donnaimmaculata (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
donnaimmaculata) wrote2004-07-11 11:40 pm
donnaimmaculata) wrote2004-07-11 11:40 pm
How harmonious a group were MWPP?
Man in the Mirror, the fic I wrote for the ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
mwppfqf, is based on an interpretation of MWPP as a group which had to fight more internal difficulties than generally assumed. Regardless whether one likes them and writes fun-oriented MWPP stories or whether one likes Snape and writes stories where MWPP gang rape all that moves, they are most often portrayed as a closed group. I think that from all we know about them, MWPP can be also interpreted in quite a different way.
While I am not as large a fan of MWPP as some people, I do read the occasional MWPP fic, mostly if in need of fun and fluff (the good sort of fluff, not the soppy one) in combination with some hot Sirius/Remus action. Most MWPP authors (at least all of those I read) portray Sirius, Remus, James and Peter as a closely knitted group of friends, who share secrets, beds and chocolate. While not necessarily equals (Sirius and James the trouble-making ring leaders, Remus the voice of reason, Peter the good and, most often, funny friend), they are all valuable and important members of the group. As I prefer Sirius/Remus centred fics, there is always the subtle shift of focus, from the close friendship bond between Sirius and James to the close not-merely-friendship between Sirius and Remus. I'm sure you all know what sort of MWPP stories I mean.
I have, however, begun to entertain the idea that MWPP, as a group, could have been highly dysfunctional, based on the personalities and personal histories of the members. I assume that they all shared the same dormitory at Hogwarts and that there was only the four of them in the dormitory. With James and Sirius being close friends, either since before Hogwarts, which is well possible if James came from a pure-blood family, or since their early days at school, this leaves Peter and Remus at the fringes of the group. Remus, however, is the one who eventually brought them together when his secret was revealed. I imagine James and Sirius being thrilled by the idea of having a werewolf friend. This still leaves Peter out. But it was probably safer to include Peter as part of the group and make him a co-conspirator than try to hide a secret of such proportions for the years to come. These are merely assumptions, of course, but since we don't know anything about how the friendship between the boys developed, these assumptions are as valid as any others.
Regardless on whether or not this scenario is true, the fact remains that James and Sirius were the core of the group, and Remus' being a werewolf was a major foundation of many of the group's activities. Their becoming Animagi made them, quite literarily, partners in crime. The creation of the Marauder's Map was only accomplished because they were Animagi. ("... well, highly exciting possibilities were open to us now that we could all transform. Soon we were leaving the Shrieking Shack and roaming the school grounds and the village by night. (...) And that's how we came to write the Marauder's Map, and sign it with our nicknames." Remus in PoA) Plus - on a side note - Peter would not have been able to fake his own death quite so successfully had it not been for the fact that he could turn into a rat. And Sirius would not have escaped Azkaban. It all comes down to Remus in the end! While I embrace all fics that show how close they were as boys, I also think that the flashback scene in OotP in particular opens the way to an entirely different interpretation. (Even though I am convinced, for reasons stated here, that the Pensieve is not an objective device and that what we saw in that scene is strongly tinted by Severus' personal feelings. But as I am not trying to evaluate MWPP with regard to Severus at this point, the Pensieve scene serves as means to analyse MWPP as a cohesive group.)
We don't know much about James, apart from his being talented, popular and arrogant. I assume that he was just a normal boy who happened to be carried away by his own cleverness and outgrew it when he got older. I know that there are those who think James was a borderline psychopath, and I don't want to question this point of view as it is based on experiences which differ from mine. I knew boys like James, and none of them grew up to be a psychopath or a sociopath. His attitude was, nevertheless, painfully arrogant, not merely towards Severus and other victims whom he used to hex in the corridors, but also towards Peter. "'How thick are you, Wormtail?' said James impatiently. 'You run with a werewolf once a month-'" In spite of (or maybe because of) Peters openly displayed admiration, James did not value Peter as a friend, as an equal. He liked Peter to provide the applause. Not a nice attitude, but not an unusual one. From what I know of him James was the most 'normal' one of the lot.
Sirius is a different matter. A concept which is also strongly supported by everything that we learn about him as an adult. Sirius was talented, probably popular (I'm not sure whether we ever hear anyone say that he was) and arrogant, but he had also a highly violent streak which James, apparently, lacked: He sent Snape after Remus, for reasons unknown, apart from what he said himself: "Sneaking around, trying to find out what we were up to ... hoping to get us expelled ..." (PoA). We might find out more about his motives, but so far they're not very satisfying. Sirius wanted to protect his friends from external danger and he didn't care much about the method. I want by no means justify what he did, but I want to point out that Sirius' behaviour indicates that he suffered from depressions already as teenager. From all that I know, adolescents suffering from depressions show any of the following symptoms: apathy, timidity and overly aggressive behaviour. While the first two don't apply (apathy might, to a certain degree), Sirius' willingness to hurt Severus - an act which Severus' 'main' adversary, James, didn't sanction - showed a capacity for violence which lies over the average. It also goes well with all that we know about Sirius as an adult (slashing the Fat Lady's portrait, his deranged behaviour in the Shrieking Shack...) as well as with all that we know about his upbringing. (On another side note: I feel that if I forgive Severus much of his behaviour towards his students (Harry, Neville, Hermione...) (not to mention his joining the Death Eaters) on account of his having been the victim of violence at school, I think it's only fair to forgive Sirius much of his behaviour towards fellow students on account of his growing up in a family who hated him.) In the flashback scene in OotP, we see Sirius being overly boisterous, bored and aggressive within a short space of time, which also supports the depressions theory.
I don't think that anyone really doubts that Sirius was not the easiest person to have around. While he was keen on protecting his friends from external influences, he wasn't really aware of what they wanted, and, first and foremost, he didn't care much about hurting them himself. "Put that away, will you, (...) before Wormtail here wets himself." Had Snape, or any other outsider said this, Sirius would have been after his blood. Not necessarily because he cared much about Peter's feelings, but because Peter was part of his group and as such taboo for external aggressors. I am tempted to say that he also disregarded Remus' feelings when saying, "I'm bored. (...) Wish it was full moon," because while full moon for him meant fun and adventure, for Remus it has never been an entirely pleasant experience. But seeing as Remus himself says in PoA that the company of the other three made his transformations "not only bearable but the best times of [his] life," I will let it pass.
In conclusion: Sirius was loyal to and protective of his friends when it came to external influences, but he was not necessarily very loyal and very protective within the group. (Or rather, he was loyal to James, but not to the others.) In a way, his behaviour very much equals Severus'-as-an-adult, who saves Harry's life time and again from external danger, but who is a nasty bastard in personal interactions.
Peter is a difficult character. Much has been said on Peter's not being a pathetic loser at all, and I wholeheartedly agree. Peter was cleverer and more capable than his friends, his teachers, and most readers give his credit for. (As recently discussed on a thread in![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
pauraque's LJ here.) But the fact remains that his friends didn't value him particularly highly. Peter's problem was, basically, his lack of self-confidence, especially when contrasted against his more dashing, cleverer friends. This lead to his being overlooked by teachers, disregarded by James and Sirius (and, possibly, Remus) and, in final consequence, his turning to Voldemort, because he felt he needed the protection of someone much stronger and more capable than himself. Had he experienced more support on his friends/teachers part, he might have realised that he was fully capable of taking care of himself. As it was, his abilities have always been underestimated and undervalued, by others and by himself. From Peter's point of view, his friendship with Sirius and James in particular was not beneficial at all. I don't know to which extent he really admired James, but it is well possible that he exaggerated the degree of admiration in the hope that James (and Sirius) would like him better and take him more seriously as a friend.
Now to Remus. Remus is the character I identify myself most strongly with, because I show similar behaviour patterns and am generally put into the same category (i.e. the calm, quiet, reasonable one who is trusted to exercise control over the peer group). I thus imagine that I understand how this character works. For the sake of this theory, I assume that Remus was sort of dragged into the friendship by Sirius and James, and that he followed most willingly, because he has never had friends before and the feeling was exhilarating. Over the years, they found out about his secret and, by keeping silent on the matter, gave him freedom on the one hand, but imprisoned him on the other hand. Freedom is obvious: Remus didn't have to hide and sneak around and tell lies about sick relatives. Within his dormitory, in the Shrieking Shack and on their various adventures, he was free. But he was free only as long as it was only the four of them together. With possible witnesses around, there was always a considerable risk of disclosure. "'How thick are you, Wormtail? (...) You run round with a werewolf once a month-' - 'Keep your voice down,' implored Lupin." While some people read this scene as a friendly banter among good mates, I read it as Remus begging James to not reveal his secret . (Definition of "implore" - "to entreat; to beg; to pray," according to Webster's Dictionary.)
Remus lived in constant fear that his big-mouth friends would disclose his secret, not out of spite or because they wanted to get him in trouble, but because they thought it was funny and it was clever and it was a deliciously thrilling risk. How far can we go this time? How many werewolf jokes can we make? The others are all so stupid, they will never find out. Etc. I had such friends - even though not such a secret - and I know that I would cringe sometimes lest they should say something in public which was supposed to be strictly confidential. At the same time, he had to exercise control over them, while fully aware that it a) was futile and b) would additionally provoke Sirius and James.
So while I think that MWPP functioned well as a group in the eyes of others, they weren't necessarily such an inherently harmonious group as one could wish. Sirius and Remus' reminiscence in OotP when confronted by Harry shows that they have fond memories of that time, but since one of them has just spent 12 years in a soul-killing prison and the other never had friends before school and has been "shunned all [his] adult life, unable to find paid work" (Remus in PoA), I don't think they are entirely objective and the memories of their school years are probably the best ones they've got in any case.
An additional aspect includes the external circumstances: It has been stated several times throughout the series that "Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great," (Dumbledore's speech, GoF). It is also stated that during that time, no-one knew friend from foe and that people distrusted each other. Sirius, James, Remus and Peter were at school at precisely that time, and I thinks it's reasonable to assume that, considering everything, they had to face similar trust issues and suspensions of friendship like Harry, Ron and Hermione did in PoA (Crookshanks vs. Scabbers) and GoF (Ron vs. Harry).
I still like them. And I'd shag haughtily-bored-yet-handsome Sirius anytime.
mwppfqf, is based on an interpretation of MWPP as a group which had to fight more internal difficulties than generally assumed. Regardless whether one likes them and writes fun-oriented MWPP stories or whether one likes Snape and writes stories where MWPP gang rape all that moves, they are most often portrayed as a closed group. I think that from all we know about them, MWPP can be also interpreted in quite a different way. While I am not as large a fan of MWPP as some people, I do read the occasional MWPP fic, mostly if in need of fun and fluff (the good sort of fluff, not the soppy one) in combination with some hot Sirius/Remus action. Most MWPP authors (at least all of those I read) portray Sirius, Remus, James and Peter as a closely knitted group of friends, who share secrets, beds and chocolate. While not necessarily equals (Sirius and James the trouble-making ring leaders, Remus the voice of reason, Peter the good and, most often, funny friend), they are all valuable and important members of the group. As I prefer Sirius/Remus centred fics, there is always the subtle shift of focus, from the close friendship bond between Sirius and James to the close not-merely-friendship between Sirius and Remus. I'm sure you all know what sort of MWPP stories I mean.
I have, however, begun to entertain the idea that MWPP, as a group, could have been highly dysfunctional, based on the personalities and personal histories of the members. I assume that they all shared the same dormitory at Hogwarts and that there was only the four of them in the dormitory. With James and Sirius being close friends, either since before Hogwarts, which is well possible if James came from a pure-blood family, or since their early days at school, this leaves Peter and Remus at the fringes of the group. Remus, however, is the one who eventually brought them together when his secret was revealed. I imagine James and Sirius being thrilled by the idea of having a werewolf friend. This still leaves Peter out. But it was probably safer to include Peter as part of the group and make him a co-conspirator than try to hide a secret of such proportions for the years to come. These are merely assumptions, of course, but since we don't know anything about how the friendship between the boys developed, these assumptions are as valid as any others.
Regardless on whether or not this scenario is true, the fact remains that James and Sirius were the core of the group, and Remus' being a werewolf was a major foundation of many of the group's activities. Their becoming Animagi made them, quite literarily, partners in crime. The creation of the Marauder's Map was only accomplished because they were Animagi. ("... well, highly exciting possibilities were open to us now that we could all transform. Soon we were leaving the Shrieking Shack and roaming the school grounds and the village by night. (...) And that's how we came to write the Marauder's Map, and sign it with our nicknames." Remus in PoA) Plus - on a side note - Peter would not have been able to fake his own death quite so successfully had it not been for the fact that he could turn into a rat. And Sirius would not have escaped Azkaban. It all comes down to Remus in the end! While I embrace all fics that show how close they were as boys, I also think that the flashback scene in OotP in particular opens the way to an entirely different interpretation. (Even though I am convinced, for reasons stated here, that the Pensieve is not an objective device and that what we saw in that scene is strongly tinted by Severus' personal feelings. But as I am not trying to evaluate MWPP with regard to Severus at this point, the Pensieve scene serves as means to analyse MWPP as a cohesive group.)
We don't know much about James, apart from his being talented, popular and arrogant. I assume that he was just a normal boy who happened to be carried away by his own cleverness and outgrew it when he got older. I know that there are those who think James was a borderline psychopath, and I don't want to question this point of view as it is based on experiences which differ from mine. I knew boys like James, and none of them grew up to be a psychopath or a sociopath. His attitude was, nevertheless, painfully arrogant, not merely towards Severus and other victims whom he used to hex in the corridors, but also towards Peter. "'How thick are you, Wormtail?' said James impatiently. 'You run with a werewolf once a month-'" In spite of (or maybe because of) Peters openly displayed admiration, James did not value Peter as a friend, as an equal. He liked Peter to provide the applause. Not a nice attitude, but not an unusual one. From what I know of him James was the most 'normal' one of the lot.
Sirius is a different matter. A concept which is also strongly supported by everything that we learn about him as an adult. Sirius was talented, probably popular (I'm not sure whether we ever hear anyone say that he was) and arrogant, but he had also a highly violent streak which James, apparently, lacked: He sent Snape after Remus, for reasons unknown, apart from what he said himself: "Sneaking around, trying to find out what we were up to ... hoping to get us expelled ..." (PoA). We might find out more about his motives, but so far they're not very satisfying. Sirius wanted to protect his friends from external danger and he didn't care much about the method. I want by no means justify what he did, but I want to point out that Sirius' behaviour indicates that he suffered from depressions already as teenager. From all that I know, adolescents suffering from depressions show any of the following symptoms: apathy, timidity and overly aggressive behaviour. While the first two don't apply (apathy might, to a certain degree), Sirius' willingness to hurt Severus - an act which Severus' 'main' adversary, James, didn't sanction - showed a capacity for violence which lies over the average. It also goes well with all that we know about Sirius as an adult (slashing the Fat Lady's portrait, his deranged behaviour in the Shrieking Shack...) as well as with all that we know about his upbringing. (On another side note: I feel that if I forgive Severus much of his behaviour towards his students (Harry, Neville, Hermione...) (not to mention his joining the Death Eaters) on account of his having been the victim of violence at school, I think it's only fair to forgive Sirius much of his behaviour towards fellow students on account of his growing up in a family who hated him.) In the flashback scene in OotP, we see Sirius being overly boisterous, bored and aggressive within a short space of time, which also supports the depressions theory.
I don't think that anyone really doubts that Sirius was not the easiest person to have around. While he was keen on protecting his friends from external influences, he wasn't really aware of what they wanted, and, first and foremost, he didn't care much about hurting them himself. "Put that away, will you, (...) before Wormtail here wets himself." Had Snape, or any other outsider said this, Sirius would have been after his blood. Not necessarily because he cared much about Peter's feelings, but because Peter was part of his group and as such taboo for external aggressors. I am tempted to say that he also disregarded Remus' feelings when saying, "I'm bored. (...) Wish it was full moon," because while full moon for him meant fun and adventure, for Remus it has never been an entirely pleasant experience. But seeing as Remus himself says in PoA that the company of the other three made his transformations "not only bearable but the best times of [his] life," I will let it pass.
In conclusion: Sirius was loyal to and protective of his friends when it came to external influences, but he was not necessarily very loyal and very protective within the group. (Or rather, he was loyal to James, but not to the others.) In a way, his behaviour very much equals Severus'-as-an-adult, who saves Harry's life time and again from external danger, but who is a nasty bastard in personal interactions.
Peter is a difficult character. Much has been said on Peter's not being a pathetic loser at all, and I wholeheartedly agree. Peter was cleverer and more capable than his friends, his teachers, and most readers give his credit for. (As recently discussed on a thread in
pauraque's LJ here.) But the fact remains that his friends didn't value him particularly highly. Peter's problem was, basically, his lack of self-confidence, especially when contrasted against his more dashing, cleverer friends. This lead to his being overlooked by teachers, disregarded by James and Sirius (and, possibly, Remus) and, in final consequence, his turning to Voldemort, because he felt he needed the protection of someone much stronger and more capable than himself. Had he experienced more support on his friends/teachers part, he might have realised that he was fully capable of taking care of himself. As it was, his abilities have always been underestimated and undervalued, by others and by himself. From Peter's point of view, his friendship with Sirius and James in particular was not beneficial at all. I don't know to which extent he really admired James, but it is well possible that he exaggerated the degree of admiration in the hope that James (and Sirius) would like him better and take him more seriously as a friend. Now to Remus. Remus is the character I identify myself most strongly with, because I show similar behaviour patterns and am generally put into the same category (i.e. the calm, quiet, reasonable one who is trusted to exercise control over the peer group). I thus imagine that I understand how this character works. For the sake of this theory, I assume that Remus was sort of dragged into the friendship by Sirius and James, and that he followed most willingly, because he has never had friends before and the feeling was exhilarating. Over the years, they found out about his secret and, by keeping silent on the matter, gave him freedom on the one hand, but imprisoned him on the other hand. Freedom is obvious: Remus didn't have to hide and sneak around and tell lies about sick relatives. Within his dormitory, in the Shrieking Shack and on their various adventures, he was free. But he was free only as long as it was only the four of them together. With possible witnesses around, there was always a considerable risk of disclosure. "'How thick are you, Wormtail? (...) You run round with a werewolf once a month-' - 'Keep your voice down,' implored Lupin." While some people read this scene as a friendly banter among good mates, I read it as Remus begging James to not reveal his secret . (Definition of "implore" - "to entreat; to beg; to pray," according to Webster's Dictionary.)
Remus lived in constant fear that his big-mouth friends would disclose his secret, not out of spite or because they wanted to get him in trouble, but because they thought it was funny and it was clever and it was a deliciously thrilling risk. How far can we go this time? How many werewolf jokes can we make? The others are all so stupid, they will never find out. Etc. I had such friends - even though not such a secret - and I know that I would cringe sometimes lest they should say something in public which was supposed to be strictly confidential. At the same time, he had to exercise control over them, while fully aware that it a) was futile and b) would additionally provoke Sirius and James.
So while I think that MWPP functioned well as a group in the eyes of others, they weren't necessarily such an inherently harmonious group as one could wish. Sirius and Remus' reminiscence in OotP when confronted by Harry shows that they have fond memories of that time, but since one of them has just spent 12 years in a soul-killing prison and the other never had friends before school and has been "shunned all [his] adult life, unable to find paid work" (Remus in PoA), I don't think they are entirely objective and the memories of their school years are probably the best ones they've got in any case.
An additional aspect includes the external circumstances: It has been stated several times throughout the series that "Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and enmity is very great," (Dumbledore's speech, GoF). It is also stated that during that time, no-one knew friend from foe and that people distrusted each other. Sirius, James, Remus and Peter were at school at precisely that time, and I thinks it's reasonable to assume that, considering everything, they had to face similar trust issues and suspensions of friendship like Harry, Ron and Hermione did in PoA (Crookshanks vs. Scabbers) and GoF (Ron vs. Harry).
I still like them. And I'd shag haughtily-bored-yet-handsome Sirius anytime.
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