that may sound selfish. For me, it was survival. And the word "manipulation" gets a bad rap, but it literally means "to handle or control (a tool, mechanism, etc.), typically in a skillful manner." That isn't necessarily sinister or done with bad intentions. It's strategic. It's smart. It's what emotionally aware humans have evolved to do as social animals. We don't talk about manipulating tools as shady behavior. It's an asset, this ability.

Maybe that's my ambition speaking. But I wouldn't be where I am today---working hard to earn my Ph.D., having already earned a Master's Degree from a highly prestigious institution, having graduated summa cum laude with research honors at my previous university---without ambition. But I do understand that people distrust sly, slippery, cunning people. But Coyote is a culture hero, I don't abide by the maligning of snakes and serpents, and I'm a Prometheus/Lucifer apologist. People may not find their methods entirely honorable, but you can't argue with the results being for the greatest good. Those cunning folk use any means to achieve their ends. It all fits, and it's a label that allows me to understand myself and my motivations and priorities better.

If you've been hurt and betrayed by JKR and can no longer find solace in a world that was once a source of comfort for you, I grieve that with you. I understand, and I'm sorry. No one should be forced to engage with something they find tainted and harmful, and everyone must draw that line for themselves. But I think there are ethical ways to continue to enjoy and engage with a franchise that has been a source of joy and inspiration for so many, including those within the LGB+TGNC community. The text even lends itself to queer, subversive, progressive, and action-oriented readings, which is the sweetest form of reclaiming and empowerment, and which the queer community has a long history of---appropriating the hurtful and harmful and transforming it into something playful and prideful. Queer folx are the original alchemists.

It's an egregore now, especially the fanon version of the Wizarding World. It's the collective product of millions of people loving and investing in these characters and their world. It has taken on a life of its own, independent of its creator. And like Lucifer, like humankind, it can defy the will and designs of its master and break away. It's expanded beyond her. She may have built the framework of the house, but we grew up there. We furnished it. And we can return to move things around and play in it from time to time. Some of us never left. I won't give that up because I've been made to feel I have to.

Oh, and that Harry Potter themed party? It was held at a business that is an unofficial hub for the local queer community. A portion of the proceeds went to a local LGBTQ charity, and there were several trans people in attendance. And we all had a fabulous time.