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The Harry Potter series may have ended almost a decade ago but they very much remain a pop-culture staple. Identifying with a Hogwarts house has become almost as commonplace as knowing one’s astrological sign. And just like with astrology, each house has some stereotypes associated with those that are sorted into them. Out of the four Hogwarts houses, Slytherin is most associated with negative traits and is widely regarded as evil. There’s definitely some truth in this assertion, but there are also a host of characters that prove Slytherin isn’t nearly as one-dimensional as it’s made out to be. Here are six such characters.
Regulus Arcturus Black
The lesser-known brother of Sirius Black may have embodied the worst parts of Slytherin in his youth, but his redemption revealed a soul as pure as any other. Regulus couldn’t help his upbringing. As a child, he swallowed his parents’ teachings about pure-blood superiority wholly and enlisted with the Death Eaters at the age of 16. As he matured and learned what the Death Eaters truly stood for, however, he defected from their ranks.
From the inside, Regulus quickly realized what a twisted organization it was but the final straw was Voldemort’s callousness towards his beloved house-elf, Kreacher. When he left the Death Eaters, Regulus stole one of Voldemort’s Horcruxes and tasked Kreacher with destroying it in his dying moments. He may not have had the most wholesome origin but his genuine compassion for house-elves, who many wizards regarded as lesser beings, proved Regulus was a kind man.
Narcissa Malfoy
Narcissa Malfoy may have not been a Death Eater herself, but she still quietly supported what they stood for. Since she was born into the Black family and married Lucius Malfoy, an active Death Eater, she didn’t seem to have much say in the matter. Voldemort’s reign never affected her personally so she was quite content to keep her head down and live as quiet a life as she could manage.
When Voldemort rose for the second time, her situation completely changed. To evade arrest when he disappeared, the Malfoys denied all involvement with Voldemort or his Death Eaters. Voldemort didn’t take too kindly to any form of treason and the Malfoys lost all the good standing they had with him previously. She and her family were treated as second class among the Death Eaters and ultimately, that led to Narcissa betraying Voldemort. When Voldemort asked her to confirm Harry Potter’s death, she lied, allowing Harry the element of surprise that lead to his victory in their final duel.
Horace Slughorn
One of the defining traits of Slytherin house is ambition and no character embodies this better than Horace Slughorn. Formerly a Potions Master at Hogwarts, Slughorn created a social club during his time there. “The Slug Club” may have been created for selfish reasons, but it allowed several bright Hogwarts students to network and form connections that would aid their future careers. Having such influential wizards indebted to him didn’t hurt Slughorn one bit either.
Though Slughorn was the one who explained Horcruxes to Tom Riddle, it wasn’t done with any intention to motivate the young man towards creating them. He was filled with so much shame from that incident that he altered his memories of it before sharing them with Dumbledore to save face. In the end, Slughorn divulged the truth when he learned how important it was going to be in the fight against Voldemort. He stayed loyal to the side of good despite increasing pressure from Death Eaters and fought bravely during the Battle of Hogwarts. Slughorn was truly an admirable Slytherin Head of House.
Andromeda Tonks
Andromeda Tonks was another character who proved that one didn’t have to be beholden to their lineage. Born a member of the pure-blood Black family, Andromeda never bought into their blood supremacist ideals. After graduating from Hogwarts, Andromeda fell in love with and married a Muggle-born wizard, Ted Tonks. Her decision to follow her heart led to her being excommunicated by her mother and removed from the Black family tree.
Andromeda never once had second thoughts about her decision. Rather, she was emboldened to fight against the ideals that Voldemort championed and her family supported. She was not an official member of the Order of the Phoenix, but she supported them however she could, even once availing her’s and Ted’s home to the anti-Voldemort group. Despite her best attempts to distance herself from the rest of the Black family, she couldn’t hide her resemblance to Bellatrix and was often mistaken for her Death Eater sister.
Merlin
Arguably one of Slytherin House’s most famous wizards, Merlin was also one of England’s greatest wizards. His school days overlapped with Salazar Slytherin’s time at Hogwarts so he may have been taught by the founder himself. However, his views regarding Muggles were quite different from Slytherin’s.
He formed an organization known as the Order of Merlin, which aimed to protect Muggles from mischievous wizards by promoting Muggle rights and creating rules of engagement for wizards that lived among them. After Merlin’s death, the Order of Merlin was changed to an award given to witches and wizards who had performed a heroic deed or contributed significantly to wizarding society.
Severus Snape
Severus Snape is proof that one can be a completely unpleasant human being without being evil. From bullying literal children to favoring his house over all others, Snape’s behavior as a teacher was far from fair, and yet Voldemort would not have fallen without his help.
Snape joined the Death Eaters of his own accord and participated in their activities willingly until he realized Lily Potter, the object of his affection, had become one of Voldemort’s targets. When Voldemort murdered her, Snape defected and began passing sensitive information about The Dark Lord to Dumbledore. When Voldemort rose for the second time, Snape reprised his role as a double agent and was a central part of Dumbledore’s plan to keep the Elder Wand from falling into Voldemort’s hands.
As a way of honoring Lily’s memory, Snape silently protected Harry Potter during his time at Hogwarts and beyond. He prevented Harry from falling to his death during his first Quidditch match and delivered the Sword of Gryffindor to him in the Forest of Dean. His hatred of James Potter wouldn’t allow him to whole-heartedly embrace Harry, but Snape was never one for befriending students anyway.
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