hardink

@violet-knox Wait is this an actual scene? Like did this happen in the books?

Yup it is and omg! This illustration is gorgeous! You’ve outdone yourself OP 😍

I honestly do have mixed feelings about this scene. On one hand, I appreciate the fact that it acknowledges people don’t necessarily have to fit into just one house. I especially love this since I personally don’t identify with just one house nor have I been consistently sorted into a singular house. I think Snape is a great example of this as well and it’s one of the reasons why I like him so much. He’s cunning, brave, loyal and so knowledgeable. He displays qualities from every house in such a complimentary fashion and I truly believe that if he lacked just one of these qualities, he wouldn’t have been able to successfully spy for Dumbledore in such a way that would help take down Voldemort. 

But in the context of this scene, I feel like what Dumbledore says is a complete insult to Snape and Slytherins in general, implying he would have been better off as a Gryffindor. It’s a bit disappointing mostly because this line comes from Dumbledore himself, the headmaster of Hogwarts and mentor to many. The series is told from the point of view of Harry and since the very beginning, the general theme of Slytherin being “the bad house” is pretty prominent. This isn’t too surprising though since his first perspective of Slytherin came from his first interaction with Draco in Diagon Alley and then later his conversation with Ron. Since he was an eleven year old child who knew nothing about the Wizarding world, it’s to be expected that he take the word of those who’ve been living in it their entire lives. He does however seem to let go of this negative view of Slytherins in the last book which shows an ability to change his perspective when he’s shown that not all Slytherins are cut from the same loaf of bread (unlike some characters🙄). 

It is still interesting to note the fact that Harry described Snape as “the bravest man he’d ever known” like Dumbledore had insinuated in this scene. Yes he was brave, but personally I believe his cunning personality and his absolute loyalty was what ultimately allowed him to play such a vital part in Voldemort’s down fall and it’s disappointing to see Harry place these qualities aside and present him as a Gryffindor instead which once again plays into the ideology of Gryffindor = good and Slytherin = bad. It’s interesting because once again with this line, we’re presented with a double sided coin. On one side, we’re being told that there’s nothing wrong with being a Slytherin and that your personality doesn’t have to fit within one house, but on the other side, we’re presented with the notion that bravery is the most admirable quality a person can have and thus being sorted into Gryffindor carries the greatest honour. 

tl;dr All house qualities should be valued equally and screw Dumbledore.